Where appropriate it is possible for us to specify a glued laminated timber (glulam) beam as an alternative to a steal beam.

Glulam can be used without the need for cladding and has a predictable performance in fire because timber chars at a known rate. The thermal insulation characteristics of timber, and the charcoal layer that forms on it, ensure that the interior remains cool and structurally sound during the early stages of a fire.

A steel ’I’ beam that has the performance of an equivalent glulam beam requires approximately six times the energy to produce.

Glulam comes from managed forests.