The Importance of Innovation and Design Thinking

Staircases are an essential component in almost every building, yet design thinking and specification of staircase components has remained unchanged for decades. Often seen as a low-ticket item, specifiers and housebuilders have tended to favour low-cost materials with limited design scope, resulting in a stagnation in innovation and design thinking. However, with timber seeing a resurgence in many interior applications, now is the perfect time to reset as an industry and adopt a new approach.

At Think Timber, we place innovation, sustainability and strategic partnerships at the forefront of what we do, allowing us to deliver unique, practical staircase components. In this blog, we outline the importance we place on innovation and why it should be more widely adopted if we’re to achieve a more interesting and sustainable sector.

The Importance of Innovation

In every industry innovation is a sign of progress and a key driver of long-term success and growth. Without it, problems would remain unsolved, designs stagnant and changing requirements unaddressed. The staircase sector has experienced this stagnation, with housebuilders often favouring low-cost specification to any real architectural design or innovative thinking.

Taking a consultative approach with our customers, we prefer to do things differently, offering innovative solutions for the entire industry, reducing the number of silos in the supply chain, and creating opportunity for collaborative growth and success. It’s our vision to encourage this across the board, embracing design thinking and innovation to breathe new life into the staircase sector.

Current Industry Challenges

A safe and functional staircase is a key feature in every home, yet very little attention is ever paid to its design. For decades, major housebuilders have worked to outdated specifications resulting in a  trend that has seen innovation in design stagnate and the same staircases end up in homes across the country. This is largely due to a lack of knowledge, but is also the result of a race to the bottom in terms of cost-saving, where staircases are often viewed as a low value item.

At Think Timber, we see it differently. Staircases have become low value as a result of the market, not the other way round. Engineered timber for example is absent from those specifications, yet, as an innovation, it opens the door to an entirely new opportunity for waste reduction.

What is Engineered Timber?

The staircase manufacturing sector primarily creates components from raw materials, buying raw timber to produce staircase components. However, it’s now possible to create those same components from small timber fragments that would otherwise be wasted. The innovative process of engineered timber allows the opportunity for a stronger end product by orienting the strength properties and reducing timber defects such as knots, offering a wider range of sizes as you’re not limited to a single tree’s dimension.

By reducing waste and meeting specifications quicker, this innovative solution offers the industry product stability, cost savings and a greener future. However, with outdated specifications still being adhered to, knowledge must be shared throughout the supply chain for innovative processes to be welcomed, kickstarting collaborative progression within the industry.

How do we Impact the Industry?

As a business not just driven by price, we offer a consultative approach to all our customers and suppliers to create sustainable collaborative growth and success. With a design thinking approach, our knowledge of engineered timber and proactiveness for innovation help solve problems and acquire solutions for cost savings, creating shared success throughout the industry.

The core of design thinking lies in solving prominent problems with a creative approach and understanding the customers’ needs and perspectives. At Think Timber, we may only be a ‘small step’ in the ‘timber staircase’ process, but we are a problem-solving business with a customer-centric approach, leading to the possibility of more effective and meaningful solutions for the industry.

If you have any questions or need help with your timber supplies, then our team is happy to help – email sales@thinktimber.co.uk