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MBC Timber Frame Open Day and Factory Tour 13th July 2024


garrymartin

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https://mbctimberframe.co.uk/mbc-open-day-tour-13th-july-2024/

 

Anyone going? My wife and I are booked for the 10:00-11:30 slot.

 

OR... if you can't make it, anything you'd like to know or questions you'd like me to ask? I'll try to take some photos and put anything I learn in a post when I return...

Edited by garrymartin
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  • 4 weeks later...
On 17/06/2024 at 11:15, garrymartin said:

OR... if you can't make it, anything you'd like to know or questions you'd like me to ask? I'll try to take some photos and put anything I learn in a post when I return...

I am still planning to be there tomorrow if anyone has any questions for MBC or, indeed, about timberframe in general. I've asked, and they are happy for me to take photos and post any questions and answers on the Buildhub forum so I'll update this thread sometime over the next few days.

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1 hour ago, garrymartin said:

any questions for MBC or, indeed, about timberframe 

I'd be interested to know where their timber originates. And any views  on supply longer term.

 

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13 minutes ago, saveasteading said:

I'd be interested to know where their timber originates. And any views  on supply longer term.

Gotcha.

 

For timber/materials questions I currently have...

 

Materials and sources - what type of wood? where from? is it sustainably harvested? what treatments are applied? how do you ensure supply? how do you manage fluctuating costs of timber and materials?

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11 hours ago, garrymartin said:

currently have.

They're going to love you!

 

Our timber supply for stick build was from a major mill. It was sprayed with yellow. I guess this deters bugs, but they would get in the cut ends.

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Just now, saveasteading said:

They're going to love you!

Awwww, thanks. ❤️

 

When I'm interrogating asking questions of suppliers, I always imagine how grateful they must be to get someone who is so excited about what they do... 😉 

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9 minutes ago, garrymartin said:

so excited about what they do

Realistically, you get the sales team who can't or won't answer these questions.

 

I once had a huge supplier. They asked if my clients wanted tour a b or c.

A was a walk through.  Look how big and hitech it is...Now coffee and buns.

B..any questions

C. A serious tour of an hour or more with a design

Engineer on hand.  Closer access. Touching the product. 

 

When I have visited factories I've got most useful info by dallying and looking elsewhere than intended.

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10 minutes ago, saveasteading said:

When I have visited factories I've got most useful info by dallying and looking elsewhere than intended

Had Princess Anne tour our factory, she is now an expert on material testing machines, and we got the Queen's Award for Export.

She looked elsewhere, mainly her watch I seem to remember.

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There were quite a few different people there; sales, design, windows, even Kevin Blair, son of the founder Joe Blair, who took us on part of the factory tour. We were there for over 2 hours, including a 1-1 session where I covered any outstanding questions I still had.

 

Great session. I also took lots of photos so I'll write things up and attach those in a new thread and will provide the link here.

 

4 hours ago, saveasteading said:

If you were involved in the earlier discussion on how to build lots of houses, and possible materials and labour shortages,  their view may be of interest.

Didn't really touch on labour shortages, but they are seeing an increase in demand from people building lots of houses, especially in the social sector where they explained it is easier for a company to secure any additional funding required for Passivhaus standards as they can offset it against potential future requirements to help with heating costs etc. From a pure materials perspective, they acknowledged the challenges of Brexit, COVID-19, etc. and how that initially affected costs and quotes quite significantly but things are a little more settled now and as they expand, they're able to secure pricing for longer periods of time as they're able to commit to larger orders. They're also sourcing from multiple suppliers and from multiple regions as costs and availability flex due to growing seasons etc.

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4 hours ago, garrymartin said:

They're also sourcing from multiple suppliers and from multiple regions as costs and availability flex due to growing seasons etc.

That is also a good way of extending credit.

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