The first delivery of the passive timber frame from MBC Timber Frame Ltd arrived this morning from the factory in Ireland. The access to site is quite tight so MBC had arranged to have their truck met by a smaller vehicle and transfer the load a couple of miles away so it would not block the road. The smaller vehicle was still actually pretty large and managed to take the load in just two trips, but with a fairly hair raising few moments each time trying to fit through the gates. The drive has pillars either side of the gate and is also not level. We had to use planks to raise the low side of the truck to level it off to allow it to drive through, still with only an inch or two either side.

Transferring the first load

First delivery arriving

Squeezing through the gate

Unloading wall panels

Panels stacked on the slab

Setting out sole plate

Setting out sole plate

Positioning sole plate and damp proof course

Drilling fixings for sole plate

Before the timber frame wall panels can be fixed in place a timber sole plate is fixed down to the slab over a plastic damp proof membrane (dpc) strip. The sole plate must be accurately set out as the walls will follow its line around the building. It gives a secure fixing point for the wall panels and the dpc prevents any damp rising up into the wall.