The next generation of timber industry professionals were provided with a vital briefing on safety and quality issues in trussed rafter roof construction at the first Talking Timber event held at Neath Port Talbot College (NPTC) Group this month. With the UK construction industry facing serious skills shortages, the current generations of students are the … Continue reading “College’s timber talent given safety briefing on roof construction”

A new technical guide is being issued to housebuilders in the UK to boost uptake of gable wall spandrel panels, a readily available component that can support the industry as it moves towards modern methods of construction (MMC). Gable wall spandrel panels are an offsite manufactured product, put together in quality-assured factory conditions before being … Continue reading “New technical guidance published for housebuilders to boost uptake of gable wall spandrel panels”

Following the re-election of the Conservative party, Nick Boulton, chief executive of the Trussed Rafter Association (TRA), urged the new government to deliver on its campaign promises. He commented: “Throughout the election campaign, a consistent need raised by people in all communities across the country was the need for more, and better, housing. The Conservatives … Continue reading “Trussed Rafter Association urges new government to deliver on housing promises”

As you may be aware, we have temporarily removed the ‘How to safely install roof trusses’ document from our website. This is while we develop a temporary works procedure with the Scaffolding Association, to address weight, load and wind speed when using scaffolding to support trussed rafters during installation. In the absence of the full … Continue reading “TRA installation guide update”

The recently published ‘A Manifesto for Construction and the Built Environment’ produced by Mace, calls for the next government to support construction in order to deliver on Construction 2025 ambitions. It covers nine key areas which need to be addressed across construction by the next government. The Trussed Rafter Association (TRA) fully supports the proposals, … Continue reading “TRA backs Mace’s call for next UK government to support the construction industry”

The Lighthouse Construction Industry charity has launched The Building Mental Health campaign to support construction workers at all levels, with a free Employee Assistance Programme (EAP). This tool is free for anyone to use from a self-employed builder to the chief executive of a business. More details can be found here. The TRA is keen … Continue reading “The TRA supports the Lighthouse Club”

This is an update on the raining and apprenticeships project, headed up by Richard George of MiTek. It outlines the main aims for the project and Richard hopes it will stimulate members all to think about what you want from the TRA in this regard. The two main goals that we have outlined for the … Continue reading “Training and apprenticeships project update”

If the UK leave the EU without a deal on 31 October or any future date, then manufacturers need to be aware that from that date, certain changes will be legally necessary in the CE marking of construction products including trussed rafters and metal web joists (MWJ). These changes relate to UK Notified Bodies like … Continue reading “Are you prepared for Brexit?”

The Construction Innovation Hub (the Hub) recently launched an open call for the Platform Design Programme. The Hub wants to encourage businesses to get involved in the largest ever Government-backed R&D programme in the sector. Businesses which respond with either their technology, product or service, if selected can go forward to join the collaborative development … Continue reading “Help transform the construction industry”

We would like to offer TRA members the opportunity to enrol their sales colleagues on the ‘Essential Foundations of Sales Management’ course. The course is part of the new TTF Academy offering, which is providing a range of blended learning courses for busy professionals. This Institute of Sales Management (ISM) accredited course is proving popular … Continue reading “TTF and TRA training course offer”