Cornwall LivingIssue #113
Signature structures
Creating inspiring buildings and stunning spaces that are designed to be used for generations.
Simple designs and a natural aesthetic are growing increasingly popular within Cornish homes and architectural projects, often taking inspiration from the striking landscape that runs through the county, tending to lend themselves to the stunning country backdrop in which they’re set. Previously Carpenter Oak Cornwall Ltd, Post & Beam Ltd is at the forefront of a movement towards sustainable yet beautiful constructions that will stand the test of time.
Having crossed paths over 15 years ago, Tom Jubb and Tim Simpson have since come together with a vision of sustainability and tradition in mind to create Post & Beam, now a leading authority in Cornish timber construction, renowned throughout the county for their unique designs.
From their workshop and studio overlooking the St Ives coast, the team design and handcraft bespoke oak frames and timber buildings with an aim to create beautiful spaces for people to live, work and enjoy. Some outstanding representations of their work include the art gallery at Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens in Penzance, Rick Stein’s The Cornish Arms in Padstow, and the Seven Stones Inn on the Isles of Scilly, as well as countless domestic oak frame houses, extensions and sunrooms throughout the Duchy.
The wealth of experience in the oak frame and timber industry that the highly skilled team possess enables Post & Beam to take on challenging and complex projects, including traditionally jointed structural carpentry, contemporary timber-steel hybrid frames, timber cladding, as well as incorporated glazing and sub-frame joinery. The team also offer a range of insulation methods for their panels to meet varying budgets, although customers with aspirations of a warm, comfortable and environmentally friendly home, tend to choose the ecological option of wood fibre.
Fabricated mostly in renewable materials, the buildings Post & Beam designs and creates make an attractive and sustainable alternative to the conventional building materials of concrete, stone and steel. The team source their oak, Douglas fir and ‘glulams’ (Glued Laminated Timber) from sustainable forests throughout the UK and Europe, where the forestry management schemes of FSC and PEFC – the internationally recognised standard of forest management – ensure timber used is an entirely sustainable resource. More trees are planted than harvested thanks to these regulations, which means that with the growth of timber construction, forests are actually thriving. The French management system established in 1872 has a staggering 524 million cubic metres of standing oak, with annual production running at under 1 million.
Building only with timber that is sustainably sourced, the material actually locks embedded carbon into your oak or timber frames for the entire lifespan of the building, which means the timber is classified as carbon neutral! As trees grow they lock away carbon dioxide, but mature trees absorb less than those at an earlier stage of growth. Older trees are harvested for construction purposes and converted into a usable building material, and replaced in turn with younger trees more efficient at absorbing CO2. In fact, every cubic metre of timber absorbs one ton of carbon
dioxide, making it a sound ecological choice – addressing climate change and the need to reduce CO2 emissions in the construction industry.
A big part of the charm we see in Post & Beam is the fact that Tom, Tim and the team work on everything individually by hand in the workshop, preferring hand-crafting tools and age-old skills passed down through the generations to impersonal technologies like computer guided saws. Each part of a new structure is tended to by one of the team’s very own expert hands, adding a delightfully personal touch to every building they construct. You can be confident in the fact that every single project, no matter the scale, is managed with care and precision with a first-class service for the ultimate result.
Building environmentally conscious homes across Cornwall by partnering sustainable materials with ecological design, if you’re thinking about home improvement, or are undertaking a self-build, make sure to get in touch with the team at Post & Beam to see how you could minimise the environmental footprint of your ultimate dream home.
Post & Beam Ltd
01326 336554
