Acclaimed architecture and planning consultants

We love timber. Having spent years in commercial design, working for some of the largest main contractors, we got to know our woods from the chaff. What started with oak, radiata pine, cedar, larch quickly changed with the furfurylation and Acetylation processes. The aim: to stabilise and improve longevity to existing wood strains through to similar but wholly different processes, making softwood basically hard.

Specifying which, as a designer, depended primarily on aesthetics. Of course there were differences, Accoya a lighter wood and Kebony darker, harder, some would say a richer product, not necessarily by price.

So why hit out at Accoya. Because some years ago came a British product called Lignia. Again a treated timber but this was so much more. Where Kebony is darkened, Lignia remained bright and full of life, where Accoya is bland Lignia provided contrast, raised grain, differentiation, everything wood should be.

And then the bemouth raised its head.

Accoya, a global brand, felt there was no place for Lignia, a competing product that just about everyone we gave CPD’s to agreed, from decking to interiors, cladding to exterior furniture manufacturing, Lignia showed its strength and ability to perform as best as the market leaders.

Now Accoya could have been smart, they could have invested and had two products facing the Kebony enemy, they could have bought Lignia and continued to develop a second product line.

But Accsys PLC are a monster, why nurture and develop a new line when you can simply wipe it off the map, get rid of it completely. And that’s what they did.

And so for probably our final cladding project of the year we are in search of the illusive stock, the last remnants of a great British product line, that we believe is the only sustainable wood solution appropriate for this client and their project. Lets push ourselves and go the extra mile or 200.