‘Must have’ new timber decking resource

The Timber Decking and Cladding Association (TDCA) in collaboration with the Timber Trade Federation (TTF) have jointly published a new resource – the Timber Decking Handbook.

Produced with support from the Wood Protection Association (WPA) and Wood Campus, the Handbook is aimed at specifiers, buyers and installers of timber decking.

A go-to reference

The 52 page book provides clear, relevant and up to date information covering decking design, installation, material choice and UK building and planning regulations. The Handbook references the existing TRADA Timber Decking manual – the two documents will complement each other – the Handbook acting as a summarised and illustrative guidance with TRADA’s being more detailed and of particular interest to the architect  and structural engineer.

Partnership Agreement

The Decking Handbook has been produced as part of the TDCA/TTF partnership agreement – and on the back of the publication of the Timber Cladding Handbook last year, will help strengthen the market for both timber cladding and decking.

Janet Sycamore – TDCA Director of Operations, commented:
The new publication is crammed with useful information to help the reader create robust, fit for purpose decking.    We hope it will prove to be a valuable resource for every one involved with timber decking”.

This is all in addition to the TDCA’s existing work within the timber cladding and timber decking industries. The organisation operates the DeckMark and CladMark quality schemes, which verify the quality of the materials that have been approved, or the high standards of the installer that has been accredited.

Both the DeckMark and CladMark schemes require a full audit and assessment of the business in question, prior to any accreditation being awarded followed by annual surveillance audits thereafter.

In addition, the TDCA can offer a number of expert services to help resolve difficulties with timber decking and cladding projects. Ideal for home owners, architects, surveyors, structural engineers and other organisations, the TDCA’s work can include assessing construction techniques of existing decks, general condition surveys and maintenance reviews, assessing material faults and causes, advising on correct material specification and assisting with material sourcing including ancillary products such as fixings and coatings.

The handbook will be freely available as a pdf download from the TDCA website at: www.tdca.org.uk/publications with printed versions costing £15 each including P&P.