2009 Press Releases from Wolf Systems


  16/12/2009 - Lincframe switches to Wolf Systems
Lincframe switches to Wolf SystemsWolf Systems, specialist in software solutions for timber engineering manufacturers, has recently won a new customer, Lincframe Roof Trusses. Lincframe has over 20 years experience in designing and manufacturing timber roof trusses for the housing sector.

Andrew Holmes, MD of Lincframe comments, “Changing supplier of software, engineering and steel fixings in our industry is a massive step and involves many hours of research, demonstrations and meetings, not to mention re-training.”

Wolf Systems took great care in introducing Lincframe to their system in a methodical and ordered way and, in order to help aid the transition, provided a roof truss and easi-joist designer for two weeks until Lincframe felt confident.

Andrew continues, “We feel very confident that choosing Wolf will give Lincframe the extra boost we needed at a time when it seemed that steel fixings for trusses and joists were in danger of becoming a commodity supplied without the depth of service and care we wanted. All in all, Wolf provided a very smooth transition thanks to their hard work and the professionalism of our design and sales team at Lincframe.”

  20/11/2009 - Something to celebrate!
David Leaney, Managing DirectorWolf Systems celebrated its 21st anniversary with a customer dinner at The Belfry Hotel, West Midlands in November. Over ninety people attended the dinner including new customers Andrew Holmes and Kerry Jenkinson from Lincframe Roof Trusses Ltd and George Watson and Brian Welsh from Kingdom Timber Engineering Ltd. Over the past year, Wolf Systems has benefited from its easi-joist® product continuing to go from strength to strength with increased demand from all sectors of the construction industry despite the difficult economic climate.


David Leaney, Managing Director of Wolf Systems, comments “We are very pleased to have hosted such a successful evening to celebrate Wolf Systems operating in the UK for 21 years. It was good to thank our customers for their continued support and we’re delighted that so many of them were able to join us for the evening. We are now looking forward to the next 21 years!”

  20/11/2009 - easi-joist studs solve wide wall problems!
Both specifiers and building contractors are making increasing use of easi-joist, the engineered metal web timber joists offered by Wolf Systems’ manufacturers, for a wide variety of applications throughout the building structure.

Originally developed to facilitate the installation of services through the floor zone, Wolf Systems’ easi-joist can now to be found in place of solid timber studs in the walls of timber frame systems. In a recent scheme, Wolf Systems licensed manufacturer, Fforest Timber Engineering of Swansea used the easi-joist studs for a dormitory building at Moor Park Lane School in Ludlow.

easi-joist studs solve wide wall problems!The use of easi-joist studs in timber frame panels benefits the specifier and contractor in different ways. Firstly, panels manufactured with easi-joist studs achieve wall widths not possible with standard, commercially-sourced solid timber. Aligned to this is the fact that greater wall depth allows increased levels of insulation to be included within the wall panels. In addition, the open web structure of easi-joist also allows the insulation to be more easily incorporated within the wall panel and routing of services such as cables and pipe work is also far easier.

Another important consideration is that easi-joist studs have greater dimensional stability than solid timber resulting in panels being less affected by shrinkage and moisture content. Panels using easi-joist studs also use less timber than those manufactured using solid timber so reducing material costs and panel weight.

Over the past 7 years, many Wolf Systems manufacturers have seen the benefits that easi-joist can bring to their businesses and have helped develop the product for use in different applications from floor cassettes to rafters for pitched roof and joists for flat roofs.

Karl Foster, Sales and Marketing Director for Wolf Systems comments, “We have seen demand for easi-joist increase year-on-year even in these difficult times for the construction industry. Developing new products and using them in a way which is not only innovative, but also adds value to the scheme is a challenge which both Wolf Systems and our manufacturers clearly enjoy meeting.”

  18/11/2009 - Wolf Systems looks to the future
Wolf Systems, within the Timber Works area, Ecobuild, Earls Court,
London, 2 - 4 March 2010.

Wolf Systems at Ecobuild2010Wolf Systems will be exhibiting at this year’s Ecobuild and a range of the company’s technology will be on show including easi-joist®; a product which has seen increased demand from all sectors of the construction industry despite the difficult economic climate.

easi-joists® are parallel cord trusses using stress graded timber cords. These cords are plated together with a precision engineered structural metalweb. Pressing the metalwebs into the cords forms the easi-joist®. In a complete floor situation, this becomes the easi-joist® system. However, development of the system by Wolf, coupled with the growing demand for well designed off-site solutions, has seen the engineered timber beams also utilised for roofs, walls and even whole frame solutions.

The easi-joist® system provides a number of benefits including improved performance, ease of use and design versatility. The open web construction allows for services to be easily accommodated in the roof, floor and wall void; this could be particularly useful for heat recovery systems and air conditioning ducting, in addition to providing easy access for electrical cables and plumbing pipes, simplifying the installation process and reducing labour costs for following trades.

New design values for the patented product make it the best performing metalweb joist on the market. The new design values also mean that less webs can be used, offering designers and manufacturers significant cost savings over previous designs. The easi-joist® system also enables existing truss manufacturers to grow their businesses by exploiting new markets such as engineered floors – the fastest-growing sector of the engineered timber market according to NHBC.

  15/10/2009 - easi-joists complete the picture for timber frame company
An established manufacturer of timber frames and roof trusses has expanded its business by adding Wolf Systems’ easi-joist flooring system to its portfolio of products; enhancing its offering to customers and increasing its profitability.

Wolf manufacturer - Merronbrook LtdMerronbrook Ltd was established in the mid-1980s to serve all the sectors across the south-east of England and has grown organically since then. easi-joist engineered timber floor beams were introduced into the portfolio at the end of 2008.

Mr Alex Duff of Merronbrook comments: “We wanted to increase our range of manufactured products and at the same time enhance our product portfolio for customers. There is a great deal of synergy between the manufacture of easi-joists and roof trusses and so it was the logical next step.

Alex continues, “We began making easi-joists last September, further to installing a completely new AV Birch press for the work, and have been very pleased with the way things have developed. We have had good support from Wolf and have supplied easi-joists in different sizes and configurations to a variety of customers.”

Merronbrook is now able to supply the easi-joists as pre-assembled floor cassettes as well as individual beams. The company has also utilised the Wolf software and components to manufacture the easi-joists for flat roof installations.

Amongst the sites supplied with easi-joist to date are a block of apartments in Bournemouth and a housing association development where the floor span required was 9.5 metres and allowed for flexibility of partition layout.

Based on the Hampshire-Surrey border, Merronbrook offers its highly competitive services to clients across the south-east, helping contractors and developers to construct commercial, retail, education and other public buildings as well as residential developments and one-off self-build properties.

  06/10/2009 - Wolf helps build new RSPCA Animal Centre
One of Wolf System’s customers has been involved in supplying a complex package of trussed rafters for the construction of the new RSPCA Animal Centre in the Sheffield area.

Wolf helps build new RSPCA Animal CentreHarlow Timber Systems utilised the Wolf design software and components to fabricate a wide variety of trusses spanning from five metres up to 13 metres. Involved on the construction of the main administration building, kennels, cattery, isolation unit and other facilities, Harlow Timber Systems worked closely with the main contractor, Clegg Special Projects and the project architect, Ward McHugh Associates.

David Turner, the Project Architect at Ward McHugh, comments: “While we would probably always have gone for timber trussed rafters for the kennels and other animal units, the length required to span the administration building was making us lean towards a steel roof structure. When we learned that Wolf’s manufacturer, Harlow Timber Systems, could match the size far more economically, we were pleased to make the decision to specify timber trusses.”

Adding visual interest to the development’s roofscape, the administration building differs from the other structures in being clad with an aluminium standing seam system. The remainder of the buildings are clad in artificial slate, some of which incorporate feature rooflights. Despite the complexity of the roof trusses, all of them were able to be manufactured employing standard components from the Wolf range.

  08/10/2009 - Easi at any angle!

Both specifiers and building contractors are making increasing use of the engineered timber joists offered by Wolf Systems’ manufacturers for a wide variety of applications throughout the building structure.

Originally developed to facilitate the installation of services through the floor zone, Wolf Systems’ easi-joist is now to be found employed in place of solid timber studs in the walls to timber frame systems; as well as for both flat and pitched roofing construction.

Easi at any angle!Such are the spanning and load-bearing benefits of the highly engineered easi-joists – underpinned by the very flexible Wolf design software – that they can be incorporated into a selection of situations at any angle between the horizontal and vertical. In turn, imposed live or dead loads are supported and optimum performance from minimum material usage is ensured. The easi-joist beam, stud or rafter member also allows the building designer to accommodate increased levels of insulation into the project with ease.

Karl Foster of Wolf Systems comments: “As a metal web beam, easi-joist not only provides ample open area within its overall depth for the routing of pipes, cables and even ductwork, but the installer is also provided with a wide flange area. This simplifies the fixing of sheet flooring panels or roof decking and sarking; with the finished assembly offering an extremely solid feel.”

Individual beams are now regularly assembled into panel or cassette modules, furthering the offsite potential of easi-joists, while offering a close fit with industry priorities for sustainable, defect-free approaches to construction.

 29/09/2009 - Wolf Systems pivotal to apartment development success
The construction of a luxury residential development on the Welsh coast, built by specialist timber frame manufacturer, Firwood Homes, has featured the use of engineered timber beams from the portfolio of Wolf Systems: facilitating the rapid erection of the timber frame and the provision of long clear spans to create open living space.

108-110 Charles Street in Milford Haven has been built by R&S Developments Ltd, and contains a trio of single bedroom studios as well as half a dozen two bedroom apartments and two penthouses.

Wolf Systems pivotal to apartment development successMike Edds of Firwood Homes comments: “The old fishing harbour at Milford Haven has become a big focus for the leisure industry and this development offers very attractive sea views from the penthouses and some of the other flats.

“The design of the Charles Street building required us to provide easi-joist floors for two upper levels and also as the deck to a large area of flat roof over the penthouses. We offer easi-joist as an option for most of our contracts and, really there would have been no alternative for this project due to the length of the spans. Everyone is always very impressed with easi-joist as a product: they are so consistent, light in weight for site installation, offer plenty of space for fixing and routing services. They are excellent.”

As is common practice now in the construction of multi-occupancy buildings, the engineered timber floor joists form the key structural element to a party floor construction having to achieve high acoustic as well as fire performance standards.

  23/09/2009 - Flexibility the economic driver for easi-joist offering
Wolf Systems’ customers partners are discovering that the timber engineering innovator’s metal webbed joist offering is helping many of them ride out the recession and actually win new customers; thanks mainly to the flexibility of the product.

Flexibility the economic driver for easi-joist offeringWolf’s easi-joist system initially built its reputation for speed, accuracy and reliability through being specified for floor construction within new build residential properties. However, development of the system by Wolf – coupled with growing demand from construction consultants and contractors for well designed off-site solutions – has seen the engineered timber beams utilised for floors, roofs, walls and even whole-frame solutions.

There is a natural synergy for roof truss manufacturers in moving to make easi-joist metal web joists, with very similar production techniques and CAD technology being employed. The joists themselves offer designers and developers a more accessible floor zone for the routing of services and MVHR, as well as excellent load-carrying and spanning characteristics. Project demands are also often leading to easi-joists being made up into cassettes or panels to offer greater off-site construction benefits.

Referring to market conditions, Wolf Systems’ Sales and Marketing Director, Karl Foster, comments, “Despite difficult trading conditions continuing due to the slow nature of recovery in the housing sector, we have seen year-on-year growth in the volume of easi-joist components being supplied. Almost all of our major customers have now become manufacturers of easi-joist metal web joists, and the addition to their portfolio is helping to attract new customers.”

A £1 million investment made at Wolf’s Coventry headquarters has seen capacity increase and production costs cut, while the patented design and strength of the easi-joist components means easi-joist manufacturers require fewer webs per floor compared to alternative systems and are able to offer a more competitive solution for their customer.

Industry analysts predict future growth in the construction product supply sector will concentrate on prefabrication – meaning good news for producers of easi-joists as they offer multi-dimensional flexibility for use in many different approaches to Modern Methods of Construction.

  01/07/2009 - easi-joist attic trusses speed service installation
easi-joist attic trusses speed service installationLogistical problems regarding the routing of electrical and plumbing connections through the first floor zone have been solved for a house builder in East Anglia thanks to the help of his local Wolf Systems’ manufacturer.

Holden Timber Engineering Limited, based near Ipswich, had supplied Andrew Goodwin Homes with both trussed rafters, along with various sizes of easi-joist engineered timber floor beams, over a number of years. So, when the client expressed a desire to use attic trusses containing an easi-joist as the bottom chord to the assembly, Holden immediately made contact with Wolf’s technical advisory service to seek guidance on design.

Kevin Anderson, MD of Holden Timber Engineering, takes up the account: “The client came to us saying they wanted to be able to route services through the area of the floor void, which isn’t really possible with normal room-in-the-roof trusses because you cannot drill or notch into the bottom chord. With easi-joists, however, the spaces already exist, which make the running of even quite large pipes very easy. Wolf’s engineers were able to guide us on incorporating the easi-joists into the attic truss using the software they provide. It is a solution we will be offering to other customers in the future.”

Some 40 trusses were supplied to Andrew Goodwin Homes for each of the two chalet style bungalows being built in East Bergholt, Suffolk. All had a span of just over six metres with the 45º roof pitch making it possible for them to be delivered to site as a single component. Additional easi-joists were produced to serve as trimmers where the stairs rise from the ground floor, and also to infill the area of the dormer windows.

Andrew Goodwin adds, “The idea of incorporating the easi-joists into an attic roof truss has worked very well. It has been amazing how quickly our plumbers and electricians have got used to the idea of not having to drill through floor joists. In the case of the two houses in East Bergholt, the planners wanted us to keep the overall height of the buildings down in appearance so attic trusses were the obvious way of complying. The installation was straightforward and the only issue we had to look at was how the slightly greater depth might affect the stairs, but everything worked out perfectly.”

From its headquarters in Hemingstone, Holden Timber Engineering covers most of East Anglia including Suffolk, Norfolk and parts of Essex.

  09/03/2009 - Wolf Systems’ integrated management software goes live!
Wolf Systems has launched the full customer release version of its software, WMS (Wolf Management System).

The software is now being installed across Wolf System’s customer sites following several months of pilot operation at four separate user locations.

WMS is a fully integrated system that brings together all the key functionality required by a modern timber engineering business. The system is used for both design and management; creating databases for quotations and orders, planning of production, deliveries and allocating resources, business reporting, analysis and cost monitoring. It is believed this is the first system of its kind in which all of these functions can exist within one application.

Wolf Systems' integrated management software goes liveWith the new V1.2 WMS, Wolf has taken customer feedback and real-life user experience and enhanced the V1.1 version to create highly visual and customisable scheduling functions together with more detailed and user-definable management reporting.

By bringing all the relevant software applications under one system, WMS allows data from different sites and departments of the same company to be replicated and shared. This allows all employees, from travelling sales people and managers to factory staff, to keep up-to-date with the business.

WMS is intended to supersede existing Wolf Systems management and production software. WolfTrack, the existing scheduling tool, and WolfPro, the company’s current management software, will be replaced with the installation of WMS, says Karl Foster, sales and marketing director of Wolf Systems. “We’ve also updated our design software so it’s now fully integrated with WMS”.

Enhanced features of WMS V1.2 include a new Planned Work Schedule which eases the transition of work from the design office into production. This allows manufacturing to be accurately scheduled into the working week from provisional or week-commencing dates. The new scheduling section also includes a calendar which automatically integrates into the scheduling functions, making planning of available resources far simpler.

Open standards have been used throughout the software, meaning that all of the critical management information is also available to transfer easily into other external software packages.

Combining the full range of manufacturing activities into one package means that each user is working within a live environment where interaction with other users happens in real time. “Information can be shared more quickly and there’s less scope for error” says Karl.

Wolf Systems has a history of producing easy to use and technically expert software tailored to its clients’ requirements. “It’s always been our policy to encourage our customers to take an active role in helping us develop the most appropriate and user-friendly software”, says Karl.

“We’re confident this is not just the most sophisticated and comprehensive management application we’ve ever produced but also the most comprehensive management software available to timber engineering manufacturers today”, he adds.




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