Mr Wilbur, who has more than 30 years’ experience in the timber industry, will oversee the day-to-day management of the mill which was recently acquired from RF Giddings. He was previously based at BSW’s Fort William site.

“Francis takes up the post of mill manager at a significant time as we look to integrate our newly acquired Southampton mill into our existing UK mill network,” said chief executive Tony Hackney.

BSW plans to double sawn capacity at the Southampton mill to over 60,000m3 over the next 12 months by introducing additional shifts. It will also create 10 jobs at the site.