Step up for a show of unity

Called Endless Stair, it really is a fascinating creation which was in part inspired by those optical illusion pictures of stairs which draw the eye around, but leave you unsure whether you're heading up or down.

That is a feeling that backers of Timber Expo must have had when the show began two years ago. Launching a brand new exhibition in the teeth of recession was a gamble, so inevitably there were doubters and gainsayers and a degree of fence-sitting on the part of some companies which declined to take part until it proved a success.

Two years on, however, with this year's show opening in a couple of weeks, a success is exactly what it has proved and there can be little doubt that its trajectory is upward.

The event started with something over 100 exhibitors and 4,000 visitors. Both attendance and stand numbers rose in 2012, and this year 175 companies are exhibiting and the audience is forecast to be bigger and broader still.

For 2013, of course, Timber Expo took the bold decision to relocate from the Coventry Ricoh Arena to the Birmingham NEC - a move which may already have paid off, thanks to the proximity of the international airport, in an increased overseas presence at the show. There are more national group stands this year and one well-known overseas supplier, Vandecasteele of Belgium, is sponsoring the popular Buyers & Specifiers Forum.

Where Timber Expo is also proving its point is in bringing all the industry under one roof; enabling it to present a unified face and show the full breadth of its market offer. Exhibitors cover the spectrum of timber and associated products and the presentations and seminars organised by TRADA and BM TRADA offer something for every timber market audience; from architects and builders, to manufacturers and shopfitters.

The exhibition also draws together key industry organisations. In fact, this year several will be present under the banner of the Timber Accord, the grouping they formed to increase pan-industry co-operation.

Further underlining its growing status as an industry hub, Timber Expo will also be the venue for the launch of the Structural Timber Association - the former UK Timber Frame Association reinvented with a broader remit.

In addition, there will be an impressive display on the shortlisted structural, furniture and design projects for the 2013 Wood Awards. There will be a link to the TTJ Awards too, which take place this coming Thursday at The Savoy in London. The shortlisted entrants for the TTJ Timber Innovation Award, which is sponsored by TRADA and Timber Expo, will give in-depth presentations on their projects and products at the show.

There will also be a link to the Endless Stair, with AHEC giving out leaflets on it from the Wood Awards stand. Undoubtedly, though, it will be worth seeing the dramatic structure first hand in London as well. Visitors will not only be able to walk around and under it, but, best of all, climb up it. The performance of the timber will no doubt impress and the outlook will be great. Comments that look equally likely to apply to Timber Expo 2013.