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The latest results for Scottish Woodlands Ltd show another successful and profitable year, with an increasing headcount and continued focus on graduate recruitment. Source: Timberbiz The company, 80%-owned by its employees, reported turnover of £111.6 million in the year to 30 September 2023, with operating profits remaining strong at £4.61 million. Scottish Woodlands Ltd is involved in the creation of around one-third of all new woodland in Scotland. Staff numbers have increased to more than 250, and six more recruits will join its Graduate Development Programme in 2024. Reflecting on the latest results, Managing Director Ian Robinson said: “The timber market, especially the demand for sawn logs, remained challenging – but all other areas of the business were strong. “Scottish Woodlands Ltd continues to be healthy, vibrant and adaptable to changing market conditions. The growing recognition of the significant environmental benefits of forestry has led to the creation of our five-strong carbon team over the last three years, with an increasing focus on peatland restoration.” He added: “The company expects to plant more than 3,000 hectares of new woodlands in Scotland in 2024 and we see a positive overall outlook with opportunities for continued business growth across the UK. Scottish Woodlands Ltd continues to invest in new staff and training programmes, as well as industry-leading equipment and technology.” “Our focus remains very clear: providing excellent service to our clients and great opportunities for our people to thrive in this vibrant industry.” Since the end of its financial year last September, Scottish Woodlands Ltd has bolstered its management structure to reflect the growth of the business with the appointment of 5 regional managers. It has also grown its carbon team, led by Carbon Manager Emma Kerr and now including Erin Stoll as Peatland Project Manager – the first appointment of its type by a mainstream forestry business. The report accompanying the results to 30 September 2023 says: “Our carbon assessment service has been strongly utilised as many businesses review their ESG [environmental, social and governance] requirements. Forestry and wood products can make a major contribution to the country in achieving net zero through tree planting, increased use of wood products and in energy production.” The new recruits to Scottish Woodlands’ Graduate Development Program this year will take the total number to 58 since the programme was launched in 2017. Mr Robinson said this focus on people – clients, customers, and suppliers, as well as staff – was at the root of Scottish Woodlands’ success. “Our graduate program is a vital part of our business, and bolstering our management team has also been a significant move which reflects the growth in the size and the breadth of the business,” he added.

The demand to use mass timber in construction is increasing as society seeks to build with more sustainable materials. Building codes and design guidance for using mass timber vary substantially country to country as does the foundation on which the local codes have been developed. Source: Timberbiz Canada, Australia, the US and some European countries have regulatory frameworks, many other countries don’t. Mass timber is a combustible construction material and may present a hazard for buildings. In a fire, exposed timber can contribute additional fuel to the fire, increasing the intensity and/or duration of the fire relative to a building of non-combustible construction and increasing the collapse risk. To support the fire safe design of mass timber buildings, Arup has developed a guide which proposes features to be incorporated into the design for residential, education and business occupancies (up to 50m tall for residential and business use and up to 25m tall for education use) which have a mass timber structure. From Arup’s experience, these types of buildings currently have the greatest demand for using mass timber in their construction. This document is primarily aimed at fire safety engineers, but also provides practical guidance for others involved in the design and construction of mass timber buildings, such as architects, clients, and contractors. To develop this guidance, Arup reviewed and analysed an extensive range of public documentation recording the fire dynamics in compartments of varying sizes and with differing degrees of exposed mass timber. Arup has previously co-funded compartment fire experiments and has undertaken a series of large-scale compartment experiments that have informed this document. Arup has also gained valuable experience through the development and statutory approval of mass timber building solutions worldwide. The Guide considers the different hazards that building users (for residential, education, and business occupancies) may experience, such as their familiarity with a building, and whether they are awake and alert or asleep. Additionally, the building height must be considered, as this can impact on firefighting operations and the time taken for occupants to evacuate. Using the existing compartment fire dynamics data available to Arup, combined with Arup’s experience in understanding the fire hazards for a building based upon the occupancy type and height, allows for a qualitative assessment of the resulting risk. Design features such as evacuation strategy, fire protection measures or encapsulation of timber, can be introduced to reduce the fire risk to occupants and firefighters. The recommendations within the Guide are applicable to CLT Panel Construction, Mass Timber Frame Construction and Timber Hybrid Structures. Other mass timber floor systems such as nail laminated timber and dowel laminated timber floor systems are not directly addressed, though this Guide may be suitable for use with these composite timber systems, and this would be at the discretion of the fire safety engineer using the Guide. The Guide is not applicable to lightweight timber frame construction. You can download the guide here.