Scottish timber specialist GMG Energy is set to play a bigger role in the country's construction sector following the visual certification of staff softwood grading credentials.
The Halladale-based business expects to contribute further to the circular economy of the Highlands and Northern Isles after three senior employees including director, Malcolm Morrison, secure the visual softwood structural grading credentials which qualify suppliers to sell stress-tested timber used in housing and commercial property projects to builders and joinery businesses.
Morrison explains: "GMG Energy can now stress test wood to reach the highest building standards This, in turn, will lead us into supplying market demand for structural timber from joiners, builders and architects not only in the North of Scotland but throughout the country.
“We are now accredited to apply a unique stamp on specific timber products we manufacture to assure potential customers of its quality and fitness for construction projects.”
Energy's sawmill manager, Vasile Damian and his deputy, Adrian Cegielka, also underwent and passed an onsite five-day visual grading of softwood certification training and test challenge set by accredited training provider, bmtrada.
Damian comments: “We were taught how to identify four grades of timber: c14 and c18 are lower grades so do not take as much load-bearing weight, c16 is for general use for a house but has limits, while c24 is of a higher quality that can bear more weight and is used in critical structural situations.
Obtaining the qualification is an important step for us as a company because it opens the door for us to more high-quality work within the construction sector.
The company has invested £150,000 in state-of-the-art sawmill equipment which takes its larger timber and processes it into posts, rail, cladding and purlins, or structural roof members; also recently £100,000 on timber treatment equipment to help open up new markets among construction companies and farm businesses which require treated and stress-tested products.
GMC Energy is also delivering on commitments to replace every log of timber it uses, and planting 10,000 new trees which grow to maturity in 35 years annually - in 2021 the company planted some 20,000 trees.
