Timber-frame group on more solid ground

Oregon Timber, the Selkirk-based house-frame manufacturer, rebuilt its revenues to £12.3 million last year, although rising costs forced it to a loss.

The firm had seen sales fall from almost 20m in 2008 to just 8.8m in 2009 amid the collapse of the housing market.

Yesterday it revealed that staff numbers picked up in 2010, from an average of 54 in 2009 to 87 last year, as sales increased.

But it reported a pre-tax loss of 334,000 for 2010, compared with a profit of 21,000 in 2009, which it blamed on "an unprecedented increase in timber prices" in the first half of 2010 that resulted in "a severe erosion of margin".

Oregon said costs had been more stable so far this year and it was rebuilding margins through a combination of cost cutting and selective pricing of work.

The firm said it was well positioned to benefit from new regulations, which mean new homes have to be more energy efficient.