Structural carpentry
First fix
carpentry.
First fix is the structural carpentry that goes in while a building is still open: the timber that carries loads, forms rooms and gives every trade after us something true to work to. It is finished long before anyone sees it, which is precisely why it has to be right.
Where first fix sits in a build
First fix follows the shell and precedes the plasterer. Once the structure is weathertight, we form the internal layout in timber so the electrician and plumber can run services through it, and so the plasterer has flat, plumb surfaces to board and skim.
Get it wrong and the cost lands on everyone downstream. A partition that is out of plumb shows in the skirting line months later. A joist centred at the wrong spacing means the flooring has to be re-planned. A door lining that is racked will never hang a door that closes cleanly, whatever the second fix carpenter does to it.
How we work on site
We work to drawings and to the structural engineer's details, and we check dimensions on site before cutting rather than assuming the drawing matches what has been built. Where something does not line up, we raise it with the main contractor or the homeowner before it is buried, not after.
Timber is ordered to the specification on the drawing, stored properly and cut as needed. Offcuts are kept until the stage signs off, the working area is swept at the end of each day, and waste is removed rather than left for the next trade to move.
What first fix carpentry covers
Floors and ceilings
- Floor joists and joist hangers
- Noggins and strutting
- Chipboard and ply decking
- Ceiling joists and firrings
- Loft hatch openings
Walls and openings
- Stud partitions, insulated or acoustic
- Door linings and casings
- Window boards and sub-frames
- Structural timber to engineer's detail
- Pattressing for fixings and brackets
Roof and external
- Cut roofs and roof carcassing
- Trussed roof erection and bracing
- Firring and flat roof decks
- Fascia, soffit and bargeboards
- Timber frame and SIPs assistance
Recent work
across Kent
Common questions
Yes. Plenty of our work is first fix for builders and main contractors who have their own finishing carpenter, and we are happy to price a first fix package on its own.
Yes. Tell us the slot and we will confirm whether we can hold it. If a preceding trade slips we would rather adjust with you than turn up to a job that is not ready.
Usually, priced within the quote. If you prefer to supply materials from your own account we can price labour only.