Australasian Timber - February 2016

FEBRUARY 2016

PROCESSING • PRODUCTS • DESIGN • SUPPLIERS Incorporating Australian and New Zealand Timberman – Established 1977.

CODE CHANGE BREAKS NEW GROUND FOR TIMBER BUILDINGS lG ROWTH OPPORTUNITY FOR TIMBER CONSTRUCTION "This initiative will bring Australia up to pace with much of the rest of the world."

Ric Sinclair FWPA Managing Director

lL OCAL PREFAB PLANTS SHOW INDUSTRY CONFIDENCE lC LT PROJECT SPURS NEW EQUIPMENT DESIGN lT IMBERLINK ...

THE STORY SO FAR!

FRAME AUSTRALIA 2016

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW! All the live demonstration exhibitors at the In-forest Expo are busy making sure their sites are stunning and they have the latest equipment on display.

The Main Pavilion at the Traralgon Showgrounds is filling fast including manufacturing exhibitors not seen before at an AUSTimber.

Sustainable Supply Chains for the timber industry of the future will be a first class, international conference with 23 speakers including 11 internationals from Brazil, Canada, Chile, Germany, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Romania, South Africa, Thailand and USA. We have a range of Field trips on offer from growing seedlings to manufacturing for export – all of them with a point of interest not widely accessible to the public.

The Welcome dinner will combine country-sized portions of good food with interesting speakers, great camaraderie and a charity auction for a worthy cause.

To book your tickets and arrange your accommodation, go to our website www.austimber.org.au

Early Bird discounts deadline 29 Feb, 2016!

Sponsored by

Supported by

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I n c o r p o r a t i n g A U S T R A L A S I A N F O R E S T L O G G E R & S AW M I L L E R

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NEWS

Code change breaks new ground for timber buildings Biggest market opportunity for the wood products industry since the change from green hardwood to kiln-dried pine framing about 30 to 40 years ago

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TWO-year consultation and research process spearheaded by industry group Forest and Wood Products Australia (FWPA) will see the local industry join leading international markets in allowing timber construction in taller structures.

Until now, the choice of construction materials for mid-rise urban developments has been limited to a traditional palette that excluded timber.

However, changes to the National Construction Code (NCC) from 1 May will enable timber buildings of up to eight storeys without the need for expensive alternative solutions to gain approval.

Forest and Wood Products Australia Managing Director Ric Sinclair said changes to the code would deliver a wide range of benefits to local residents, property buyers and the domestic building industry – and had been developed in consultation with representatives of the timber, insurance industries, regulatory bodies, domestic building and fire and emergency authorities.

“This initiative will bring Australia up to pace with much of the rest of the world – so that the building property industry can take advantage of the environmental and cost benefits of domestic timber construction.

“Wood can offer quicker build times, with less noise and disruption for neighbours. It can also offer innovative design approaches.

“A look at international trends shows the global sector is embracing both traditional wood and modern engineered wood products in an increasingly broad range of structural and decorative applications.

“This is the biggest market opportunity for the wood products industry since the change from green hardwood to kiln-dried pine framing about 30 to 40 years ago. It’s that degree of significance,” says Ric.

Preliminary modelling indicates construction costs could be reduced by up to 15%, while new material options including engineered timbers create exciting opportunities for developers, architects, engineers and designers.

James Fitzpatrick of Sydney architects Fitzpatrick and Partners said: “This is an exciting step forward for architects and their clients. It not only gives us new material options to create innovative design solutions for our clients, but it also enables us to deliver more environmentally advantaged and sustainable developments.

“Ultimately, the code change will potentially mean quicker, more cost effective and environmentally friendlier construction of apartment, office and hotel buildings.”

The changes apply to both modern engineered timbers and traditional timber frame. Engineered timbers made from sustainable plantation timber are used in Lend Lease’s Forte development in Melbourne’s Docklands – one of the world’s tallest modern residential timber buildings. Traditional timber frame is used in The Green, an apartment complex, in Parkville by Frasers Property Australia (formerly Australand).

Preliminary economic modelling indicates potential savings in the order of up to 15% depending on build type, primarily due to shorter construction times. The modelling also suggests net benefits to the Australian economy over 10 years of approximately $103 million; comprising $98.2 million in direct construction cost savings, $3.8 million in reduced compliance costs; and $1 million in environmental benefits.

Currently, timber building systems are restricted to three storeys under the NCC’s deemed-to-satisfy provisions, with taller buildings requiring an ‘alternative solution’ to be designed and documented to gain approval.

Alternative solutions, while practical on

¢ A mixed-use commercial development for a local developer on a backland site, Curtain Place is an example of cross-laminated timber being used in a mass-market context

some larger projects, are generally too costly for smaller jobs.

The new code creates a voluntary prescriptive performance (previously known as a deemed-to-satisfy solution) for the use of timber building systems in Class 2 (apartments), Class 3 (hotels) and Class 5 (office) buildings up to 25 metres in effective height.

The new solution covers both traditional timber framing and innovative massive timber systems – such as cross laminated timber (CLT) and Glulam – and comprises the use of appropriate layers of fire resistant materials and sprinkler systems.

For the timber industry, Ric says the benefits of this change will be wideranging. “The Australian property industry can now take advantage of the cost and environmental benefits of timber construction, quicker build times, and this will lead to benefits to the timber industry and the wider community.”

Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA) Chief Executive Officer Ross Hampton said allowing mid-rise timber buildings would mean apartment and commercial buildings can now be not

Our lead-in photo shows what can soon be expected in Australia with changes to tall timber building codes. Puukuokka is the first eight-story high wooden apartment building in Finland. Developed in collaboration with Lakea, it is an energy-efficient trio of multistorey timber-framed flats in the Jyväskylä suburb of Kuokkala.

The apartment complex is comprised of three 6-8 story buildings.

The first building in the Puukuokka complex is complete and the other two buildings will be built over the next two years. The complex offers 150 flats with a combined floor area of aprox.

10,000m2. The buildings are composed of prefabricated modular cubical elements made of cross laminated timber (CLT). The use of modular prefabricated elements ensures a uniform high standard of quality and minimizes delays and other weather-related problems during the construction process. The modular cubical elements made of cross laminated timber are dry, adaptable, lightweight and ready-to install. The CLT frame serves both as a loadbearing and stiffening element, as well as provides a vapor barrier and partial heat insulation.

australasian

only more affordable, but much more environmentally friendly.

“Using timber instead of conventional building materials can reduce construction costs by up to 25%,” said Mr Hampton, “And not only does manufacturing timber building materials create fewer carbon emissions than other alternatives, such as concrete and steel, but timber also stores carbon, drastically reducing the environmental impact of the built environment.”

Victoria’s peak body for the forest and wood products industry, the Victorian Association of Forest Industries (VAFI), has welcomed the changes to the revised National Construction Code.

Tim Johnston, CEO of VAFI, said the changes were extremely positive for both the construction sector as well as the forest and wood products industry, and were the result of many years of hard work.

“From this we should see increased construction material choice, and the opportunity for more innovative and diverse design, which will see a more competitive environment for consumers,” he said.

Lendlease welcomes code changes "WE WELCOME changes that support new and innovative technologies within our industry," said a spokesperson.

"We believe there are multiple benefits from timber buildings, including improved liveability and affordability for purchasers, sustainability for the community

and safety for our workers," the spokesperson said.

Last year Lendlease announced its DesignMake business, using smart design and advanced manufacturing to make construction components.

[Australian prefab plants show industry strength -- page 13]

Publisher and Chief Executive: Advertising: J on Bryden Subscriptions: Hartley Higgins j.bryden@ryanmediapl.com.au subs@forestsandtimber.com.au Suite 103, 486 Whitehorse Road, Melbourne: (03) 9888 4834 Adelaide: (08) 8369 9522 Surrey Hills, Victoria, 3127, Accounts: Timber classified: phone (03) 9888 4822 Adelaide: (08) 8369 9555 j.bryden@ryanmediapl.com.au INDEPENDENT & AUSTRALIAN OWNED General Manager: Melbourne: (03) 9888 4834 Postal Address: Elizabeth Bouzoudis 630 Regency Road, Broadview, Production: Luke Westle Editorial: John Hudswell South Australia 5083 j.hudswell@ryanmediapl.com.au Phone: (08) 8369 9555 Adelaide: (08) 8369 9512 Fax: (08) 8369 9501 Out of office: (08) 7127 6370 Conditions: The opinions expressed in Australasian Timber Magazine are not necessarily the opinions of or endorsed by the editor or publisher unless otherwise stated.

All articles submitted for publication become the property of the publisher. All material in Australasian Timber Magazine copyright © Ryan Media. All rights reserved. No part may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (graphic, electronic, or mechanical including information and retrieval systems) without written permission of the publisher.

While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information, the published will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions, or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published.

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magazine Incorporating Australian and New Zealand Timberman – Established 1977.

February Vol.24, No.1 Established 1977 www.timberbiz.com.au

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NEWS

Code change creates exciting new opportunities, according to architects and engineers

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RCHITECTS, DEVELOPERS, designers, engineers and builders have welcomed changes to the National Construction Code which allows mass timber construction of buildings up to eight storeys in height.

Gone are the “Alternative Solutions” provisions and other obstacles.

Construction costs for suburban apartments aimed at ‘middle Australia’ are expected to drop by up to 25%, while meeting or exceeding fire safety and thermal performance of traditional building methods.

The changes – to be introduced on May 1 – follow a two-year consultation and research process spearheaded by industry services group Forest and Wood Products Australia, and will allow mid-rise timber buildings that meet specified new requirements.

So what does it mean for Australia’s urban environments?

According to a range of construction professionals, fabulous opportunities abound. There is enthusiasm to create interesting design for residential apartments and community facilities using speedy prefabrication systems with a minimal environmental footprint - thanks to timber’s capacity to store carbon. As one architect says, “the advance in our understanding of the potential of engineered timber allows architects to build tall in an environmentally responsible material”.

One fan has been watching the growth of mid-rise timber construction for many years. Andrew Waugh of Waugh Thistleton Architects says Australian cities, like others round the world, need to embrace the opportunity.

“The growth in the World’s population is principally concentrated in urban areas,” Waugh says from London.

“In Australia, as elsewhere, we need to increase the density of our cities.

We also need to reduce our reliance on heavy, polluting construction materials.

Engineered timber allows us to build tall residential buildings in urban contexts, without costing the earth!”

Engineer with Aecom, Nick Hewson agrees. “The changes will make it easier for builders and designers to consider timber construction and removes another barrier to the approval of timber buildings. It’ll give more confidence to developers to pursue timber as a construction method without the potential risk and additional time required to pursue Alternative Solutions”.

Aecom was recently recognised by Fortune magazine as the globe’s most admired company for its commitment to making the world a better place by bringing professionals from different disciplines together on major projects.

Hewson is a fan of the building process saying construction in timber is typically significantly faster and quieter than more traditional construction methods.

This will provide opportunities to build using timber around sensitive locations, reducing disruption to surrounding facilities – perhaps next to hospitals or schools. “The more sensitive and constrained the site the more economic timber construction will tend to be,” Hewson says.

In terms of urban design of middle suburbia, Hewson says the lightweight nature of timber will be a huge benefit when designing developments over 4

rail lines and stations. “There are huge amounts of valuable real estate across our major cities above existing rail lines and in Australia, we are lagging behind the rest of the world in capturing the value in these spaces.”

As Melbourne embarks on a series of level crossing removals across the city, designers might consider some locations for new buildings. The lightweight nature of timber will fit neatly over the massive decks created above the train lines.

Australia’s most successful and high-profile residential building relying on engineered timber products is Lend Lease’s Forte. At ten storeys, it was until recently the world’s tallest highrise apartment building using mass timber construction. Based in Victoria’s inner-city Docklands, its ‘pre-cast’ cross laminated timber (CLT) panels allowed fast, light and cost-effective construction.

Says Waugh: “The change in the National Construction Code will allow architects to better explore and demonstrate the potential of engineered timber, while also increasing the use of traditional timber framing. This will allow the pioneering work done by Lend Lease on their Forte building to be emulated throughout Australia”.

Lend Lease has made a significant commitment to driving innovation in construction materials with the company’s recent launch of a factory producing prefabricated building materials in western Sydney. As well, StrongBuild is expanding its offsite prefabrication capacity with a new facility in Baulkham Hills.

Developers and others wanting to

rise residential buildings next to each other, each four, five, six or seven storeys.

“A connection between the people and the ground develops. It’s really nice when the apartments are at the height of the trees so there is a connection to the earth.

You want to be able to wave to someone on the ground.”

On the other hand, he says, higher apartment blocks isolate residents, especially when they look down at people “who seem to be like ants – it’s as though the residents are watching a TV screen.

They’re quite disconnected from their community”.

Maddison predicts Australian architects will create more residential buildings where the timber and joinery are left bare and allowed to be the heroes of the design. The structure might be exposed offering “an honesty” in the

“Australia has been a bit slow off the blocks but the situation is changing rapidly.” build with timber will no longer need to endure the arduous approval processes of the past. As people in the industry become more familiar with building mid rise projects with timber, the design and production of new residential buildings in inner and mid-suburban environments will rise accordingly. But one architect sounds a warning.

Peter Maddison is a director of Maddison Architects, a practice he started in 1989. Among his many roles, he advises the Heritage Council of Australia and various schools of architecture. He is an ambassador for the Planet Ark-endorsed Environmental Edge campaign and is the host of the Australian production of Grand Designs.

He is a self-described passionate advocate of CLT and has visited the UK and Europe on study tours with FWPA’s WoodSolutions, investigating the advantages of CLT construction.

Peter welcomes the arrival of CLT construction to Australian cities but he hopes urban planners will think carefully about the need to enhance inner and middle suburban landscapes.

“When you have a low-rise next to a high-rise which is next to a ground level carpark…you get very lumpy cities. Spikiness in an urban setting is not a good thing,” Maddison says. “You get wind tunnels and disconnected communities.”

He likes the idea of timber-built mid-

construction for all to enjoy.

Based on his observations in Europe, Maddison predicts there will be fewer buildings wrapped in aluminium or cement sheeting, corrugated iron or brickwork.

“There are plenty of precedents out there and Australia has been a bit slow off the blocks but the situation is changing rapidly and we’re watching a natural evolution. It’s such a viable way of building and is so sustainable.”

Public buildings in the suburbs face transformation as mass wood construction becomes more common.

Hewson is particularly passionate about the potential for schools to be designed innovatively.

“As Australian suburbs start to become ever denser and more facilities need to be built, we’ll see a change in the traditional school construction to more multi-storey buildings or ‘vertical schools’,” he says.

Prefabricated timber construction will allow entire buildings to go up during school holidays. As well, he is excited by research that suggests children are happier, learn more and are relaxed surrounded by natural materials.

Maddison points to the Library at the Dock, a three-storey community hub and library in Melbourne’s inner–city Victor Harbour, designed by Clare Design and Hayball. It’s the nation’s first public building to be built from massive timber.

The $23 million project was awarded

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FEBRUARY 2016

Australia’s first 6-star green star rating for a public building. The structure was light, reducing the need for new foundations and allowing the library to be built just eight metres from the water on a 75-year old wharf. The CLT and Glulam offers superb thermal performance and requires less energy to heat and cool than other materials – all significant long-term benefits for a public building.

The Docklands precinct presents a particularly challenging environment for developers. Hewson believes the new code provides the first opportunity for buildings on sites with poor ground conditions - characterised by either low strength soils or ground contamination.

“Melbourne’s Docklands, for example, is largely built on Coode Island silt which is very low strength and significant money and materials are spent on foundations alone. The average timber building could weigh half as much as an equivalent concrete building and large savings are possible in the foundations.”

Both Hewson and Maddison agree there are few impediments to mediumrise construction in timber other than those based largely on preconceptions and prejudices.

Hewson: “I hope this change will start to win over the hearts and minds of more people in the construction industry. My own experience has shown that once people have experienced a large-scale timber construction project, they are often converted and wonder why they didn’t build that way before.”

Environmental issues are also top of mind for both.

As Hewson says: “I am very passionate about reducing our impact on the planet and there is a huge role for timber to play in that. A project we’re working on in south-west Sydney is just about to start on-site and we have calculated that the amount of CO2 saved by using a timber structure compared to a concrete one is equivalent to removing 500 cars from our roads for a year. If we can build more buildings using sustainablysourced timber then we can start to try and offset some of the damage we’re doing to the planet by other means”.

As Maddison says, 50% of the timber’s weight is stored carbon – and it can be recycled. As the general public gradually understands the benefits of responsible management of timber harvesting, buildings like the library, he believes, will be embraced. www.timberbiz.com.au

NEWS

Growth opportunity for timber in construction

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USTRALIA’S STEADILY growing urban population is exerting greater influence on residential planning and property developments, with increasing density of living in inner and middle suburbs within our cities.

Construction of mid-rise and highrise multi-residential apartments has grown rapidly to match the increase in population, which is predicted to continue for the next decade or more.

This trend is global, and commercial property developers in Australia have been looking at more efficient methods to meet the challenges of construction on site in this increasingly competitive sector, with a solution steadily emerging from the utilisation of timber and engineered wood construction systems.

A major breakthrough in encouraging the construction sector to use timber systems will take effect from May this year, with the 2016 National Construction Code including provisions for the use of both lightweight and massive timber construction up to an effective building height of 25m (up to 8 storeys).

Frame Australia, the major national

¢ Australand Parkville Construction

www.timberbiz.com.au

event for engineered timber and building prefabrication has focused on timber and wood construction systems for the past few years, attracting a wide range of delegates and speakers from the building design and construction sectors.

Conference Director Kevin Ezard said: “The May 2016 conference and exhibition theme is “Building construction with prefabricated timber and engineered wood” and will include topics for both major sectors of prefabricated timber and engineered wood; and building design and construction; in two parallel session programs”.

“Timber and wood construction is a viable alternative to steel and concrete systems, due to much faster construction, site safety improvements, less complexity on site, and lower overall construction costs,” said Kevin.

The global trend is for greater ‘offsite’ construction using prefabricated and/or modular building components and units manufactured for assembly on-site, to remove trade-based work on-site to factory production of buildings, particularly for multi-residential projects.

Prefab and modular systems of

construction are well developed in Europe, with most countries increasingly using production-line manufactured housing, with the pre-fab concept expanding to a very wide range of building components and sub-assemblies.

Some countries in Europe produce from 25% to over 50% of all housing with fully closed wall and roof systems, which due to the superior quality of factory built houses in some markets are sold at a premium price due to the acknowledged quality levels and savings from lower energy usage.

A similar trend is underway here, and the past year has seen a rapid rise in acceptance of prefabricated systems for housing and multi-residential construction.

With the large volume of off-site and prefabricated construction in Europe, the main global equipment suppliers based there are currently providing the majority of production line equipment for local manufacturing plants.

Commercial developers and builders in Australia are now investing in manufacture of prefabricated off-site construction systems, which is resulting in a sharp rise in new manufacturing facilities to produce panellised wall and floor systems using lightweight timber and mass wood systems.

Currently in NSW and Victoria there are some six highly automated prefabrication plants either operating or under construction for manufacture of closed panel walls to be delivered to site as completed elements with windows and external cladding, fully lined plasterboard internal walls, complete with plumbing and electrical connections.

These moves are combining to create a

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¢ Kevin Ezard

new long term opportunity for timber and wood construction systems to meet the changing needs of commercial building markets, and create a growth trend for increased use of currently available timber and engineered wood products.

Over the next decade, an FWPA project estimate for market share penetration of timber framed construction is five percent, and with annual growth rates the value of multi-residential and commercial building timber framed construction was modelled to rise to over AU$600 million per year.

This indicates the very large size of the market potential, and the substantial opportunity for future growth in supply of timber and wood systems, which will be comprehensively discussed at Frame Australia on Monday May 23 at Park Hyatt Melbourne.

To find out more about the Frame Australia 2016 conference speakers program or to register your interest in attending visit the website www. frameaustralia.com

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NEWS

International News Briefs Moving up the chain

It sounds a bit contradictory to call the province’s recent forestry trade mission to Japan and China a success when British Columbia’s lumber shipments into the region are on the slide. For industry officials, however, the trip at the end of November was about maintaining their presence, even during a slowdown in those countries, and to “move up the value chain” in those markets toward higher-value forest products and away from plain lumber, said industry representative Rick Jeffrey.

Ready to “floor” the US market

Austrian laminate flooring and panel producer Kronospan made an entrance to the American Flooring market through acquisition of Clarion Boards Inc. and Clarion Laminates LLC. According to Clarion Industries, its enterprise is the only fully integrated laminate flooring operation in North America that produces MDF, high-density fiberboard panels, and laminate flooring at the same site.

Daiken to build door plant in Indonesia

Daiken Corporation (Osaka) is to build a new door manufacturing plant in Surabaya, Indonesia.

It also established a subsidiary company, Daiken Dharma Indonesia, which manages and markets the products a new plant manufactures. The plan is to start manufacturing in July 2016 with a goal of producing 180,000 sets of interior doors a year by 2020.

Tall wood building committee will work on 2021 global building codes A newly-established Tall Wood Ad Hoc Committee will study tall wood construction and may develop code changes to be submitted for the 2021 International Building Code. Tall wood is an industry term to identify the use of cross laminated timber (CLT) and other heavy timber manufactured wood products in building heights greater than six stories. The American Wood Council had petitioned the International Code Council (ICC) for creation of the committee to research the building science of tall wood buildings, and is pleased that it is moving forward.

Making a real difference Abodo Wood has won the Renewables Impact Award at the NZI Sustainable Business Network Awards, New Zealand’s longest-standing and pre-eminent sustainability awards. The awards are now in their 13th year and are designed to recognise businesses that are making a real difference by innovating New Zealand’s business landscape. The judges said: “Abodo Wood gets around the issue of not being able to dispose of treated wood used in building. This has the potential impact to divert treated wood from the waste stream and prevent large scale burning of treated wood.”

Communicating the code change

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ILEEN NEWBURY, Marketing and Communication Manager at FWPA, says the next step in the NCC change program is to provide specifiers with the knowledge to confidently implement the changes.

Eileen and her team’s plan for effectively and efficiently communicating the change involves a range of approaches and resources, launching with a national workshop series on 1 March.

Up to 30 CPD workshops will be delivered under the WoodSolutions’ program in tandem with many of the same stakeholders involved in the Code change process. “We’ll work with the Australian Institute of Building Surveyors (AIBS) because it’s so important Building Surveyors know what they’re looking for,” says Eileen. “We’ll also work with the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA), Building Designers Australia (BDA), the Building Designers Association of Victoria (BDAV), and with fire engineers through Engineers Australia.” FWPA is aiming to work closely with all these associations to up-skill their members by the time the Code comes into effect on 1 May 2016.

Boris Iskra, National Manager – Codes and Standards for FWPA, and Paul England from EFT Consulting will be delivering the CPD workshops as they were involved in the development of the NCC proposal and were an integral part to the Code change being accepted, says Eileen. The WoodSolutions technical support team located in each state will support some workshops with general WoodSolutions’ presentations providing informative and practical timber related information. “These generic presentations were at the request of the associations,” says Eileen, “because they saw the need for continued education of their members - not just with what’s happening with the Code change, but to help their members understand more about wood as a building material in general.”

Alongside the workshop series, the team is also working on two Technical Design Guides that will be available through the CPD series and online through the WoodSolutions website.

One Technical Design Guide will look at the Code for fire engineers or those requiring a fire

engineering analysis in particular, while the other will outline the details of the Code and how the buildings are to be put together under it, explains Boris. “It will address fire provisions, including floor/ceiling systems, wall systems and lift/shaft details, as well as stair construction and emergency stairs, and fire-grade plasterboard requirements and sprinklers,” he adds.

FWPA’s communication efforts won’t just be limited to specifiers, says Eileen. “We’ll also be assisting the supply chain with education – the hardware and timber supply stores, for example – through our WoodSolutions Campus educational training via online modules to enable staff to understand wood’s characteristics and properties as a building, decorative and environmental material and their role as supply chain participants.”

¢ Eileen Newbury.

New look for industry skills standards and qualifications Improved format will not require RTOs or industry to change their current systems and processes OVER THE past two years ForestWorks has undertaken work to rewrite its industry’s skills standards and qualifications into a new format determined by the Australian Government.

The new format offers a clearer and simpler layout, with strengthened assessable aspects, designed to improve the quality of outcomes for industry.

While the format has changed, the content has

Suite taste of success

Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (FJMT) has been chosen from a design excellence competition to deliver a new building for the University of Sydney (UoS). FJMT’s concept for the new Learning and Performing Arts Centre (LPAC) at St Andrew’s College, a residential college of UoS, is for a four level mostly underground facility which will accommodate a 200 seat “black box” studio theatre and associated rehearsal rooms, amenities, support facilities and music practice suite, as well as above ground learning suites.

largely remained the same. All revised units, skill sets and qualifications are equivalent to present standards and RTOs’ scope will be automatically updated, with no anticipated impact on existing funding arrangements.

Michael Hartman, CEO of ForestWorks, said great care was taken during the reformatting process to ensure the fundamental meaning or content of the standards didn’t change.

“We worked with industry and RTOs throughout the entire process, to ensure the skills standards remain equivalent and that they satisfy the requirements of the job role.

“A key part of our work is ensuring skills standards and qualifications remain up-to-date. So some minor updates and improvements were made to some units and qualifications, but these will not affect the outcomes in total for a particular unit or qualification.

“We really appreciate the time industry dedicated to provide their expertise, feedback, advice and support,” he said.

The reformatted units of competency, skill sets and qualifications can be viewed on the ForestWorks website, by clicking the ‘See units in the new format’ button on the homepage.

The revised qualifications, units of competency and skill sets are packaged up into similar groupings as in the past, but with each package having a new name. These are expected to be published to training.gov.au early this year.

PPM Pulp and Paper Manufacturing Training Package FWP Forest and Wood Products Training Package.

¢ Michael Hartman, CEO ForestWorks.

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www.timberbiz.com.au

Why we put a lot of effort into the nail grid?

It‘s simple.

That you don‘t have to. www.egger.com/osfloor

Your benefits having a nail grid: saving time during fitting and installation, practical grid size, safety and precision during the construction process. All of that with EGGER OS’FloorTM, the high performance T&G structural flooring board.

Available from: Meyer Timber, Hyne Timber, Dindas, Le Messurier, Victorian Timber Wholesalers and Independent Building Supplies N.Z.

NEWS

What’s the future for timber enterprises in Australia and New Zealand?

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HE LOCAL timber industry is made up of many seasoned operators. Many have had multigenerational involvement with forests, mills and upstream value adding as the business of making a reasonable return on the considerable investments locked up in the industry are pursued. These investments are long term, they require a bold belief that the journey is worth it despite the volatility and often the sub optimal returns that timber markets offer.

But the reality is that it would make little difference if the building material we are discussing were steel, cement, aluminium, bricks or glass. One out, all suffer the inevitable value destruction faced in commodity like markets. As markets become more globalised, these exposures seem to become more acute.

Timber businesses are at a cross road.

The global construction industry is undergoing massive transformation.

Most can talk of the digitization, industrialisation and globalisation forces shaping a market expected to reach US$15 trillion by 2025. Most can point to examples of how these forces are changing the way they operate. In wood one observes these developments in engineered timbers, the use of CNC technologies and the perceived progress in enabling tall timber buildings.

Of course there are the many other uses of wood in material composites, applications in new fibre technologies, bio-energy, paper and packaging.

The list is endless, but the challenge remains. How to capture more value for the long term investment and risks involved?

All of construction’s enterprises face similar challenges, albeit many upstream timber users have less skin in the game than those downstream. And unfortunately, the calamities that many of these businesses go through can erode decades of work when the timber supply chain is forced to offer up more discounts to make sales or when they do not get paid at all.

Construction’s traditional organisation lacks the sophistication and peer to peer transaction culture that will be necessary to succeed in a truly transformed industrialised and global economy. Those who have traditionally defined the construction transaction framework are self facing, they are risk adverse and the way they plan and organise construction inputs are chaotic. Their processes, despite

all of the asserted quality systems and business smarts still lead to value destruction, waste and as a result avoidable cost.

David Chandler, OAM, is a construction and housing industry expert and he doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to what has been done, what can be done and what should be done to ensure the future of timber enterprises. In this, the first of two exclusive no-holds-barred pieces about the changes that lay ahead in a global construction market, David provides a context for what this means for southern hemisphere timber building products. The second will deal with ideas the Australian and New Zealand wood industry may consider for a more prosperous future in that marketplace.

Whole industry under pressure These deficiencies put the whole industry under pressure. Everyone knows this, but they all blame someone else.

In the end the industry’s customers suffer, while many in the building materials supply chain blame them for their indifferent subscription to construction’s bid-shopping, margin erosion and combative conduct. While client advisors such as designers, quantity surveyors and construction managers attest to being subject to these transaction indignities themselves, they do nothing to change them. Everyone in construction’s lengthy value chain aims to contain their exposure to what can go wrong, and when it does any accountability.

This is not the way that other industries who have gone on a successful industrialisation transformation journey are conducted.

These industries have become client and supply chain facing as transaction disruption, waste and non-compliance are dealt away and replaced with modern alternatives. Imagine a motor vehicle, an aeroplane or indeed some of the high tech equipment used in the wood industry having 15% of design to be completed and the supply chain still to be selected by lowest price and risk appetite once an order is placed. Its not a recipe for a smarter, better, safer, faster and cheaper industry.

Unreasonable expectation The timber industry seems to think its customers should be experts in the field and be prepared to deal with construction’s short comings. But that’s an unreasonable expectation. New home purchasers are a good example.

They are exposed to the vagaries of ineffectual builder warranties often leading to unsatisfactory compromises or enforceability years after construction is completed, with some builders even going broke as a final defence. Add to these experiences the situation when branded materials suppliers are able to avoid warranty accountability when a designer or contractor has not conformed

¢ David Chandler

with a manufacturer’s installation recommendations. How should customers anticipate this?

Construction’s customers are becoming increasingly disenchanted with construction’s institutions. The industry’s certifications and compliance regimes are unreliable. The processes of accountability are at best patchy. The industry’s standards are underpinned by minimum compliance requirements.

These issues challenge the ability of local jurisdictions to govern them, let alone the industry’s customers or the public at large to resolve.

Enter the emerging shift of traditional onsite fabrication processes to off-site. The buzz words often used to describe this are prefab and modular. But these are just part of what is at the new heart of construction’s transformation. Industrialisation involves smart planning and design, and the ability to draw together many standard components to create unique or bespoke buildings. These components will involve smart materials, sub assemblies, panels and some modular. On-site will eventually become just like any assembly place in other industries, but in construction there will always be many assembly locations. How the sum of these parts will be drawn together is the paradigm now redefining modern construction.

Further impacting how construction is organised are differing jurisdiction building codes, compliance regimes and laws. So it will not be possible to amp up a domestic standard or code as a last line of defence to slow the torrent of multi-jurisdictional construction inputs now heading in our direction. And be aware, exporters who have developed

products which may achieve a level of minimum domestic compliance may find others have a different point of view. Especially if those products or services lead to failure elsewhere.

Legislators have failed to keep up with their domestic building industries. Most have not anticipated how construction compliance and assurance will be achieved in a globalised market place Traditional construction enterprises and business practices are obsolete. To date, the digitisation of construction has largely been a process of embedding business as usual. Modern construction projects will depend on modernised construction enterprises to drive them.

Few if any constructors or timber suppliers have commenced this journey.

Too slow to see changes coming Many will be unable to do so. They will be too slow to see these changes coming and to adapt.

Construction now faces a new breed of constructor and enterprise models bearing down. The pace of this will accelerate as the race to carve out new markets hastens. Its likely that over 1 million new constructors will start construction careers, and over 100,000 new construction enterprises will start up each year in the Indo-Pacific market place. These new constructors and their enterprises will be unsentimental about the way construction was once organised or the transaction structures that once may have constrained them.

No amount of pleading with government for construction industry help to meet these transformations will lead to any useful solution. Certainly not in the time frame needed.

“There is no reason why the Australian and New Zealand timber industry should not ascend to a new period of prosperity. But it’s hard to imagine this without some collaborative timber industry thinking.” ¢ C NC machine centre.

8

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

www.timberbiz.com.au

NEWS Some organizations are not waiting for help. They have not bowed to traditional industry constraints or permissions. China’s Broad Sustainable Construction Company11 is one. Most will be familiar with YouTube videos of the company’s 30-storey buildings being erected in just 15 days. But, that’s not the main story. Broad has moved from being an air conditioning manufacturing company to a world leader in construction manufacturing and assembly in only 10 years.

Visionary founder Zhang Yue has used this time for proof of concept to specialize and lead in the organization and delivery of plus 40 storey buildings. That’s done, and Broad are now selling downstream franchises of the company’s procurement and delivery model for sustainable high rise. Yue’s market expansion has India firmly in sight.

KEF Holdings2 is based in the UAE and led by visionary Chairman Faizal Kottikollon. KEF have transformed from a successful start up in 1995 to build the worlds third largest exotic metals casting business serving the oil and gas industry. They sold their Techno Casting business to Tyco International in 2011 for US $400m.

KEF has now transformed into a major player in the Middle East and India Infrastructure, Healthcare, Agriculture and Education construction business.

Construction game-changer KEF’s mission is to be a gamechanger in construction by bringing best practice technologies and processes from across the world and integrating them to offer assured quality and significant reductions in time and money. No constraints and no permissions.

These first transformative movers seem to be privately owned enterprises.

They seem more agile and less constrained than public company executives struggling to survive in today’s market, and boards primarily focused on short term shareholder earnings. What’s clear is that a new breed of construction entrepreneur is now evolving who understands what modern building products enterprises will need to offer the market. And these entrepreneurs display no sentimentality to the traditional roles of designers, the gate keepers and construction’s traditional procurement methods and transaction practices.

The future of Australia’s and New Zealand’s timber markets are inextricably linked. Historically the major players in the sector have paid homage to the way the industry has traditionally functioned. This has led to only incremental changes in new product development and the way these are marketed. As a result, not much value has been created. And the industry also follows queues that have their origins in the northern hemisphere wood industries. For example, developments in engineered wood technology such as CLT have mostly traced those that operate successfully elsewhere, through larger corporations, with harmonized standards and closer product and consumer proximity.

Its unlikely that the southern hemisphere market can successfully 1 See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broad_Group 2 See: http://www.kefholdings.com/

www.timberbiz.com.au

¢ T raditional house framing.

¢ Glulam ready to be installed.

emulate its northern hemisphere counterpart. The southern markets are too geographically spread, they organize differently, are more volatile and the in the case of wood differ technically.

The scale of the Australian and New Zealand construction markets will ensure it struggles with the transformative journey that construction globally is now taking.

But, these changes will evolve with our without them. This may, suggest a case for a smaller scale timber industry transformation strategy to be investigated. Such a strategy would need to be clear about its mandate, and about aspects that would be treated as acceptable precompetitive initiatives for the common good. And of course, those that are not. There are precedents.

The early 1990’s Europe’s kitchens and bathrooms industry was considered to be mature and competitive. The companies that made up the sector had different interests and uncoordinated practices. The industry was suffering from low single digit growth and returns. A precompetitive collaboration commissioned research into what was holding the market back and what opportunities were there to do better. To expand and grow.

This research led to the adoption of common standards and processes that would enable the sector to reimagine what it could deliver to its customers. What would delight them. This initiative enabled a timely adaptation of an old industry model that has since placed Europe’s kitchen and bathroom sector at the forefront of global innovation, manufacturing, delivery, quality, value for money, customer satisfaction and delight. Its an example of how repurposing an industry can open up new growth and value propositions that give customers a better deal and in return set the industry on a more viable trajectory.

The timber industry in Australia and New Zealand is at a similar cross road to that which faced the Europe’s kitchen and bathroom industry 20 years ago. Its certainly not a time for perpetuating the practice of associating to keep eye on competitors as one or the other experiments with another widget in the game to get ahead. The

¢ Forte CLT panel installation.

reality is that these widgets are not going to make a difference in the long term. There is no reason why the Australian and New Zealand timber industry should not ascend to a new period of prosperity.

But its hard to imagine this without some collaborative timber industry thinking. The future of construction is about the sum of the parts. Timber building product companies would do well to keep this at the front of mind, otherwise their collective futures will be bleak.

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

¢ David Chandler OAM, is a construction and housing industry expert.

He is an Adjunct Fellow specializing in Modern Construction at Western Sydney University’s School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics. More information at www.davidchandler.com.au ¢ Notice: This article was commissioned

by Forest and Wood Products Australia. It may not be reproduced without approval.

Any partial use of this article must be accredited to FWPA and the author.

MPBENGINEERING.COM.AU

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FEBRUARY 2016

9

AUSTimber2016

AUSTimber is internationally renowned as a worldclass forest expo and the organisers are looking to build on that reputation in the processing sector at AUSTimber2016.

Tighter targeting of manufacturing market

W

e spoke with Laurie Martin, General Manager of AUSTimber2016, about planning for the event in early April.

With the strength of the forestry side of AUSTimber, why are you working so hard on the processing/manufacturing side of the event for 2016?

I could say it’s because of the strong history the event has in the processing sector going back to the days when it was known as FIME (Forest Industry Machinery Exhibition) or because the event is called AUSTimber not AUSForest but the reason is simply because of the interconnection of all sectors of the timber industry and the role the event plays in furthering that connection with the general public.

If we can encourage more people to consider new technologies to add further value to the wood fibre grown in this country there is the possibility we can help grow the entire timber industry in Australia.

What have you done to grow interest in the timbermanufacturing sector?

Our first step was to work with Latrobe City, hosts of the event, to help them see the economic sense of encouraging the development of the sector in their region. The council was aware they needed to encourage manufacturing enterprises in a carbonconstrained world and, given the major contribution the timber industry already makes to the local economy, they quickly saw the benefits that might accrue by adopting a policy similar to the Wood First policies already in place in Canada and Japan.

Latrobe City became the first municipality in Australasia to develop a Wood Encouragement policy with a number of others on both sides of the Tasman having either now adopted or actively considering such policies in their own area.

Latrobe City councilor Sandy Kam and council officers continue to play a significant role in encouraging the broader adoption of Wood Encouragement policies right around Australia.

How will that interest be developed further at AUSTimber2016?

Given AUSTimber is essentially about demonstration and is open to the public (we’re advertising the event on TV for the first time this year), we wanted something dramatic to attract media and public interest that, in practice, could be translated into regional manufacturing enterprises.

We settled on housing as the most useful demonstration topic and prefabrication as the most logical application of advanced manufacturing.

Originally we wanted to erect a prefabricated house on the Manufacturing Exhibition site during the week of the event then dismantle and relocate it to a subdivision after the event where it could be on show and eventually be auctioned with funds above reserve being donated to a local charity.

The aim was to demonstrate the design, manufacturing and construction considerations and technologies employed in high-end prefabrication while underscoring the environmental benefits (carbon storage, reusability) of such systems.

What we didn’t count on (but which was good to discover) was the impact of standard developer covenants on subdivisions aimed at avoiding cheap or weird buildings being constructed that could lower the overall market value of the area.

These covenants tend to be specific to the point of identifying building materials. They also, through their wording not including them, exclude the building of solid timber houses no matter what the quality of their architectural design or green star performance or cost to build.

This is a case for councils with Wood Encouragement policies to consider how they should handle the acceptance of such wording on covenants in the future!

With an individual dwelling being too hard, we moved on to acknowledging housing starts are trending towards multi-unit buildings being the dominant form of housing construction within

¢ L aurie Martin.

a couple of decades and moved our focus onto prefabrication for mid-rise dwellings.

While we know the economics are good for new buildings, we are also aware using timber modules is a really smart option for retrofitting existing buildings using existing foundations.

We’re now developing a seminar focused on considerations for manufacturers thinking of setting up to make timber components to meet this growing demand. Apart from manufacturers, developers and designers we’re working to get local government councilors and officers attending the event to see how they can help develop this category in their own regions.

When speaking with various players in the area of timber engineering and prefabrication, the general comments coming through related to audiences at conferences and seminars on the subject of timber construction being essentially the same (preaching to the converted), there being little extra timber that can realistically go into the standard single unit house in Australia and a general lack of fresh, reference sites with which to inspire new customers.

By appealing to the interests of local government, we are looking to open up new avenues for reference sites (public buildings), tap into any possible economic development support for new manufacturing clusters and encourage planning departments to look for ways to encourage rather than discourage the greater use of timber in construction.

We’ve already got a solid base of content for this seminar with some interesting speakers and will further flesh this out with practical presentations for technology suppliers over the next little while. So watch this space!

Dedicated accommodation booking service for AUSTimber2016 BEAVERING AWAY out of the Latrobe Visitor Information Centre is a team of people working to ensure all exhibitors at and visitors to AUSTimber2016 can find the accommodation they require.

The team is highly motivated to ensure all visitors to their region have a good experience and can report back to their friends, relatives and colleagues that travelling and working in Gippsland is a pleasant experience.

Contact has been made with every Latrobe City accommodation provider to explain the scope of the AUSTimber2016 event and get their buy-in to keeping the centralised availability-listing up to date. The strong network of VICs across the broader Gippsland region are geared to ensure that major events such as AUSTimber2016 are supported with tourism officers on hand to provide assistance to visitors for accommodation, transport and touring.

Through their web-based booking service (www. visitlatrobevalley.com/accommodation.asp), the VIC is providing visitors with an online capability based on some basic search criteria. However, for those with larger groups and more complicated requirements, they are also offering an email10

based service (visitorcentre@latrobe.vic.gov.au) where you can send in your brief and they will come back to you with suggestions and liaise with accommodation providers right through to the final booking.

“Team Caterpillar was truly amazed by the speed and quality of the visitor centre team response securing accommodation for our large team during the coming AUSTimber2016 in Traralgon. We were contacted only a few hours after our initial email requesting assistance and confirmed our bookings in one of the great locations in town. We really appreciate the visitors centre team help and definitely recommend their fantastic services,” Ayden Piri, Industrial, Waste and Forestry Specialist APD, Cat Global Construction and Infrastructure.

If you are thinking of attending AUSTimber2016 and haven’t already confirmed your accommodation, the suggestion is that you make your arrangements sooner rather than later to secure your preferred location. ¢ T he Latrobe VIC team keen to help AUSTimber2016 visitors.

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

www.timberbiz.com.au

AUSTimber2016

Technology offensive on a broad front

By Neil Forbes Managing Director, Weinig

T

HE WEINIG Group will feature its range of innovations AUSTimber 2016. At the centre will be the introduction of new generations of technology. The core themes will be resource efficiency, flexibility and networked production. Learn about Weinig’s pioneering developments in the Profiling product unit, as well as Cutting/Gluing and Joint Technology segments. Furthermore, Weinig will highlight its expertise as a complete provider of machines and systems for solid wood processing.

Premiere for the new Powermat series

In the Powermat 700 and Powermat 1200, Weinig will be revealing the new Powermat generation. The outstanding feature of the moulder is the innovative “Comfort Set” operating concept, which enables largely tool-free setting and significantly reduces set-up times. Further benefits of the four-sider include high operating safety and very good accessibility. It also impresses with its high energy efficiency, which is primarily attributable to the optimization of the extraction system.

Particular progress has been made with the optimized flying of chips.

New: Networked production with System Plus

The new Weinig System Plus connects all processes involved in preparing the moulder for production. The integrated system is comprised of the Moulder Master Software, the new Rondamat 1000 tool grinder, tool measurement with OptiControl Digital and PowerCom machine controls. From creating drawings in the integrated 2D CAD program, straight and profile knives are produced with the fully-automated CNC grinder based upon the data provided. Reference points are then measured via a camera system using images supplied by the Moulder Master. Finally, the data is transferred to the PowerCom machine controls for setting up the machine. Weinig System Plus offers networked production from a single source and reduces throughfeed time by reducing the process stages. Risk of errors and downtime is also reduced via optimal work preparation.

New: Rondamat 985 tool grinder and Rondamat 1000

Come and discuss the Rondamat 985 straight Knife Grinder and the Rondamat 1000 fully CNC automatic Profile Grinder.

New: “Block gluing” production concept

Visitors to the Weinig stand will be able to learn about the project from planning to installation of the system. The system solution comprises an innovative production process for central layers. Weinig has patents and patents pending on the “block gluing with butt joints” process. With this process, Weinig is setting standards in efficient use of resources.

The high flexibility of the system also opens up a range of other products, starting from the glued block, including top layers, shafts for timber construction, CLT profile lamellae and even door frame blanks. The centerpiece of the system, the ProfiPress C, presses the glued butt-jointed strand without height offset and with perfect alignment in length. The ProfiPress C is designed for special application as a cold press and, thus, requires no energy for glue hardening. With excellent pressing force distribution, the required adhesive volume can be reduced to a minimum.

Cutting solutions:

The extensive Dimter Line range of cross-cut saws from Weinig has been enhanced with a range of improvements and extensions. The newly designed OptiCut 200 Elite, has a larger touch-screen user interface and performance-optimised machine concept which will enhance the attractiveness of the cross-cut saw. The popular option of the OptiCut S 90 series provides for increased length accuracy and process reliability.

The options for workpiece recognition have also been extended for models from the OptiCut S 50, OptiCut S 90 and OptiCut 450 FJ+ series. The range now extends from simple recognition of workpieces to application of high-definition graphic logos even at high feed speeds in the outfeed of an OptiCut 450 Quantum or FJ+.

New: GlueEye glue detection system for our Grecon Finger Jointers The new GlueEye glue detection system offers visual inspection of glue application for HS systems. The current glue application is compared for coverage with a prepared master image using color cameras. Lamellae with defective gluing are indicated on the touch panel and rejected based upon defined tolerances. The finger-jointing line stops after a pre-selected number of successive defective gluings. GlueEye can also improve quality since knot holes, broken pieces of wood, under-sized or over-sized pieces of wood and broken finger joints can be at least partially detected and discharged. A GlueEye for package lines is in development.

New: Trimsaver for package lines

The Trimsaver, which is already successfully in use with Weinig horizontal fingerjointing lines, is now also being developed for package lines. The Trimsaver measures the workpiece on the front side before positioning it such that a little wood as possible is machined before the finger joints are milled. This allows wood savings of up to approx.

60,000 running m/year, equivalent to a profit of €50-100,000. Other advantages of the Trimsaver are reduced tool load as well as reduced chips and hence lower disposal costs.

New generation of long-timber finger-jointing lines

The new generation of Weinig’s long-timber systems will be presented via animation. Come and talk to us. www.timberbiz.com.au

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

11

AUSTimber2016

Acora to be joined by overseas reps for AUSTimber

A

CORA WILL be at AUSTimber this year with their representatives from overseas.

Heidi from Gilbert will on hand releasing their Series 11 planer. This is designed for applications up to 400 mpm; it has all the robustness the Gilbert is famous for and continues with the features that have proven so successful in the two major installations we have running in radiata pine in Australia: • Pull though design for high up time and low board breakage • Positioning system for very accurate sizing and open/re-set immediately • Remote single drive for synchronous feed speed and low maintenance, long life cycles.

• Large head diameter in high precision bearings for great finish.

• Available in modular design with 6 or more heads and feedtable.

Mathieu from Carbotech will also be on site to present the latest projects that Carbotech have completed and to assist with any queries clients have on the latest developments in trimming, lug loading, board positioning, sorting and stacking lines, fast/slow /hardwood/softwood.

And Francis from DO2 will be returning to catch up with the customers who have shown so much interest in their innovative package wrapping system and to update on their latest developments.

“We are still finalizing some other displays and suppliers, but we assure you of a really interesting display booth and some warm hospitality, so please drop by and say hello,” said Acora Managing Director Roger Timms.

¢ Gilbert’s new Series 11 planer.

Australian made, Australian owned but recognised around the world FROM A small farm shed in North East Victoria, the Lucas family established Lucas Mill Pty Ltd in March 1994. At the commencement of operations the goal was simple - to earn sufficient income to sustain the Lucas families. With limited expectations, it came as a welcome surprise that orders for over 50 machines were placed in the first month of manufacturing.

Today, in 2016, more than 15,000 machines have been sold into more than 100 different countries around the world.

What a magnificent achievement for manufacturing in rural Australia!

Lucas mill supports local and interstate suppliers where possible. The

idea is to minimize importing materials used in manufacturing the Mills from international suppliers, without compromising on price and quality.

The Lucas Portable Sawmill has become an increasingly well recognised piece of machinery in farming and timber communities of Australia. The portable Lucas Mill can be transported to almost any location and set up to select harvest timber with minimal impact to the surrounding environment.

Whether your project is cutting timber for private fencing, building or furniture making; or if you are a sub-contractor, there is no doubt that there is a strong demand for a quality

Cost-effective storage solutions “WE’RE LOOKING forward to attending the AUSTimber in April,” says Meca Racking Solutions sales consultant Ralph Richardson.

“Meca Racking Solutions offers high-quality storage solutions and racking systems designed to improve the efficiency and productivity of your business, office or warehouse.

“We are a leading supplier of racking and shelving,” said Ralph.

Meca Racking Solutions was founded in 1999 in response to the need for a cost-effective method of storing timber and hardware products.

Over the years, Meca has developed a range of leading products with racking and shelving systems in mind.

The Meca Racking Solutions selection of products includes:

¢ Galvanised Cantilever arm and pin.

12

• • • • • • • •

Australian made product such as the Lucas Mill.

Lucas Mill attends between 30 – 50 field days and shows across Australia each year where they provide live demonstrations of their portable mills.

This April 2016 will Lucas Mills us demonstrating at AUSTimber.

Come and talk to Lucas Mill Tech guy Ian Schulz and see our mills in action.

Lucas Mill produces six different circular swing-blade machines, ranging from 4 inch model up to the 10 inch model. Options are available for each model including slabbing, planing, sanding and weatherboard attachments.

¢ M illing in Fiji.

Cantilever Racking & Shelving Systems Pallet Racking & Storage Long Span Shelving Pigeon Hole Racking System Mezzanine Shelving & Racking Systems Vertical Racks Tyre Storage Racks Rack Clad Warehouse

“For many of our products, we work closely with our clients to ensure that their unique requirements and specifications are met. We also offer custom design and manufacture of certain products so that they are tailored to the specific needs of clients.

“As well as racking and shelving products, Meca Racking Solutions offers a range of services for the convenience of our clients. These include consultations to properly communicate project goals, installations with technical and engineering advice, maintenance and repairs, relocations,” Ralph said.

“We’re looking forward to meeting you at this year’s AUSTimber ... a uniquely prestigious event on the forestry and wood products calendar,” he said.

¢ Cantilever for side loader.

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

¢ E ase of installation, strength and total utilisation.

FEBRUARY 2016

www.timberbiz.com.au

PREFABRICATION

Australian prefab plants show industry strength

M

ASS TIMBER construction is gathering momentum in Australia with an announcement by Lendlease that it would launch a prefabricated building materials factory in Western Sydney.

Then the ante was raised when StrongBuild said it was building a CLT and offsite prefabrication site at Baulkham Hills coming online early 2016, according to The Fifth Estate StrongBuild has several multi-storey residential developments that will use CLT ready to break ground in the new year, and according to architect Rod Pindar, a principal at Fitzpatrick+Partners, the company’s new headquarters will also be constructed 100% from CLT and engineered timber products.

There is clearly greater momentum around engineered timber construction, Mr Pindar said. The practice is currently working on numerous other CLT projects, including multiunit residential, hotel and commercial applications.

“There is much more awareness of timber and CLT in particular, even from just a year ago. Clients and developers are more educated and many of the big builders are now investing in serious research. We’re seeing it grow across the entire industry,” he said.

Despite the increasing interest for CLT in the industry and a number of positive clients, the challenge is convincing the builders in such a competitive tendering market.

“Many builders are understandably riskaverse and still reluctant to price timber construction competitively, or even at all,” Mr Pindar told The Fifth Estate.

“Tried-and-tested construction using steel or concrete is still the go-to solution for most builders trying to find the lowest possible price.”

This is particularly true of second tier, smaller firms, he said, that do not have the resources to have an in-house research and development team like the major tier one firms, such as Lendlease.

Fitzpatrick+Partners itself formed an R&D team that is dedicated to timber construction, and recently finished work assisting the Timber Development Association on a series of engineered timber technical design guides, released by Wood Solutions this month.

The research on which the guides are based was collated by the TDA, and the research www.timberbiz.com.au

method co-developed by the University of Technology Sydney. The UTS researchers also collaborated on design, cost and site issues with Arup, AECOM, Studio 505 and Fitzpatrick + Partners.

Building Cost Information System, from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, provided costs for wood products compared to concrete-framed or steelframed buildings.

In all cases, the costs of the timber structural solutions were found to be significantly lower or lower than the competing nontimber solutions. Some of the main components were found to be significantly cheaper in timber for each building type

manufacturing plant expected to be operational by late 2016.

Its multiple production lines will manufacture a range of items, including walls, floor components and also full modular solutions.

The custom building components will predominantly use engineered timber products including cross-laminated timber, according to Tarun Gupta, Lendlease chief executive office for property.

He said the company intended to procure the CLT from Europe, “as currently there is no commercially available local supply”.

This may change in the near future however, according to FWPA managing director, Ric

“In all cases, the costs of the timber structural solutions were found to be significantly lower or lower than the competing non-timber solutions.” ¢ First eight-storey wooden apartment building in Finland.

¢ Interior of Finnish apartment.

investigated.

The research did not take into account further savings that could be made by using wood products on sites with poor ground conditions, or as an off-site modular and prefabricated solution for sites with restricted access.

“This is an exciting result for design, construction and development professionals,” Eileen Newbury, marketing and communications manager for Forest and Wood Products Australia said.

“The results confirm what many people have thought could be the case and provide hard data to support accurate costing of future projects.”

CLT is intrinsically a prefabrication system, Pindar says. And prefab is the sector where engineered timber products including CLT, glulam and laminated veneer lumber, have clear advantages over other materials.

Lendlease’s DesignMake factory will be located in western Sydney, with the 15,000m2 advanced

Sinclair.

Mr Sinclair said that NZ firm XLAM, which produces CLT in NZ, is actively looking to construct a CLT plant in Australia, and that some of the directors of Hyne Timber have privately invested in the venture.

Until that happens however, he said the opportunity for greater uptake of CLT in Australian construction will need to be built with imports of the material, to grow the Australian market.

The example set by companies including Lendlease will also assist the market to grow, he said.

Mr Sinclair said another stimulus should come from expected changes to the National Construction Code. A proposed change in NCC2016 would see timber buildings up to eight stories tall permitted.

This proposal covers timber uses such as Forte’s engineered timber, hybrid construction such as Australand’s The Green,

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

which used a cassette flooring system and timber framing for a four storey building, and traditional stick frame lightweight timber construction.

Mr Sinclair said that the code change will be particularly valuable for the second and third tier builders to help get the use of timbers spreading more broadly across the industry. It will also bring Australia’s code into closer alignment with the USA’s construction code, he said.

Another aspect post COP21 is the role timber construction can play in urban carbon sinks, as the Paris accord recognised the need for greater emphasis on carbon sinks.

Mr Sinclair said carbon stock in the build environment was not recognised in international carbon accounting up until recently.

Before that, once a tree was harvested it was considered the carbon had simply vaporised, not stored in whatever product the tree was used for.

“We are now starting to see a greater appreciation of carbon stocks in the built environment,” he said.

In terms of the availability of softwoods in Australia for the manufacture of CLT, Mr Sinclair said that CLT is able to use the same type of low density timber such as Radiata Pine that is used for packaging items including pallets.

One of the flow-on effects of the decline in Australian

FEBRUARY 2016

manufacturing, he said, is that less of that wood is now needed for packaging manufactured products, and Radiata is now being exported to countries including Malaysia and Vietnam.

Mr Gupta said the new DesignMake operation will initially service the company’s growing property development pipeline.

He said there is a push in the property industry for safer, more sustainable and more efficient forms of construction.

“Innovative technologies, such as design for manufacture and assembly, can drive improvements in each of these areas, while delivering a high quality product for the end user,” Mr Gupta said.

“With DesignMake, Lendlease is progressing broader business growth opportunities in line

“Multiple production lines will manufacture a range of items, including walls, floor components and also full modular solutions.”

13

CLT

ClT project spurs new equipment design for new market

Innovation is the key USNR lives and breathes innovation, partnering with customers to achieve their vision. This sometimes takes the company into uncharted territory, as was the case with its new press design for manufacturing cross-laminated timbers. USNR is accustomed to designing and building presses for OSB, MDF, and plywood, but this new CLT press is an entirely different animal. Key features make it a good choice for market pioneers looking to get into the emerging CLT market. With USNR’s engineering elegance, a customer vision becomes a successful reality.

T

HE JOHNSON family operates a lumber mill and a glulam plant in the Pacific Northwest region of the US, and wanted to expand their product line to include crosslaminated timbers. They tapped USNR for a solution. The result is a unique modular CLT press that is meeting their needs today, and can be expanded to meet future needs.

The Johnson family has been in the wood products business in Oregon for over 50 years. Valerie Johnson and her sister Jodie Westbrook are secondgeneration owners of the business and are involved in the day-to-day operations.

The company owns and operates three plants. Umpqua Lumber is located at Roseburg. The company’s mainstay, D.R. Johnson, is located at Riddle, where the company was founded in 1951. Riddle Laminators was added on the same site at Riddle in 1967.

The mills produce dimension lumber, structural joists, planks, laminated beams, utility poles (up to 135 feet), and their latest product is cross-laminated timbers, or CLTs. Riddle Laminators was built to manufacture glue-laminated beams.

Going forward, both the glulam beams and the cross-laminated timber panels will be produced and sold under the name D.R. Johnson.

While CLT has been produced and used in structural projects in Europe for about 20 years, D.R. Johnson has received the first U.S. certification to manufacture the panels under a new standard approved last year by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) (PRG 320-2012).

The company’s products were tested and certified by the Engineered Wood Association (APA).

¢ T he new CLT press at D.R. Johnson uses a modular window frame design that can be expanded to accommodate the needs of the market.

Revolutionising the use of timber in construction “This is not merely a new engineered composite panel product,” Lech Muszynski, a professor in the OSU Department of Wood Science and Engineering, said in a news release.

“It’s an entirely new building technology that is revolutionising the use of timber in construction and

dramatically cutting the overall time for construction projects.”

The certification paves the way for D.R. Johnson to market its 3-lam, 5-lam, and 7-lam CLT panels to an emerging U.S. wood building market.

CLTs are engineered wood panels typically consisting of three, five or seven layers of dimension lumber oriented at right angles to one another and then glued to form structural panels with exceptional strength, dimensional

*A glulam beam at D.R. Johnson under compression. The company uses a USNR Mann Russell RF Gluing machine to cure the glue in large beams and finger-joint stock.

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stability and rigidity. The maximum panel size currently produced is 10’ x 24’ x 3, 5, or 7 layers.

These panels are components of a construction system commonly referred to as “Mass timber construction,” a revival of building taller buildings with wood, greatly reducing the carbon footprint of the project. These buildings have high seismic resilience, and although it’s counter-intuitive, a better fire resistance than steel. It is also possible to combine CLT with other building materials in a hybrid system.

D.R. Johnson first got involved with CLT in response to a plea for test panels from Thomas Maness, Dean of the College of Forestry and Director of the Oregon Forest Research Laboratory.

He had organized an industry meeting in which University researchers, Mass timber architects, and industry producers came together to discuss the market potentials of CLT. “They put on an amazing presentation to around 40 industry CEOs,” Valerie Johnson remembered.

“It was exciting and looked like an amazing opportunity.” The academic research group was looking for industry support to help kick start the production of CLT in the Pacific North West.

The researchers just needed some test panels to get the process going.

Having operated a glulam plant for many years, Valerie was confident that her team could figure it out. “Several of our people have PhDs in common sense,” she quipped. Under the keen eye of John Redfield, COO of D.R. Johnson, the company made 15 test panels that were evaluated and tested

by APA against specific criteria www.timberbiz.com.au

CLT including structural performance, design properties, and appearance classifications. A set of standards was issued by ANSI to the industry, and D.R. Johnson received official certification to produce CLT. “It’s a real big deal” Valerie exclaimed, “and the fact that a US manufacturer is a major collaborator makes it a big story.”

Unique machine design USNR was commissioned to design and manufacture D.R. Johnson’s CLT press. USNR is accustomed to producing presses for the manufacture of OSB, MDF, and plywood, but this is the company’s first press for the manufacture of cross laminated timbers, and it’s a different animal altogether.

But the mill had the cart before the horse. D.R. Johnson was getting ready to break ground in Riddle, and USNR had already begun manufacturing the press plates when somebody suggested that John Redfield take a team to Europe to investigate the processes of a more mature market. They took the trip and confirmed the European presses looked a lot like USNR’s design. But there are some key differences.

One difference is the use of compressed air instead of hydraulics.

USNR’s CLT press uses pneumatic pressure to produce 10’ wide CLT panels up to 24’ long and 10.5” thick.

The panels are assembled using between three to seven layers of cross-laid timbers. Adhesive is applied between the layers prior to the panel entering the press.

ATM_2016-02_USNR-THG-Grading.indd 1

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¢ L aura Meeker (left), USNR Mechanical Engineer and Valerie Johnson, President of D.R. Johnson stand by a 5-ply CLT panel produced on the mills’ new press.

This press follows a “window frame” design consisting of 16 identical steel frames spaced 18” apart, with each frame having an opening (or “window”) which allows CLT panels to pass through the press. Once the panel has been fed into the press via a set of pop-up rolls, it comes to rest on platens within the press opening.

A set of pneumatic cylinders then applies pressure from the sides to ensure minimal gap between timbers within a given layer. Meanwhile, a set

of channels carrying 8 large diameter pneumatic hoses is lowered to rest on top of the CLT panel. Once the panel is configured correctly within the window of the press, the 8 hoses are brought to pressure (typically to 100 psi, though it’s capable of delivering up to 150 psi of pressure). Press time depends largely on the time it takes to lay-up the panel, with a ratio of approximately 2.5:1 (press time to layup time).

The unique curvature of USNR’s

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press opening allows it to redistribute stress and withstand the tremendous pressures required to produce APAcertified CLT panels. While most CLT presses utilize hydraulic cylinders to achieve the necessary pressures, the USNR press applies pressure pneumatically instead, thanks to a heavy-duty hose which takes advantage of recent material advancements in the oil and gas industry.

Continued on page 16

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CLT Continued from page 15

How does it compare?

¢ A worker manually lays up a 5-ply CLT panel just prior to loading in the press. The panel consists of dimension lumber oriented at right angles to each other and then glued to form structural panels with exceptional strength, dimensional stability, and rigidity. Update: DR Johnson has since installed a lay-up machine to automate the lay-up process. This increases production capacity, allowing the plant to meet increasing market potential.

Cost-effective system This method is robust, extremely cost-effective, and more environmentally friendly than the hydraulic alternative. An additional advantage to the USNR design is its modularity – although the press is currently configured to produce 24’ panels, it could easily be modified to any desired length by simply adding or removing window frame segments.

“The real genius of USNR’s design is putting the window frames in 18-inch increments,” Valerie said. USNR’s modular press design enables it to be expanded infinitely along its length, giving D.R. Johnson the flexibility to grow their press.

“If USNR had not come up with that, I don’t know if we would have ever pulled the trigger because we didn’t know exactly what we needed at the time,” she remembered. “We started out wanting to make an 8 x 16’ panel, then it went up to 10 x 16’, and over time we finally settled on 10 x 24’. The fact that USNR designed it with frames that could be added in a modular way is sheer genius. It was the answer for us.” Laura Meeker, USNR Mechanical Engineer on the project explained, “The modularity evolved from the fact that

the project began with a smaller press, and when we realized they needed a bigger press, it seemed like a natural solution.”

Market outlook The outlook is bright for D.R Johnson’s CLT product with several jobs in the pipeline. “The market fo r CLT is growing,” said Valerie. “We are either under contract or in design conversations for over a dozen projects along the West Coast. Demand is there, and we expect other manufacturers to enter the market soon. Competition would give the market more confidence and it would make more supply available.”

D.R. Johnson is currently manufacturing CLT panels for the Richard Woodcock Education Centre at Western Oregon University. Western Oregon University was the first project to contract with D.R. Johnson and provided the momentum to build the CLT plant and press. The company is also manufacturing CLT for a mixeduse building in North Portland being developed by the Albina Yard Project.

In addition to those projects, the company is in design consultations with many other West Coast developers.

¢ The 5-ply CLT panel being cured in the USNR press.

16

Combined, the contracted work and project pipeline represents nearly a half-million square feet of CLT panels that may require adding an additional labor shift for the Riddle plant.

“Response to the product has been very positive,” Valerie said. “This reaction from the market is showing there are projects ready to design with CLTs. Having a source now where the product can be bought will help build the market for it.”

Valerie said the panels can be delivered to construction sites with windows and doors pre-cut. She also noted the company will be installing a Hundegger 5-axis CNC computeraided panel fabricator early this year.

That addition will provide the ability to customize each CLT panel with precise routing and cutting based on the project’s computer-aided design (CAD) files, which can include electrical and plumbing.

The customization of panels to precise specifications will further reduce construction timelines and costs. D.R. Johnson expects the market to require this level of prefabrication because there isn’t an economical way to move these panels around on the jobsite to do this work. A 10 x 24’ panel of 5-ply weighs almost 5,000 lbs.

One of the biggest ways CLT beats concrete, steel and other alternatives is that it assembles like a Lego set. The material is lighter and easier to handle.

In addition, there are a lot less trades on a CLT jobsite compared to those using materials that require a variety of expensive tradesmen. CLT doesn’t require the skilled manpower or the time. It can basically be constructed with a crane operator and someone to handle a screw gun.

But it puts a lot of pressure on the mill to get the staging and delivery right. If you can imagine a 4-storey building constructed with CLT, they will literally have to keep track of where every panel goes in the construction process. The first truck that leaves the mill should have the first panel needed on the top of the load. It has to be sequenced exactly so they can lift that panel off the truck and put it right into place. They don’t want to be stacking them on the jobsite.

Promotional materials on the CLT panels emphasize that the product reduces the carbon footprint of a project, has high seismic resilience and comparable fire resistance to steel.

Fire is a major concern, and one reason no doubt, that codes have limited the height of wooden structures. But solid CLT panels do not ignite as easily as 2 x 4s. Even if panels do burn, charring on the outside protects the interior wood, leaving the panel structurally sound. Finishing the panels with wallboard or another material further improves fire protection.

In Europe, cross-laminated timber has been around long enough that standards for fire protection and acoustics are being incorporated into building codes. In North America, a more basic understanding of the product is needed first.

Valerie says that contractors are currently familiarizing themselves with cross-laminated timbers.

Building with CLT panels brings a learning curve that requires adjustments to the traditional bidding process and building methods, since the installation process is as new as the product itself. Valerie suggests that academics and government officials arrange classes and seminars where contractors, engineers and architects can learn how to work with CLT. “There were a number of things that fell into place for us to make this a reality,” Valerie said, “but without USNR we’d be nowhere yet.”

¢ C lose-up of a 5-ply CLT panel. A 10 x 24’ panel of 5-ply weighs almost 5,000 lbs.

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FASTENERS

High quality screw manufacturer makes major inroads into the AU/NZ market

B

ACK IN 2005 when he began a major renovation project in Cairns, Michael Koenig discovered that he had a problem. Renovating a 1920s Queenslander, he became more and more frustrated when he couldn’t find good quality screws for his project.

“It just amazed me,” the Swiss-born man remembers.

“I visited a dozen different timber and hardware suppliers and all I could find were screws of a very low quality. The renovation was important to me and I wanted a product that would be easy to use, high quality and that would last and last. Yet it seemed to be accepted in Australia that screws were a low quality product with lots of breakages and reliability issues.”

From that frustration, a new business was born – SPAX Pacific. “I wanted to bring a high quality product that you could rely on to the Australasian market,” Michael said. Growing up in Europe, Michael was well aware of SPAX screws and fasteners, a German-made screw system with a long heritage in the European building industry. His confidence in the product has been justified, with SPAX Pacific adding 12 new jobs since it began.

The company was originally founded in 1823 under the name Altenloh, Brinck & Co. and was the first German company to undertake the industrial manufacturing of screws. In 1967 the company revolutionised the approach to timber fastening with the invention of the original SPAX product.

Since then, the product has been continually developed and improved (such as creating one of the world’s first screws specifically for decking use) and has spread around the world and is specified by architects, engineers and builders in the United Kingdom, North America, Asia and throughout Europe.

In 2006, Michael set up a SPAX importation and distribution network to service the Pacific region.

“The company is owned by SPAX,” he confirmed.

“We’re not just an agent – we’re an important and growing subsidiary of SPAX International Germany, with all the back-up that entails, giving you a global brand but with local support.”

The business has grown substantially since it started, with revenue doubling every year since 2012, demonstrating that the local industry has recognised the advantages of the SPAX product.

Michael is keen to point out the differences that his engineered screw system provides. “As well as being faster and easier to use, helping to cut labour costs, the SPAX products are engineered to last and to keep ongoing maintenance to an absolute minimum. After all, quality timber is pretty expensive these days. It makes no sense to pay good money for high quality timber and then use an inferior fastener that could fail in a few years and degrade the project or open you up to legal liability,” he said. “I use the analogy that cheap screws are like buying a new Mercedes and then putting $50 tyres on it. You just wouldn’t do it.”

Available in all major timber and hardware merchants throughout Australia and New Zealand as well as online via spaxpacific.com, SPAX products have been embraced by engineers and architects because of their long term reliability and the excellent engineering data that is available on each of their products. “That’s important for Australia and New Zealand,” said the SPAX Pacific M.D. “This region faces some of the most difficult environmental conditions in the world, with extreme temperature ranges, cyclones, storms and floods.”

With the company’s factory in Germany producing more than 50 million screws every day,

Check spaxpacific.com for more innovative timber fastening solutions.

they must be doing something right. “It’s been great to see the product embraced by such a broad spectrum of industry players,” commented Michael, “from landscape architects and major project builders to the local builder and decking contractor, it seems that there are plenty of Australian businesses who take pride in building a project that will last for decades to come, just like my 1920s Queenslander.”

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IMPORTED TIMBER

Imported timber products – punching above their weight

By John Halkett General Manager Australian Timber Importers Federation Inc

I

MPORTED TIMBER products have continued to increase significantly from 2013 levels during 2015. This notwithstanding the deterioration of the Australian dollar, notably against the US dollar. Not surprisingly this trend was linked to the strong growth in residential housing.

It is anticipated that housing commencement approvals will remain firm without 2016 and that other construction activity will also be strong. Timber product imports should therefore remain at 2015 levels, even though the Australian dollar may soften further.

Imported timber products lead the development of innovative building products and systems, including prefabricated and engineered wood products. This effort will greatly assist in extending timber product use to commercial and high rise building construction. This extension to the more ‘traditional’ use of timber products in residential housing construction will aid in expanding the

market for both domestically-produced and imported timber products with attendant economic, social and environmental benefits.

Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows that imported timber products account for around ten per cent of material inputs into the construction industry. This means that imported timber products keep 29,000 people working directly in construction and a further 80,000 people in occupations that provide inputs into the construction process.

It is apparent that imported timber products are growing in significance and will be central to the performance of Australian building and construction industries in the years ahead. Innovative products and building systems arise more readily in larger consumer markets capable of delivering research and economies of scale. Such markets are also able to fill the gaps in type, quality and supply absent from Australia’s domestic timber product offering. It is logical therefore that imported timber product innovation and supply will continue to be lead by Northern Hemisphere researchers and timber product manufacturers.

Imported timber products are also essential because of their cost and utility benefits, or because there are simply no Australian-produced substitutes available in the quantities or specifications demanded for residential and commercial building applications.

Unlike, for example, the steel industry the timber industry does not have an adequate collective, coordinated marketing effort. The exception is the generic wood promotion campaign managed by Forest and Wood Products Australia and funded by industry levies.

Collectively timber importers make the second largest contribution to levy payments and endorse further timber marketing efforts.

Future marketing campaigns will need to include both the use products for a range of well-understood values, and also be more specifically targeted at the opportunities to use emerging, more sophisticated products to grow the size and range of applications for timber products. Marketing of sophisticated and emerging engineered products is an important future challenge that needs to be pitched at architects, specifiers and product ‘gatekeepers’, as well as consumers.

“Imported timber products are growing in significance and will be central to the performance of Australian building and construction industries in the years ahead” The timber industry also needs concerted effort to ensure that the Building Code of Australia and local government building ordinances are amended to accommodate the use of prefabricated building systems and engineered products in residential building and commercial construction applications.

p J ohn Halkett. t C ross Laminated Timber panels.

Growing in significance imported timber products will be central to the performance of building and construction industries in the years ahead.

Wood Guangzhou 2016 WOOD GUANGZHOU 2016, China’s leading wood and wood products trade fair, will be held in the Poly World Trade Centre Expo., Pazhou, Guangzhou during 13-15 May. Thanks to the strong support of the whole wood industry, Wood Guangzhou 2015 was successfully held at area B of China Import & Export Fair Complex and attracted a large number of exhibitors from both at home and abroad such as Pfeifer Timber (Austria),R GRUPA(Latvia), SEEnergy Timber(Swissland), TRASAM(Brasil), ANTE, HOLZ(Germany), CUSH COMPANY (Cameroon), LIK (Russia), FeMaDa (Slovakia), Shangyuan, HONHUNG, Hengxin, Oda Plywood, Sino-Forest 18

Technology, Seeland, etc., and nearly 13,000 visitors from 50 countries or regions.

Wood Guangzhou 2016 is co-organized by the China National Forest Product Industry Association (CNFPIA). CNFPIA organises its 2000 member companies to attend Wood Guangzhou every year. In show 2016, China’s oldest wooden house and wooden structure fair will be incorporated in Wood Guangzhou as a specialised theme, so, Wood Guangzhou 2016 will be divided into four exhibition areas: wooden house & wooden structure, woodbased panel, logs and lumbers and wood products. http://www.muyezhan.com/index.php?lang=en

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SCANNERS

German woodworking company relies on Goldeneye 700 for strength grading

A

FTER NINE years working with a Goldeneye scanner from Microtec, the German woodworking company for industry construction and glued laminated timber, Hess Timber, recently installed a new Goldeneye 700.

This multi-sensor quality scanner is certified to grade boards according to strength classes. It reliably determines MOE and MOR at high production speeds.

In fact, it is the most certified strength grading solution for lumber worldwide.

Hess timber grading line Goldeneye 700 forwards of the optimized solution to a cross-cut saw and the finger jointing line. Boards are optimized according to board strength, board quality as well as customerspecific final product requirements. Next generation low power X-ray technology determines the exact strength class of different segments of a board by measuring the density map over the whole board. Size and position of knots are measured and considered for local strength prediction. The visual part of the scanner detects wood defects on the surface and optimizes the board in terms of visible quality.

Goldeneye 700 optimizes the boards according to customer specific product quality requirements in order to increase output quality and resale value of the final product.

Project leader René Schnabel, head of quality and process management, commented: “The multisensor scanner is the heart of our production. The high quality of our products depends on the strength grading and visual detection. Microtec offers the very best technology for lumber grading. So the decision for the Goldeneye was without question.” After half year of preparation everything was ready to replace the old scanner.

Thanks to the highly professional team of Microtec and the support of Hess Timber maintenance and production team, the new Goldeneye started production with just four days of shut down.

Operating the new scanner is very simple. Within a few days of training the operators were able to run the system by their own. A lot of functions are intuitive. With the new Multi-Sensor Scanner Goldeneye 700, Hess Timber is prepared for the new EN 14080:2013 but also for new high quality products for innovative timber constructions.

Hess Timber has its headquarters in Kleinheubach in Bavaria and is one of the most innovative wood processing companies in Europe for industry construction and glued laminated timber.

¢ V iew inside Goldeneye scanner.

¢ Hess Goldeneye 700.

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Look inside logs. For the first time, size and position of wood defects can be accurately described in all three dimensions. Using the internal defects, CT Log evaluates appearance, quality and strength before the breakdown of the log. Sawing and bucking is continuously optimized based on the highest quality and resale value.

More world leading scanning solutions at www.microtec.eu

Melbourne

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19

SCANNERS

Log scanning process is a first for North America

M

ICROTEC HAS installed the first government certified legal-for-trade log scanner in North America, reducing scaling costs and increasing log volume measurement accuracy.

The Microtec Logeye is now officially the first scanner in North America to be approved to automatically measure log volume for trade.

The scanner has been tested and certified by Measurement Canada to meet the recently released Terms and Conditions for the Approval of Timber Dimension Measuring Devices. The first stage of testing was done in the lab in Ottawa at the end of September, and then continued on to be installed in the bucking line of a BC sawmill.

The second stage of testing was completed under actual operating conditions, leading to official approval in October 2015.

“Only with Microtec’s experience in this field we were able to pass the extensive requirements for the test,” says Norvin Laudon, CTO at Springer Microtec North America and CSA committee member. “Our first scanner was certified in Germany in 2005, and we’ve installed well over 100 government certified log scaling solutions in Europe, Russia and South America since then. We are proud to be at the forefront of a new era of log measurement in North America.”

Without Microtec Logeye scanner, the mill was required to manually

scale one hundred percent of its logs off site at a dry land sort facility.

Together with the Ministry of Forests of BC, the mill, and Microtec, a pilot project was designed to use the measurements of the officially approved and sealed scanner for payment. As a result, manual scaling is reduced from 100% to approximately 2.5%. The species/grade ratio from the manually scaled sample is then applied statistically to the whole boom.

The remaining bundles bypass the sort facility, travel directly to the mill and are scanned in the debarking line.

In addition to scanning the volume, the data is also used for bucking optimization. All measurements are compiled and sent to the province’s H.B.S. (Harvest Billing System) for payment. By drastically reducing the manpower and log handling involved in the process, the Microtec Logeye scanner reduces scaling costs while providing more accurate log measurements for trade.

The development of the Terms and Conditions for the Approval of Timber Dimension Measuring Devices are a result of a long term Canada-wide multi-disciplinary committee, the CSA Technical Committee on Scaling Roundwood.

Ease of use and reliability are keys to scanner success TODAY’S COMPLEX and demanding sawmill environments require reliable, easy-to-use 3-D scanning, which is why mills around the world rely on JoeScan scanners. Since introducing the JS-20 model in 2002, JoeScan has revolutionised how sawmills use scanners.

JoeScan pioneered Ethernet communication for scanners, which is now the industry standard, and was first to offer a five-year warranty. JoeScan also led the evolution to higher-density snapshot scanning with six-inch spacing.

Simplicity, reliability, accuracy and speed are the foundation of JoeScan’s products. Every model comes with plug-and-scan Ethernet, built-in durability that delivers accurate data in the roughest environments, the industry’s leading fiveyear warranty and a 10-year product support policy.

As JoeScan has perfected its products, it has also added speed and versatility.

JS-25 X-series scanners take up to 850 profile measurements per second, with each profile containing up to 242 data points. In addition, the JS-25 X-series scanner models accommodate virtually any scanning need – indoor, outdoor, transverse or lineal. From logs to lumber, JoeScan provides dependable scanning for bucking, carriages, sharp-chains, gangs, edgers, planers and more.

¢ JoeScan Transverse.

¢ Every piece of timber covered.

¢ Scanning large logs.

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LOAD CONTAINMENT

Load containment specialists

S

IGNODE IS a global company that manufactures everything from tooling and consumables for load containment and protective packaging, to equipment that can be used for automated solutions within the timber Industry as well as many other industries.

These systems are engineered especially to increase and streamline production which assists in improving profits.

Within the Signode range there is something for everyone, no matter whether you are a small site just starting out and require a tool and strap to get started, or you are a large multinational company looking to automate to increase production.

At the lower level, Signode offers all products starting with tools for applying Polypropylene plastic strap for light loads up to heavy duty steel strap for very heavy loads. In between there is Polyester strap which is predominantly used in the timber industry for load containment.

Signode BPX Further to this, Signode has available equipment that can be used to completely automate the process of applying strapping to timber packs. The latest addition to Signode’s equipment range is the Signode BPX compression strapping system which delivers maximum packaging reliability in a simple to operate and easy to use machine. Its

streamlined design with innovative, built-in features enables faster cycle times and more consistent package performance.

The BPX’s innovative features and overlapping functions result in maximum load stability. It starts with the unique independent side compression for improved load squaring and alignment. Unlike other systems, the BPX pre-folds edge protectors prior to placing them on the load to ensure consistent strap tension. Battens are precisely delivered to the load and held securely in place until strapping has concluded. Together, these features enable the industry’s fastest and most consistent strapping of lumber and panel packages.

Modular Strapping Heads The BPX system features separate, lightweight strapping heads that are easy to access and remove for maintenance, drastically reducing downtime. The location of the feed module, on the perimeter of the machine, allows for easy loading without climbing on the platen.

These are easier to maintain due to: • A highly intuitive user-friendly HMI which allows for quick and easy diagnosis of service related issues.

• No special handling equipment necessary • Simple design with fewer moving parts and durable wear parts

¢ S ignode BPX Press

• No belts, pulley or adjustments • Easy access to the strap path • Signode has built features into the BPX to enhance operator safety: • Automated platen latch maximizes safety for working underneath the platen.

• Remote strap feeding eliminates entering the machine area to reload the strap.

• Lightweight strapping head for easy removal and maintenance.

• Separate high/low voltage cabinet simplifies PLC communication and control voltage work.

• Large capacity consumables reduce replenishment intervals

LOAD CONTAINMENT AND PROTECTIVE PACKAGING SYSTEMS

• Multi e-stops located around the machine for quick shut down As well as supplying tooling and automation into the timber Industry Signode is also a multinational manufacturer of steel and plastic consumable products. Within the Australasian region Signode is the only manufacturer of these products in Australia for strapping products and New Zealand for Galewrap (Film) products.

Signode has the unmatched ability to provide the consumable, machine/ tool and servicing package, that allows “total ownership” for your protective packaging needs.

Load Containment Solutions

Signode offers the most innovative packaging solutions to the Timber Industry. Our product range includes strapping systems for all applications and wrapping for product protection.

STRAPPING PRODUCTS FOR ALL APPLICATIONS

• Signode Polyester Strapping 9mm-32mm suitable for all applications • Full range of Signode steel strapping products Apex, HSA & Magnus

STRAPPING SYSTEMS & HAND TOOLS

• Battery operated hand tools for steel & polyester strapping • Pneumatic and manual strapping tools • Inline fully automatic strapping systems

SIGNODE AUTOMATION • Consultancy • Engineering • Service

www.signode.com.au

PROVIDING INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THE TIMBER INDUSTRY www.timberbiz.com.au

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21

BUSINESS PROFILE

The Timberlink story so far . . .

J

UST OVER three years ago astute timberland investment manager New Forests took a new step in its forest sector investment strategy when it launched Timberlink.

As New Forests’ first timber processing investment, Timberlink presented a unique opportunity to integrate management of timberland, mills, and sales and distribution into a fully aligned supply chain and introduce a new, more customer focussed business.

At the time, New Forests Managing Director David Brand saw the move as a critical part of a strong future for Australian forestry.

“As a regionally-focused timberland investment manager, New Forests believes that a competitive, domestic wood processing industry is critical to ensuring a sustainable future for Australia’s forest sector. Timberlink Australia will strengthen local supply chains by connecting Australian-grown plantation timber with domestic customers seeking high-quality and environmentally responsible building materials,” he had said.

The new business offered financial stability and opportunities for targeted capital investment to improve efficiency, product quality, and customer

service while supplying sustainable, domestic products.

One of the keys to the initial launch and its continued success was the appointment of Ian Tyson as Chief Executive Officer. His 35-plus years of experience in timber processing, wood products marketing, and timber sales in Australia stamped him as a driver and a mentor.

“Our focus has continued to be on growing value not volume, and to build a professional high performing customer focussed business.”

However, according to Ian, the story is not about him ... it’s about the Timberlink story so far.

There has been substantial development and growth in the Timberlink business since its

formation including its entry into the New Zealand market through the acquisition of Flight Timbers operating asset.

Last year (2015) was one of ongoing change for Timberlink, as it expanded to become a multicountry business employing over 500 people in Australia and New Zealand.

“Investments made in our Australian sawmills, and government support, enabled us to leverage from this and start to expand the business into a more global market,” Ian explained.

“Our focus has continued to be on growing value not volume, and to build a professional high performing customer focussed business,” Ian said and paid tribute to the Timberlink workforce. “I continue to be appreciative of the hard work and efforts Timberlink employees continually make to progress our business for the future.

“We have built on the expansion of products and markets, enabling continued growth with our customers, with the purchase of the Blenheim sawmill, operating as Timberlink New Zealand.

“At the same time, we have remained committed to and are continuing to significantly reinvest in the business, ensuring we support our long-term

¢ Cutting edge manufacturing technology

22

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

www.timberbiz.com.au

BUSINESS PROFILE

¢ I an Tyson, Chief Executive Officer

¢ The Timberlink mills have commissioned some of the most cutting edge manufacturing technology available.

strategies that drive and underpin our future success.” Timberlink has commissioned some of the most advanced machinery and technology at its mills and invested in innovative product systems and solutions such as Low Odour Timberlink Green.

Ian is proud of the fact that Timberlink is seen as an easy company to do business with. He said one of the keys to this facet was understanding and anticipating customer needs and working closely with suppliers.

There has been substantial investment at both the Bell Bay and Tarpeena sawmills as part of Timberlink’s long-term plan to become a competitive and sustainable business. But there’s more to this than meets the eye ... “While the investments directly benefit the Timberlink business with advanced sawmills and greater skilled employees, we have also seen the overall benefits it has brought to the local communities, where we have and continue to invest in our regional area, valuing the skills, knowledge and hard work of local contractors and businesses,” says Ian. And he added that the Blenheim mill in New

Zealand was on the cusp of exciting developments that would take this operation into the next generation of sawmilling.

“This not only underpins our existing market position and regional employment, but will also provide a new base for growth and enhanced international competiveness,” he said.

Timberlink is not only embarking on its fourth year of operation it is also writing yet another chapter in its history. And speaking of writing, the fledgling company is about to release a company information booklet.

It’s not your average self-indulgent spiel.

As the name suggests it’s informative, enjoyable and an honest reflection on what has been achieved and what is hoped to be achieved.

Ian sums this sentiment up nicely ... “We are now a business of almost 550 people so working closely with one another at each site and across our sites will be key to our success. “I am proud to work in an industry and for a company that is focussed on sustainability and business improvement, and I continue to be appreciative of the hard work and efforts Timberlink employees continually make to progress our business for the future.”

¢ T imberlink manufactures quality plantation pine products.

The Timberlink story so far...

Grab your copy of the Timberlink story so far at www.Ɵmberlinkaustralia.com.au.

More than just a company booklet - our story features imagery and topics including; our people, our customer-focused approach, sustainability and our unique business structure. www.Ɵmberlinkaustralia.com.au www.Ɵmberlinknz.co.nz Timberlink is proud to make quality building products from Australian and New Zealand grown plantaƟon pine.

www.timberbiz.com.au

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

23

NEWS

Minister impressed with Hyne Timber operations

Q

UEENSLAND’S NEW Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries Leanne Donaldson said her debut visit to Hyne Timber’s Tuan Mill was a valuable insight into the timber manufacturing industry.

The mill, located just outside Maryborough is one of Australia’s largest, contemporary sawmilling operations, processing over 750,000m3 of plantation softwood each year.

“Queensland’s forest products industry indirectly employs almost 30,000, predominantly in regional and remote areas and Hyne Timber, as a large employer, is an important part of it.” Minister Donaldson said.

The Minister said she was fascinated to learn that the Tuan Mill produced enough timber every day to stretch from her electorate office in Bundaberg to Parliament House in Brisbane.

“The tour gave me a chance to see the scale of the operation and it was very useful to be able to discuss the timber products industry and the broader issues it faces.

“I will continue to work to promote competitive growth and job opportunities in Queensland’s food and fibre industries.” Minister Donaldson said.

The Federal Government aims to reduce Australia’s carbon emissions by 2030. An additional 30,000 hectares of plantation pine per year would not only assist with the future of the Australian timber manufacturing industry employment, it would capture an additional five million tonnes of carbon per annum; this is more than 5% of the Federal Government’s goal.

CEO Jon Kleinschmidt said the Minister’s visit was timely and appreciated not only by Hyne Timber, but the broader forest products industry.

“Showcasing a family-owned business which has survived and thrived since 1882 is always a pleasure but gaining the genuine interest of our elected Members of Parliament is reassuring.

“It is no secret that there are issues we face into the future and the time to act is now.

¢ Chris Skeels-Piggins, Manufacturing Manager, and Minister Donaldson. Photo by Hyne timber

“Australian plantation forests need to be expanded within the areas of forest operations in order for us to stay competitive.

“Put simply, the ideal land availability and investment incentive to plant more trees requires Government support.

“The recent Australian building boom saw a record number of dwelling starts over a 12-month period yet concerningly, the same period also saw record volumes of imported timber.

“Australian plantation forests currently occupy less than 0.5% of all agricultural land in Australia and only 2.6% of the agricultural land identified as being within an ideal forest industry region.

“This needs to be increased to support the long term viability and competitiveness of Australian timber manufacturing and the associated employment, environment and investment opportunities.” Mr Kleinschmidt said.

Clarence Valley timber industry icon dies THE PASSING of Spiro Notaras (83), a true timber industry icon and a man who helped shape Grafton and the Clarence Valley timber industry, has brought tributes from a wide section of the community.

Spiro helped establish the timber industry in the region by buying and operating mills, one of the biggest being in South Grafton. He also loved the arts and worked hard to restore the Heritage Listed, Saraton Theatre.

“Spiro certainly did know the meaning of a hard day’s work.

He was very highly regarded in the timber industry. He started with his family in the timber industry and then moved to a very substantial operation as we see it today in South Grafton.

Spiro really did shape the timber industry in Australia.” -Clarence Valley Mayor, Richie Williamson.

“Spiro was one of a kind. He and his family helped shape Grafton and the Clarence Valley. He was a visionary, he was a shrewd businessman, an outspoken advocate for the timber industry, he was generous and loyal to his employees, he loved the Clarence Valley and was fiercely proud of the place he called home.” -- Member for Clarence, Chris Gulaptis “Spiro was a great ambassador for the timber industry. His 24

wealth of knowledge was extremely commendable.

He would express himself at meetings with passion on whatever he believed in, which gained him the utmost respect. If ever there were problems within the industry, which over time there were many, Spiro was the one person who was confided in.” -- Rod Henson, chairman Clarence Valley branch of Timber Communities Australia “Spiro was one of a kind and will be greatly missed by the community. His love for Grafton and the wider Clarence Valley was obvious in all of the many interactions I had with him.” -Federal Member for Page, Kevin Hogan “I was lucky enough to work with Spiro over many years and always felt fortunate to have him in our community. He always called Grafton home, his family having very strong ties for many, many years. He never said ‘no’ but always ‘let me get back to you’ and he always did. He went out of his way with everything he did. It’s so sad to lose him, he was such a nice guy, so tremendous. He gave his all to Grafton and the Valley and really showed us the way. Thank God we had him in our community.”

-- Shirley Adams, former Mayor of Grafton

¢ Chris Skeels-Piggins, James Hyne, Jon Kleinschmidt, Minister Donaldson, Brian Farmer.

Photo by Hyne Timber

¢ The Touring Party. Photo by Hyne Timber

$14m in funding flows for national forest industry research training centre TASMANIA’S REPUTATION as a leading national centre of research excellence has been further reinforced with the official opening of a new Training Centre for Forest Value, partly funded by a $3.6 million grant from the Australian Research Council (ARC).

Located at University and industrial sites such as Electrona, the Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Forest Value will investigate the state of the industry, and help facilitate its shift from a traditional, resourcedriven, low technology base sector, to one that is innovative, market-driven and future focused.

The centre is a collaboration between the University of Tasmania and seven industry partners. The capacity building framework created through three new postdoctoral research positions and 10 PhD projects will allow researchers and industry specialists to work closely to secure innovative added value across the supply chain. PhD scholarships are available and interested students can find more information here: http:// www.utas.edu.au/arc-forest-value/home The centre will be led by Professor Jim Reid who said, while it would be Tasmanian based, would have an impact on a national scale, and internationally.

“We are committed to developing innovative ideas and creating tangible change that benefits the Australian economy,” he said. “Tasmania is well placed to lead the world in this field.”

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

University of Tasmania ViceChancellor Professor Peter Rathjen said the partnership further highlighted the close working relationships which exist between the University and industries, with the ARC grant demonstrating the University’s success in leading groundbreaking research and its translation to effective economic benefit.

“This is further proof of the significant research being initiated by the University of Tasmania with our institution by far the most successful nationally,” he said.

“The value of our income from research keeps us placed in the top 10 of Australia’s universities.”

Deputy Director of the Centre Professor Mark Hunt, said the focus of research and training would be on new forest industries, approaches, and products, not the industry which Tasmania historically understands.

The Centre will produce industryready PhD students and postdoctoral research fellows with a broad perspective of the forest industry, who will work directly with industry specialists to ensure effective knowledge sharing and translation to help shape the future of the sector.

Last year the University secured the $3.6 million grant from the ARC against strong competition from other higher education institutions trying to establish ARC Training Centres, with funds matched by industry, University and other contributions to reach the $14 million figure. www.timberbiz.com.au

ASSOCIATIONS

The elephant in the room: drugs, alcohol and the timber industry Brian Beecroft Chief Executive Officer Timber Trade Industrial Association

I

HAVE a confession to make, I like a drink! A Gin or Vodka are the spirits that keep me company from time to time and I’ve often described Pinot Noir as the nectar of the Gods!

Do I have a deep eternal burning desire from within to be an anti vices campaigner. No chance, absolutely not. I’m already fully occupied holding down a busy fulltime job, coping with the phenomenon of middle age and worrying about three teenage daughters! Do I see we have an issue in the Timber Industry we need to seriously tackle in regards to drugs and alcohol in the workplace.

Absolutely!

I make this assessment after 25 years at TTIA, working for the major national employer/industrial association in our industry over that period (15 years as CEO) and hearing first-hand workplace incidents that lead to counselling, terminations and accidents.

We owe it to the workforce we employ, their families and ourselves not to put people in positions at work where they are impaired by drugs or alcohol. The potential risk to life and limb and the litigation and cost both in human and dollar terms that will follow is horrific.

Why a drug-safe workplace for timber workers is vitally important Recently, a United Nations report on worldwide drug-use awarded Australia the top place, per capita, for the use of MDMA (ecstasy), Methamphetamine (ICE) and THC (Cannabis).

Let me restate this in case you’re missing the point, we have more dangerous and illicit drug use in Australian society than anywhere else on the planet!

Let’s reinforce this with some interesting but concerning statistics: • 1 in 9 motor vehicles are driven by a driver who is affected by drugs..

• 30% of the bodies of road accidents in Melbourne’s morgue have traces of illicit drugs • 25% of workplace accidents are drug related • 10% of workplace deaths are drug related • Almost 70% of drug users are in full time employment • 80% of workplace drug-related injuries involve co-workers or bystanders not drug users,

What drugs do we find within a workplace?

A work environment can be viewed as a snapshot of the wider community. Drugs that are consumed “recreationally” are more often than www.timberbiz.com.au

not, transported to the workplace within the body of the user who may be blissfully unaware they are affected to the point of being an accident on legs, or worse, in the cab of a heavy vehicle.

So, what drugs are usually found in the workplace?

• The most likely one will be THC or Cannabis/Marijuana. Thanks to hydroponics and cultivation the quality or potency of today’s marijuana far outweighs the mild child of the 60’s and 70’s. However, it should be said that even the mild ones did a lot of damage to a lot of brains during that time. Today’s high powered version is so strong it causes psychotic conditions such as paranoid schizophrenia and a third of all institutionalized mental patients today have a long term addiction to marijuana.

• Amphetamine based drugs such as “speed” or Ecstasy, are growing in popularity, surprisingly, as they are considered really “old style” uppers or party drugs compared to other substances. However it’s reasonably easy to produce, cheap to buy and available almost everywhere.

Ecstasy, like ICE, is an amphetamine based stimulant or “upper” that works within the user’s central nervous system.

The short term effects of amphetamine based drugs such as ecstasy include:

exhaustion. Often the user will display shaking, sweating and feelings of nausea.

Another amphetamine based drug is Methamphetamine or ICE. This has become the biggest concern for Australian Police forces, both Federal and State, for over ten years.

ICE stimulates the senses, increases the libido, over heats the body, removes any sense of conscience or responsibility, makes the user super strong, then you add paranoia and a tendency towards extreme violence.

The worst bit, is that it keeps you in this state for 3 or 4 days followed by the worst hangover imaginable.

There is just one thing that can make this cocktail of violence worse and that’s, mixing it with alcohol.

Welcome to the weekend street violence we’ve been experiencing on a growing scale over the past months and years. Violence that Australian society has never witnessed before and driven many of us to stay home at night, behind barred doors and windows.

Move this scenario to the workplace, In particular the various options that Timber Industry projects offer for dangerous situations and we find that it’s more important now than ever before, to not only demonstrate leadership within a community

• A “rush” which includes speeding up of bodily activities such as heart rate, breathing and blood pressure, The mouth can dry up, sweating increases and fluid loss can cause severe headaches. Ecstasy users will prefer water to alcohol due to the dehydration effect the drug will have on the user. When combined with long term and intensive activity the user will consume excessive volumes of water which can lead to over hydration.

but also ensure the staff and the community are provided the safest opportunity to live and work without fear of violence or workplace injury.

It’s not just the illegal drugs that we need to be concerned about either.

The frightening surge in the use and abuse of alcohol, particularly amongst our youth is now at the endemic stage and radical steps have been taken in our large cities to try to address the violence and antisocial behaviour that is the end result of mixing alcohol and drugs, in particular ICE.

A sobering statistic A sobering statistic arising from recent research by the Australian Drug Foundation showed that almost 70% of all drug users are employed.

Yes, they have jobs to support their lifestyle and their drug habit. If they risk their job as a result of their drug habit they have to make a decision which more often than not will be to keep the job and lose the drug habit.

This of course depends on how severe the addiction is and may cause some “good” people to choose a different lifestyle. However the individuals who make the right choice and choose the career path demonstrate that the Drug-Safe Workplace program can be a resounding success.

Continued on page 26

ATS

Advanced Timber Systems

• They will feel more energetic and alert, have increased confidence, reduced appetite and tend to lower their inhibitions or drop their guard.

• In some people amphetamines will cause irritability, anxiety, depressive, hostile and aggressive behavior. Panic attacks can also occur.

In extreme cases the user could suffer strokes, heart failure, seizures and high body temperatures as a result of overdosing and the impure nature of most amphetamines. Produced in unhygienic backyard laboratories, amphetamine based drugs are usually mixed or “cut” with other impure substances to bulk the tablet up. These can be anything from bicarbonate of Soda, plaster of Paris, sugar, glucose, ephedrine or worse.

Coming “down” from an amphetamine high can involve violent behaviour, tension, radical mood swings, depression and total AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

61 Briggs Road, Raceview QLD 4305 Ph: 07 3288 8170 Fax: 07 3288 8176 Email: info@timbersystems.com.au Web: www.timbersystems.com.au

FEBRUARY 2016

25

ASSOCIATIONS

Start a trainee or apprentice in 2016 TABMA Annual Australian Apprenticeship Cost Comparison Chart

By Colin Fitzpatrick Chief Executive Officer Timber & Building Materials Association (Aust.) Ltd

T

ABMA IS currently accepting orders for apprentices and trainees to start February 2016.

We are currently conducting recruitment activities including: • New entrant training • Pre-employment training • Pre-apprenticeship courses • Pre-traineeship courses We are also continuing our regular recruitment strategies including working with schools, Job Active members and other stakeholders to find the very best potential new trainees and apprentices Australia wide.

Please take a few minutes to read and consider why your next trainee or apprentice should be a “TABMA trainee or apprentice” or email Steve Cunningham at Steve@tabma.com.au.

Recruiting the best apprentices and trainees If you want an apprentice or trainee (learner) that: • wants to work and craves opportunities to learn their trade or vocation • is punctual, respectful and has a real desire to become a tradesman • is prepared to “do the hard yards” to complete their apprenticeship or traineeship; and • aspires to achieve a nationally recognised qualification.

Then TABMA has the answer!

The key to the success of finding good people is the recruitment process undertaken at the outset. TABMA has access to the most comprehensive recruitment processes available.

However that is just the beginning Throughout the life of the apprenticeship or traineeship our dedicated team of field officers and

Award

Job Role

Directly Employed

MA000071 Timber Industry Award

Yards person Timber Salesperson Timber Worker

$41,822.75

$35,847.68

MA00084 Storage Service and Wholesale award

Storeman

$39,446.11

$327,04.32

MA00002 Private Clerks Award

Receptionist

$37,965.77

$37,118.40

MA00002 Private Clerks Award

Admin Assistant

$41,371.71

$37,118.40

MA00002 Private Clerks Award

Accounts Clerk

$43,912.02

$37,118.40

MA00004 General Retail Industry Award

Retail Assistant

$39,028.04

$35,847.68

MA00002 Private Clerks Award

Phone sales Customer service Agent

$43,912.02

$37,118.40

MA000071 Timber Industry Award

Frame & Truss Fabricator

$41,822.75

$35,847.68

Here are some simple steps to follow: 1. Engage an on-site organisation that is NATA Accredited and can assist you with a full spectrum of options and solutions. (The TTIA have partnered nationally with Frontline Diagnostics, Australia’s leader in managing Drug-Safe Workplaces.)

2. Ensure you have a good and legally robust Alcohol and Other Drugs policy that spells out the details in easy to comprehend language.

(Contact the TTIA office on (02) 26

Saving:

$5,975.07 Saving:

$6,741.79 Saving:

$847.37 Saving:

$4253.31 Saving:

$6793.62 Saving:

$3180.36 Saving:

$6793.62 Saving:

$5,975.07

Please note these figures are based on NSW requirements and funding. Other states are similar but may vary slightly. Correct at time of publication but may vary.

mentors will be in regular contact with the learner and the Host Employers to assist in the learner’s development and growth. In addition, and as required, we also assist in resolving any complications that may arise with the learner and provide that all important career advice, planning and development information.

At TABMA we directly employ the learners and then place them with you the Host Employer. We are responsible for the continuity of the learner’s employment and the quality of their training. If for any reason you are unable to continue with the learner, TABMA takes responsibility for finding them another Host Employer.

We also provide additional support including ongoing mentoring and career guidance.

TABMA relieves Host Employers of the time and costs associated with administration of the scheme.

TABMA can rotate learners amongst Host Employers to both satisfy individual employer needs and enhance the learner’s training experience.

TABMA takes responsibility for all

employment obligations and manages the Host Employer and educational institutions’ (such as TAFE) requirements.

Why partner with TABMA Apprenticeships and Traineeships?

At TABMA we employ a fresh approach. We take the time to engage with Host Employers to fully understand the nature of their needs and provide flexible tailored solutions.

As a member of the TABMA group of companies we have access to a vast range of HR, legal, trade and business support services.

Cost comparison The chart compares a new entrant worker with entry level experience in the various roles detailed below and compares those new entrant workers with an apprentice or trainee sourced through TABMA Group Training.

The results below are annual and include superannuation guarantee levy, workers compensation, annual

leave, sick leave and public holidays for both the new entrant and the TABMA apprentice or trainee. To ensure a fair comparison the subject of each of the comparisons are: • a 25 year old person • with some experience working in a related field • no experience working in the job role.

These comparisons are calculated on fulltime employment (38 hours per week) and paid as per the requirements of the applicable Modern Award. Each award name has been detailed.

Share your industry news.

If you have a news tip call John Hudswell on 08 8369 9512 or email j.hudswell@ryanmediapl.com.au

The elephant in the room: drugs, alcohol and the timber industry How do you start a drug-safe workplace program?

TABMA Group Additional cost Training to use TABMA

9264 0011 who can assist you.)

3. Conduct Alcohol and other drug education and awareness workshops where you can introduce the “new” policy as part of the discussion process.

may have been identified as drug users and need to take some time off to clean out their systems.

4. Introduce a new staff and contractor Drug-Safe induction process to ensure that no bad habits can be recruited into the organisation going forward.

6. Conduct a blanket screen of all employees to establish a “baseline” to measure performance from and identify hot-spots that need to have some focus placed upon them.

This also allows a sensible random screening schedule to be established that is affordable and concentrates on the areas of highest risk.

5. Train your WHS managers or supervisors to conduct Alcohol and drug tests as part of a return to work process for those employees who

7. Review reports and manage the program over time to ensure the original objectives are being achieved.

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

Continued from page 25

Let’s make 2016 the year, as an industry, we fully commit to a drug safe workplace. Let’s fully place at centre stage the safety and wellbeing of our workforce and the protection of our respective businesses and livelihoods built up over many years of blood sweat and tears. Let’s get to it!

For further details on introducing you to a Drug-Safe Workplace call the TTIA office on (02) 9264 0011 or Frontline Diagnostics (mentioning this article) on 1800 888 852.

www.timberbiz.com.au

ASSOCIATIONS

Green Star formaldehyde requirements

By Peter Llewellyn Technical Representative Timber Veneer Association of Australia THROUGH ITS Green Star system the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) rewards projects that minimise negative impacts associated with formaldehyde and other volatile organic compounds.

The Timber Veneer Association of Australia recently looked into the matter to determine whether timber veneers would have any adverse effect on the rating of projects seeking Green Star accreditation.

TVAA’s review showed that although engineered wood products are required to meet low formaldehyde requirements, timber veneers are specifically excluded, according to GBCA guidelines.

Wood is an organic material and contains extremely small amounts of naturallyoccurring formaldehyde. However, it is

Breakfast served with special role!

generally accepted that the emission of formaldehyde from wood is an insignificant contributor to the total emissions from composite or engineered wood products, hence the exclusion of veneers from Green Star ratings.

While timber veneers are not required to be included in Green Star assessments, the substrate to which they are bonded does need to be considered.

Typical substrates are particleboard, MDF and plywood. These materials are manufactured with adhesives which contain some level of formaldehyde resin. Australianmade materials are strictly limited to very low levels of formaldehyde.

More information on formaldehyde emission levels for Australian-made particleboard, MDF and plywood can be found in Australian Standards, and in the relevant Wood Solutions Environmental Product Declarations.

Environmental Product Declarations are available at https://www.woodsolutions. com.au/Articles/Resources/EnvironmentalProduct-Declarations. Research into the formaldehyde content of wood products was supported by Forest & Wood Products Australia (FWPA).

AN INVITATION has been extended to a breakfast meeting of the Women in Forests And Timber Network in WA The WFTN comprises a wide range of women involved in the forest, timber, and wood processing industry (including haulage and furniture making). The aim of the network is to support women in the forest and timber industry to improve recognition of women, support networking and engagement, and provide access to capacity building and professional development opportunities.

Breakfast details are: 8.00am to 10.00am, Wednesday, 24 February Café Bella Rosa – Function Room 51 Archer Street Carlisle Cost: Please pay on the day . RSVP: 18 February. Contact Diane Smith 9361 2800 or email diane.smith@fftitrainingcouncil.com.au Guest speakers: Ms Melissa Turner, Senior Coordinator Forest Management Systems, Forest Products Commission. Melissa will talk s about her career in the forestry industry and the importance of Forest Management Certification.

Ms Kay Gerard, CEO, Food Fibre & Timber Industries Training Council. Kay will speak about her role as CEO of the Training Council and facilitate discussion around occupational and skill shortages in the forestry industry.

Men with an interest in women’s challenges and achievements within the industry are also welcome to attend.

The Women in Forests and Timber Network is a national forum for women and is hosted by ForestWorks on behalf of the whole industry.

Masters’ demise could still have a bright side for consumers WOOLWORTHS IS finally admitting defeat and winding up its short-lived venture into hardware retail.

Surprisingly, the number of Australians 14+ shopping at Masters in an average four-week period was on the rise, fast approaching the customer volume of its nearest rival, Mitre 10.

According to Roy Morgan research, In the 12 months to September 2012, back in the chain’s early days, Masters was attracting some 461,000 customers (or 2.5% of the population) in an average four weeks, in stark contrast to the 2 million shoppers (10.6%) visiting Mitre 10 in the same period. As of September 2015, however, over 1.5 million customers (7.9%) were passing through Masters’ check-outs in any given four weeks, compared with 1.8 million (9.1%) at Mitre 10.

Former Woolworths chairman John Dahlsen says Woolworths’ exit from the $45 billion home improvement market could boost competition if regulators approve a merger between wholesalers Mitre 10 and Danks and clamp down on Bunnings’ expansion.

However, the official response on possible purchase plans from Metcash (Mitre 10) at this stage was “no comment”. Other major industry players were keeping their cards close to their chest when asked to comment on the sale plans with none venturing a public opinion.

Mr Dahlsen, who owns Australia’s largest independent trade hardware chain, has urged the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to veto Bunnings from buying Masters stores in

markets where it already has a presence, saying the retailer’s dominance of the DIY sector is “not good for competition”.

ACCC chairman Rod Sims said the commission would closely scrutinise Masters store acquisitions

by Bunnings, but would have an “open mind” about a merger of Mitre 10 and Home.

“We’ve given it a little bit of thought and we haven’t yet had any engagement with Woolworths – that’s something we should do,” Mr Sims said.

“Obviously we’d prefer they sold Masters to a new entrant – that would be the preferable outcome,” he said. “We’d be concerned if these stores were sold to Bunnings.”

“If they have to sell them store by store, we’d much rather they sell to independents or to Mitre 10, wherever possible.”

Industry players believe Woolworths is unlikely to sell Masters as a going concern and the stores will be closed down and sold off to big-box retailers, such as Bunnings, Costco, IKEA and Harvey Norman.

Overseas retailers would likely be put off by the fact that Woolworths’ partner Lowe’s, the second largest home improvement retailer in the US, was unable to make a success of Australia. Kingfisher, the largest player in the UK home improvement market, is focusing on Europe and neighbouring countries, such as Turkey and Russia, and has ruled out expanding into Australia.

“While we will endeavour to move quickly, this process will take several

months and the business will continue to trade normally through this period,” an official company statement said.

“Our recent review of our operating performance indicates it will take many years for Masters to become profitable. We have determined we cannot continue to sustain ongoing losses from this business.

“Lowe’s has given us notice of its election to be able to exercise its put option under the joint venture agreement. As a result, Woolworths intends to exercise its call option to acquire the 33.3% stake held in by Lowe’s, which will allow us to control the exit process.

“This important decision allows us to focus our energy and resources on strengthening and executing our plans in our core businesses of Food, Liquor and General Merchandise.”

Hydrox Holdings currently operates 63 Masters bigbox home improvement stores and the Home Timber & Hardware chain.

“Woolworths’ top priority is to do the right thing by our employees, suppliers, customers and shareholders, and we will act quickly and openly to minimise the impact of this decision.

“If Woolworths is unable to sell all of the business and has to close any of the operations, it will seek to provide alternate employment opportunities within the Woolworths Group to all current Home Improvement employees,” the official statement said.

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AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

FEBRUARY 2016

©2015 Lonza

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Supporting Multinail Truss Plants to reach new heights 1

2

"T1" TIMBER ROOF TRUSSES

TRUSS TO BE DESIGNED TO SUPPORT WALKWAY LOADS LOAD OF COLUMN C3 HANGS FROM ROOF TRUSS. DEAD LOAD = 15KN LIVE LOAD = 29KN

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