Here at W.Howard we’re always on the lookout for new ways to play our part in helping the environment and, as a leading manufacturer within the timber industry, we’re proud to be promoting the use of timber in construction.

Timber is one of the most low-carbon building materials available and MDF, which all our products are made of, takes that one stage further. MDF is made from recycled wood fibres, which means it helps reduce the amount of timber that goes to landfill and does not require the cutting down of new trees.

All our profiles and real wood veneer products are made from MDF that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which is recognised as having been sourced sustainably from respected suppliers.

Another benefit of MDF is that it is defect free, with no knots or warping that customers have to deal with on site. This significantly reduces the amount of material that has to be wasted while products are cut to size when compared with natural timbers, helping our customers make the most of every single centimetre of material.

And, because all timber species act as a carbon store, producing 1m3 of MDF stores 1.1 tonnes of CO2 that would otherwise be released into the environment, making MDF profiles a truly environmentally conscious choice.

But the W.Howard team never just rests on our laurels, and we’re always looking for new ways to lower our own carbon footprint and reduce our impact on the world around us. That’s why we’re proud to hold the ISO14001 environmental performance standard, and why all our products are manufactured to quality assurance standard ISO9001, so we can continue to play our part in promoting sustainable design and construction.

Since 2019 we have also made sure that all our delivered products use 100% biodegradable wrapping, which degrades in the open air in as little as 60 days. This removes around 16 tonnes of non-biodegradable plastic from potentially ending up in landfill each year, while still making sure that our products are fully protected from damage during transit.

In 2020, we continued our environmental efforts by adding two new Rigid Trucks to our fleet of delivery vehicles. These trucks meet the London Ultra-Low Emission Zone restrictions that came into force in London in the same year, allowing us to continue to deliver goods in the Capital while adhering to strict engine emission standards. And we hold Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) certification, which reassures our customers that we have achieved exemplary levels of best practice in safety, efficiency, and environmental protection.

Contact our team to find out more about the environmentally-friendly processes that procedures that are woven throughout the W.Howard Group.