Project Overview
In June 2025, HRH Princess Anne officially opened the new Winthrop-Young Gordonstoun Coastguard Centre, a state of the art facility enabling students from Gordonstoun School to support HM Coastguard on live search and rescue missions for the first time in the UK. The building features an interactive briefing room, changing area, and secure storage for high-vis gear all built around a striking timber clad exterior.
The Builder: Ecosystems Technologies
Ecosystems are a local Scottish company who create high quality modular buildings and whose practices have the aim of accelerating the transition to a carbon negative built environtment.
Why Larch Was Chosen
- Naturally durable: Larch is renowned for its toughness and weather resistance, perfect for external cladding.
- Low maintenance: Though untreated larch weathers gracefully, it’s often advised to treat it to prolong its lifespan and maintain aesthetics.
- Visual appeal: Featuring warm hues and natural grain, larch cladding provides a contemporary yet timeless look ideal for enhancing a public service building that also serves as a landmark on campus.
Logie Timber Supply & Quality Control:
- Precision cut to order. Our softwood, including larch, is cut to order to ensure premium quality and precise dimensions, with a typical lead time of around three weeks.
- Grade options. We supply both Standard and Premium grades in various profiles e.g., Planed Square Edge (PSE), Single Waney Edge, or Double Waney Edge allowing architectural flexibility.
- Overlap and layout recommendations. The style of cladding Ecosystems chose on this build was mixed width boards – 73mm, 100mm and 150mm, all 22mm thick and full lengths boards were chosen to give a clean run from top to bottom without any joints. They spaced the boards out and fixed to a backing board to give a beautiful contemporary look and as the boards were all off saw this helped to keep the costs low and the final results looking fantastic. We grade all of our timber to BS 8605-1:2014 which means each board has been individually checked by a trained member of the teamto ensure the highest quality and give the very best linfespan for the cladding. For heart wood larch cladding the life span is 50 years +.
- Quality assurance. Our rigorous QC process enables full replacements within seven days if any timber fails to meet standards. This ensures projects like Gordonstoun’s Coastguard Centre are clad in only the best materials—free from warping, splitting, or sizing errors thanks to our kiln-dried timber.
On-Site Treatment & Maintenance
- Protective finishes: While the larch will weather naturally to a silvery patina, treatment with oils or stain (e.g., Treatex Larch Oil available through our shop) can enhance weather resistance, prolong lifespan, and enrich colour.
- Hardware:
We recommend A2 stainless steel fixings.
Project Benefits & Outcomes
Feature | Benefit |
Local timber sourcing | Supports sustainable supply chains and reduces transport footprint. |
Durable larch cladding | Ensures the centre remains robust and visually striking for decades. |
Expert led quality control | Guarantees a flawless finish and mitigates installation issues. |
Low maintenance exterior | Reduces ongoing upkeep, critical for a busy educational facility. |
Summary
Our supply of precision cut, kiln dried larch, backed by expert quality control and maintenance advice, helped Ecosystems Tech turn the Winthrop Young Gordonstoun Coastguard Centre into a durable, low maintenance, and visually impressive structure befitting its critical role. This project exemplifies how Logie Timber’s full service approach, from material sourcing to technical support, supports resilient builds in our community.
