Low-down beam skimmed (5)
I believe the answer is:
intel
'low-down' is the definition.
(low-down can mean information or intelligence)
'beam skimmed' is the wordplay.
'beam' becomes 'lintel' (lintel is a kind of beam).
'skimmed' means to remove the first letter (to skim something is to take the top off it).
'lintel' with its first letter taken away is 'INTEL'.
(Other definitions for intel that I've seen before include "silicon chip manufacturer" , "military info" , "Chip manufacturer based in California" , "US chip manufacturer" , "Information" .)