Hundreds of jobs have been lost with the closure of a housebuilding supply giant's branches across the UK.
Administrators said that 235 staff at National Timber Group have been made redundant with the closure of 15 branches, including eight in Scotland and seven in England.
The collapse of the firm founded 106 years ago highlights the crushing extent of ongoing stresses on the construction and housebuilding industry across the country, and analysts warn there is more sector pressure ahead.
The company collapsed into administration towards the end of last year with 561 jobs lost with immediate effect.
The National Timber Group was a major UK‑wide distributor, so many Cumbrian contractors, joinery firms and merchants will have been buying timber or panels via its network or brands.
The report by administrators Alvarez & Marsal shows the group's trading performance deteriorated significantly from 2022 onwards, when a profit of £16.9 million slumped to a loss of £6.1m by last year.
A restructure and a change of chief executive took place in 2025 but trading continued to deteriorate.
The administrators said a short-term forecast showed “a significant funding requirement in excess of management's original expectations”.
This was “worsening due to increasing creditor pressure and the need to provide proforma payments for goods as suppliers and credit insurers withdrew terms”.
The National Timber Group was created under the ownership of Cairngorm Capital Partners through a programme of nine strategic acquisitions.
The group was made up of several well-established brands including Thornbridge Timber and Rembrand Timber in Scotland, and Arnold Laver in England, which was founded in Sheffield in 1920.
Key elements included a national timber distribution business, specialist off-site manufacturer of engineered wood products, principally supplying roof trusses and floors to the housebuilding market.
Michael Magnay, joint administrator, said that the National Timber Group was “the UK’s leading timber supplier to joiners, housebuilders and contractors, operating under a number of widely recognised brands”.
Branches to close in the final round in Scotland include the Dumfries branch.
Blair Milne, Glasgow-based corporate insolvency partner at Azets, said fresh pressures from the war in the Middle East signal little respite in sight for the sector.
He said: “Construction firms are suffering as the Iran conflict has increased costs and hit client confidence and willingness to commission work, while poor weather hit live and planned projects, which will affect firms across the supply chain.”
Oliver Collinge, partner at PKF Littlejohn Advisory, said the rise “highlights ongoing pressures on businesses”.
He said: “The downturn appears to be widespread, with challenges emerging across a range of sectors from construction through to wholesale and retail trade, real estate and food and beverage companies.
“Rising costs, tighter credit, and uncertainty in demand are making the corporate environment tougher for many.”
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