Potton

Potton was founded in 1964 and was privately run and owned up until its acquisition by the Kingspan Group in 2006. The early business involved the manufacture of just about anything that could be made from wood ranging from industrial pallets to packing crates and bulk potato boxes for the agricultural industry. The company was called the Potton Timber Engineering Company Limited, and the name sums up its early activities rather well. The business grew rapidly and by the end of the sixties it was tackling sophisticated timber engineering projects for companies such as Ford, Rank Xerox and Kodak. In 1968 Potton was one of the first companies to start production of timber frame house kits and by the early 70's was at the forefront of modern timber frame housing in the UK. By the end of the decade Potton had supplied tens of thousands of houses providing high quality, energy efficient, low-cost housing to progressive councils such as Peterborough, Telford, Milton Keynes, and Basildon. In the early 80's, Potton pioneered the 3D volumetric approach for budget hotels, where the bedroom pods were factory built and craned into place, so that each one took just a few weeks to complete on site. During this period the company manufactured and built around 200 hotels for many different customers. In 1984, Potton saw the potential for Self Build, and launched its first Self Build home at the Ideal Home Exhibition. The design was from the "Heritage" range, intended as country cottages for rural England, using an innovative exposed post and beam system. Since that time, the product range has broadened and evolved, with contemporary and classic designs along with bespoke solutions allowing customers to develop and tailor their home to suit their personal needs. In 1992, Potton opened the UK's first Self Build show centre at St Neots. It was, and still remains, the only facility where prospective clients can see, feel and experience how their eventual investment will look, and currently boasts four fully finished homes of varying design together with a product information centre and is the home of our "Self Build Academy".