ARCHITECTS, DESIGNERS

AND PEFC CERTIFIED TIMBER

AbOUt PEFC

PEFC (Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certication) is an international non-prot, non-governmental organisation dedicated to promoting Sustainable Forest Management through independent third-party certication. PEFC is an umbrella organisation. It works by endorsing national forest certication systems developed collaboratively by all interested stakeholders and tailored to local priorities and conditions. National forest certication schemes undergo rigorous third party assessment against PEFCs unique Sustainability Benchmarks. PEFC has recognised certication systems in more than 30 countries. Together these account for over 243 million hectares of certied forests, making PEFC the worlds largest forest and wood product certication system. It applies the highest ecological, social and ethical standards to forest management and is the certication system of choice for family and communityowned forests. 2

At its core is an independently veried Chain of Custody process which tracks certied material from the forest to the end user enabling companies to make accurate claims on the content of certied material. It proves that each step of the supply chain from the forest to the end user has been monitored closely with independent auditing. To date, more than 10,000 companies have obtained PEFC Chain of Custody certication.

StYLe & SUbstance

Certied timber opens up a world of innovation and there has never been a better time to choose it as a building material. It is a fashionable, exible, organic and aesthetically attractive material that allows architects and designers to create innovative buildings with superb looks. The built environment can benet from the structural and environmental benets of timber both inside and outside the building envelope. With environmental and sustainability issues at the forefront of the green construction and energy efciency debate, timber has become the perfect answer to questions on how to deliver low carbon design easily. Timber is the link between building and nature. The variety and species of timber available from PEFC sources is enormous with an endless variety of colours, grain patterns and wood character to choose from. From structural softwoods such as Finnish Spruce to Western Red Cedar cladding or Black Walnut, Cherry and White Oak for glamorous interiors and high-specication ooring each timber has unique properties that will provide a myriad of design options for architects and speciers. The potential and scope for timber application is as wide as your imagination and with PEFC Chain of Custody you can be certain the material has come from a legal and sustainable origin.

Fabric First
Timber has the lowest embodied CO2 of any commercially available building material. When specifying timber you can be condent that the material you are choosing is a simple and straightforward way to achieve a highperformance building fabric. Fantastic thermal

performance and high airtightness levels allow you to condently meet energy rating targets and achieve performances required by standards such as the Code for Sustainable Homes, Passivhaus and BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) ratings. Using PEFC-certied timber directly helps achieve Levels 3 to 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes and also helps to achieve Excellent and Outstanding BREEAM ratings. 3

Design With a Difference

The visual value of timber is immense. Why design an interior or structural exterior that doesnt look stunning? Timber frame, engineered timber such as Glulam, Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) and Laminated Veneer Lumber or Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs). Discover the vast array of ooring, decking and cladding options available that carry PEFC certication. Specifying timber as a construction method results in reduced onsite trades, produces less onsite waste and gives clients a quicker return on investment. Using structural timber is a huge motivation in achieving higher performance assessment ratings and demonstrates a high commitment to environmental best practice and industry approval.

PEFC & CLT/GLULam

from PEFC-certied Spruce or Larch and acts as a natural and renewable alternative to steel and concrete. Large vertical or horizontal beams deliver huge interior spans without supporting columns with the scope to showcase breathtaking use of space and introduce huge swathes of natural light. Across the world, the international design community is embracing CLT to deliver high prole, award winning projects from houses, schools and hotels to restaurants, theatres and supermarkets. PEFC-certied timber is at the heart of two of the UKs groundbreaking multi-storey buildings Stadthaus, Murray Grove and Bridport House.

The use of solid wood solutions, engineered timber systems and products such as Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) and Glulam are an increasingly popular and fashionable way to build strong and stable structures and bring a striking architectural dimension to modern building design. Glulam and Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) is commonly made 4

EUTR respOnsibLe sOUrcing and sUppLY

The European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR) entered the statute book in March 2013 and prohibits the placing of illegally harvested timber on the European market. It sets out requirements that companies within the European Union (EU) must meet to minimise the risk of illegal timber being traded. More specically, the Regulation requires companies placing timber or timber products on the European market (both imported and domestic) for the rst time to implement a Due Diligence System (DDS). Companies trading wood products within the EU are responsible for keeping records of their suppliers and customers to allow for traceability. The EUTR Guidance document contains four questions that companies may use to assess the credibility of a third-party certication system such as PEFC. PEFC fulls the EUTR requirements for third-party certication systems as: PEFCs system of requirements is publicly available and requires compliance with all relevant requirements of the applicable local legislation PEFC requires certication bodies to undertake annual checks, including eld visits, to verify compliance with certication requirements, including the applicable legislation PEFCs Chain of Custody certication, which is veried by certication bodies, traces timber and forest products through the entire supply chain. All timber must be harvested in accordance with applicable legislation, originating either from sustainably-managed, PEFC-certied forests or from forest management activities that are considered as non-controversial and in compliance with applicable legislation PEFCs Due Diligence System, which is an integral part of Chain of Custody certication, provides controls to ensure that the risk of timber from controversial sources (including illegal harvesting) entering the supply chain is minimised The 2013 PEFC Chain of Custody standard with its integral PEFC Due Diligence System (PEFC DDS) is fully aligned with the EUTR. (PEFC ST 2002: 2013 Chain of Custody of Forest based Products). 5

UKCG - DemOnstrating EnVirOnmentaL COmmitment

The UK Contractors Group (UKCG) is at the forefront of promoting best practice in construction and the sourcing of sustainable timber for the UK construction industry. It is the primary association for main building contractors operating in the UK, representing over thirty leading companies including Balfour Beatty, Keepmoat, Galliford Try, Skanska UK and Willmott Dixon. Between them, UKCG members account for 33 billion of construction turnover a third of the UKs construction total output. The UKCG timber procurement guidelines stipulate all timber products purchased for either temporary or permanent use on UKCG member sites should be certied as legally and sustainably sourced, as dened by the UK Governments Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET). 6

The UKCG policy commits members to: support and give preference to procuring products which are able to demonstrate compliance with a recognised responsible sourcing scheme, certied by a third party. CPET currently approves two certication schemes as providing evidence of legal and sustainable sourcing PEFC and FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). This UKCG decision gives clear and transparent preference to products that demonstrate compliance with responsible sourcing schemes and which are certied by a third party. To maintain an unbroken chain of custody, all members of the UKCG have committed to a common reporting method which requires documentary evidence of certied timber.

A Certified and CreatiVe Edge

PEFC-certied timber enables architects to meet stringent public and private procurement policies worldwide so major contractors can deliver exacting architectural concepts using hardwoods, softwoods, decking, cladding or plywood. For complete condence in creating a sustainable building project. The adoption of timber as a design and building material is the rst step to creating a sustainable signature building. Timber has amazing appearance, durability and performance values. PEFC-certied timber offers the widest choice of sustainable timber available to architects, speciers and designers internationally, including Western Red Cedar, European Larch, Douglas Fir, European Redwood, Beech, European Oak, American White Oak, American White Ash, Finnish Spruce and Birch with Dark Red Meranti, Mersawa, Merawan and Gerutu for windows and Balau, Red Balau, Kempas and Keruing for decking.

Certified Timber frOm PEFC

Aesthetics an organic material that looks stunning across a range of applications for interiors and exteriors Flexibility a unique material that is simple and easy to design and understand. It is also renewable, reusable and recyclable Performance outstanding results across a wide range of residential and commercial schemes to high environmental standards Supply a huge variety of softwoods and hardwoods from around the globe to give your scheme a special ourish. Widely available from an extensive network of merchants and suppliers Responsibility a trusted and robust chain of custody from the forest to the end user. PEFC has over 24 (3) million hectares of certied forests in 30 countries, making it the worlds largest forest certication system. PEFCcertied materials are accepted by public procurement policies worldwide Sustainability a simple and effective way to achieve low and zero carbon buildings, recognised by leading green building standards globally. These include CASBEE in Japan, the Australian Green Star Program, Built Green in Canada and the US Green Building Initiative.

PEFCs distinctive green trees logo transcends language barriers making it a truly global brand. For further information about the PEFC programme in the UK visit: www.pefc.co.uk
Photo credits: B&K Structures, Finnforest,, Gary Ramsay, Lathams, PEFC UK, X-LAM Alliance

PEFC UK Limited Shefeld Technology Parks Cooper Buildings Arundel Street Shefeld S1 2NS t 0114 307 2334 e info@pefc.co.uk www.pefc.co.uk

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