How much does a glulam structure cost?
When starting a project and considering glulam as an option, many people begin their research by wanting to know what standard glulam sizes are, so they can build a picture in their mind of size, shape cost and so on.
When asked this question, our answer is there aren’t ‘one size fits all’ sizes, as every project is unique! When creating a proposal for a customer we advise it is more about type rather than size, however, we realise while this is true, it isn’t helpful when you are at information gathering stage.
What we have done therefore is collect some examples for you of smaller, medium and larger structures we have worked on in the past, to give a flavour of what you could be looking at in terms of size and cost.
1. Small Glulam Extension Frame
This project was a small UK larch glulam frame extension. The frame was designed and supplied by us to extend the kitchen at the rear of the property. Glulam is a good option if you want to do something a bit different than a standard blockwork build or conservatory, and this customer chose a glulam extension frame as it created a lot of impact in a small space and helped the space feel warmer.
Cost £10,000 (£900 per sq metre inc installation).
Size Approximately 12 square metres.
2. Glulam Canopy Frame
This project is a canopy frame which was designed by us, supplied and installed on site, with the customer sourcing the roofing material separately. As this was for a garden centre the customer chose a glulam canopy frame as it was more aesthetically pleasing than steel, and blended in particularly well with the outdoors, giving the surroundings a more natural feel.
Cost £35,000 (£200 per sq metre).
Size Approximately 180 square metres.
3. Glulam Portal Frames for a House
This project was a spruce straight beam glulam portal house frame. The frame was designed by us, supplied and installed on site. Glulam portal house frames are particularly good if you want long span open spaces with maximum visual impact, and they can be used for residential, leisure or commercial spaces. The customer chose this as they thought it was more interesting than the usual steel frame alternative.
Cost £40,000 (£225 per sq metre).
Size Approximately 200 square metres.
4. Large Glulam Swimming Pool Frame
This project was a large glulam portal frame for a school’s leisure centre. The frame was designed by us, supplied and installed on site.
Again the glulam portal frame was chosen over the usual steel frame alternatives due to the visual impact, but particularly because glulam has good durability resistance to pool environments, and also presented large carbon emission savings over other structural materials helping the customer make a more sustainable choice too.
Cost £250,000 (£250 per sq metre).
Size Approximately 1000 square metres.
While there are of course similarities to some projects, each and every design we create is different; while you can find the price of a beam, it is less easy to cost a project when you factor in design, machining, brackets and installation!
If you are interested in estimating some costs, you may find our Glulam Beam Cost Estimator helpful – simply select a beam timber species, section size and length to get a rough calculation.
Alternatively (or even as well as!) feel free to get in contact with us to see how we can help you with your project.