Cala expects that taking over Hereford-based Taylor Lane Timber Frame will help its growth plans in the south of England.
Cala is transitioning to timber frames across all the homes it builds in England, where possible, as part of its carbon reduction strategy. It said that the investment in Taylor Lane would help it to increase the use of timber frame in England to approximately 1,500 new homes per year, over the next five years.
In Scotland, Cala has been using timber frame construction for more than 40 years, and around 80% of its homes there are built using this method.
With factories in Hereford and Wales, Taylor Lane will supply Cala’s five English businesses in the Cotswolds and south of England, while continuing to supply existing customers.
Cala Group chief executive Kevin Whitaker said: “Today’s announcement is a hugely positive step forward for both Taylor Lane and Cala. Taylor Lane is a successful business with an experienced management team and talented workforce, who share Cala’s passion for quality and service. We look forward to working with the Taylor Lane team, supporting them as they continue to develop and grow their business to achieve the ambition of their original founders to deliver to scale.
“For Cala, this also demonstrates our clear commitment to delivering our climate targets. The investment in Taylor Lane sets out our path to transitioning to timber frame across our English developments, a key element of our sustainability strategy.
“The positive arguments for timber frame construction have never been more compelling. Generating up to 20% less embodied carbon than a typical masonry build, and offering the benefits of speed and efficiency of construction and superior factory-built quality, the advantages of using timber strongly support our decision to invest in timber frame and grow our use in the future.”
Taylor Lane managing director Jonathan Lane said: “This marks the start of an exciting new chapter for Taylor Lane and is a fantastic endorsement of our potential from a highly-respected UK homebuilder. We are delighted to being moving forward with Cala as our new owners.
“Over the past 40 years we have successfully grown Taylor Lane to a £30m turnover business delivering around 2,000 timber frame units per year, to a wide variety of sectors. This is testament to the vision of our co-founders, Colin Taylor and Barrie Lane, and the hard work and commitment of our employees alongside the quality of our product and our approach to customer service. We are all incredibly proud of Taylor Lane’s achievements to date.
“Looking ahead, the management team and I feel extremely positive about our prospects. We have robust growth plans in place, a loyal customer base and a talented team. We also have the security of Cala’s ownership and a pipeline of additional future growth to come from their transition to timber frame construction in England.”
Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk
