nosuchhounds
Established Member
I had heard that Building contractors on new built sites and HS2 had ring fenced a lot of sheet materials causing the price to hike. Not sure if this is true though
Price of the sheet materials
- Thread starter diytoolbox
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JobandKnock
Amateur curmudgeon
Prices have been high for 18 months now. Reserving large batches of materials and drawing down materials as needed is a common way for large jobs to get a stable, guaranteed price and secure supplies (so the job doesn't grind to a halt) and has been for decades, so nothing new there. HS2 might be a contributory factor, but it isn't the only issue by any means - much more is down to shortages of containers, low stocks at the mills (after the Covid shut down) and higher import tarriffs following Brexit
Phil Pascoe
Established Member
Higher import tarriffs following Brexit? How much is imported from the EU?
I have heard of major suppiers guaranteeing they would hold high prices for specified times to save their customers from the danger of seeing prices drop within days of taking delivery of a large order.
I have heard of major suppiers guaranteeing they would hold high prices for specified times to save their customers from the danger of seeing prices drop within days of taking delivery of a large order.
blackteaonesugar
Established Member
Been paying over £90 a sheet for birch ply lately. 
Droogs
Not the Sharpest Moderator in the box
You might find this interesting, it says 100% of plywood in the UK comes from/via the EU
http://www.susconsol.co.uk/blog/where-timber-comes-from/
Distinterior
Established Member
????......According to your own link Droogs, it stated that back in May 2016, 42% of plywood was imported from China, 16% came from Brazil and only 19% came from the EU.....
Admittedly, none of it was made in the UK.....
I wonder if that is still the case and whether any of those percentages have changed...? Or, have we started making any of it here..?
Droogs
Not the Sharpest Moderator in the box
My bad, I meant 100% is imported, we don't make any. Also the first port of call for Chinese plywood is normally Rotterdam and then is moved onward to the UK so is technically via the EU. That may change now due to "B*****" and may now start to come here direct.
Phil Pascoe
Established Member
No politics, all governments have forever neglected Falmouth. One of the world's finest deep water harbours, the largest container ships could dock there without the congestion of the English Channel - except it hasn't the facilities and has a single track railway connection.
and no hope of HS2 heading southwest, lucky people.
JobandKnock
Amateur curmudgeon
A lot of the European oak we use comes from France, Poland and Croatia, whilst beech (steamed and white) comes mainly from Germany. Whilst a lot of construction plywood comes from China these days, the best quality birch plywood comes from Finland, spruce plywood from Sweden and Finland, whilst construction softwoods mainly come in from Sweden and Germany, and treated construction softwoods from Germany. Even Russian-origin stuff tends to come in through Germany where most of the conversion, stress grading and vacuum treatment is done. Very little construction grade timber is produced in the UK. Not based on looking at trade figures - more based on dealing with timber merchants in my work on larger sites
No, and the last manufacturer of veneer slicing equipment went phut in the early 1970s precisely because there was no market in the UK or the "colonies" for their products
docw
Member
Unfortunately brexit has made a big difference and not only to items coming in from the EU. As members of the EU we had trade deals throughout the world and now we are busy trying to match those deals. Until then it means we will be paying extra.
JobandKnock
Amateur curmudgeon
So probably permanently, then
