Police say a 55-year-old man who lived in a shed attached to a workshop was killed when a fire ripped through the premises.

The man died following the fire in a commercial premises in Tinwald, near Ashburton, early on Friday morning.

Emergency services were called just after 6am following reports of smoke from a building in Bryant St.

A Timaru police spokesman said the man's death was not considered suspicious and the death would be referred to the coroner.