The visit was arranged by the Builders Merchants Federation as part of its industry and parliament programme.

How to grow the market for timber engineered products used in house-building and commercial development was the purpose of a visit by Paul Bristow, Mayor of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough.

The Mayor visited David Smith in St Ives, a 65-year old joinery and timber engineering business, to see its contribution to new and existing homes, commercial & public buildings.

Paul Bristow was welcomed by Tim Wilson (Managing Director), Tony Maxwell (Operations Manager) and Brett Amphlett (Builders Merchants Federation). Touring the eight-acre site, he was shown examples of the fire door sets, staircases, roof trusses and floor joists that David Smith manufactures for housebuilders, contractors and property developers.

Concluding his visit, Bristow, said: “It was a pleasure to visit David Smith St Ives to see a shining example of British manufacturing and gain a better understanding of their contribution to modern, well designed and long-lasting buildings. I would like to thank Tim, Tony and the team for giving me the opportunity to see their contribution to Cambridgeshire’s economy and throughout East Anglia.”

“It was great to see the £3 million investment they have made in new machinery and upgrading their premises. Generating over half the energy they use onsite from rooftop solar is an impressive achievement and reflects their strong commitment to being a forward-looking, low-carbon manufacturer.”

Tim Wilson, Managing Director, said: “We were happy to welcome Paul today and show him how David Smith St Ives has evolved since we began in 1960. It’s encouraging to see the Mayor take a genuine interest in local manufacturers like ours and offer support to help timber engineering businesses succeed.

"We had a productive discussion about the role of timber engineered products in meeting local housing needs, particularly for homes that people choose with sustainability an ever more important aspect, and to deliver quality homes with more elements manufactured offsite to assist speeding up the construction process”.

“With significant house-building planned in the county, we believe timber engineered products have a much greater role to play, not only for their environmental benefits, but also for versatility. We also touched on wider industrial policy, including the rising cost of industrial energy, which directly affects manufacturers like us. While installing solar panels has helped to lessen our reliance on the National Grid, it remains concerning that the UK’s electricity prices are still among the highest in Europe.”

The visit was another arranged by the Builders Merchants Federation as part of its industry and parliament programme. The aim is to show politicians the role, value and importance of the building materials supply chain in delivering for their customers and communities.