IPE

Horohoe Construction Ltd were awarded the carpentry package by Taylor Wimpey for Argyll Place. The works included the installation of staircases leading from ground floor level to to the basement courtyards. Beaumont guided Horohoe throughout the specification process which eventually led to their client choosing the tropical hardwood IPE for the stair treads.

We were asked to provide several samples of tropical hardwood for the client, this was a challenge due to the required dimensions of the stair treads and immediately ruled out some of the hardwood species that would normally be considered due to lack of availability in such a large size - the sections had to finish at approximately 50mm thick by 240mm wide. To this end we provided sample pieces of IPE, Iroko and Jatoba, all three beautiful timbers and well suited for external applications. The other consideration for the client was the colour of the wood and one of the main reasons they ended up opting for IPE.

In order to produce the stair treads to the required finished size we purchased the IPE in sawn 52 x 250mm sections. The timber was then planed with square edges to a 45 x 235mm finish on the brand new moulder at our Hoddesdon depot. Finally the timber was cross cut to 750mm and 800mm  lengths ready for site installation.