Merronbrook is a timber business with a proud history. The manufacturer of roof trusses, timber frames and timber floor joists is run by brothers Alex and Phil Duff.

Starting as a joinery business in 1964, 10 years later, Alex and Phil’s father, Keith Duff, spotted a market for prefabricated timber frame house kits. Success soon followed, and by the end of the 70s, Merronbrook were even supplying holiday chalet kits back to Denmark.
The fiveacre site, close to the village of Hartley Wintney in the Northeast corner of Hampshire, has an industrial heritage spanning back four hundred years.

Formerly a clay pit and brick making works, it still carries the hallmarks of its past life, particularly being split on two levels and nestled amongst trees and heathland.

“The location is important to our heritage,” says Phil, “it’s near to where our father was born and where his interest in the carpentry trade began.”
The countryside setting brings with it a few restrictions, as Baumann sales director, Mark Bann explains: “There are a few challenges. They are in the middle of greenbelt land, they are at the limit with land usage, they need to maximise their storage space which they do with the cantilever racking, and the aisles need to be as small as they can be, hence the use of sideloaders.”
Merronbrook use the Baumann sideloader to move their raw materials from the cantilever racking or from floor level to transport round to their manufacturing facility.

“There is no other machinery on the market that can operate as comfortably on this flooring,” says Mark. “it’s a good floor but there are slopes and some uneven parts. The Baumann will compensate with its selflevelling deck for uneven ground by keeping the deck as level as it can using the tilt rams. The Baumann lends itself to this kind of yard and this kind of application.”