All Timber Bases Covered

James Jones & Sons Ltd have been at the forefront of the UK timber industry for generations and are constantly innovating and expanding. We spoke to them about recent company activity and about what shape they find the timber market in.

What will the recent acquisition of GT Timber bring to James Jones’s annual sawn output?

The acquisition will increase our annual sawn output to 800,000m3 thereby consolidating our position as the UK’s largest privately owned sawmill, timber engineering and pallet manufacturing company. “We are delighted to have concluded this transaction,” says Tom Bruce-Jones, chairman of James Jones & Sons Ltd. “We are really pleased that the existing management team are staying on within the enlarged group to provide continuity, facilitate the integration and to help realise our long term strategic plans. The sawn output from both mills will complement our portfolio and will allow us to offer increased product opportunities for our existing, and newly expanded, customer base.”

Can you say more about how the Pallet and Packaging Division operates across the UK – James Jones & Sons manufactures pallets and packaging as well as inspects and repairs – how does that work and what is involved?

We have 16 Pallet & Packaging sites across the UK. Our pallet and packaging operations have progressively expanded over recent years through organic growth and acquisition and today we work closely with all the major UK pallet pools CHEP, LPR, IPP and EPAL. Through our continued investment in automated technology we can offer customers access to the most advanced pallet manufacturing and repair facilities in the UK, a national distribution network and a complete range of pallet and specialist timber packaging solutions.

Raw material prices are increasing globally and higher prices are reflected in the timber pallet and packaging industry, due to the impact of COVID, Brexit and wider global material demands etc – how is James Jones & Sons tackling this and maintaining availability and supply across the UK?

It has been well documented that timber prices are rising rapidly worldwide. The primary reasons being high demand from USA and China which is diverting Scandinavian and German timber away from European markets. The situation in the UK is exacerbated by the decline in Irish timber imports due to felling licence difficulties in the Republic of Ireland. This difficult situation in timber supply has severely impacted on the UK pallet and packaging manufacturing and repair sector. In addition to the ‘supply side’ issues, there is very strong demand from the construction and fencing markets which compete for the material required for pallets and packaging. The industry is working effectively through its industry associations (TIMCON in UK and FEFPEB in Europe) to communicate to clients the severe impact of this unprecedented situation (timber represents an average over 70% of the cost of new pallets). The industry has also to contend with rapidly increasing steel price increases, along with the impact of Covid-19 and Brexit.

Can you explain what the Upall ‘innovative pallet’ is and how it protects pallets and extends lifespan?

Upall protects the most frequently damaged areas of pallets. Robust guards are attached to new, high quality and kiln-dried wooden Euro pallets, ensuring maximum protection from impact, extending the lifespan by more than three times, whilst minimising maintenance costs and ensuring the pallet remains in constant use. All materials are fully recyclable.

The Lockerbie ‘super site’ is one of the most technologically advanced wood processing facilities in Europe – why is that and what is used as a comparison?

The Stevens Croft site at Lockerbie offers a wider specification of round timber not only in the UK, but also in Europe. The development of the site, including the Hangingshaw facility, has adopted the most advanced sawmill and processing facilities that are not only comparable with sites in Europe, but over the world as a whole with a total wood requirement of 600,000 tonnes of logs, combined with the adjacent facilities Forest Garden and EON/AWJ exceeding 1.5 million tonnes which is comparable with large scale sites elsewhere in Europe.

The JJI Joists assembly line at the Timber Systems Division has been hugely successful – what quantities are being produced and where are the successful market segments for the products?

Our world leading JJI-Joist assembly line, based at Forres, has the capacity to produce 20 million lineal metres a year. We have 45% market share in the UK and provide to most of the major UK housebuilders. We are continuing to invest in our product lines with two major upgrades planned in 2021 and a recent land acquisition allowing us to expand and improve operations and service to customers.

We continue to innovate with new products and have recently launched Insulated JJI-Joists, which is an innovative addition to our I-Joist range. The OSB Is covered with Stylite PlusTherm. This considerably increases insulation performance, minimises thermal bridging and can be drilled for convenience, vastly reducing labour time and cost. They are also perfect for offsite construction.

Can you say a little about the adoption of digital technology across the Group such as the Hi vision virtual reality (VR) system for log loading?

Our mission has always been to be at the forefront of research and innovation and we are very proud to have pioneered a number of innovative, ground-breaking products. We are constantly looking for new opportunities to enhance our research and development programme and to lead the timber industry by example. We have implemented a number of innovative industry leading initiatives to improve the health, safety and welfare of drivers. These include the Hi Vision VR loading system, which allows drivers to have total crane control from the safety of their cab as well as developments in tyre pressure technology through Tirbos and tracker/directional navigation with Navman.

2030 and 2050 net zero carbon targets are part of everyone’s long term thinking across the timber and construction industry – how is James Jones & Sons addressing these?

Enhancing our environmental impact has always been a fundamental part of our Group ethos and strategy. We have been at the forefront of innovation with regards to all environmental matters for a number of years and have pioneered a number of innovative processes and systems to enhance our carbon negative credentials.

We have carried out a lot of life cycle assessment (LCA) and environmental product declarations (EPD) work, to promote the greater use of our sustainable wood products and where possible to substitute non-sustainable materials for sustainable wood products. One of our key sustainability elements is the use of the PAS 2050:2011 carbon reporting model, supported by Ecometrica, the UK’s leading greenhouse gas accounting and compliance specialists.

The carbon model measures our overall carbon balance, which uniquely demonstrates that the carbon captured during tree growth is greater than the carbon used to deliver, manufacture and supply our timber products. Not only does this enable key trigger impacts to be identified and reduced, but our resulting carbon negative footprint can be applied to supply contract volumes and individual house designs, to complement client corporate social responsibility (CSR) requirements in a meaningful and robust manner.

What developments are expected in the next 18 months from a company perspective and how do you see the timber market moving throughout 2021?

We have a rolling programme of capital expenditure in plant and machinery, ensuring further sector leading efficiencies. These include further expansion of our I-Joist facilities at Forres and redevelopment of the Mosstodloch sawmill. We recently completed the installation of a new low pressure timber treatment facility at Mosstodloch The plant, which was supplied and installed by Tweddle Engineering, will double the capacity of low pressure treatment in the Group. The new facility will complement our existing low pressure plant at Aboyne in Deeside, enhancing our service offer to existing customers and where possible, enabling us to develop new customers across Scotland and Northern England.

Further investments are also planned for the GT Timber sites at Annan and Durham with continued expansion and investment in Pallets and Packaging Division. James Jones & Sons is committed to plant 2.5 thousand hectares of new woodland by 2025 and will see over 600 hectares planted in the next 18 months, as both commercial and amenity woodlands for future timber production and carbon sequestration for the Group.

More at � www.jamesjones.co.uk