Australian Forests & Timber News

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AUGUST 2013 Issue 5 Vol. 22 • P: (03) 9888 4834 • E: l.martin@ryanmediapl.com.au • www.timberbiz.com.au

Out of the ashes

By Mandy Parry-Jones

L

IKE THE phoenix rising from the ashes, the Tasmania forest industry has the opportunity to look forward and improve its future following the Tasmanian Forestry Agreement.

Andreas Rothe has been preparing the state, and the country for a good news story with his appraisal of the biomass potential of Tasmania. Now it’s time for government, industry and the public to listen, learn and take action.

The author Andreas Rothe, or more precisely Dr Rothe, is a professor who teaches applied forest ecology and environmental resource management in his native Germany at the University of Applied Sciences Weihenstephan.

This is the largest forestry school at bachelor level in Germany, and together with other institutions forms the Centre of Forestry Weihenstephan, which is the biggest forestry research centre in Germany with a staff of around 400.

Before joining the university Rothe worked for Forestry Bavaria for 15 years and worked in native forest silviculture with Forestry Tasmania in 2004.

 Andreas Rothe.

Rothe spent his sabbatical leave this year based at Forestry Tasmania comparing Tasmanian use of forest residues and low quality timber with those of Europe and in detail with his home state of Bavaria.

“I’ve been working here in 2004 so I had in mind that a huge amount of residues was burnt in the open and I had in mind that a big part of which was exported to China and since the price for energy has picked up a lot in Europe I decided to do this project,” said Rothe.

The project According to the project background, in contrast to many countries in Europe, the use of

forest biomass as a renewable energy source is minimal in Tasmania and Australia.

A lack of understanding and acceptance among important stakeholders has been identified as the major constraint.

The aim of Rothe’s project is to analyse current use and future potential of forest biomass in Tasmania and compare that with the present situation in Europe.

Bavaria, a southwest state of Germany, was used since its total area of 7.5 million hectares, its forest area of 2.5 million hectares and public forest management structure with 0.8 million hectares of state forests is similar to that in Tasmania.

“Certainly it was an important issue that Tasmania compares very well to Bavaria which is my home state and so I have access to the data at home, and it makes a very nice comparison,” Rothe said.

The use of forest biomass for energy is a widespread practice in Germany and around 50% of this is directly harvested from forests and 50% comes from secondary sources, mainly wood processing residues and waste wood.

Although forest type and markets are different, this figure indicates a future potential for forest biomass as an energy source in Tasmania.

“This (project) was started in February for approximately six months,” said Rothe. “Tasmania provided the infrastructure.”

“I co-operated with a lot of people in Tasmania starting from the forest industry, forest growers, to government agencies like the Environment Protection Agency … they included private forest, they included state forest and I was in contact with the NGOs like the Wilderness Society to hear their perspective on forest biomass energy.”

The main aim of the project was to quantify the potential of forest biomass for energy in Tasmania for the next three years.

“I did a short term supply estimate; most of estimates they work on very long terms like 20 years or 30 years but I decided to really use or look at the next three years because in Tasmania - the next three years is a minimum supply and you get much more reliable figures instead of long term studies with lots of uncertainties,” explained Rothe.

The estimate is conservative, excluding residues from old growth logging and considering environmental issues like coarse woody debris (CWD) and nutrient sustainability.

New opportunity Examples from Europe indicate that biomass for energy production can be a new business field for the forest industry in Australia and particularly for Tasmania.

The market value of forest biomass in Germany alone is more than $1 billion. The use of forest biomass requires consideration of many technical, economic and social aspects, which are beyond the scope of the project.

The results of the project are intended to be a basis for further studies on economic viability and on the technical aspects of harvesting (processing, transporting) and use (pelleting, firewood, electricity and/or heating plants) of forest biomass.

It is also a springboard to stir the government into making suitable political decisions and to create social acceptance and legitimacy for forest biomass.

“All the renewable energies depend to some stage on support from the government,” said Rothe.

“And that’s definitely the case that biomass gets much more big support in Europe than in Australia.

“Germany is very forward economically in alternative power sources. We have very ambitious targets until 2020 and 2050 to reach for renewable energies, and biomass is a part of this.

“Australia isn’t [in the same position] because of other options such as coal. [Now] Australia is also thinking much more than in the past about renewable energies.

Biomass, for whatever reason, doesn’t seem to be as important in Australia, or is not considered as much as it is in Europe.”

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Put residues to use The study looked only at second and third growth harvesting operations due to the low social acceptance of old growth harvesting for commodity products.

Available harvesting residue volumes were estimated for major forest types including restrictions to manage for nutrient sustainability, CWD management and operational aspects. All public and private forests available for harvesting were included as well as hardwood and softwood plantations.

Biomass potential was estimated using current sawlog recovery and including restrictions to manage for nutrient sustainability.

All residues from professional wood processing activities were also included. continued on page 4.

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Report on finances shows little understanding V

ICFORESTS has expressed its disappointment at a recent story in The Age regarding the organisation’s financial performance.

VicForests’ chief executive officer Robert Green said the article was based on a report developed by Australian Conservation Foundation on behalf of another conservation group who is opposed to native timber harvesting operations.

“The ACF report showed little understanding of our operations or our financial reporting,” Green said.

“It was particularly disappointing that we were not contacted at any point by the report’s authors to provide the clarification they clearly needed to properly understand our business.

“This lack of balance and lack of knowledge is reflected in the

report’s summary which included recommendations regarding issues which were not even analysed.

“While we recognise there has been a net cash outflow from our operations to date, this is something which is not uncommon for start up businesses.

“These outgoings have played an important role in allowing us to deliver crucial elements of our remit including the creation of a competitive sales platform as part of the move to a Mill Door Sales model of business. This change in particular required working capital to fund inventory and accounts receivable.

“The report neglects to mention VicForests’ profit and loss statements which show we have accumulated Profit before Tax of $17.5 million

and recorded a Net Profit after Tax of $11.6 million since being created in 2004,” he said.

Green said the report also chose to question VicForests’ valuation of its assets despite the organisation having its financial reporting audited by the Victorian Auditor General’s Office each year.

“Our assets include the large volume of logs kept in storage to ensure a supply to customers during wetter months when limited harvesting takes place for environmental reasons,” he said.

“As many within the industry would be aware, these storages are at their highest at the end of each Financial Year when our financial reporting takes place but then run down as deliveries are made to customers over winter.

“We have also taken advantage of recent favourable conditions to build up stores of the Eucalyptus seed used to regrow the forest in harvested areas following our operations and by the Department of Environment and Primary Industries to regenerate forests damaged by bushfire.

“The timber supplied from our operations ensures a sustainable hardwood timber industry is able to exist in Victoria. In nine years we have delivered just under $1 billion worth of timber to domestic timber processors,” he said.

“Even using a conservative economic multiplier these operations have generated approximately $4 billion worth of much needed economic activity in regional Victoria. The authors again chose to overlook these facts.

 Robert Green.

“These operations also help to reduce Australia’s reliance on timber imported from developing nations to meet our growing demand for wood and wood products.

“Times remain tough for a range of manufacturing industries in Victoria but we believe our operations and the native timber industry remain a key part of Victoria’s economy.

“We look forward to continuing to provide much needed timber to our valuable and sustainable industry,” Green said.

$8.6 million for south-east timber company projects IN A major economic boost for the Limestone Coast, the South Australian Government has awarded grants totalling more than $8.6 million for investment and jobs in the south-east forest industry.

Manufacturing, Innovation and Trade Minister, Tom Kenyon said the funding was offered to five timber companies through the South-East Forestry Partnerships Program.

“The program was launched in November last year to help secure the forestry industry’s future by encouraging further investment in new and existing businesses,” The Minister said.

“The five grants will encourage forest utilisation, promote regional economic development and contribute to a sustainable workforce.

“The successful applicants will be required to enter into a funding agreement with the State Government and demonstrate that they have entered into contractual relations with OneFortyOne Plantations Pty Ltd. “The South-East Forestry Partnerships Program provides assistance to the private sector for capital investment, particularly in new plant and equipment.

“The industry assistance is on a dollar-for-dollar basis and will be provided over two years, payable upon

achievement of key milestones as defined in the funding agreement.

“The south-east forestry region is a world-class timber resource which the State Government is committed to developing in a sustainable way,” Kenyon said.

Grants have been approved for the following projects: N.F. McDonnell and Sons ($4,270,831) to produce a more efficient and modern processing facility.

Whitehead Timber Sales Pty Ltd ($1,970,500) to replace existing sawlog machinery with current technology and processes.

Carter Holt Harvey Pinepanels Pty Ltd ($1,160,000) to purchases a shavings machine to turn sawlog into shavings which will be used to manufacture particleboard.

H & L Scheidl Pty Ltd ($1,052,500) to upgrade the company’s Marte Siding site.

Roundwood Solutions Pty Ltd ($237,000) for the second stage of the company’s Long Preservation Optimiser line and significantly increasing its air drying storage area.

The Minister said other southeast forest industry projects were either still under consideration or in the process of being finalised.

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Tough times take toll

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TOUGH TIMES in the industry have forced changes in many organizations and one of the latest to respond to those times is the Australian Forest Growers Association.

It has opted for e-delivery of the winter edition of its Grower magazine, and its long time Chief Executive (Warwick Ragg) has moved on to new opportunities.

AFG Manager (National Office) Terry Greaves said the change to online delivery was, at this stage, a one off, but said that if the electronic version was a succes, AFG would not rule out doing more editions this way.

Terry Greaves explained that AFG was no different than other organisations … “things are tight, and with the current political circumstances policy development and promotion may not have the priority it previously had. In the short term we will be concentrating on added value services for our members”.

AFG President David Fisken paid tribute to the work done by Warwick Ragg in the 11 years he held the post. “Warwick contributed enormously to the growth of AFG, especially in the area of policy development. He represented the interests of AFG members with considerable vigor at both State and national levels.”

Established in 1969 as the Australian Forest Development Institute, AFG is a national association with branches in all states.

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4 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

ISSN 1444-5824

August 2013

GPS and drones can improve tree planting. Page 13

Features News..................................................1-10 Elmia.................................................12-15 Transport......................................... 16-20 Biofuels & Chipping..........................21-26 Scanning & Optimisation..................27-28 Certification...........................................29

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End of era for forestry wordsmith A

FTER 18 years compiling articles that toed the company line and yet were informative to the general public, Sarah Chester has decided it’s time for something different.

For Sarah, author of literally hundreds of press releases for Forests NSW (now Forestry Corporation of NSW), late June marked the end of an era and also the start of something new.

Now, she will be writing part-time for the NSW Forest Industry Council but she also wants to maintain her connection with the forest industry in general.

The girl who grew up on a farm in Tasmania not only has a solid grounding in forestry matters but national and international credits to her name.

Her journalistic career started as a cadet with The Age in Melbourne, then after six years the travel bug bit and she headed for England. While there she worked for Rupert Murdoch when News International made the move from Fleet Street to Wapping which later became known as the Fortress. [The Wapping dispute was a significant turning point in the history of the trade union movement and of UK industrial relations. It started on 24 January 1986 when some 6,000 newspaper workers went on strike after protracted negotiation with News International (parent of

Times Newspapers and News Group Newspapers, and chaired by Rupert Murdoch). News International had built and clandestinely equipped a new printing plant for all its titles in the London district of Wapping.

It’s interesting to note that now the Fortress is set to become the site for 1800 homes].

“I lived and worked in England for about five years,” she says.

On return to Australia Sarah joined the then Australian Wheat Board. “I was their grower relations officer. The highlight of my time there was when I took a massive farmer tour overseas. I also worked to set up the deregulation of the domestic wheat market.”

She moved to the Holbrook region and married farmer Tim Trescowthick. “We’ve got a property just near Holbrook (Roachdale) and during that time I was public relations manager for Charles Sturt University and was responsible for combining the three campuses and their publications (Wagga, Albury and Bathurst). That was way back when they first combined.

“I was then the first formal publicity officer for the Albury City Council,” she said.

Then came the move to Forests NSW ... “that was 18 years ago,” says Sarah, who added she had been privileged to have worked with quite a number of very interesting people.

In particular, she said she loved

 Sarah and Roxie.

working with Peter Crowe, who was head of the Softwood Plantations Division for many years.

“Peter was a dynamic, media savvie boss, with a memory like an elephant and a great enthusiasm for promoting the organisation and the timber industry in general. Most days around 6 pm, and often from the Thurgoona Golf Club, he would ring me and say – ‘Sarah I’ve got some ideas – what do you think?’” she said.

Sarah is philosophical about the future -- “Basically one door closes and another opens”, she says, plus, she has just bought herself a new

horse, Roxie – “I’m very keen on my riding. It’s a 16 hands warmblood thoroughbred cross, beautifully bred six year old; beautiful nature.”

So, with part of her time devoted to adult riding (jumping and dressage) and a love of riding around the farm, Sarah describes this stage of her life as ... “Basically toe in the water -working for the Forestry Industry Council and interested in staying in touch with the forest industry. I would still like to work,” she says.

Forestry Corporation’s new Manager Communications and Media is Joanna Bodley.

Out of the ashes continued from page 1.

“I excluded old growth forest in my supply estimates and I was very careful about the environmental standards like leaving slash for maintaining soil fertility,” said Rothe.

“Since Tasmania is such a huge forestry source you can maintain ecological biodiversity and doing some harvesting.”

Rothe estimates as much as 3.3 million tonnes of biomass could be sourced for bioenergy from sustainable forestry in Tasmania.

“This would be predominantly from plantations, with a smaller amount from native forest regrowth. It would not in any way impact on old growth native forests,” he said.

“These estimates cover the whole of Tasmania, with nearly 70% of the resource coming from private land.”

Rothe said his research showed that even after the Tasmanian Forest Agreement (TFA), there is plenty of wood for a sustainable industry as Tasmania has among the highest per capita production forest resources worldwide.

“Tasmania has a large forest reserve even after the Tasmanian Forest Agreement, mainly derived from plantations and it’s mainly low quality timber which means wood chip quality and the usual amount of residues which are burned in the open,” said Rothe.

“Bavaria and Tasmania – the total forest area is quite similar. Tasmania has 3.3 million hectares and Bavaria has 2.5 mill hectares but the managed area is actually bigger in Bavaria and the total harvest in Bavaria is three times as high as Tasmania “So we harvest about 80 million tonnes and Tasmania’s potential is five to six million tonnes after the TFA. Tasmania has much more forest in reserves and the productivity of eucalypt is lower compared with the spruce and beech forests of central Europe.”

Benefits for employment and the environment According to Rothe the biomass movement really picked up about 10 years ago in Europe

when oil prices increased sharply and energy policies changed in Europe.

Does that make Tasmania 10 years behind?

“No I wouldn’t think Tasmania is 10 years behind because the situation is different … but I think it would be very worthwhile now to look at forest biomass for energy,” said Rothe.

“A lot of people here have been working on forest biomass they have had a look at what is the potential but the economics are quite different to Europe because of the cheap coal in Australia and the electricity was very cheap 10 years ago.”

At the moment wood contributes 6.5% of the total energy supply in Australia compared with the leading countries in Europe with large forest resources like Sweden and Finland who generate about 30% of total energy from biomass.

“From a resource point of view, if we used residues and 50% of pulp grade logs for bioenergy we could lift Tasmania’s bioenergy contribution beyond 30%, at the same time reducing reliance on fossil fuels and carbon emissions,” he said.

“The impact on jobs would be substantial, with most of them directly generated in local areas according to German and Swiss studies.

“One biomass plant using 10,000 tonnes per year creates about 45 long-term jobs, roughly the same number employed as a chip mill using 100,000 tonnes,” said Rothe who also says there’s a huge gap in the way forest biomass is valued and used between Tasmania and Europe.

More effective use of pulpwood and forest residues can deliver a $200 million boost to earnings and hundreds of new jobs, together with sustainable environmental benefits.

“Bavaria has less forest than Tasmania, but industry is encouraged to make far greater use of the whole tree, including post-harvesting and processing residues. “Forest biomass is valued as an important source of renewable energy and its sensible use is supported by all political parties, including the Greens.

“As a result, Bavaria has 700 biomass plants. Tasmania has just a handful, with

most pulpwood being exported as low value woodchips and a lot of residues going up in smoke in regeneration burns.”

Due to the small population density in Tasmania the state has too few people to make use of all its large forest resource so export is another benefit for its f ledging economy.

“Tasmania has a much bigger forestry source compared with the rest of Australia,” said Rothe.

“For Tasmania it would be very worthwhile looking at the possibilities that biomass could have for contributing to renewable energies, and biomass is very strong in the heat sector.

It is very competitive and it would be very worthwhile exploring the possibilities in the heat sector and in the pellet sector.”

The next steps The government needs to take into account the uses of biomass for future energy but the amount of squabbling and bickering in Tasmania over forestry management may have clouded the issue.

Maybe we deserve the lack of foresight and direction in policy terms. As Thomas Jefferson said “The government you elect is the government you deserve”. Or better still HL Mencken said “People deserve the government they get, and they deserve to get it good and hard.”

No doubt the forestry industry got that with the Labor government but now with an election looming its time to lobby for what the industry needs for its future.

“Governments usually do what the public want in a democratic country so the next step, it would be important to make a decision and then getting public support and money and starting the biomass work,” said Rothe.

“The most important thing is just having a unprejudiced look at the possibilities of forest biomass for energy.”

Rothe’s full report will be made available on the internet in the near future at the Forestry Tasmania site www.forestrytas. com.au

Silver lining for Cloudy Bay C

LOUDY BAY Sustainable Forestry Ltd in PNG has notched up some extremely important milestones in its albeit brief history.

Not only is Cloudy Bay known for its low impact forestry practices but it has just received certification by the Forest Stewardship CouncilTM for responsible forest management.

This follows its earlier certification of Controlled Wood under FSC’s Chain of Custody system in October 2011 and sets a new standard for Forest Management Area (FMA) operations.

“This certification proves that it is possible in PNG to harvest natural forests responsibly and sustainably and supports the Government policy

 All Cloudy Bay high value species are made into furniture and joinery in its wood processing centre at 9 Mile in Port Moresby. The photos show a flat packed bed and flooring made from Taun (Pometia pinnata).

 All harvesting is selective and designed for low impact on the environment with strict adherence to PNG codes of practice.

of 100% downstream processing,” said company chairman Rob de Fégely.

Speaking in Port Moresby, Rob said he was extremely proud of the effort that managing director Mike Janssen and his staff had put in to develop the management and monitoring systems to enable the company to comply with the FSC requirements. He was also appreciative of the support given by The Borneo Initiative who funded the audit.

He said he was particularly pleased that the FSC Auditors accepted “our independent assessment of sustainable yield which we reduced to 48,000 cubic metres of logs per year when we discovered that earlier assessments of 60,000 cubic meters per year were incorrect”.

Cloudy Bay is also renowned for its community support.

Rob said that Cloudy Bay was committed to community development. “Since late 2008 we have provided significant new infrastructure in our forest management area in Central Province. This includes extending the Magi Highway by nearly 40km, erecting 36 school buildings including classrooms and teacher houses and constructing a local clinic at the Bam sawmill which treats on average 8,000 people per year.

“We are particularly proud of the fact that of the 72 babies that have been born in our small clinic, no mothers or babies have died during childbirth,” he said.

New program aims to take ‘innovation’ from theory to reality INDUSTRY IS being encouraged to take advantage of a new ForestWorks ISC program funded by the Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIICCSRTE) to help stimulate and support innovation in the forest, wood, paper and timber products industry.

The Innovations Skills Program is aimed at providing industry with the skills and knowledge to innovate effectively, including through collaborating with other players in the local value chain.

ForestWorks ISC chief executive officer Michael Hartman said the new program was spurred by feedback from industry.

“Following the ‘Stepping Up The Value Chain’ industry conference last year, I heard widespread agreement from industry figures that the key to the survival in this high-cost economy is innovation,” he said.

“So many are now inspired to take up the challenge of the 21st century and yet they still want to know – what is the next step from here? That is the question we are trying to answer with the new Innovation Skills Program. We know the key to innovation is collaboration, yet this is the area in which we have traditionally been weak in this country.

“We need to follow the lead of other developed nations and learn how to work collaboratively with others in the local value chain, who we have traditionally seen only as competitors. After all, our true competition is overseas – not over the road. That is why we are asking for industry to sign

up to get involved in forums with other industry players led by business and innovation experts who understand best practice in the innovation field.

“The new program is not trying to ‘teach’ innovation so much as it is trying to facilitate the conditions under which it can occur. We know a lot of workplaces can struggle to change and operate under new paradigms – even if traditional practices are no longer working.

“So this is an opportunity to join a professionally supported working group, and contribute and benefit from new skills and knowledge across the value chain.

Collaboration is the key to really understanding the supply chain in which you operate, and therefore how to enhance your role in that chain. This is the way forward for our industry: working collaboratively with our partners in the chain and not simply trying to squeeze each other’s margins.

“We commend the Australian Workforce Productivity Agency and DIICCSRTE, through the National Workforce Development Fund, for understanding that innovation is the key to ensuring ours is a sunrise industry and not a sunset industry. This funding will support the industry to adjust to the paradigm shift we need to continue to compete with the world.”

This program has been produced with the assistance of funding provided by the Australian Government through the Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 5

 Maggie Rakilea – one of Cloudy Bay’s breakdown sawyers.

Since 2009 Cloudy Bay has increased the number of local staff in the FMA from 40% to 70% and an increasing number of new employees are women.

“In terms of commercial production, our staff has achieved average annual increases of 30% and while it is not where we want it to be, the 100% domestic processing of our logs into value added products are now evident in the local market.

“For example, joinery made from our high value species was used in the recent extension of the famous Airways Hotel and our treated structural timber and prefabricated houses are also beginning to appear around Port Moresby.”

On a final note of caution Rob said that implementing sustainable forest management and contributing to community development and

managing their expectations, while value adding 100% of the harvest in PNG was not cheap and it cannot be done quickly.

“It takes time, money and training!

“The world needs to understand that sustainable forest management is not a cheap system but it is a renewable and sustainable one and therefore the wood and other forest values need to be priced accordingly. For too long the world has treated wood as a cheap commodity when in fact it is a highly valuable commodity that has wonderful social, environmental and economic benefits that can be gained in perpetuity if they are managed well,” he said.

gottstein trust applications for 2014 awards

the Joseph william Gottstein Memorial trust invites applications from interested persons for Gottstein fellowships and Gottstein industry awards.

GOTTSTEIN FELLOWSHIPS Fellowships are awarded to people from or associated with Australian forest industries to further their experience, education or training either within or outside Australia. Project proposals on any relevant topic are welcome. Candidates will be selected on the value of the project, and on their ability to complete and disseminate the information acquired.

GOTTSTEIN INDUSTRY AWARDS These awards are available to assist workers in the Australian forest industries to improve their industry knowledge and work skills.

Applications focusing on small group study tours will be favourably viewed, although any relevant project topic may be proposed.

Candidates will be selected on the value of the project.

INTERVIEWS Applications for each category will be considered by the Trustees and promising applicants will be selected for interviews in October 2013.

FURTHER INFORMATION Further details may be obtained from the Trust’s website at www.gottsteintrust.org, or from the Secretary.

CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS Call Bill: 0427 447 510 | bill@ttimbertraining.com.au | www.ttimbertraining.com.au

TTT is a Western Australian based business that provides nationally recognised training in cut-off machines, chainsaws, basic, intermediate or advanced level tree falling, tree jacking and machine assisted falling.

TTT also provides an Occupational Safety and Health consultancy services specialising in provision of Safety Management Plans and/or Systems, risk assessments, incident investigations and safety audits.

The closing date for applications is 6th September 2013.

Applications should be forwarded to: Dr Silvia Pongracic, Secretary, J. W. Gottstein Memorial Trust Fund, Private Bag 10, Clayton South, VIC 3169 Telephone: 0418 764 954 Email: secretary@gottsteintrust.org

6 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

Upcoming

timber events If you would like to promote a forthcoming event, please email details (including contact numbers, email, etc) to: editorial@forestsandtimber.com.au or phone 08 8369 9500

2013 4-7 August 21st International Wood Machining Seminar (IWMS-21). Tsukuba, Japan www.ffpri.affrc.go.jp/en/symposium/ iwms21/ 8-9 August “Australian and Oceania timberlands investment and wood products trade issues and trends”. Melbourne. www.prcc.com.au 19-21 August 15th Symposium for Systems Analysis in Forest Resources (SSAFR) (Analytics for Sustainable Forest Value Chains) – Quebec City, Canada. www.ssafr2013.com 3-5 September WoodEXPO, Albury. www.woodexpo2013.com 4-6 September Bioenergy Exhibition and Conference – Jyvaskyla, Finland. www.bioenergyevents.fi 5-7 September 68th Annual Lake States Logging Congress. The Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association is a nonprofit organization that is committed to leading the Forest Products industry in sustainable forest management.

Members include loggers, truckers, sawmills, paper manufacturers, private and commercial forest landowners, forestry professionals and outdoor recreational enthusiasts. http://timberpa.com/ 8-12 September Future Directions of Small-scale and Community-based Forestry. Fukuoka, Japan. http://ffpsc.agr.kyushu-u.ac.jp/policy/ IUFRO/IUFROF2013.html 3-5 September WoodEXPO,Albury. www.wood-expo.com 11-13 September WoodEXPO,Rotorua. www.wood-expo.com 18-20 September Low Volume Roads Workshop – Rotorua, New Zealand. http://www.roads.co.nz/index.htm 20-21 September Mid-Atlantic Logging & Biomass Expo.

Selma, NC 24-27 September 18th International Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation of Wood Symposium.

Madison, Wi, United States. www.forestprod.org/symposium2013/ 7-9 October 2nd IUFRO Conference on Complex Forest Ecosystems: from Tree to Landscape.

New Orleans, La, United States. http://gis.latech.edu/cfe/

Overseas lessons on fire prevention and renewable energy T

HE AUSTRALIAN Forest Products Association has congratulated its Strategic Policy Manager Mick Stephens on receiving a Gottstein Trust fellowship to investigate active forest land management in the United States and Canada for fire prevention and renewable energy.

“This is an important opportunity for the Australian industry and policy makers to learn from overseas experience and reflects the high professional standing of Mick Stephens in this area,” said AFPA Chief Executive Officer Ross Hampton.

Stephens started his three week study tour from 5 July.

“A disturbing trend in many parts of the western United States and Canada has been the occurrence of severe wildfires and pest outbreaks such as the mountain pine beetle infestation in British Columbia,” Stephens said.

“To combat these disturbances, a more active approach to forest land management is being adopted such as thinning for a multiple range of benefits, including fire risk reduction and public safety, forest health, renewable energy and regional development.

“Since 2003 the United States has embarked on a national Healthy Forests Initiative to better coordinate fuel reduction and remove excess fuels from public natural forests such as in the National Forest system. In many cases the costs of restoration are covered by the value of the timber and biomass removed, such as small diameter trees used for renewable bioenergy.”

Stephens will visit some of these forest areas and meet with fire scientists, forest land managers and community stakeholders at the University of Berkeley, the Coconino National Forest

 Mick Stephens, AFPA Strategic Policy Manager.

Millions of pine seedlings set the new “bench” mark!

Fine tuning of the fertiliser regime helped to improve early root development DISPATCH OF about 6.2 million pine seedlings from the Forestry Corporation of NSW’s Tumut Nursery near Blowering Dam is almost complete. “We have produced an excellent crop this year and aim to dispatch about 6.2 million seedlings from around eight million seedlings cells grown on benches at the nursery,” Forestry Corporation Nursery Operations manager Mark Stretch said.

“The nursery team comprising four full-time staff and 25 casuals started dispatching the seedlings late in May and we hope to finish by the end of August,” he said.

“This work involves loading trays of containerised seedlings into transport pods and onto frames ready to be loaded onto trucks and dispatched across the State.

“The Pinus radiata seedlings are being sent to the corporation’s main pine growing regions around Tumut, Bathurst and the Monaro.”

Stretch said all the seedlings in the state-of-the-art nursery, for the second year in a row, have been grown in containers on raised beds.

“The move away from establishing

pine seedlings in the ground has facilitated the production of a more robust plant that can be transported and transplanted with minimal disturbance to the root system,” he said.

“The watering requirements of the containerised crop are much less than those of an ‘in ground’ crop, due to the efficiencies gained by travelling irrigators that keep the plants watered in the new production facility.”

He said the seedlings produced last year were widely reported as some of the best to ever come out of the Tumut Nursery - meeting the high quality specifications demanded by the forest-establishment teams.

“Initial surveys of the areas planted last year are showing an excellent rate of survival in the field, which is very satisfying for the nursery team,” he said.

“Some fine tuning of the fertiliser regime has helped to improve early root development, so this year’s crop should be even better than last year.

“I am very proud of our nursery staff who have produced another great crop of seedlings to replace the trees that are being harvested this year.”

10-11 October “International Timberlands Investment”.

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in Arizona, Colorado State University, the Pacific Forestry Centre and BC Ministry of Forests and Lands. This will be followed by meetings with key program administrators and policy makers in Ottawa and Washington, including the USDA Forest Service and US Department of the Interior.

“It is important to see how these programs could be applied in Australia given similar trends of severe bushfires in southern Australia and the significant potential of forest biomass for renewable energy. I will be discussing the findings of this study tour with Australian policy makers later this year,” Stephens said.

The Gottstein Trust was established in 1971 as a national educational Trust for the benefit of Australia’s forestry and forest product industries, through fellowships and study awards.

 Tumut Nursery ... Emma Tranter, Ashlee Montgomery, Nathan Moppett and John Peel.

The Corporation has started planting 3.9 million pine seedlings in plantations around Tumut, Tumbarumba and Batlow. Forestry Corporation regional manager Bob Germantse said the trees were being planted as part of the reestablishment process, which is vital to the sustainability of the region’s forestry industry.

The Corporation manages 92,000 hectares of State-owned pine plantation in the region.

Germantse said the planting of 3000 hectares of Pinus radiata in forest areas that have previously been planted to pine was the culmination of 12 months’ solid work preparing land and growing seedlings.

“Planting conditions at present are ideal following recent good rain in the forests,” he said.

“The planting program runs through to the end of August, utilising the seedlings when they are at their least active and can best tolerate the transplanting stresses.

“Due to the scale of the operation, the planting program is contracted out to specialized businesses to ensure planting can be completed in a tight timeframe.

“Forestry Corporation crews are actively involved in a comprehensive quality control program that supports the work of contract planting crews.

“More than 100 people will be engaged during the next three months to plant the seedlings.”

Germantse said most of the seedlings being planted have been grown at the Forestry Corporation’s nursery near Tumut.

Planting of 2.5 million pine seedlings in the central west around Bathurst, Lithgow, Orange and Oberon is also in progress.

Forestry Corporation regional manager Gavin Jeffries said the

 Tumut Nursery forklift operator Brad Sutton.

re-establishment process was vital to the sustainability of the forestry industry in the region, which supports more than 1700 jobs in areas such as growing, processing, harvesting and contracting.

The corporation manages more than 70,000 hectares of State-owned pine plantation in the region.

Jeffries said the planting of 2200 hectares of Pinus radiata, predominantly in areas that have previously been planted to pine, was the culmination of 12 months’ solid work preparing land and growing seedlings.

Planting of 1.45 million pine seedlings in the Monaro Region around Bombala and Moss Vale had also started.

Forestry Corporation regional manager Mark Chaplin said the reestablishment process was vital to the sustainability of the region’s forestry industry.

The Forestry Corporation manages 37,000 hectares of State-owned Pinus radiata plantation in the Monaro Region.

“The corporation has achieved solid results in the region with high levels of plant survival and vigour from recent planting programs,” Mr Chaplin said.

“Forestry Corporation personnel manage a comprehensive quality control program to ensure trees are planted correctly.

“Our commitment to quality is driven by the knowledge that plantation productivity is linked to how well each seedling starts its life in the ground.”

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8 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

OneFortyOne Plantations completes management team F

orestry group OneFortyOne Plantations has finalised its Australian management team with the appointment of its Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer.

Owen Trumper has been appointed as Chief Operating Officer (COO) while Julie Connors has been appointed Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

The appointments follow that of Linda Sewell, who was named Chief Executive Officer in April.

Trumper was previously General Manager of HVP Plantations and has extensive expertise in such areas as contract harvesting, distribution, processing and sales in Australia, New Zealand and Canada, as well as in managing forest nurseries. Connors was previously Accounting Manager for The Campbell Group, based in Portland, Oregon, and was responsible for accounting and reporting for all international portfolios held by TCG.

Sewell said the appointments completed the management transition process for OFO, which was formed last year by TCG following the purchase of the forward rotations of more than 110,000 hectares of forestry assets in the Green Triangle region of South Australia.

The plantations were previously owned and managed by the Government of South Australia and are known to be among the highestquality softwood plantations in Australia.

Sewell said OFO’s operations were now being run from Australia, although TCG continued to provide management oversight and advisory services.

“We have put together a very

strong management team that has extensive forestry expertise gathered from around the world,” she said.

“We are optimistic that the forestry industry, especially in the South East

of South Australia, has a very strong future.” Forestry management of the assets is currently being undertaken

by ForestrySA as a condition of the purchase agreement.

 Owen Trumper.

 Julie Connors.

New CEO has marathon background ONEFORTYONE Plantations may be a fledgling operation but its new CEO, Linda Sewell, is definitely not a newcomer to the game. She is regarded by many as a true professional with runs on the board in one of the toughest industries around.

Australian Forests & Timber News had a brief question/answer session with Linda recently in a bid to shed some light on the lady in the lead role.

Where born – New Zealand, moved to Melbourne with CHH in 2004.

Education – BSc (Botany) and BCom (Finance) from Auckland University.

What prompted your entry into

the forestry/timber industry and your first main job in this field – I started working for Ernst & Young and CHH became my client given my botany background; six years later I went to work for CHH. Your time with CHH (some of the highlights of this period) – I was there for 11 years – the first six were in a variety of finance roles, the most memorable (for me at least) was the two years I headed up the Mergers & Acquisitions group, taking the lead on behalf of CHH on all company acquisitions and disposals over that period.

Many of the businesses in Australia were acquired at that time. For the last five years I was the inaugural CEO of CHH Futurebuild, the

company’s laminated veneer lumber division. My first day of the job was the commissioning and hand over of the new LVL mill at Marsden Pt, New Zealand. Over the five years we doubled in size, started up a brand new world class mill and built new markets around the world.

Why you made the move to HVP (some of the highlights of this period) – I moved to HVP when the previous CEO retired in early 2006. By then I had moved to Melbourne and so I wanted to stay in Melbourne and stay in the industry – HVP fitted both criteria. I was with the company for nearly seven years. One of the biggest highlights of the tenure was

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leading the company through the Black Saturday bushfires. It was a challenging time for the company, not least that we lost over 10% of the company’s estate in a little over six hours.

When you made the move to OFO – I moved to OFO in April 2013. After seven years with HVP, it was simply time for a change.

I’ve moved from a stable, mature plantation company to one which is starting out on its journey to go from public to private ownership.

It was too good a challenge to pass up.

The major differences between OFO and HVP roles – at HVP I was the CEO of a well-established private company, having privatised 15 years ago, with a team of 100 staff. At OFO, the estate has only been privatised less than 12 months, the estate is managed by a third party contractor (ForestrySA) and I only have a team of four. I have had to establish an office, build a business brand and lead the strategy of the company alongside a forest manager. A blend between a start-up company and a large, substantive business.

Irony: having worked for CHH and the fact that it closed two of its timber mills in Mt Gambier after failed talks with the SA Government prior to the sale of ForestrySA forward rotations to The Campbell Group. Will there be talks to try and “mend the fence” – CHH is a major customer of OFO and so quite clearly we will be looking to build relationships with CHH now that the estate has changed hands.

Will ForestrySA (as such) remain operational; what of ForestrySA’s bushfire preparedness and its community work/support – FSA is a separate company with a number of different customers, including OFO and the Government. Little has changed at the operational end of the business and the preparedness and approach during the recent fire season is testament to that fact.

Will there be silviculture/species/ harvesting changes in the near future – the market has changed substantially in the last three years

 Linda Sewell.

with the closure of KCA and CHH Lakeside mills and the reduction in overall building activity. Any changes in forest operations would be as a result of these market changes. Already more wood is going to export markets given the domestic market demand does not meet the ongoing log supply.

How you view the current state of the forestry industry (in general) and its long-term outlook – it is going through a period of transition.

The Green Triangle is well placed with a large amount of forest estate and a well established processing infrastructure. However, it is important to continue to invest in the region if it is to be long term sustainable and in particular, there is a need for a new large scale domestic processor of pulp log.

Are Government policies (or lack thereof) hindering industry growth – the water policy of South Australia is of particular concern.

Not only will it hinder future growth of the plantation estate but it could result in an overall reduction.

This is clearly an inhibitor to future growth.

Something a little more personal ... your likes, dislikes; favourite pastimes; sporting affiliations; other interests. – I used to run international marathons (Great Wall of China, Angkor Wat, New York, Boston, Greenland Polar Circle). Now my running is more modest given I have a 4-year-old son.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 9

New fund NEW FORESTS has launched New Forests Australia New Zealand Forest Fund 2 (“ANZFF2”), a private investment vehicle offering qualified investors exposure to sustainable timberland investment in Australia and New Zealand. The initial close of ANZFF2 includes AU$570 million in capital commitments from institutional investors. The fund will target hardwood and softwood timber plantation investments in Australia and New Zealand.

ANZFF2 is New Forests’ second timberland fund investing in the forest sectors of Australia and New Zealand. The company’s first such fund, ANZFF, closed in October 2010 with AU$490 million in commitments and is now fully invested. Including co-investments with ANZFF, New Forests has invested more than AU$1 billion in the regional forestry sector for its clients over the past three years.

ANZFF2 offers qualified investors exposure to a region with strong forest sector fundamentals, including a robust operating environment, low technical risk, established domestic and export timber markets, and nearly 4 million hectares of existing timber plantation assets across the two countries.

Australia and New Zealand have seen an increase in institutional ownership of forests as the industry restructures, reducing corporate and government ownership. New Forests has estimated that over the next five years, approximately 25% of global institutional timberland investment transactions will occur in Australia and New Zealand.

“Australia and New Zealand offer attractive but distinct timberland investment opportunities, with some premier assets likely to come to market over the next two to three years,” said David Brand, New Forests’ Managing Director. “New Forests has demonstrated an ability to invest successfully in our region.

We offer our clients specialist expertise and local knowledge in a region exposed to demand growth from both domestic and Asian export markets.”

New Forests’ investment business is led by David Brand and James Davies, Head of Funds Management.

The ANZFF2 portfolio will be managed from the company’s Sydney headquarters with David Shelton, Director of Investment Programs, leading acquisitions and Keith Lamb, Director of Operations, leading asset management. Since New Forests’ establishment in 2005, Lamb and Shelton have undertaken numerous investments in Australia and New Zealand including both softwood and hardwood plantations and the Timberlink softwood timber processing, sales and distribution business.

New Forests also operates the Tropical Asia Forest Fund from its office in Singapore, providing the company with a comprehensive capacity to source and manage investment opportunities throughout the Asia Pacific region.

“In addition to pursuing attractive commercial returns for our clients, New Forests seeks to add value through responsible investment practices that incorporate environmental, social, and governance considerations throughout the investment chain,” said Brand.

Railway on track once again Y

arra Valley Railway, the most exciting tourism development in the region in decades, has received a huge ‘helping hand’ from the local timber industry.

“These guys are true local heroes”, said YVR vice-president, Brett Whelan, speaking after a group of Victorian Forest Contractor Association members, and Friends of Forestry got together to remove hundreds of pine trees along the tourist railway line between Healesville and Yarra Glen.

“These invasive pine trees are environmental weeds and pose a great risk to fire safety and to the safety of future rail operations,” Whelan said.

“As soon as the forestry workers from Friends of Forestry heard that this community infrastructure project had a major issue with these trees, they offered their services at no cost!

“I can’t speak highly enough of Friends of Forestry. They are very much community focussed and minded. These forestry contractors and workers have given up their time and considerable equipment to complete this part of the rebuilding of the railway.

“I would especially like to thank Rubicon Cable Co., Robin Logging, Chalmers Logging and Forestree for their commitment throughout the planning and execution of this amazing effort,” he said.

FoF President Brett Robin estimated the inkind support by the timber industry to clear the pines would save the YVR project around $500,000 on normal commercial rates.

“A few loads of trees have gone to the mill and will help pay for a small percentage of fuel used on the job. The many days of labour and the million dollars worth of equipment utilised on the job has saved the railway hundreds of thousands of dollars,” he said.

“This has been many months in planning, and all our team are pleased to support this incredible tourism development which will create hundreds of jobs in the local tourism industry.”

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10 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

AFCA workshops hit their mark T

HE AUSTRALIAN Forest Contractors Association (AFCA) has decided to get on the front foot to confront industry challenges with its recent regional workshops.

Billed as “Business is Different Now”, the workshops initiative was supported by VAFI, VicForests and HVP Plantations who all actively participated.

Speakers discussed the constant changes that surround doing business today, including employing and overseeing silvicultural, harvest and haul operations.

Presentations included compliance, profitability and moving forward in an ever changing business climate.

Chaired by AFCA chief executive officer Col McCulloch, the one-day workshops at Tumut and Traralgon drew on industry executives, service providers and professional advisors to discuss a wide range of topics and issues.

The presentations concluded with a Q&A session at which prepared

questions were put to an industry and Government representative panel.

ForestWork’s chief executive officer Michael Hartman kicked off the sessions with news of a new program aimed at taking innovation “from theory to reality”.

The Innovations Skills Program which starts in October and runs until July 2014 is aimed at providing industry with the skills and knowledge to innovate effectively, including through collaborating with other players in the local value chain.

It will be funded by the Department of Innovation to stimulate and support innovation in the forest, wood, paper and timber products industry. It will offer innovation skills forums and working groups, learning new skills by participating and working together; and development and dissemination of best practice case studies.

Hartman also discussed the hot topic of how Australia sat as a high cost society in the global economy.

“As pricing models go, we used to be a ‘cost plus’ economy. Now,

N igel Miller and Nick Reynish, Directors Forestech Management, Colin McCullogh, CEO, AFCA.

M ichael Hartman, CEO, ForestWorks, Graeme Elphinstone, Owner, Elphinstone, and Kevin Piercy, Manager, Australian Paper.

L isa Marty, CEO, VAFI, Cameron McDonald, CFO, HVP Victoria, and Robert Green, CEO, VicForests.

our industry is a ‘price taker’ as end product prices are set,” he said.”

Hartman stressed while timber is cheap, our industry cannot rely on products such as wood chips but must move to higher value products such as paper or hygiene products.

Nick Reynish, MD of ForestryConnect, challenged attendees to engage with customers online and the new age of communications. He explained the internet was the hardware and the web was the application (domains) and its understanding and use were vital to growing SMEs. “You can find providers that will build and service your businesses website at reasonable rates,” he said.

Janet Gilbert from Timber Trade Industry Association (TTIA) spoke about recent Fair Work changes including Modern Awards changes from the 2012 Government’s Review that are effective 1 July 2013 and 1 January 2014. Penalties have been increased; other changes include increased super payments, job flexibility options and changed parental and personal leave provisions.

Janet referred to the Timber Industry Award with 16 classifications and levels by industry sector which may cause confusion of interpretation in overlap areas.

She warned of the potential for casual staff to be classed as permanent; issues around termination and unfair dismissal procedures that employers must understand.

David Bennett of PF Olsen Australia challenged contractors to ensure contracts were in order and covered all operational facets between different parties’ responsibilities for work done. Service providers should be aware of the legal requirements in contracts, plus statutory and workplace obligations such as OH&S. “It is not enough to have contracts in place; you need to think about supervision; make sure staff are doing the right job; ask questions and if wrong, act,” he said.

Bennett summarised the benefits of changing from a sole operator with personal assets at risk to a company structure. He said while many forest industry operators work this way, they should consider a company but ensure they understand director’s responsibilities.

Accountant Dallas Frost from WHK Launceston, recognised as an expert advisor on contract estimating for logging transport, highlighted changes in gear that increased productivity. “People

make money by continuing to be efficient and productive,” he said.

He also queried productive capacity compared with an operator’s capacity and what the real costs were against assumptions.

“In pricing I look at what are the parameters planned against results; for example, distance, where the work is, routes and actual speeds you can do.”

With 10 years experience in consulting to industry players, Wagga Wagga-based Nick Molloy from Easdown & Partners said that operators needed to focus on change but that this involved understanding that change was cyclical.

“There are same good signs emerging. The US housing market is recovering and mills are picking up. And we are seeing an increase in house starts in NSW,” he said.

“To embrace change, the forests industry must access information.

Accountants are now seen as partners in supporting business information and change,” he said.

Molloy questioned whether structural change was happening in forests between owners and contractors with the cycles getting shorter. He proposed that solid relationships with suppliers were a must to get all areas of supply chain working.

“The industry needs future leaders, including women, who can actively contribute to industry needs.”

He also raised family business succession and change of assets, with all players having a stake in how this was done, including families, workers, suppliers and mills. “Do we have skills, information, the culture and technology mind-set needed to plan the next three years for productivity needed.

“Price is not the best lever for point of difference; don’t be a price taker, be a price maker,” he told the gathering.

In summing up, McCullough urged attendees to look out for opportunities in training, not retaining. “Even old operators need to be retrained”, he said. “We must shift from supervision to innovation and productivity.”

AFCA intends to pursue with ForestWorks, an accreditation program in the supply chain to assist businesses and members.

The next AFCA Workshop will be held in Mt Gambier on August 22, then one in Bunbury on October 4 and another in Coffs Harbour in November (date yet to be finalised).

 Q & A participants pictured with Col McCulloch, Moderator.

AFCA Traralgon Workshop “They said it ...

Imports undercut (local) timber processors; so some have stopped making products.” - Michael Hartman - ForestWorks An Issue is sole operators. Many Australian businesses run this way ….. their personal assets are at risk.

Why not form a company and limit liability?” - David Bennett - PF Olsen (Australia) Why have trucks lined up at mills ….. organise yourself. If we lose 2 hours every day, we are not efficient.” - Dallas Frost - WHK Launceston Price is not the best lever for point of differentiation. Don’t be a price taker, be a price maker.” - Nick Molloy - Easdown & Partners Wagga Wagga Today trucks and heads have computer chips in them. Look to use this information.” - Nick Molloy - Easdown & Partners Wagga Wagga We need to look out for opportunities in training - and retaining.” - Colin McCullough AFCA We need to be community of survival…don’t talk industry down; VicForests want to be part of it.” - Robert Green - VicForests Our family business is now run by a company board; but there is trust and we agree where we are headed.” - Jo Wilson - Leesons We need continued innovation for maximum fibre value. Also competitiveness and productivity from the resource of growing trees and diversifying our markets and products; we also need our green credentials.” – Lisa Marty, VAFI There is room for A Doubles or Road Trains but there are obstacles.

These would suit logging and containers. B Triples are limited for timber (use).” - Graeme Elphinstone - Elphinstone

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 11

Seasoned logger joins the team S

EASONED LOGGERS know that harvesting machines, no matter how expensive, are only as good as the operator manipulating it, by managing its downtime and upkeep and optimising the life of its consumables. At least that’s how Tom Quill sees it and having been in the forestry industry for the last 20 years in a variety of different harvesting machines and roles Tom knows a thing or two about it.

That’s why Michael Kennedy, owner of GB Forestry Australia, said: “Immediately after the first interview I had absolutely no hesitation in offering Tom the position as Harvester Sales Manager for GB. Tom’s wealth of knowledge in the industry and his experience as a machine operator far outweighed his inexperience in sales.

Upon accepting the offer Tom was keen to

evaluate the product that he represented so he called on Kane Brant - a seasoned harvester operator with over 20,000 hours stick time - to trial a GB bar and to give his informed opinion.

“After cutting 3000 tonne in third thinnings and having dressed the bar four times, Kane was adamant that it had another couple of dressings and potential to cut a further 500 tonne. He also noticed the bar had less spring (wobble) on bucking cuts and was harder to bend than other well-known brands,” said Tom. “Being given the opportunity to represent GB Forestry Australia, a company with over 50 years’ service to our industry developing and manufacturing forestry products in Melbourne is fantastic,” says Tom. “Our ability to quickly custom make bars out of our high grade titanium alloy steel for different applications gives us a clear advantage over our competitors.

After being on the road for only six months now I have already had several requests for custom built bars which the factory has been able to design and produce inside a couple of weeks.”

Michael leaves no doubt that the appointment of Tom has been a great step forward for the company. “Since Tom started in January this year not only have we seen increased sales locally but his hands on knowledge helped us secure a deal with OEM, Engineering Services Rotorua, a New Zealand company well known for producing Ensign Grapples and Woodsman Pro harvesting heads. Tom also provided some of the technical data that was required to finally complete the new gbforestry.com.au website which launched in June 2013. It is fair to say Tom has quickly become an integral part of the team,” said Michael. “GB’s aim is to focus on the key points of quality, price and supply.

And in terms of service, I will be in all areas of Australia and NZ frequently throughout the year to back up our customers, answer any questions or even to deliver product directly straight from the boys in the factory,” says Tom.

GB lands OEM deal in New Zealand NEW ZEALAND-based Engineering Services Rotorua Ltd - well known for producing Ensign Grapples and Woodsman Pro harvesting heads - has struck a deal with GB which will see all new machines factory fitted with GB Titanium harvester bars. The deal also appoints Engineering Services Rotorua as the exclusive New Zealand distributor for the GB brand of harvester guide bars and sprockets from Australia.

“I am delighted to be teaming with Engineering Services to promote GB products in NZ with the two businesses sharing a combined 100+ years industry service,” said GB Managing Director Michael Kennedy. GB celebrated 50 years in 2009 and Engineering Services has injected over 45 years of experience

into the NZ logging industry. Engineering Services Rotorua built its name on servicing the agriculture and transport industries before getting into forestry, strengthening and refining log loading machinery imported from the UK and USA. Naturally this led to the manufacturing of complete units, which gave birth to the Ensign brand. The Ensign range now includes the popular 20 and 30 tonne 1500 and 1700 range, as well as smaller grapples, large capacity grapples, wide grapples, European bunching style, fixed top, saw grapples and felling heads. Engineering Services also plays a major role in the design and manufacture of Woodsman processing heads.

“We have supplied various makes of

harvester bars, chain, and sprockets ever since we got involved in the manufacture of the Woodsman range of products. The GB range has been popular and recently I made contact with new owner, Michael Kennedy, who offered Engineering Services the sole distributorship, which I am pleased to say I accepted. We are looking forward to promoting and selling the GB range of harvester bars, sprockets and associated parts to forestry contractors throughout New Zealand,” said Engineering Services’ owner David Cox. All sales throughout New Zealand will be handled through the Engineering Services’ Rotorua parts store. Parts Manager, Bede O’Neill, who has been with the company 19 years, is excited about the new distribution

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arrangement, adding: “The addition of GB products to our range will assist in the company’s ongoing backup service, which is aimed at ensuring full serviceability of all units under widely varying conditions.”

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12 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

ELMiA

Pent-up need to update machinery E

LMIA WOOD 2013 was the most important international forestry fair for many years.

And it wasn’t just because of the huge attendance figures and best possible weather.

“This was the vitamin injection the whole industry needed,” said Dieter Reinisch, information manager at John Deere.

He praised Elmia for a wellorganised fair with more foreign visitors than before.

“Our impression is that half of the people who came to our stand were from countries other than Sweden. This year’s Elmia Wood was also proof that forest professionals have a pent-up need to update their machinery.

So far the economic situation is preventing that but when that improves the sales will come.”

His view was shared by Roland Lundqvist, information manager at Komatsu Forest. He has exhibited at Elmia’s forestry fairs since the mid-1970s. He sees a trend that the fairs are increasing in importance and also that customers have different expectations than before.

“Ten or 15 years ago foreign visitors came and were amazed at the advanced technology. Now the cut-to-length method is so widespread that it’s more important for them to meet the company behind the fancy website,” he said, adding that Elmia Wood has once again shown itself to be the world’s most important forestry fair.

Another company with long experience of Elmia Wood is Haglöfs.

“It’s been really great every day. Elmia is our most important exhibiting event and this year the interest has been even greater than all the previous times we’ve been here,” said the company’s CEO Stefan Haglöf.

One of the exhibitors was HansÅke Elofsson, a true veteran exhibitor. His first Elmia was in 1971, when he was invited to lunch with Sweden’s then Crown Prince, now King Carl XVI Gustaf. This year Hans-Åke returned as an exhibitor via his involvement with Malwa, a manufacturer of small machinery.

He was at the fair for two days and walked around the whole site.

He gave his assessment of the event: “This one might well be the best forestry fair at Elmia ever. I’ve never before been to a fair with so many innovations. Elmia really succeeded with its innovation theme.”

Elmia Wood’s business area manager, Torbjörn Johnsen, was satisfied with the result.

“We regard it as a challenge to become even better at future fairs,” he said.

The next forestry fair for the Nordic region will be SkogsElmia on 4-6 June 2015. The international Elmia Wood will return on 7-10 June 2017.

Elmia Wood 2013 had some of the highest attendance figures ever, with something of a record on the third day with 18,400 visitors. The total attendance figure for all four days was 54 215.

New unit is in a class of its own!

TIGERCAT’S 1135 harvester falls into a specialized harvester class. According to CTL product manager Jon Cooper, the 8-wheel drive machine “is specifically designed to manoeuvre between forwarding rows in tightly spaced first thinning stands, dramatically increasing forwarder row spacing and residual stand quality.” The machine’s unique characteristics result in high production rates and the lightest possible impact in managed forests.

In order to achieve this, the machine is narrow and highly manoeuvrable with powerful steer cylinders, a tight turn radius, perfect wheel tracking, bogie lifts and ample ground clearance.

The Tigercat designed and built parallel linkage crane has a 9.3m

reach achieved with a 2m telescoping stick. The crane base is equipped with fore/aft leveling to maintain powerful slewing capability in uneven terrain and also has a side tilt function that allows the operator to reach around standing trees.

The operator’s cabin has been carefully designed with emphasis on comfort, ergonomics and visibility. The curved windshield provides unimpeded upward visibility and extended side and rear windows create a clear sightline to the wheels and the ground, all-important when operating in-stand. The cab is well appointed with high quality, customizable controls that are ergonomically positioned to minimize operator fatigue. Constant temperature climate control and isolation mounting further

contribute to the quiet, comfortable working environment. The 270 degree rotating seat provides ease of entry and exit.

The 1135 is powered by the high performance 170 kW (228 hp) Mercedes 906 with dedicated pumps for the drive, harvesting head and crane functions. The cooling system uses a hydraulically driven automatic variable speed fan for optimal fuel efficiency in cold operating environments.

As with all Tigercat machines, the 1135 is designed and built for high uptime and long service life with strong frames, cylinders and pins throughout. The articulation joint is equipped with tapered roller bearings. This machine was featured at Elmia Wood.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 13

ELMiA

GPS and drones can improve tree planting P

ROGRESS IN technology and machinery has increased the efficiency of felling operations but replanting is still a manual, time-consuming process.

However, the use of modern digital technology and drones for aerial photography can lead to major gains, argues Hans Thunander. He has developed a totally new tree planting concept that envisions a 50% increase in efficiency within 10 years.

“I’ve spent my whole life in silviculture and these ideas have been germinating for a decade,” he explains. “But now I feel the technology is far enough advanced that it can be used to make replanting more efficient.”

His method can be likened to a two-stage rocket: Vision 2015 and Vision 2023. The first stage, Vision 2015, involves combining GPS technology with a remoteoperated flying drone, which photographs a new clear-cut area.

The image is then interpreted on a computer, making it possible to plan the replanting process in detail: to decide exactly how many plants can be planted, how densely, and precisely where. Because all the facts about the terrain and soil conditions are included, it is possible to achieve the optimal plant density. For example, a threemetre clear strip can be left along a stone wall, 2,500 plants per hectare can be put on a fertile slope and 1,400 plants per hectare can be used in an area of thin soil.

“Too many plants are used unnecessarily today because they are not optimally planted according to the soil fertility and type of terrain,” Thunander explains. “It’s also hard to know now precisely, how densely you’re planting when you just look around as you go.

GPS gives you better control.”

Another important aspect of the technology involved in Vision 2015 is scarification, which he says can also be made far more efficient. Instead of the current procedure of carving out two parallel rows on the clear-cut area, the scarifier can be equipped with the same kind of autopilot as used in agriculture and be driven in a new and more efficient driving pattern designed by Thunander.

If the scarifier drives along every second strip on its outward journey with precise control of the centre-tocentre distance between the plants and then takes the omitted strips on its return journey, the optimal strip density is achieved. Backing on the turn strip is also unnecessary and the total operating time is significantly reduced.

towards the next stage, Vision 2023.

By then it will be possible to have 3D photos from the drone. The images will be transmitted immediately when the drone lands and much of their interpretation will already have been done automatically so the scarification and planting can begin directly.

“There’s already a multitude of drones, the software is easy to use and the whole field is developing incredibly fast,” Thunander says.

“Fully automatic image processing will lead to major benefits.” Not to mention fully automatic planting, which is the revolutionary aspect of Vision 2023.

This involves a remote-controlled machine, which Thunander is working fulltime to develop now.

There’s already a multitude of drones, the software is easy to use and the whole field is developing incredibly fast.

“Autopilots have existed in the agricultural industry for a number of years and are cheaper now,” Thunander says. “The precision along the forest edge has not been ideal but that’s no longer a problem.

A detailed image of the clear-cut area makes it easy to design such a driving pattern.”

At Elmia Wood he demonstrated the whole process step by step right up to the final stage when the planters take over the GPS track and can start to input each individual plant, so that the exact number of plants per site can be planted and verified.

By itself, Vision 2015 can make replanting about 25% more efficient, Thunander says. Time and technology will then quickly work

The machine is not yet ready to be presented. All he can say is that first “molehills” of loose soil are “screwed up” using a minimum of energy and then prepared for a planting tool. The tool then makes a hole in the heap and inserts a plant.

A small amount of wet, fertilised planting soil is then automatically dropped along with the tree plant into its hole. He calculates that this method can make tree planting a full 50% more efficient.

“These screwed-up molehills and the planting soil are decisive factors in my concept,” he says. “Much of the benefit depends on knowing that the plant will survive. That’s the key to progress – you’re not selling your work, you’re selling a result.”

 Hans Thunander.

14 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

ELMiA

Elmia Wood surpasses all expectations Forest Centre managing director Lex McLean and his wife Kathy, his sales and marketing manager Reymund Kell, and a very good customer, his wife and son - Jock, Melinda and Max Haris (owner of 11 Tigercats all sold by Forest Centre) - visited Elmia Wood 2013 at Jonkoping, Sweden.

L

EX MCLEAN has seen “one or two” forestry feature events but he couldn’t help but be impressed with Elmia Wood 2013. “This was the largest Elmia show that I have attended and I have only missed one since attending my first one in 1983,” says Lex of the experience.

“The weather was also the best that I have experienced. Daily attendance was unbelievable; Wednesday 10000, Thursday 19000 and the total was in the vicinity of 60000.

“All the major forestry companies as we know them were there showing off their current product lines. The best and obviously the most expensive show stand was Komatsu Forest.

They had a dancing display of two forwarders and two rubber tired harvesters that regularly came out and danced together complete with gas fired fireworks just like being at a major football game in Australia. Very impressive.

“Also on display was a very large range of chippers and grinder from small to large with all the major North American companies represented. It was a chance for me to catch up with a lot of forestry and machinery people I have known for many years.

“Also, for the European markets there was a large range of small harvesters, forwarders, converted 4 wheel bikes, trailers, with small cranes, hand tools.

Firewood machines were present in very large numbers, trucks with truck cranes, in fact, anything to do with loading or hauling logs or chips. Plus there were many static stands with a reduced number of active stands from what I have seen previously where you can view the machines actually working,” Lex said.

Forest Centre also had discussions with a number of attachment supplies with the strong possibilities of introducing

these products to the Australian market. “We’ll keep you posted on these.

“Both prior and after Elmia we visited the three factories - all suppliers of forestry attachments that Forest Centre markets and sells throughout Australia as an exclusive dealer.

“All these companies had a show site and all had very good, well laid out stands showing a full range of their products including all the new products available.”

The factories visited both before and after Elmia were: Baltrotors Salaspils Riga Latvia. This is a state-of-theart facility with a very recent huge investment in capital in new machining facilities with increased production capabilities.

We viewed the total current product line as applicable to the world markets plus the release of a “New Patented Forwarder Swing Damper kit [DLG30 GR16H] together with a matching heavy duty rotator”… “we can provide a brochure of this. Forest Centre has represented Baltrotor since 2006”.

ExTe in Farila Sweden. This is also a state-of-the-art facility with recent investment in new computer controlled and robotic processes for their manufacturing facilities. This is the company that manufacturers Log Bunks and Air operated Auto Tensioners.

Their company motto is Securing the Cargo We Invented the Concept … “we have represented this product since 1992”.

Hultdins in Mala Sweden..

This is also a state-of-the-art facility with recent investment in new computer controlled and robotic processes for their manufacturing facilities. They have the only robot in the world that can completely assemble and then weld a log grapple. The robot has been developed from the car manufacturing industry.

To see this unit working is nothing short of amazing. Their grapple warehouse was full of

 The best and obviously the most expensive show stand was Komatsu Forest. Very impressive.

stock grapples all painted as required in the various product brands own fleet colours. This indicated very clearly that most of the major manufacturers are using the Hultdins product as their preferred grapple option … “we have sold Hultdins Products since 1982”.

“In all it was a very worthwhile trip and to keep pace with what

the rest of the world is doing in our industry or associated industries you have to be there to see.

“On my way home I visited in Milan (Italy) a factory that offers a full range of specialised attachments and hopefully in the near future we will be able advertise and promote this additional range,” said Lex.

 Melinda, Max and Jock Haris and Lex.

 Reymund, Kathy, Melinda, Max and Jock Haris

 Jock, Melinda Haris, Per Jonasson (International Sales Manager for ExTe), Max, Kathy and Reymund.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 15

ELMiA

Simulators stimulate the senses T

HE CENTRE point for the Waratah Elmia stand for 2013 was the display of new generation of Forest Harvester Simulators.

A little over seven years ago Waratah launched one of the very first tracked harvester simulators.

These Waratah simulators, sold all over the world, have helped hundreds of machine operators and forest owners improve operator techniques and drive further efficiency in wood supply.

This year Waratah used Elmia log show public to test trail the next concept in forest harvester training.

Fundamentally, TimberSkills is a software package that involves

a disciplined structured step by step training program in driving either a wheeled or tracked harvester. The trainee must step through a series of ever increasing job tasks in which he/ she is judged on time, technique and set outcomes. Those tasks range from tree selection, felling direction, log optimising and log placement. The tasks themselves and graduated learning program appeal to everyone and the TimberSkills experience really hits the mark in getting solid structure to harvester training.

All of test trainees at the show enjoyed the task programs and many were immediately keen to improve their first and second

attempts as they learned the grading of the final scores.

The quantum leap in innovation though is that this TimberSkills program is actually a platform on a standard PC. The interface to the PC is through the desktop joysticks and interface module and the user can either purchase mini levers or Suregrip handles.

This platform in itself will set the benchmark worldwide to having a mobile training Simulator available to a greater audience, versatility to set up anywhere and cost effectiveness to reach further into forest industry training marketplace.

The official launch for the TimberSkills is August 2013 in Finland. Waratah is looking to attend the event with some select guests from the Australian and NZ training community.

 On display at the Waratah stand were four harvesters, as well as these static units there were a number Waratah harvesters at many other sites.

The strongest gets even stronger Eight proves to be great!

ROTTNE’S BIGGEST final felling harvester has stood out for many years thanks to one particular feature – its very powerful crane. Plus a base machine that backs it up. At Elmia Wood 2013 its successor had its world premiere.

The Rottne H21 has an even stronger crane plus everything required to handle it.

The development work has followed two lines. On the one hand, the eight-wheeled harvester is even stronger and more adapted for thicker diameter trees.

On the other hand, the entire construction design has been refined and optimised for the environment. The new 305hp engine meets the European Union’s new stage 4 emission requirements. The transmission is also new, with a tractive force of no less than 230 kN. The crane has a 10-metre reach with a lifting torque of 280 kNm and a torque of 62.4 kNm. It is operated by double load-sensing hydraulic pumps.

The harvester head has also been upgraded with a new and robust length-measuring system and a

diameter measuring system in the upper limbing knives.

The harvester has a new cab that both rotates and levels. The base is new and permits a slewing arc of 180 degrees.

These facts apply to the prototype shown at Elmia Wood 2013. The machine will also be produced in a six-wheeled version and supplied with cranes with lengths of 7.5, 8.4 and 10 meters.

AN 8-wheel version of John Deere’s famous 1270E harvester, designed for steep slope and soft soil conditions, was unveiled at Elmia Wood.

This new option offers more power, higher ground clearance and strong Duraxle™ bogie axles with customized balancing gear units for excellent climbing ability and traction. Outstanding stability and large approach angle enable the best possible performance in demanding terrain conditions.

The agile and powerful John Deere 1070E and 1170E IT4 harvesters are equipped with bigger work pumps for more power and torque in comparison to the corresponding Tier-3 models. The 1170E IT4 harvester is equipped with a 175cm³ pump and the 1070E IT4 harvester has a larger 160cm³ pump for increased oil flow which enables efficient use of the new Processing Power Control (PPC) feature. Both of these new models are powered by John Deere 6068 PowerTech™ Plus series turbo-charged 6-cylinder 6.8L engines.

In terms of durability, precision handling and speedy processing, John Deere harvester booms and harvester heads are top-ofclass. For even faster and more productive pulp and energy-wood harvesting, harvester heads can be optionally equipped with multitree handling (MTH) devices.

Processing Power Control (PPC) is another industry leading innovation by John Deere. PPC comes as standard in all new John Deere harvesters and enhances the productivity and fuel economy with three different power levels for different logging conditions.

The PPC levels range from an energy saving mode to a boost mode.

In the energy saving mode, machine performance is optimized with regard to maximum fuel economy. The middle level optimizes machine performance for operating at its nominal timber size.

The boost mode provides full power performance for harvesting exceptionally large and heavy timber.

Processing Power Control provides optimized fuel economy and maximum productivity for varying logging conditions. It offers unwavering processing power for all situations but also economically reasonable downshifting options for nominal tree size and thinning tasks.

16 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

transport

Moving more in the Green Triangle

By Peter Lynch

T

HE TRADITIONAL logging truck, with its hard working petrol or snarling Detroit diesel engine and bogie jinker, has now been relegated to the history books and nowhere is this more evident than Mount Gambier in South Australia. As everyone in the industry knows Mount Gambier sits at the heart of the Green Triangle, an area roughly bounded by Robe, Horsham and Warrnambool, which contains a huge resource of pine and blue gum plantations. There is great emphasis here on efficient operations, minimising waste and environmental impact. Premium timber goes to building or furniture production, plantation thinnings to fence posts and similar uses while lesser grades are chipped for paper or particleboard production.

All these products need to be taken out of the bush, transported to the mill, rail head, chipping plant or wharf and this task falls entirely to road transport. The 26 metre B-Double outfit, equipped with air bag suspension and mass management to run at 68 tonnes gross, is now seen as the standard format for new vehicles. Up front one will normally find an American bonneted prime mover; Cummins, Detroit or Cat powered driving through the ubiquitous constant mesh Roadranger transmission to Meritor drive axles. It is an expensive bit of gear; the owner will get little change out of $500K, face annual registration fees of $18K and a weekly fuel bill up to $5K. Not the sort of asset you want sitting around idle or spending much time in the workshop.

The search goes on for more productive vehicles and methods of operation. Better fuel economy, additional payload, improved safety and reduced downtime can quickly make the difference between profitable and unviable operation.

Local operators Kevin and Wendy Boult are trialing a Mercedes Benz Actros 6x4 Prime mover in what has been a strictly all American fleet.

The big Benz uses Mercedes own turbocharged V8 engine delivering 600hp and 2065lb/ ft of torque into a powershift 16 speed automated transmission.

All that power gets to the road (or slippery logging track) via a hub reduction rear bogie equipped with power divider and cross locks. Rob Pigliacelli of Daimler trucks is confident the operating efficiency, comfort, extended warranty and off-road traction of the heavy duty Actros will earn its place in local fleets.

Across town Barry Fennell of Fennell Forestry is also actively looking for productivity improvements in their logging and transport operation. The company rosters two shifts during busy periods and are installing a new satellite tracking system. Barry said the fleet was fully committed at the moment and once more certainty comes into the industry new investment is planned. Their current fleet

 Boult’s Inter7800 and Byrne walking floor trailer.

 Fennell Forestry’sMack Trident with 535hp M8 engine and automated Mdrive transmission.

Photo: Fennell Forestry

of 11 B-Double outfits currently consists mainly of Cummins powered Kenworth T650 prime movers hauling Elphinstone folding skel trailers. There are alternative products on trial and the latest fleet addition is a Mack Trident with 535hp M8 engine and automated Mdrive transmission.

It is early days but the Fennell drivers have certainly taken a liking to their new Bulldog.

Logging trailers still have wheels on the bottom and logs on top but there are now a multitude of options depending on the timber being carried, typical haulage cycle and applicable road regulations. Folding trailers, road friendly suspension, sliding bolsters, automatic load binders, on board scales and ABS disc braking systems all contribute to greater efficiency and safety. Most roads in the Green Triangle are approved for nine axle B Double operations at 68 tonnes gross.

However, funding for upgrades and essential maintenance seems limited, the only obvious activity being the erection of “rough road ahead” signs at regular intervals.

There has been an official

 Plunkett skel manufacture.

acceptance, particularly on the Victorian side of the border, of the ever growing freight volumes and improved productivity of larger vehicles. Two Victorian operators are now operating 11 axle B-Double combinations under permit at gross weights of 77.5 tonnes and it is hoped that the logging industry will be able to put similar units into service in South Australia.

It is all part of a great evolution in road transport that has taken place within living memory. Just as solid tyres gave way to rags, petrol to diesel engines, vacuum brakes to air and bogie jinkers to triaxle B-Doubles; Aussie transport operators will always be looking for a better way forward.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 17

transport Peter Lynch is a Melbourne-based journalist and author with more than 20 years practical experience in transport and logistics. He has seen the industry from many angles including driver, owner driver and logistics manager. Somewhere along the road, he found time to write two books on Australian trucking; ‘The ACCO an Aussie Icon’ and ‘Atkinson Down Under’. Peter has a good technical background, loves old machinery and prefers the bush to the boardroom any day.

 Boult’s Mercedes Benz Actros 6x4 Prime mover.

A Daimler Brand

 Rob Pigliacelli, of Daimler Trucks.

Two things haven't changed: the star and what it stands for.

Visit www.mercedes-benz.com.au/trucks or call 1300 66 22 30.

Vehicle shown includes options and accessories available at additional cost to standard specification.

18 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

transport

From beginning to keeping the wolves from the door G

raeme Elphinstone fitted the first on-vehicle weighing system in Australia to a log jinker in 1976 and designed and built the first Elphinstone folding pole tandem jinker in 1977. So began a history that has spanned almost 40 years in designing and building innovative log transport solutions. It certainly has come a long way since the horse and bullock days.

Continuing with the ‘firsts’ Elphinstone invented the Tri-beam (1983) suspension triaxle trailer which included tilting bolsters – a first in their own right as well. First in the world and one year in was the development of Elphinstone’s folding skeletal trailer which was released in 1986. In 1988 Elphinstone released the first tandem/tri B-double FoldA-Skel. Three slightly wider FoldA-Skel B-Doubles were exported to South Africa in 1993.

The Tri-tri B-Double was another

first and was originally engineered for use in Victoria. Another innovation at this time was the air-operated selftensioning winches; the only ones on the market at that time that could be manually operated as a back up.

Other ‘firsts’ in the late 1970s/ early 1980s included air operated pole latches and stretch mudguards.

Mudguards and mudflaps, while appearing simple items of equipment, caused Elphinstone the most headaches so he designed and built his own to suit his designs.

Elphinstone logging trailers is one manufacturer that has put a lot of effort into design over the past decade and now has a range of trailers that cover the many requirements of our customers yet use a lot of the same parts. No better example of this is the wide range of EasyloaderTM In trailers the innovation has continued through the years with the world first self-loading road

train, a B-Triple (called the Pocket Easyloader) and a B-double unit designed to carry 19m long logs in one length (the Long Logger).

Ranging from the single skel trailer through to the 19m Long logger there is an Elphinstone trailer to suit most logging needs and conditions and regulations.

Elphinstone has a reputation for providing simple and effective onvehicle weighing systems.

The Easyweigh™ weighing system is Elphinstone’s design. The scales are very adaptable and can be fitted to almost any vehicle or application. On-vehicle weighing has not only revolutionised the log transport industry but you will find these scales in many different applications including potato peelers, waste trucks, concrete batching plants, stationary and mobile containers, tip trucks, semi-trailers and tankers, underground mining

Unreasonable demands push industry to brink

THERE IS little doubt the public native forest industry in Tasmania went into crisis mode due to poor decision-making by Government; both State and Federal; the influence of the Greens and the environmental movement and to some extent the actions of the industry itself, according to Graeme Elphinstone.

“The problems started in the 1980s when Bob Brown and Christine Milne actively protested against the Gordon below Franklin Dam and the pulp mill that was proposed at time,” says the owner operator of the highly-credentialled Tasmanian-based Elphinstone Weighing Systems/Logging Trailers.

“The forest industry really didn’t take the environmental protests seriously enough and allowed them to eat into the industry over the years with their campaigns and deals. There seemed to be a ‘lock it up’ mentality which exists to this day and every five or six years they come back for more.

“The loss of the Triabunna export woodchip mill had a major bearing on the ability of the southern sawmillers to dispose of residues from the operation as well as pulp logs from public native forests,” he says.

“What is ever sadder in this whole scenario is that the mill was established in 1970 for just that purpose but is now owned by arguably two of Australia’s

staunchest anti-industry people and managed by an ex-Wilderness Society employee.

“Although its reopening formed part of the Tasmanian Forest Intergovernmental Agreement it seems unlikely that it will ever re-open under its current ownership,” Graeme says.

“When Gunns applied for their Tamar pulp mill in 2004, the Greens ramped up their campaign and through their continued interference and manipulation including - bullying bankers and markets - caused Gunns to stagger.

“The Greens/environmentalists really are professional negotiators but not always for the right reasons and some of the extremists over-stepped the mark and went beyond what was fair and reasonable which brought the industry and the economy in Tasmania to its knees. They are now attacking other industries like mining.

“To lay ‘blame’ on anyone really achieves nothing.

There are many facets to this whole Tasmanian public native forest industry debacle and various sections of the community have to shoulder some of the blame.

There is little doubt, though, that the bulk of the blame needs to be borne by the Greens and extremist groups who had unreasonable demands.

“Look at it this way … if they’re not causing trouble they don’t have any reason to exist.”

trucks and heavy haulage trucks.

The Elphinstone transportable weighbridge and specialist container weigher (‘containa weigha’) have provided a ‘duty of care’ facility for operators as well as ensuring that their trucks and trailers are loaded to the maximum they can legally carry.

Graeme Elphinstone believes that his ‘heyday’ was epitomised in 2011 when he was producing good standard products and was ticking along very well. It was obvious that he had good designs, product and people involved in his long-standing company.

The crisis came October 2011 after the Triabunna export woodchip mill had been closed for around six months

and the public native forest industry was essentially closed down. To keep the wolves from the door meant designing and building products that were outside the Elphinstone core product stream.

Fortunately, during this time onvehicle weighing sales continued to grow and remain a very sound part of the business to this day.

As Graeme said: “In October 2012 we decided that it was time to concentrate on our core products and do what we do best; build logging trailers and supply the best onvehicle weighing systems available on the market today as well as meet our Antarctic equipment customer’s needs”.

Still looking to the future with confidence WITH THE changes in the public native forest industry Elphinstone Engineering has had to look to new developments. There has also been continued pressure for lighter tare weights and lower pricing. Operators are now finding that they are logging in harsher environments with longer cart times.

“One of the pitfalls of the current state of the industry is the growing amount of older equipment that is being put back on the road,” says Graeme Elphinstone of Elphinstone Engineering.

“In many cases the operators do not have sufficient security in their contract to take the risk on buying new equipment. The finance companies and banks are not as forthcoming with funds after their significant losses in recent years.

“There is a growing trend in the demand for skeletal trailers but the Elphinstone Tri Tri B-Double Easyloader remains very prominent. We will see some use of A-Doubles into the future,” he says.

The development of a new suspension that Elphinstone’s have named Easysteer™ has been high on the design list.

“The Easysteer™ will not be restricted to use in logging trailers. It has been designed to suit many different transport applications including but not restricted to log trailers, pole trailers, flatbeds, gas/liquid tankers, bulk tankers, side tipping trailers and container side lift trailers. Featuring a single point loadsharing suspension, the Easysteer™ will dramatically reduce tyre scrub, tyre and road wear with double the steering able of a standard self steering axle.

“The use of this suspension will mean an Easysteer unit will achieve similar payload to a quad axle trailer with one less axle allowing 49t gross on general access routes. Utilising an Elphinstone high accuracy loadcell weighing system will maximise the payload advantage and save engine idle times,” says Graeme.

Elphinstone Engineering has stood the test of time and as Graeme says …

“With sound management and good long-term employees, good designs, core products and loyal customers we intend to be a force in the logging trailer manufacturing and on-vehicle weighing system business for many years to come”.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 19

transport Making your business “secure” Overcoming that deflated feeling!

T IED and TIDE – Sound the same, have the same letters and yet they’re meanings are poles apart.

Put it this way ... if the “tide” goes out on your load then you obviously missed the “tied”.

OK, it may seem a convoluted way of introducing the topic of making sure loads are secured but the subject matter shouldn’t make you tired!

Some of the latest load securing management systems offer ease of installation, operation and maintenance.

Forest Centre managing director Lex McLean has been the Australian supplier of ExTe gear for a number of years and can’t help but be impressed with the latest gear.

“There’s the new higher tension V2 Luftman load binders and also the new ExTe D-series bunks,” says Lex, “and the D series combination bunks (combination of steel base and aluminium stakes) are 15% lighter than the E series already familiar to Australian haulers.”

Lex explained that Luftman tensioners were fitted using a smart attachment underneath the frame. The attachment is installed in pre-drilled holes.

“Because it’s practical to attach accessories like lighting to the frame we prepare the frame for different alternatives.

“The practical, specially-developed frame brackets are versatile to allow use in different applications; there is an individual frame bracket for each bunk frame,” says Lex. The manual release is bolted to the frame using a single attachment, or a double attachment when twin releases are required.

The easily accessible location of the release handle makes manual tensioner release quick and simple.

The automatic pneumatic Luftman tensioner release is also fitted directly to the frame for ease of access.

Lex has also just returned from Elmia Wood and also caught up with his major suppliers ExTe, Hultdins, Baltrotors and Rotobec and there could soon be something new from an Italian manufacturer.

Transport contracts made readable and useful - kiss legalese goodbye

By Andrew Tulloch Colin Biggers & Paisley Clarity and simplicity are key in transport, supply chain and logistics contracts. When drafting transport and logistics contracts, avoid abbreviations, jargon, Latin, legalese, unrealistic audit obligations and unfair allocation of risk.

Increasing emphasis on plain English in contract drafting Most people have heard of the “KISS” principle “Keep It Simple, Stupid!” The same principle is now being applied more frequently in the supply chain and logistics area.

For many years there has been an increasing emphasis in the law on drafting contracts in plain English. But despite this, many companies and those involved in the transport industry have continued to produce lengthy supply chain and logistics contracts with very detailed specifications and performance requirements.

These contracts often have little active monitoring or enforcement of those performance requirements because of their complexity and the need for extensive resources to be allocated to monitoring and audit.

Simple mechanisms for monitoring and auditing performance Contracts can be far more effective if they are kept simple, are written in a style which can be easily followed and have simple mechanisms for monitoring and auditing performance.

Ensure that what the contract stipulates is actually being done We have seen too many contracts where, for example, a party is required to arrange insurance

and provide evidence of those arrangements, but nobody has ever followed up to require production of the evidence of insurance. Alternatively, evidence of cover is produced without anyone checking if the cover is for the risks required to be insured or for an appropriate amount.

We also see contracts that require monthly service of records of performance being enforced. If records are provided then someone should be checking to see if they reveal any contract performance issues.

Seven golden rules for transport contracts With this in mind, we suggest that transport service providers and their customers should review their current arrangements and consider the following tips for drafting of future contracts.

Don’t use abbreviations or jargon that are not understood by the man in the street.

Don’t overdo the definition of terms as this then requires cross referencing to check meaning.

Avoid legalese and terms that are only well understood by lawyers and, especially, never use Latin.

Don’t impose monitoring or audit obligations which you are not able or willing to follow and enforce.

A fair allocation of risk and obligations is often more effective than an unbalanced allocation and is more likely to lead to a long term relationship.

Don’t require or expect a party to control matters which are beyond its practical control.

Never think the job is done once the contract is signed. That is only the beginning of the job.

If in reviewing your own contracts in light of these rules you realise that you or your advisers have fallen into the traditional traps for the unwary, we suggest that you consult an experienced transport lawyer about reviewing you current contract arrangements.

Andrew Tulloch. adt@cbp.com.au Trade and transport. Colin Biggers & Paisley.

CBP Lawyers. The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter.

Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

WANT THE feeling of air filled tyres but without the risk of flats and punctures? Now there are three products that can help lower the cost of maintenance and tips that will help you have a “flat-free” work day, according to Glen Wolfenden, National Major Accounts, Business Development & Marketing Manager of Melbourne-based Bearcat Tyres.

“First there is the Arnco Superflex™ tyre fill. The Superflex liquid polyurethane is pumped into the tyre through the valve system, replacing the air in any pneumatic tyre. The result is a synthetic rubber core that will never go flat! It is a soft 8-Durometer flatproofing for the best vehicle ride, operator comfort, and overall improved braking and handling. It can be used in radial and bias ply alike, and mimics pneumatic tyre properties, including deflection and footprint. Good for those applications where additional traction is needed and a soft air-like ride is desired,” says Glen.

“Then there’s Arnco ReSeal™. The ReSeal liquid tyre sealant protects tyres from punctures up to 7mm or 1/4”. Made from an advanced proprietary blend of corrosion inhibitors, polymers and fibres including Kevlar®, ReSeal helps maintain consistent air pressure and protects against rust. ReSeal is pumped into the tyre (with the aid of a specially designed pump) through the valve stem and remains liquid for the life of the mounted tyre. When the tyre is punctured, thousands of strong interlocking ReSeal fibres clot in and around the puncture to prevent any loss of air. This is specially designed for equipment,” said Glen.

And the users of smaller equipment haven’t been overlooked either with Carefree™ Tyres specifically designed for small equipment including ride-on mowers, lawn tractors and wheel barrows. The Carefree Tyre is a solid and lightweight airless tyre (polyurethane “foam” filled) that has been manufactured from a proprietary blend of Micro-Cellular Polyurethane.

Glen also offered some tips to help minimise punctures or reduce flats: • If you’re having puncture issues look for a heavier ply or stronger construction tyre. For example, the SOLIDEAL skidsteer tyre range is available in “Hi-Ply” mining which has a heavier and thicker undertread.

• Ensure wheels and cleaned before new tyres are fitted. Rusty wheels will cause air loss.

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• Ensure tyres are inflated to recommended inflation pressures.

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20 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

transport

Good … better … best!

By Chet Cline

F

RANKLY, I don’t give a damn.” Rhett Butler famously said in Gone with the Wind.

But, I do. Almost every day I see good people wasting a lot of money.

I’m part of this industry. From driving trucks for over 40 years, to owning a few, I have enjoyed every part of it. The people are great. The job is honest. Unfortunately, too many people have bad information and are wasting money, their business, and their health.

Central Tyre Inflation (CTI) is essential to every truck that operates off road and/or empty half the time.

Every truck involved in logging absolutely needs CTI, at least on the drive tyres.

Tyre pressures must be adjusted every time the load changes or the road surface changes. Without CTI, this is not possible or practical.

Conventional ideas of running one high tyre pressure is a recipe for

waste. At least one tyre out of three is simply thrown away. Total waste is much, much higher than that. If you doubt this truth, google ‘truck tyre load and inflation tables’.

Since logging is harder on equipment than any other job, losses are even worse. Logging trucks absolutely need CTI. The USA Government tests proved this fact.

Ditto the Canadian Government tests. Same with European tests. Any one who thinks they are Robinson Caruso are ignoring the facts, or aren’t using it correctly.

We all know that Australia is a severe testing ground. If it survives in Australia, it’ll work anywhere else. The reverse is simply not true.

Imported stuff always needs upgrading just to survive. Australians build the best, simply because we have to, to survive.

Central Tyre Inflation systems need to be tough to survive here too. Look at the rotating glands that supply the air to the wheel. Carbon

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seals are essential, but that’s not the hard part. The hard part is keeping the dirt out of the bearings. Our super fine dust turns to mud dripping all over the rotator. Traditional sealed bearings simply aren’t good enough. Added seals are mandatory, but many don’t have any. Check out the guarantee. If the supplier is confident, he’ll guarantee that both the bearing lasts and it seals for at least 500,000kms. Read the fine print. Most suppliers only guarantee for faulty workmanship!

Some cheaper systems don’t automatically inflate when a tyre is punctured. Automatic re-inflation is essential, along with both a beeper and a warning light. Drivers often don’t look at gauges. I’ve seen too many damaged tyres simply because the driver was tired and didn’t notice the gauge dropping. Blow outs and zippered tyres should not happen with CTI. How smart is your driver? Do you train him? Infinite pressure settings are the best type of controllers letting the driver adjust pressures exactly to suit the conditions. Or, if driver faith is running low, or the job is easy, like on a chip truck, only two or three positions are needed. Does your CTI offer a choice? Two pressures, three pressures or infinite. Full Automatic systems are available too.

What happens when a hose is damaged, or a tyre is staked? Are all of your tyres going flat rapidly?

Or are the other tyres automatically isolated? What’s the difference? If they are all going flat, you have to stop NOW. Otherwise you will have 8 flat tyres. Is it safe to stop. Is an Isolator a good idea? You bet, but it is even more important.

money, and weighs more. Some systems are complex with special pneumatic valve bodies that are expensive. The KISS system is vital here.

What about speed sensing, remote reporting, and full automatic systems? It really comes down to your needs. An owner driver wants ultimate control that an infinite

If it survives in Australia, it’ll work anywhere else.

Log trucks work in rough country.

Of course they do, and in rough country you need low tyre pressures for traction and cost savings. If you get stopped on an off camber track without an Isolator, air will travel from the low side to the high side.

This is not good. I’ve watched a truck lean another few degrees in this condition in only a couple of minutes.

It was scary.

External air lines are vulnerable.

Almost everyone thinks they will get ripped off. They can be, which is why you want the toughest drop pipes you can get. Shiny nylon tube isn’t good enough.

Control systems vary. Some CTI systems have a chassis mounted box, which takes up room, costs more

pressure control system provides, where as a fleet driver may need speed sensing. Many need GPS reporting systems so that someone can ensure that the driver is doing the right and safe thing. It’s all available, it just depends upon your needs.

The biggest single mistake is lack of training. Most drivers know all about Ad Blue, yet don’t understand correct tyre pressures. In fact, 99% of transport has the wrong tyre pressures. Does your CTI supplier care enough to provide training aids?

There is no excuse for a zippered tyre or one that has disintegrated from low pressures and high temperatures.

Driver training is vital.

Chet Cline is principal of Air CTI.

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Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 21

biofuels & chipping

Wood bioenergy: the cold hard facts W

ITH ALL the talk around about bioenergy and its possibilities for heating, fuel and power the cold hard facts are often put aside but at the recent Residues to Revenues conference the keynote speaker was brutally honest.

Brooks Mendell works for Forisk Consulting in the US, a company that provides research, consulting and educational services to operating, finance and strategy executives and analysts making decisions associated with timber REITs, timberlands, and woodusing energy and manufacturing facilities.

The company aims to reduce risk and enhance returns when buying, selling, building and changing mills, bioenergy plants, timberlands and publicly-traded forest industry equities. So he was not shooting from the hip.

“There’s only two things to a business,” he said. “You’ve got to make something and you’ve got to sell something everything else is sort of extra, admin, and so in our case we’re very sensitive to those two things.”

Forisk now spends a lot of time screening bioenergy projects tracking analysts and operators using bioenergy projects in the United States and the company has been doing that since 2008.

power, legislation has never sold a pellet and has never sold a gigawatt of anything, so when I hear of legislation in my mind I always think of a large stacks of paper. If you want energy burn it.”

Legislation has never sold a pellet and has never sold a gigawatt of anything, so when I hear of legislation in my mind I always think of a large stacks of paper. If you want energy burn it.

“We have a screening process that we go through that is a very simple process that you can apply and look at and say okay which of these projects are really viable and which ones are going to be extremely challenging moving forward,” said Mendell.

“Mandates alone don’t produce

Success and failure we can learn a lot from what’s already happened.

“We use a lot of wood and we use it to make a lot of things that a lot of people use every single day. It’s not like there’s a lot of free wood just sitting around,” said Mendell.

“There’s a market for the stuff.

Now we have this bioenergy

sector, bioenergy is not that new, it’s just done a little sexier over time. It’s become very attractive when you add the word sustainable or renewable and all of a sudden it has a new green glow, a little halo above it that people really seem to enjoy.”

But according to Mendell the market has also raised concerns from the traditional forests products industry about competition. It is worried about material costs going up.

“Or you have people from the outside say you know, if you have bioenergy out there its going to make forest owners manage their properties differently, possibly in a way that may not be for the long term benefit of the forest,” he said.

“There’s a concern the bioenergy market may somehow make these massive vacuuming sounds that suck up every piece of fibre off the forest floor and we’re going to be left with nothing and the trees will never grow back.”

Growing more wood than we use Mendell said that in the US and Australia we are growing more wood than we use every year, although there are exceptions but generally these are in local markets where there are tight constraints because there’s something else going on.

In the United States there are six trees planted every year for every tree that’s cut, not all grow to be full sized trees some die and some are thinned out but relative to 50 or 60 years ago the annual growth on inventory in North America is two times what it was 50 years ago.

On the question of wood and bioenergy facilities where is the best place to build them.

“People will say that looks like a good area - everybody is looking at the same information - it has

 Brooks Mendell.

a big green forest on it and there happens to be a pulp mill there,” said Mendell. “That’s not a very attractive location because the economics of the industry. In almost every case a paper mill can eat for lunch what a bioenergy project needs.

“We started this work in screening projects in 2008 because we had people coming to us saying, you know we want to build something or buy land … and we want to find where the raw material is and the good thing is the only thing it needs is logging residues.

We’ll just use the twigs and the tops they’re just sitting there on the floor nobody’s using them.”

The truth is that the bioenergy facilities run better with better fuel so projects that have been successful and got to the startcontinued on page 22.

22 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

biofuels & chipping

Renewable future or dense forest floors Is Australian heading towards a renewable future with biomass or will we be left behind?

A

USTRALIA IS falling behind the rest of the world when it comes to renewable energy and given our landscape has 147 million hectares of native forests, we know we have an extensive resource on our doorstep.

Michael Stephens manager strategic policy; pulp and paper for the Australian Forests Products Association spoke about this at the Residues 2 Revenues conference in Melbourne.

“Obviously some areas for conservation and biodiversity are very important but those areas where we do have access are very important in terms of sustainable forest management,” he said. “It’s really important to look at those opportunities.”

Heat, pellets and electricity “We’re really looking at adding value to the low value components of the trees that we harvest,” said Stephens.

“A lot of that excess material is not harvested and it does inhibit actual forestry activities. It can be a problem to deal with. It can inhibit regeneration and utilisation can reduce treatment costs, fuel loads and fire risks.

“It improves the economics of management.”

Bioenergy is one of the real options for export.

A lot of the current use for those waste materials is in landscaping, bedding for livestock, or it is burnt onsite or sent to landfill.

The exclusion of native forest biomass from the RET was based on incorrect assertions.

He said that if we break that down in terms of industry, as a whole we are currently harvesting around 26 million cubic metres per year (2010-11) and we are relying heavily on our plantations. In fact 76% is from plantations.

“Currently we’re producing 73MW (2009) of energy from wood biomass in Australia,” said Stephens. That’s about 1% of our total electricity.

“Europe and Asia that’s where a lot of the action is. A lot of commercial work is being done (biofuels). That type of new generation products is quite promising,” he said.

According to Stephens biomass potential from forestry sits at between 3000 to 5000 Gwh from wood-related wastes, or 7% of the renewable energy target (RET).

Eligibility had been in place since 2003 with no observed perverse impacts on native forests.

“It essentially ignores the framework we have in Australia for sustainable forest management that includes the mandatory codes of practice and additional certification that we have,” he said.

“And the use of biomass was already defined as a by-product of existing harvesting operations in the regulations. The ban actually impedes world’s best practice for sustainable forest management.

“We believe there is a suite of environmental, silvicultural and financial benefits to using native forest biomass for bioenergy. The option is for burning it onsite.

“It does offer real opportunities.”

These opportunities come in terms of rural and regional development with more jobs and new technologies. Plus there are landscape management benefits from reducing the fire risk and improving forest health

“There’s about 410,000 tonnes of hardwood sawmill residues in NSW to use. “Another thing to be aware of is that we are talking about bioenergy and renewable energy but that’s only part of the story for our industry,” he said.

Other benefits include economic benefits, as well as health, environmental and safety benefits such as can be gained by the reduction in forest fires.

Policy settings and impediments

Fire risks subdued

“The carbon price should provide an incentive but it will be influenced by market design,” he said.

“The RET price has been insufficient to attract large scale new investment in renewables. Australia is inconsistent with international policies on thermal energy and needs ability and vision in its policy settings.”

The exclusion of native forest biomass from the RET was based on incorrect assertions, according to Stephens.

Stephens said that the assertion was that this would increase logging intensity and environmental risk, however, it was not evidence based.

Fire is a substantial part of our natural environment in Australia and with forecasts for hotter and drier conditions this will not improve. Likewise, fires whether for burnoff of forest floor biomass or bushfires, create substantial issues in terms of health and the economy.

Forest fires pose increasing risk to humans and cause unproductive loss of biomass, large emissions of pollutants, property destruction, adverse public health consequences and sometimes also permanent loss of ecosystems.

“In 2003 the Canberra fires, there was 190 million tonnes in emissions, nearly one third of our commitment under the Kyoto

 Michael Stephens … “Currently we’re producing 73MW (2009) of energy from wood biomass in Australia. That’s about 1% of our total electricity.

protocol. So they’re not insignificant - are we managing our landscape most effectively?” said Stephens.

“We’re starting to look at the United States.

After a series of serious fires in 2003 there was national framework set-up to help the forest … and as part of that they came up with this Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program, which is really about looking at reducing fire risk, making some use of biomass, restoration and creating jobs.

“The Californian 2012 Bioenergy Action Plan is another manifestation of this kind of policy frame. Potentially they’ve got a whole range of multiple goals. Primarily it’s just the cost of wildfires, it’s estimated at $1.2 billion per annum … so they’ve done some work on their forest biomass potential.”

In Europe the highly forested countries have high utilisation of woody biomass and it reflects high synergies with the forest, wood and paper product industries.

“We have fallen behind the rest of the world in the use of biomass,” said Stephens.

“There have been policies (in Europe) like generous feed in tariffs for renewables and cogeneration. We really haven’t looked at that in Australia too much.

“In Australia we’ve focused primarily on electricity initially. We all acknowledge that forestry biomass has significant potential and it can provide a whole range of benefits not only renewable energy but regional development, and fire and landscape.

“We need to improve policy settings in Australia and remove impediments and we believe we can learn a lot from the USA and Europe.”

Wood bioenergy: the cold hard facts continued from page 21. up stage have locked in their supply systems. They use high quality feedstocks whether these are sawdust or chips or even roundwood where they produce the chips it has to be consistent. They must know exactly what they are getting.

“We look at all these projects every two months – we have two big questions that we ask. Does this project use technology that works already? Is it a technology that is off the shelf that is working?” said Mendell.

After that the company looks are the status of the project to ascertain if it is under construction or even operating, or is the project on hold or shut down.

Following on from those

questions, Forisk asks if the project has received or secured two or more of the following items needed to pass its screening test: • Financing • Air quality permits • EPC contracts (Engineering, Procurement & Construction) • Power purchase agreements for electricity facilities • Interconnection agreements for electricity facilities • Wood supply agreements • Location Any two out of seven items does not seem like much to ask but a large portion of projects don’t pass Forisk’s screening test.

“We studied the prime 36 announced wood using biofuel projects in the US, as of end of 2010 and in early 2011 we published the report,” said Mendell.

“What we found of the 36 projects they used 12 different technology platforms. When you hear a lot of approaches you, as a researcher, hear variability, uncertainty, unproven.”

Where are these 36 projects today?

• Cancelled: 12 – Includes one demonstration plant and 11 commercial plants • Still in planning stages: 8 • Still under construction: 4 • Shut down: 3 • Operating pilot plants: 6 • Operating demonstration plant: 1 • Operating commercial plant: 1 – KiOR but not operating at full capacity yet • Sold and in the planning states: 1 – LanzaTech purchased Range Fuels plant “Most of them expected to be up

and running by today. We estimate these guys would be viable 8 to 11 years later than what they say,” said Mendell.

“The number one reason that projects fail is that they run out of money, financing. It was especially challenging to get financing during the recession.

“Number two has been legislative uncertainty in North America. Its usually environmental requirements for boilers and since legislation has been changing over time it causes uncertainty for the projects and the investors for example they don’t know what kind of boiler to buy.

“Some of these projects that were ready to go five years ago and were waiting on legislation … as they waited something else happened called natural gas, it was cheap. Now a wood-using boiler doesn’t look so

good, so we had some conversions.”

There are successful projects: what to look for?

• Technology – Hardest to evaluate but it’s either operational or it’s not.

• Project status/development.

Construction is a good indicator, although not definitive.

• Management – Look for specific skills and experience. Money, technology, forestry and an operator (a company must have at least three boxes ticked to have basic level core skills).

• End markets – accessibility and growth potential • Logistics – access to transportation and to raw materials Mendell is not casting a shadow over wood bioenergy but is very clear about one thing “let’s just get the thinking up front”.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 23

biofuels & chipping

What to consider when harvesting, drying and supplying biomass T

HE UNIVERSITY of the Sunshine Coast partnered with CRC for Forestry and the Australian Forest Operations Research Alliance (AFORA) to examine harvesting residues in different operations looking at things such as inventory, natural drying and storage of biomass.

Dr Mohammad Ghaffariyan, research fellow from the University of the Sunshine Coast, presented a paper at the Residues 2 Revenues conference outlining some of the methodologies, results and findings.

According to Ghaffariyan, Australia has an estimated volume of three million tonnes of residues, which is a significant source of biomass but many factors have to be taken into account when it comes time to use those resources.

Major factors in harvesting biomass Major factors include the harvesting methods and equipment that should be used as well as the species, stand age, silvicultural regime and site conditions.

“A sustainable way for us means harvesting and collecting residuals with the lowest operating costs and also with minimum negative environmental impacts,” he said “ We know that there are different factors impacting sites; harvesting equipment can play an important part.

“All different harvesting methodologies are used in Australia and the first is the cut to length (CTL). This method is consistent with having two or three machines.

“The other methodology that has been introduced into Australia since 2011 is biomass recovery, where you actually harvest your trees with a harvester and a processor,” said Ghaffariyan .

“And you would extract the logs then you would get another biomass technology to collect the biomass.

“The amount of residuals can vary strongly. If you use a cut to length system you will have an average of 200 tonnes left on the site.

“You would be able to collect 40 or 50% of this residual. It’s still in the acceptable level.”

Important considerations

Biomass recovery using different technologies

Ghaffariyan said that what was important was that while Australia had significant sources of harvesting residues that could be used for bioenergy it was vitally important to find the best technologies and work methods to recover these.

Similarly, a plan suited to the environment in which the wood is found needs to be formulated that takes into account things such as natural drying where possible and efficient storage.

Using something like the BIOPLAN is recommended as a tool that will optimize the supply chain and reduce operating costs.

There is a difference between the types of machinery used to collect and process the biomass and so the results can differ greatly.

The Pinox slash bundler recovery is much higher, up to 60% higher than the Bruks mobile chipper and the conventional forwarder.

According to Ghaffariyan the conventional forwarder is a system used widely in Australia.

What’s in the biomass?

Research undertaken by Ghaffariyan determined the biomass fraction test to see what the biomass consisted of - with pine it was 18% needles, 4.7% bark, 35% branches, 3.7% cones and 38% stem wood.

With eucalypts it is 47% twigs and leaves, 24% bark, 23% branches and 5% stem wood.

Drying methods Another process he examined looked at natural drying of biomass, comparing residues from processing whole trees at the roadside and residues from infield chipping.

“In the first and second month of storage the moisture content dropped quickly,” said Ghaffariyan.

This drying by the roadside is very useful and economical as it cuts costs, however, you do need warm dry weather conditions. For instance, it would be a pointless exercise in Tasmania during the winter months.

The research was conducted in Western Australia.

the University of Tasmania in collaboration with META and the University of Eastern Finland, developed this computer program.

Data is entered into the program such as whether whole trees are chopped at the roadside or the product is delimbed wood stems chipped at an energy plant, or

whether the supply chain starts with logging residuals chipped at the roadside.

From there the program determines costs including total energy, and costs per year in terms of storage, harvesting, covering, chipping and transport. It provides the total cost of the supply chain.

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24 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

biofuels & chipping

Making money from mill wood residues

By Matthew Lovering

G

ETTING THE most value from each log is the aim of every good saw mill operator, but the way logs are cut is only part of the story for increasing returns. Using the wood residues left over after milling is an economic resource are an important way to make the best use of precious forests and improve profitability.

A recent Forest and Wood Products Australia (FWPA) sponsored research report has looked at the opportunities for using residues predominantly from hardwood mills, which are generally small scale and widely dispersed. Although there are quite a few options for using residues they can be divided into two streams: energy products such as heating (e.g. for kiln drying) and electricity; and non-energy products such as the basis for chemicals, food additives, engineered wood products and composts.

As each saw mill operates with a unique set of benefits and constraints there really is no one best option, and each saw miller will have to decide on what works best for their business. The report has developed a matrix of solutions based on economic benefit and technological readiness; some high value products (such as being the basis for new chemicals) still need more research and development to improve viability, while some medium value products (such as wood pellets) are deployed widely today.

The report, however, does focus on energy products as they are of increasing interest to developers and regulators due to mounting social and political pressure to reduce Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.

One great advantage sawmill residue has is that converting biomass into energy is recognised under the Kyoto Protocol as being neutral in terms of GHG emissions.

In fact, in the future residue combustion may be exploited to reduce GHG emissions and potentially attract economic benefits through government incentives.

A key member of the research team developing the report was Dean Goble, a technology development engineer from The Carnot Group, an engineering firm with a strong background in renewable energy. Dean and the team spent hundreds of hours spread over a year looking at various technologies and options both locally and internationally. “This report is an update of a previous report from 2007,” says Dean. “We found that many of the R&D technologies have advanced since the earlier report; some came to commercialisation, and some are close to being ready. We also saw an increase in the number of parties trying to make things happen in the area, which is great.”

In particular the team noted big developments in the research field of

biofuels. “Advanced biofuel has progressed a long way; it’s one that has really nearly come to commercial scale. It’s really exciting,” says Dean.

Converting residues to liquid biofuels can be done by a number of different processes, including: hydrolysis and fermentation; gasification and F-T conversion; and fast pyrolysis. The technologies for converting sawmill residues to ethanol are nearing commercial viability (probably one to two years away) but there are economic barriers to production; the production costs for ethanol vary from $0.27 to $0.87 per litre, and second generation biofuels are even more expensive. Even so, liquid biofuels have significantly higher economic value than solid fuels as they can be used for transport fuels rather than being limited to stationary power. The higher energy density makes transporting these fuels over large distances more economically viable.

Burning residues for heat and local electricity production is something many mills already do.

Solid residue fuels, such as briquettes and pellets, are limited to stationary heat and power generation, where they compete directly with cheaper coal or natural gas.

Nevertheless burning residues for heat and local electricity production is something many mills already do, such as for kiln drying, and the report sees great benefit in that continuing.

The report also identifies technologies such as compressing into wood briquettes or wood pellets as ways to increase the energy density of wood residues. These options can significantly raise economic value per tonne, reduce transport costs and improve the viability of transporting biomass long distances. The energy density of wood chips, shavings and sawdust is very low at typically 3 to 5 gigajoules (GJ) per cubic metre; pelletising or briquetting are the simplest and least expensive methods of increasing energy density to approximately 12 or 13 GJ per cubic metre. To put this in context, brown coal, which has a relatively low energy density due to its high moisture content, is typically around 8 GJ per cubic metre, and is a viable fuel source because it is abundant and concentrated, enabling stationary power generation to utilise relatively inexpensive conveyor based transport.

The amount of wood residue able to be amassed economically (either by a mill or another energy producer) will also determine

what benefits can be achieved. Heating using wood chips can come from small volumes of 100 tonnes per year, while producing pellets requires larger volumes of sawdust (for economies of scale) of 10–20,000 tonnes per year. Gasification (where organic material is converted into hydrogen-rich gas) may require small to larger volumes of 150t–10,000 tonnes per year of dry chip, but pyrolysis to bio-oil and hydrolysis/fermentation to cellulosic ethanol are normally looking at 200,000 tonnes per year or more of dry fines.

Andrew Lang, chairman of SMARTimbers which produces speciality hardwood building, structural and appearance timbers in Victoria, is an interested observer of the report’s findings, and sees local and regional benefits for using mill residues. ‘With a demand for biomass within a region—say a 100 km radius—that is able to pay up to $90 per tonne for chip or sawdust delivered, then all mills and timber processing businesses could sell to this. It’ll provide local jobs in transport and could generate an alternate energy supply including heat/steam to nearby businesses. And it may mean retention of significant amounts of expenditure on energy previously spent outside the economic region being kept within the region.’ Andrew, who is also a vice president of the World Bioenergy Association, points out that all this has been standard practice for several decades in many other countries, particularly in central and northern Europe.

As well as detailing the many options for using mill residues, the report also includes data sheets on the costs and benefits of producing wood briquettes, wood pellets, and electricity generation via steam turbine, reciprocating steam engine or gasifier and internal combustion engine. These data sheets are an easy reference tool for sawmill operators to quickly assess the suitability of these options for their particular circumstances, using the feedstock resources that their mill produces.

While the best way to use resources is mill specific, there are things industry can do to help. ‘Industry needs to become more familiar with the various options for use and valueadding of biomass residues at all scales, and promote these to local and state government at least. They need to look to aggregate volumes at single sites and seek investment or support for these options. Australia needs to have policy makers looking at best practice overseas,’ says Andrew. ‘Too often the Australians attending leading bioenergy conferences in Europe are from only the farming and timber industry. We need people there from all levels of government and the energy, research and consulting sectors too.’

It is also important for mill operators to realise opportunities are evolving and changing all the time with local and international R&D bringing new technologies to the market place.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 25

biofuels & chipping

Biomass to energy: changing attitudes

By Rosemary Ann Ogilvie

I

’M SEEING much more movement in this last year or so than ever before in the uptake of bioenergy options, particularly with Local Government,” says bioenergy advocate and World Bioenergy Association board member, Andrew Lang. “I’ve been to Tasmania and talked to a number of Local Government groups about the whole spectrum of bioenergy, including waste and wet (putrescibles) waste from urban communities, and the response from shires and community groups was pretty positive.”

Because Local Governments have the responsibility for collecting green waste and dealing with landfills, they have a driving economic reason to look at ways to do it better or more cost effectively.

By contrast, Lang says the Federal Government still appears to have not quite worked it out. In his experience, time in Canberra talking to committees, or advisors to Ministers, has generally been a fairly unrewarding experience.

“The federal Energy White Paper gives far more mention of the

very minor areas of renewable energy such as geothermal and tidal than it does of biomass-toenergy, despite the fact that the latter accounts for around 75% of Australia’s renewable energy component of Primary Energy, primarily as domestic heating, including firewood,” says Lang.

“Comparable countries such as New Zealand have formulated at Government level, and at the advanced forestry-industry sector level, a range of long-term policies looking at the potential for biomass-to-transport fuel by various technologies. SCION – NZ’s CSIRO equivalent – is working on ways to turn radiata pine milling waste to ethanol with technology similar to that being used in the US, China, Italy, and Denmark.”

NZ is also way ahead of Australia in the use of wood pellets and woodchip for heating, from household level right up to quite sizeable industrial and institutional level. “Although NZ has similar residues from pine forestry as Australia, woodchip supplied to institutions and industry is cheaper there,” says Lang. “I recently visited NZ on a tour run by the business that is

fitting a 600 kW Austrian-made sawdust-fuelled furnace to the Mt Gambier Aquatic Centre.

There, we saw this same make of chip-fuelled furnace installed in residential hostels, nursing homes, universities and the polytechnic in Dunedin.

Woodchip-fired furnaces are being used in regional swimming pools there that were previously fuelled by the more expensive LPG.”

Slow uptake Australia is just beginning to use these types of furnaces, but they’re being fitted into things like greenhouses rather than institutions such as boarding schools, hospitals, and army camps.

Why this slow uptake?

“Generally the decision-makers and the consultants are uninformed,” says Lang. “Since 2006, I’ve attended some of the overseas peak bioenergy conferences, particularly in Sweden, but more recently in Austria and the US. Until now there has never been a person from an Australian State or Federal Government department; a leading consulting organisation; an energy company; a university R&D department; or an ENGO.

Generally, the only Australians who attend are from the forestry industry. This is a real concern when other countries comparable to Australia are sending swathes of people from Government and the energy sector.”

But this is starting to change: a delegate from Ballarat City Council attended the World Bioenergy Conference in Sweden last year, and a councillor from Hepburn Shire went to the European pellet conference in Austria this year.

Australia’s tardiness in adopting bioenergy can be attributed in part to the Green’s antipathy to biomass. “I’ve tracked this,” says Lang. “When the Howard Government was trying to bring in the first renewable-energy target, the Greens and the Democrats said they would support it only if biomass-to-energy was excluded, because the biomass-to-energy they had in mind was native forest residues and they wanted to stop native forest logging. I’ve since asked Christine Milne why the Greens don’t support bioenergy, and she responded that they will – once all native forest logging ceases in Australia.”

However, Lang says it’s a furphy that forests can be turned

 Andrew Lang.

into energy on a large-scale basis, because the economics just don’t support it. “Woodchip for energy is very low value, far lower than woodchip exported for paper making. It tends to be contaminated with leaf and bark, and needs to be chipped onsite.

Generally speaking, it’s not economic to transport chipped forestry waste any great distance, even if the raw material is free, as it must have an end price of $60 continued on page 26.

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26 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

biofuels & chipping

Positive outcome for individual, agency and society L

OTUS GLEN Correctional Centre is the most Northern Correctional Facility in Queensland being about 90 kilometre’s west of Cairns on the Atherton Tableland.

The Secure Centre has a capacity of 720 prisoners and the Open Custody 124.

Lotus Glen has a wide range of Industry work areas including three joinery/furniture manufacturing factories, an engineering facility, textile industry and commercial laundry.

As a part of the “10 year strategy for Green Corrections Industry and Facility management” identified in the Queensland Corrective Services Strategic Plan; management at Lotus Glen have begun a proactive plan to drastically reduce and utilize waste from the facility.

A program of waste separation and recycling including composting of organic waste has begun and a solution to the waste generated by industry was required. As the large majority of re-useable waste was generated by the joinery work areas an efficient and commercially viable solution for the wood based product became a focus.

Input from various commercial operators and industry groups was sought and the resulting conclusion was that the most efficient way to address the issue was utilization of a briquetting machine.

After extensive research including Industry staff from Lotus Glen visiting a number of private companies the decision to purchase a POR briquetting machine was made.

Central to this decision was the capacity of the machine to cope with the output volume, reliability and provider service.

The POR briquetting machine has a 70mm diameter output and capacity of 100 to 180 KGs per hour allowing for a substantial reduction in storage catchment for timber waste.

Previously up to six or more three cubic metre industrial bins were being filled daily. These bins would then require emptying at a substantial cost to the facility. With the use of the briquette machine this has been reduced to a few wheelie bins per day.

Once compressed the by product is currently utilized for either mulching garden beds, including the residential market garden or inclusion in composting.

Discussion is currently being held on the possible expansion of the scope of the machine by purchasing a shredder to allow for briquetting of low volume cardboard along with the shredded paper from the administration of the facility.

“When we have a greater understanding of the ability and total capacity of the briquette machine we are hopeful that we can utilize the output for sale in a commercial capacity either as a mulching agent or as a recycled fuel agent,” said Larry Guilfoyle, Manager Industries, Lotus Glen Correctional Centre.

In addition to the environmental and fiscal benefits of the machine management at Lotus Glen believe programs such as this have a positive effect on prisoners. Rehabilitation of prisoners and reduction in recidivism is a core goal of Queensland Corrective Services.

Promoting responsible behaviour such as the current recycling program and the demonstration of positive behaviour by staff and the agency is a reinforcement to prisoners of the benefits of socially acceptable behaviour.

A positive outcome for the individual, the agency and society as a whole.

Wood-to-energy projects NEARLY $2.5 million in grants have been made to 10 small businesses and community groups for wood-to-energy projects that will help expand regional economies and create new jobs.

“These grants help grow new jobs, support clean energy production and improve our local environments, especially in reducing fire threats,” said U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell.

The projects will use woody material removed from forests during projects such as wildfire prevention and beetlekilled trees, and process woody biomass in bioenergy facilities to produce green energy for heating and electricity. The awardees will use funds from the Woody Biomass Utilization Grant program to further the planning of such facilities by funding the engineering services necessary for final

design, permitting and cost analysis. In fiscal year 2012, 20 biomass grant awards from the Woody Biomass Utilization Grant program totaling approximately $3 million were made to small business and community groups across the country. This $3 million investment leveraged more than $400 million of rural development grants and loan guarantees for woody biomass facilities. The program has contributed to the treatment of

more than 500,000 acres and removed and used nearly 5 million green tons of biomass at an average cost of just $66 per acre.

Grantees also reported a combined 1,470 jobs created or retained as a result of the grant awards.

The program helps applicants complete the necessary design work needed to secure public or private investment for construction, and has been in effect since 2005.

Biomass to energy: changing attitudes continued from page 25. to $70 a green tonne delivered to the energy plant. It would be a poor return if this is the main end use of any forest stand, when you consider the time involved, and the expensive equipment needed to convert forest residue into chip.”

It works a little better in places like Sweden where a carbon tax on fossil fuels has been in place since 1991, meaning the delivered cost of chip is higher. Being carbonneutral, chip achieves a slightly better price, so the economics are a little more favourable. “But a very strong Government policy also supports this, whereas the development of such a policy isn’t happening here,” says Lang.

Elsewhere there are models where native forest harvest residues and fuel-reduction thinning are used. But while thinning stands of native forest around the cities is basically a fire-safety issue, the anti-nativeforestry mentality hampers this option, creating the very real risk for a hot wild fire to come into the cities. Lang cites the Canberra fire as a classic case, and while

that came in through pine forest, equally it could have come from another direction through native forest. “Fuel-reduction thinning could have reduced significantly the intensity of the fires recently burning into the towns just north and northwest of Melbourne, around outer Sydney and north of Perth,” says Lang.

“The US is undertaking significant fuel-reduction thinning – something in the order of one million hectares a year in fire-prone federal forest – because it uses this biomass for heating, which makes the operation more economically viable,” Lang continues. “It’s a rational approach, and while there’s the occasional squeak from the environmental movement, increasingly it’s being viewed as good environmental management.”

Driving change Local Government potentially holds the power to drive significant change. “They pay a landfill levy, and may also have to pay a carbon tax if emissions rise beyond a certain level,” says

Lang. “In the case of Geelong, for example, this is $10m-plus annually. I have heard, but cannot verify, the city of greater Geelong actually pays about $20m annually. If they cut that to $10m or less, this is effectively $10m of ratepayers’ money that can be invested into proven technology that converts material diverted from landfill into energy.

“So there’s an economic stimulus for Local Government to look at more energy-efficient uses of material such as green waste and the whole area of woody waste from building renovations, industrial waste such as wooden packaging, and other urban woody wastes.”

A company in Geelong has been set up to turn this material into wood pellets. “Currently we have almost no pellet production capacity in Australia,” says Lang. “If we have this source of 10,000t to 20,000t of pellets a year, suddenly there is a flow of better-priced pellets than those we’re currently importing from NZ. Many shires, including the five municipalities in Victoria’s Central Highlands region, are now looking at how they can use

woody biomass, particularly to reduce their use of fossil fuels for heating.”

Biomass from sawmill residue, renovations, packaging materials, agricultural residue and municipal solid waste (of which 60-70 percent is biomass), is suddenly worth money if it can be used as a furnace fuel for a business in the area such as an industrial laundry that needs yearround heat, which otherwise must come from LPG. These projects, whether undertaken by a hospital, a university, or a city council, can often attract matching funding from the state Government or even at the federal level.

“In paddocks within a 50k radius of our farm in southwestern Victoria, possibly one million tonnes of stubble goes up in smoke during annual stubble burning,” says Lang. “In Denmark this is illegal: there, it’s baled for use as fuel in heating plants, or combined heat-and-power plants.

These might be anything from a small regional plant producing 10MW of electricity to the biggest one I’ve seen, which takes one million tonnes a year of wood and straw pellets.”

Wood-waste-to ethanol is also gaining attention, but the process is fairly high-tech, with a high capital cost, and requires large volumes: upwards of 200,000t annually. “However, there is scope to change this threshold,” says Lang.

“A specialist engineering company in Ballarat is investigating the possibility of adapting the fermentation process used in certain miningassociated functions to breaking down straw or wood waste. So they may come up with a plant design that is cost effective at 50,000t or 100,000t.”

A report commissioned by Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation and prepared by CSIRO and various industry players, estimated that from all sources of biomass there is potential to produce up to 30% of Australia’s current electricity needs in a whole series of regional combined heat and power plants.

“So we’d be heading more to the situation in Sweden, which is getting almost 34% of its primary energy by utilising all of these residues,” says Lang.

Certainly a target worth aiming for!

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 27

scanning & optimisation

Pushing the scanning and optimisation boundaries W

HEN YOU’RE investing highly in R&D pushing the boundaries of what available technology can deliver it’s amazing what discoveries cross over a never ending stream of ‘blue sky ideas’. Yet the realisation is we can only achieve on thing at a time.

That’s the frustration of this type of high level development,” says Brian Smith Managing Director Automation & Electronics NZ ltd.

“We are currently working in several areas of interest which include enhanced corewood detection and integration into carriage optimisation for higher value grade recovery. We have already had success with pith detection using fluro marks on log ends and we are now developing detection methods using growth ring and fibre concentration combined with colour, grey scale, image filtration and laser tracheid.

“Another development is in visual grading for edger, trimmer application,” he says. “Currently we integrate our EdgerView virtual Edger system into the scanned solution for grade override, however, we are also advancing scanning and software for detection of knots and splits etc.

“We are now at a stage where we need a local mill to work with to trial further enhancements,” Smith said.

“A&E is the only company to our knowledge in the Southern Hemisphere that offers locally developed 3D Scanning and Optimisation technology that have installed systems that compete against North American and European manufacturers. It’s a huge commitment that we are already into a development and implementation program that has been full time since 2006 when we installed our first Edger Optimiser in the United States competing against the major players in the industry.

 Fluro detection for pith and rotation angle and advanced filtration for corewood detection.

“We have been very selective about our focus, primarily on Carriage, Edger, Trimmer, and End Dogging for both Hardwood and Softwood mills and have been very specific about our objectives.

“As far as our scanning development is concerned we see some real opportunities with the integration of our existing 3D and XY technology for large and medium sized companies and machine manufacturers that want competitive solutions tailored to client needs,” Smith says.

“Our presence in the US in the past six years has unveiled a swag of clients who have immediate wants and needs for our technology and support, so much so that we are struggling to keep up with the level of enquiry,” he said.

 A&E IRIS Edger 3D system installed in Wheeland Lumber Co Pennsylvania – USA.

 A&E 3D LogView Carriage Optimiser in Sorrells Arkansas Sawmill – March 2013.

28 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

scanning & optimisation

T

HE 32nd biennial SPPA Forest Products & Machinery Show held during the first week of June in the CNN World Congress Centre Atlanta, Georgia, was well attended by more than 1000 people from around the world.

Most major manufacturers showcased their ranges of equipment and technology.

Among the Expo where two of New Zealand’s progressive technology companies showcasing their products on the world stage.

Tauranga’s Automation & Electronics exhibited its latest advancements in carriage and edger optimisation along with various other control solutions.

A&E has been in the US market since installing its first optimised edger in Algoma Lumber Co in Wisconsin in 2006. “Since then we have installed more edger systems and multiple 3D carriage systems at both ends of the country,” says A&E Director Brian Smith.

“This was our 3rd time in Atlanta and we have also exhibited in Portland, New Orleans and the HMA Conference (Hardwood Manufacturers Conference) in the US over the past six years.

“It’s taken a lot of hard work, R&D and travel to solidify our position in a mature market, however, we have proven we have got something to offer in the green mill and the drying sector which makes the relationship with Windsor in this market very viable.

 Louisiana based Jim Utz - Sales Engineer for AEUSA.

Also attending was Wellington’s Windsor Engineering Group linked with KDS from North Carolina as KDS Windsor showcasing advanced kiln drying, CDK Continuous Drying Kilns and DryTrack in kiln moisture monitoring and control. Windsor had an extremely high attendance with special interest in the latest CDK technology which Windsor is currently installing across multiple sites throughout North America.

Consensus from both companies was a very upbeat show with good attendance and increasing confidence in the US economy.

Both companies say “we’re here for the long-haul for sure”.

Got some good spare parts or attachments taking up room and gathering dust?

Australian Forests & Australian Timber News, Forests July&2012 Timber – 33 News, July 2012 – 35

Australian Forests & Timber Classifieds Parts Clearout 1 x Rexroth Control system to suit Rosin felling heads (no hand pieces) $3500 + GST

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32 – July 2012 , Australian 34 – July Forests 2012 &, Australian Timber News Forests & Timber News

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WOODEYE X-Ray with the patented technology Dual Energy had its world premiere at Ligna 2013.

The X-ray unit is using Dual Energy levels which means greater accuracy and ultimately an increased yield. Innovativ Vision already sold two WoodEye X-Ray before the launch, one to a customer in Sweden and one to New Zealand.

“Previously, we have chosen not to use X-rays in our systems, that’s because the older technology does not create sufficient added value. Now, with our Dual Energy X-Ray, we have changed the conditions,” says the WoodEye chief executive officer Jonas Eklind and he is very pleased with the company´s newly-developed system.

The scanner connects to the WoodEye 5 range and works with a variety of applications, such as CrossCut, Sorter and Rip. WoodEye 5 was launched on the world market in June 2011.

Now, two years later, it has evolved with more options and applications. The first WoodEye scanner was launched in 1985, and since then Innovativ Vision has retained its market position as a technological leader in automated wood inspection.

Based on advanced sensor, data and image processing technology, WoodEye inspects and analyses the wood, which optimises production for a better return, higher value and improved productivity.

WoodEye is available for various applications such as crosscut and rip sawing, and grading for quality. Innovativ Vision has nearly 500 installations. Customers include sawmills and producers of components, furniture, windows, construction timber and glulam beams, panel and edge planing, glulam segments for panels, parquet and f looring.

NZ companies showcase technology to US market

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Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 29

certification

Certification the key to improved market access

By Steve Whiteley Acting Chief Executive Officer Forestry Tasmania

Y

OU MAY be aware that the Tasmanian Forest Agreement legislation was given Royal Assent on 3 June 2013, and is now law. The Tasmanian Forest Agreement Act 2013 reduces the high quality eucalypt sawlog supply from State forests by 54% to 137,000 cubic metres per year and designates 515,000 ha of future reserve land. Some 101,000 ha of this land will be made into reserves later this year subject to a positive durability report, and 291,000 ha will be made into reserves after October 2014 if Forestry Tasmania has achieved Forest Stewardship Council certification. A further 102,000 ha can be made into reserves after March 2015. A determination on reservation of a final 21,000 ha of land can be made after January 2022.

We have noted on a number of occasions that Forestry Tasmania

is supportive of the Agreement, as we believe it offers the best opportunity to end the ‘forest wars’ and to restore market confidence in our wood products.

The passing of the Agreement into law is not the end of the process – for FT it marks the beginning of a new set of challenges, including some significant adjustments to the way the organisation operates.

FT cannot conduct native forest harvesting that requires a Forest Practices Plan in the future reserve land (except areas that can become reserves after 2022). FT cannot sell the land or transfer it to any other entity. Nor can it grant a lease or licence over the land for a period of more than 12 months without the permission of the Nature Conservation Minister.

The TFA and the decision by Government that FT in future will focus on the management of production forests will see the proposed transfer over time of more than 700,000 ha of State Forest to the Parks and Wildlife Service.

Our staff, past and present, deserve public acknowledgement for managing these lands to such a high standard that they are now deemed worthy of reserve status. Some of these areas are even included in the Australian Government’s nomination for additions to the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area.

A number of these reserve transfer proposals are subject to the durability provisions of the TFA. The most significant of these clauses, as far as Forestry Tasmania’s operations go, is the condition that we achieve Forest Stewardship Council certification.

Significant forest growers around the world know that third party certification is increasingly important to securing and maintaining markets for wood and wood products.

Forestry Tasmania for many years has held Australian Forestry Standard certification, which carries international endorsement by PEFC – the

Program for Endorsement of Forest Certification.

Our markets, particularly some customers in Japan, have made it clear that we also need Forest Stewardship Council certification and we have lodged an application with FSC Australia.

This is not an either/or proposition. We need to secure and maintain dual certification to maximise market access for our wood.

We are realists and we know that obtaining FSC is not going to be easy. However, we are serious about it and we are confident we can demonstrate compliance with the FSC standards.

We have a great deal of work to do before we reach this goal, especially in the area of community engagement.

However, I’m pleased to say that work has already commenced – we have formed a project team that has been tasked with integrating the program’s requirements into our operations.

Dual certification: waste of effort, resources AFS LTD is disappointed by the continued waste of effort and resources on dual certification of forest management in Australia.

All Australian stakeholders and Governments should be using the limited resources available to convince and reassure Australian customers and international markets that the vast majority of Australian wood and paper products come from well managed forests as demonstrated by the very high proportion of Australia’s production forests that are certified under either or both of the credible forest management certification schemes. Certification should be making Australian wood and paper products more competitive, not adding unnecessary costs.

Only some 10% of the world’s forests are certified under a credible forest management certification scheme and only approximately 25% of the world’s industrial wood supply comes from those certified forests.

Despite many years of effort and much expense on the development and implementation of forest management standards and certification and labeling schemes, the majority of the world’s wood and paper products still come from sources which may not be well managed. Every effort should be being made to assess the management of these uncertified forests, to improve that management where it is not adequate and to constrain the production and trade of products from forests which are not well managed.

AFS Ltd is grateful that the major forest managers in Tasmania have recognised the value of certification against the Australian Standard for forest management (AS4708) and have achieved and continue to retain their certification.

If there are any shortcomings with respect to certification in Tasmania it is that a significant proportion of the smaller private forest owners have either not been convinced of the benefits of certification or have not been able to find a cost-effective way to achieve it.

This is a challenge for certification throughout Australia but particularly in Tasmania where the proportion of private forest ownership is relatively high. – Source: AFS e-Newsletter

Knowing your boundaries THE ENVIRONMENT Protection Authority (EPA), established by the NSW Government in February 2012, is responsible for ensuring landholders comply with the requirements of the Private Native Forestry (PNF) regulations, including gaining an approved PNF property vegetation plan (PVP) and conducting forestry operations in accordance with the PNF Code of Practice (Code).

The EPA’s Forestry Section assists those conducting forestry operations on public and private lands to comply with relevant environmental regulations, including helping ensure the conditions of the PNF Code of Practice are understood and met.

In the PNF context the EPA works with landholders during the PNF PVP application process and has published a suite of guidance material to help during the planning and execution of forestry operations. Landholders wishing to access the guidance material, including the recently launched PNF Training video

clips, can visit the PNF website (http:// www.environment.nsw.gov.au/pnf/index. htm) or contact their local PNF office.

A PNF PVP includes a map, based on an aerial image that identifies relevant features such as the area approved for forestry operations, the boundaries of the property, old growth forest, rainforest, riparian areas and other important landscape features.

This information forms an integral part of the PVP and is critical to planning for ecologically sustainable forest management. The EPA also supplies a base map for a Forest Operation Plan (FOP), identifying the same features as the PNF PVP, and that must be completed before forestry operations commence.

Upon giving notice to the landholder, the EPA routinely visits sites where logging is occurring and has identified both good and poor performance in terms of protecting important environmental features.

To help ensure forestry operations run smoothly and in line with the PNF Code,

landholders and contractors should take some time to study the PNF PVP and FOP maps to verify they are operating within the agreed areas.

“Marking your boundaries and exclusion zones before you begin your activities is a simple but effective way of identifying the area you are allowed to operate in.

Many landholders have also suggested that if property boundaries are unclear (e.g. unfenced), speaking to neighbours to confirm these before beginning operations is a simple yet effective way of avoiding misunderstandings,” an EPA statement said.

The EPA can also now provide landholders and contractors with spatial information that includes boundaries, landscape features and riparian areas.

Forestry operators using machinery that is GPS equipped will be able to utilise this information as an additional tool to ensure they are operating within the approved area for forestry operations.

If you would like additional information

on your obligations under the code or clarification of your obligations under the PNF Code please contact the Forestry Section of EPA on 02 6640 2555, or visit the EPA website.

The Forestry Corporation of NSW has a Private Property Timber Unit that offers a service to landholders to undertake native forest harvesting and the marketing of timber products on the north coast of NSW through Timber Purchase Agreements. The Forestry Corporation can assist with the securing of EPA approvals under the Native Vegetation Act 2003 and will prepare the Forest Operation Plan. GPS equipped Forestry Corporation supervising staff and harvesting contractors can locate property boundaries, and coordinate harvesting and environmental compliance on behalf of the landholders to make harvesting a ‘worry free’ experience, and at the same time deliver high-quality silvicultural and financial outcomes. For more information contact PPTU@fcnsw.com.au.

30 – August 2013, Australian Forests & Timber News

Out standing in their field . . .

THREE VISITING German university students - all studying higher level Forestry at the University of Applied Sciences Weihenstephan, in Freising, Bavaria – are proving outstanding in their field, literally!

Carmen Kellermann, Rita Satzger and Julian Schendel are well into their 12-week stay and have ‘gone bush’ with FT supervisors to progress their project.

As well as doing some general work, the students are focusing on a project on carbon storage.

Their timing has been impeccable, as they have joined their professor, Andreas Rothe, who is also based at FT on sabbatical.  (from left) Dr Martin Moroni, Dr Mark Neyland, with visiting German students Carmen Kellermann, Rita Satzger and Julian Schendel, together with FT’s Dave McElwee.

Active forest management is the key to Leadbeater’s possum survival R

ECENT MEDIA coverage claiming that timber harvesting in Victoria is likely to cause the extinction of Leadbeater’s Possum has substantially misrepresented the reality of a species that has always been limited in its range and population due to narrow habitat requirements that wax and wane under the influence of fire.

Ecological studies show that Leadbeater’s possum is a survivor.

Fire typically damages possum populations in the short term, but can also create conditions that eventually allow the population to rebuild as post-fire regrowth develops into suitable habitat several decades later, according to the Institute of Foresters of Australia.

“For example, 85% of its Central Victorian Ash forest habitat was burnt by the 1926 and 1939

wildfires, yet the possum was rediscovered in the 1960s amongst post-fire regrowth and still persists today despite the 2009 fires.

“Leadbeater’s possum requires a combination of old, often dead, trees for nesting and certain species of relatively short-lived wattle that are a key food source.

Thus the possum’s preferred habitat is areas of dense regrowth originating from older forest killed by fires 15-50 years earlier, or areas of logging regrowth if it is interspersed with large numbers of old trees, dead or alive. These requirements are well documented in scientific literature,” says the IFA. The possum breeds well and expands its’ range into suitable habitat when conditions are right.

The population has now begun to decline as large old trees that survived the 1939 fires begin to

Bill helps ensure future stability THE VICTORIAN Association of Forest Industries (VAFI) has welcomed a reform essential for the future of timber manufacturing and thousands of jobs in Victoria.

VAFI chief executive officer Lisa Marty said that while the Sustainable Forests (Timber) Amendment Bill 2013 would not change the amount of forest available for timber production in Victoria, it would help support a sustainable, responsible and competitive native forest and wood products industry.

“In a period of tough import competition for Australian manufacturing, we welcome the Victorian Government’s reforms that will provide a more secure future for local timber manufacturing businesses,” Marty said.

“In particular this Bill allows Government business enterprise VicForests to provide its customers with longer-term contracts for their timber supplies.”

Marty said longer term contracts were essential to underpin

business confidence, investment and innovation for the future competitiveness and sustainability of the forest and wood products industry.

“VicForests is the primary source of the $140 million in naturally grown hardwood produced in Victoria each year,” she said.

“The businesses that rely on this timber need longer than the three to four year contracts that have mostly been available in recent years if they are to invest, innovate and be competitive into the future.

“New investments are needed so the thousands of people who work in the industry and the thousands more in manufacturing that use the wood we produce can stay in business and keep making the renewable, carbon storing timber products Victorians love.

“This amendment will help encourage these investments while maintaining strict environmental safeguards within a more efficient and effective regulatory framework,” she said.

fall over due to their age and as the short lived wattles also die out.

“The good news is that Leadbeater’s possum will again have areas of suitable habitat in about 10 years’ time where old trees were burnt during the 2009 wildfires. This post-fire landscape of regrowth interspersed with large old trees will eventually provide a plethora of nesting hollows and a smorgasbord of wattle sap for food provided there are no further severe bushfires.

“Timber harvesting is limited to areas within about one-third of the Ash forests and is typified by 74-year-old regrowth which supports few if any possums. Oldgrowth Ash forest is not harvested and has not been for 30 years.

“Most of the possum’s highquality habitat is already contained within National Parks, closed water catchments or other reserves where timber harvesting is permanently excluded. Other small patches of high quality habitat which may occur in the wood production zone are identified and excluded from timber harvesting. Accordingly, ceasing timber harvesting will not help the possum,” the IFA says.

“There are, however, some further practical management options that can help the possum to flourish and the establishment of a joint chaired Zoos Victoria and Victorian Association of Forest Industries is a positive step.”

The IFA recommends a comprehensive assessment of current and future high-quality habitat to ensure the best areas continue to remain protected. It also recommends a continuation of the captive breeding program, already proved to be successful which will allow re-stocking of areas burnt in 2009 when the habitat becomes suitable with a decade. There is also potential for nest boxes to provide short term homes for possums in the absence of available natural tree hollows.

Landscape modification such as ecological thinning can further speed up the development of nesting trees as can modified timber harvesting that retains sufficient future habitat trees for nesting in identified important parts of the landscape.

“The simplistic model of habitat preservation being currently proposed by environmental activists and in the media is largely unhelpful from an economic, social and environmental perspective.

Genuine cooperation between academics and forest management practitioners involved in managing the renewable timber resource is a far more effective solution,” says the IFA. The establishment of a Leadbeaters Possum Advisory Group has been seen as a positive step forward for both the biodiversity and the economic needs of timber communities, according to Friends of Forestry.

“The correlation between major fire events and the Leadbeaters rediscovery could mean that thousands of hectares of previously unsuitable forests could be potential Leadbeaters habitat,” said Brett Robin, President of the grassroots community group Friends of Forestry (FoF).

“After the devastating 1939 Black Friday fires the possum was thought to be extinct, only to be rediscovered decades later living in the regrowth forests.

“The recent 2009 fires burnt through National Parks and State forests killing vast stands of Mountain Ash, which is now naturally regenerating, supplying an unprecedented food source for Leadbeaters Possum over the next few decades,” he said.

“Wallaby Creek Catchment which falls within the Kinglake National Park - is a perfect

Positive step forward for both the biodiversity and the economic needs. example of a large area that is now possibly prime Leadbeaters habitat with burnt stags providing future habitat and an abundant food source through regenerating forests.

“The Leadbeaters Possum Advisory Group will look at all options such as the Wallaby Creek Catchment area and hopefully we will find ways to not only protect the Leadbeaters Possum but provide security for the future of our sustainable timber industry,” Robin said.

“Friends of Forestry congratulates the Victorian Government, Zoos Victoria and the Victorian Association of Forest Industries on the formation of this new committee which will provide the opportunity for all parties in the possum debate to work together to find solutions rather than the current trench warfare preferred by those opposed to the native timber industry,” he said.

“Friends of Forestry has always believed that responsible timber harvesting is fair dinkum conservation and we look forward to finding a solution for all of our future.”

Bioenergy at its best BIOENERGY AUSTRALIA 2013 will be held on 25-26 November at the Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley.

There will be a technical tour on 27 November. For the past several years this conference has been attended by approximately 300 delegates.

The conference covers all aspects of bioenergy including biomass feedstocks, energy conversion technologies and overarching issues such as greenhouse gas balances and financing.

Further information about the conference is available from Daniel Evans at The Association Specialists e: bioenergyconf@theassociationspecialists.com.au or Stephen Schuck, Bioenergy Australia e: sschuck@bigpond.net.au Web: www.bioenergyaustralia.org.

Australian Forests & Timber News, August 2013 – 31

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