Latest News
A welcome visitor to the mill
It was great to see this SylvaGrow® liveried #awjenkinson trailer picking up materials in the yard today: it’s a very large and physical representation of our determination not to waste any part of the logs we mill. SylvaGrow® is an award-winning, RHS endorsed peat-free compost which is used by gardeners throughout the UK and is…
Good progress being made on the new sawdust extraction plant
At Ransfords it’s important to us that every part of the trees we mill is used. The timber, of course, is the main part but the bark is graded and used for landcsape mulches and play areas, the chippings go on for processing as chip board and other products, and the sawdust is used in…
Here’s a sight for sore sawmiller’s eyes!
Despite the fact that it’s a dreary day there are few finer sights for those who work in a sawmill than 8 fully loaded trailers waiting for the wagons to get the finished product on the way. There’s boards, posts, feather edge and fencing rails in there: treated and untreated, heading to sites and stockists…
There’s a new defibrillator in Bishop’s Castle
Thanks to a 50% grant from government and the balance from us there’s now a new public defibrillator on Station Street. It’s near the Public Hall and opposite the car park. Public defibrillators save lives: more than 25,000 people die from cardiac arrests outside of hospital annually. If a defibrillator is used within one minute,…
Further investment in solar energy
These drone images taken by a friend of ours yesterday show the scale of our investment in solar energy. Harnessing the power of the sun in this way not only reduces the overall carbon footprint of the business as a whole but also makes it less vulnerable to energy price shocks. This in turn makes…
Funeral arrangements for Steve Green
Steve’s funeral will be held on Thursday 21st March at 11am in St John the Baptist Church in Bishop’s Castle. That’s the Parish Church at the bottom of the town. We’ll be closing the mill that day as a mark of respect so please feel free to park here if you wish. It’s only a…
Steve Green, our Company Secretary.
We are deeply saddened to announce the death of Steve Green after a short illness. Steve, who was our Company Secretary for almost 50 years, joined us in June 1977. He was held in the highest regard by colleagues here at the mill and in the local area, and was universally respected throughout the forestry…
St. George’s Primary School in Clun ponders some outdoor lessons
St. George’s Church of England School in Clun is one of many local schools we support whenever we can. These include the Primary School and Community College here in Bishop’s Castle as well as the schools at Norbury and Chirbury nearby. Many of our colleagues either attended these schools or have children and grandchildren who…
A new Co-op store for Bishop’s Castle is on the way – but first we have to clear the site
An exciting proposal to build a new Co-op store on land we own on the edge of our sawmill has passed all the planning hurdles and work has started on the demolition of the empty building which stands on the site. Local people will know the building as one that stood behind the old Countrywide…
The new system for Saturday firewood collections is working well
Following a safety review in what is a busy working sawmill we had to restrict collections of loose firewood which was manually loaded into car boots to Saturday mornings between 8.00am and 12.00 noon. It’s great to report hat the system is working well…and that everyone is safe! Of course, firewood can be made available for…
Recognising long service
People seem to change jobs every five minutes these days so it’s great for us to know that we have several members of staff who have been with us for multiple decades. Ian Andrews and Stephen (‘Reg’) Morris are two such staff who were today presented with long service awards to mark 40 years each…
Why timber colours differ when first delivered
We regularly get asked about why wood varies in colour. This picture shows Redwood posts which have been treated to the Highways Agency UC4 specification. On the same load are Spruce Rails treated to UC3 Highways Agency specification. The fact is that, as well as different species being used, no two bits of timber from…