Australasian Timber - June 2015

JUNE 2015

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

CONFIRMS WOOD IS A SOLID OPTION PREFABRICATION GAME-CHANGER MILL MAKEOVER UPS THE ANTE

NEWS

Industry marks long service at EWPAA

nE WPAA technical manager and acting CEO Andy McNaught (right) makes a presentation to Simon Dorries at the Brisbane dinner.

Vale Jordan Cheney – a devoted, courageous family man 1964 to 2015 JORDAN CHENEY sadly passed away on 7 May, 2015 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer, leaving behind his loving wife Leanne, adoring children Jemma and Daniel and parents Jim and Pat Cheney of Westruss in Orange.

In Jordan’s successful application to Multinail Australia in 2008 for the position of Business Development Manager for NSW he described himself as a typical family man who loved spending time with his wife and kids which usually involved taking their camper away for some fishing and camping. This just shows the person he was. Yes, his application talked about all his professional skills that showed he was the right candidate for the job, but he wanted people to know him, know his family and his passion for his community which was typical Jordan.

Jordan left school after completing Year 10 and went on to complete his apprenticeship as a carpenter and joiner with a builder in Eugowra. Following this he moved to Orange to work with his father Jim in the family business Westruss Manufacturing for 12 years before joining another family owned business, Multinail.

Jordan finished his working life with his father at Westruss.

When I started with FTMA in 2009, I headed to NSW to meet fabricators and key industry Associations and Jordan kindly offered to help with my introductions.

We hit it off immediately and before the end of the first day I felt I had known him forever and classified him as a dear friend. We spoke often during his illness and even the last call a few months ago was a positive one as he didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for him, he wanted to talk about life and what was happening in the industry.

Jordan was always full of life, always making people smile but when it came to work he was the ultimate professional as he was passionate about the frame and truss industry. As with all nail plate companies he visited his opposition and was equally respected by them as he was by the Multinail plants he worked with.

The Central Western Daily in July 2014 did a story on Jordan titled Cancer victim’s selfless attitude: ‘There’s people out there worse off than me’ which summed Jordan up so well. I encourage readers to google the article and read it as the article is inspirational and demonstrates how courageous Jordan was throughout his battle.

He was always positive and worked for as long as possible throughout his illness, supported so like family by Multinail. In the article Jordan is quoted as saying “Chemo is not much fun I can tell you that much, but I’m not about to throw my arms in the air and give up. It will hopefully improve the quality of my life which may be 12 months, two years or five years but I’m going to do whatever I can to prolong it”.

Jordan’s fight wasn’t for him, but for his family and anyone who knew Jordan knew how devoted he was to Leanne, Jemma and Daniel. Unfortunately I couldn’t make the funeral but it didn’t surprise me when I was told of the loving dedication by his children who spoke not only of their father but a man they were proud to call their friend.

An inspirational person to the end that has taught many of us lessons that will stick with me forever. Never give up, always recognise that there are others worse off than you, live your life to the fullest and finally embrace your family and friends, enjoying every memory.

Jordan you will never be forgotten and will forever be loved and admired by many.

Kersten Gentle, FTMA Australia

australasian

magazine Incorporating Australian and New Zealand Timberman – Established 1977.

June Vol.23, No.4 www.timberbiz.com.au

Postal Address: 630 Regency Road, Broadview, South Australia 5083 Phone: (08) 8369 9555 Fax: (08) 8369 9501 Publisher and Chief Executive: Hartley Higgins Suite 103, 486 Whitehorse Road, Surrey Hills, Victoria, 3127, phone (03) 9888 4822

INDUSTRY LEADERS, board members, work colleagues, family and close friends gathered at a dinner in Brisbane recently to recognise 30 years of devoted service to the engineered wood sector by Simon Dorries who has stepped down as general manager of EWPAA. Simon, who joined the Engineered Wood Products Association of Australasia as a laboratory technician in 1985, took up his new position as CEO of Australian Forestry Standard Ltd, based in Brisbane, in late May. “In his nine years as general manager, Simon elevated EWPAA to the highest ranking as an industry organisation, not only in Australia and New Zealand but in the wider international scene, significantly extending its scope of activities,” acting CEO and technical manager Andy McNaught said.

“The association grew under his stewardship as a respected industry body that developed wider market access for its members, exposed sub-standard products in the marketplace and championed EWPAA products through no fewer than nine certification schemes.

“His work lobbying Governments and trade unions on the dangers of structurally unsound and high emission

imports and their threat to the lives of both site workers and consumers gained international coverage.”

Mr McNaught said during his tenure as GM, Mr Dorries worked to amalgamate the Australian Wood Panels Association into EWPAA, adding particleboard and MDF to its ‘product mix’ that included plywood and LVL. He said EWPAA now also represented solid wood products and the Australian wood packaging system and was widely recognised as a deliverer of chain of custody certification.

Mr Dorries travelled extensively promoting and certifying EWPAA products in the US, Japan, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands.

Simon paid tribute to the EWPAA staff in Brisbane and the outside consultants who had contributed greatly to EWPAA’s high reputation.

“We were a team and our successes came from team work, and I am glad and proud to have worked closely with all of them,” Mr Dorries said.

An extensive interview process to find a successor to Mr Dorries has been completed and an announcement of a new EWPAA CEO is expected soon.

Are you looking to better your business?

The Innovation Skills Program assists businesses across our industry value chain to be innovative, increase efficiency and profitability.

Call us today

1800 177 001 www.forestworks.com.au

This program has been produced with the assistance of funding provided by the Australian Government through the Department of Education and Training.

ABN 39 946 785 543 ACN 130 528 291

General Manager: Elizabeth Bouzoudis Editorial: John Hudswell j.hudswell@ryanmediapl.com.au Adelaide: (08) 8369 9512 Out of office: (08) 7127 6370 Advertising: R ob McLellan r.mclellan@ryanmediapl.com.au Melbourne: (03) 9888 4820

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

Timber classified: r.mclellan@ryanmediapl.com.au Melbourne: (03) 9888 4820 Production: Luke Westle Subscriptions: subs@forestsandtimber.com.au Adelaide: (08) 8369 9522 Accounts: Adelaide: (08) 8369 9555

Conditions: Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the editor/publishers; information is published in good faith and we do not accept responsibility for damage which may arise from any possible inaccuracies. All rights reserved, none of the contents may be used in any other media without prior consent from the publishers. Published by Ryan Media Pty Ltd.

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3

NEWS

News Briefs

Going up in Quebec City

Quebec City’s Pointe-aux-Lièvres eco-district is getting a 13 storey tower constructed of mostly CLT, 12 storeys of apartments on top of a concrete podium. Designed by Yvan Blouin, the building is a condominium being marketed as the Origine.

Scotland the brave

A BOLD property move by a Lanarkshire company is intended to pave the way for an innovative new manufacturing plant that would give Scotland a lead over the rest of the UK. The £100m turnover construction and development firm CCG - which already employs 600 people from its base in Cambuslang - has revealed plans to expand its off-site manufacturing expertise into another technology. It has bought a new 122,000 sq ft production plant called Titan at Eurocentral for £4.15m, where it is proposing to establish a factory manufacturing cross laminated timber (CLT). The company’s existing semi-automated off-site facilities at Glasgow East Investment Park already push the boundaries of sustainable construction, with the 130,000 sq ft operation capable of producing up to 3000 closed panel buildings a year, often complete with value added features such as insulation, doors, windows and external claddings in brick or render.

EWP production declines further North American production of engineered wood products (EWP) declined again in the first quarter of 2015. In spite of a customary seasonal revival compared to the previous quarter, production volumes of LVL and I-joists were down year on year. The weakening trend already seen in the fourth quarter of 2014 has therefore continued.

While the reason quoted for production cutbacks at the end of 2014 had been primarily the slow recovery of the business situation in new residential building and adjustments to stock, the weak start to 2015 has been partly blamed on the cool weather prevailing in most of the eastern federal states. North American LVL production has declined year on year by 3%. A moderate minus of 1% in the USA is contrasted by a sharp fall of 17% in Canada.

Teed up for a strong future

Pride Manufacturing Co., manufacturer of wooden golf tees and other engineered wood products and accessories, recently received $30 million in financing through New Englandbased Citizens Bank. Pride will use its new credit line to refinance existing debt and to spearhead several growth initiatives and other general coporate purposes, the company said.

Founded in 1930, Pride is headquartered in Brentwood, TN, with manufacturing operations in Burnham, ME. It is now one of the world’s largest manufacturer of wooden golf tees and other golf products and accessories.

Timber building focus

Vision London 2015 provided the opportunity to check out exhibitors showcasing the latest products and technology for the architecture and construction industry. The event brought communities together to discuss, debate and showcase the latest innovations and developments in architecture, design and the built environment. Among the raft of seminar sessions, the ‘Future Materials and Systems’ seminar stream, sponsored by Stora Enso, delivered a wealth of information on the latest innovative materials, including cross-laminated timber (CLT). ‘Innovative Architecture & Design’ honed in on timber, with ‘Geometrically Challenged Timber Structures’ presented by renowned timber engineer Gordon Cowley. His talk featured concepts, designs and engineering challenges that have resulted in some of Europe’s most stunning timber buildings.

4

Software solutions took centre stage A HOST of companies offering software solutions for architects, builders, designers and construction professionals to help improve their day-to-day operations for staff, clients and contractors took the spotlight this year’s DesignBUILD trade event.

Exhibitors showcasing solutions such as building information modelling (BIM), 3D modelling, virtual design construction (VDC) and online project management platforms, attracted crowds on the show floor – reinforcing the industry’s excitement and intrigue around the latest software solutions and innovation.

GRAPHISOFT, an industry innovator that ignited the BIM revolution 30 years ago with ArchiCAD, was just one of the brands displaying the latest technological solutions this year.

GRAPHISOFT Business Development Manager, Stewart Burke, said not only architects and designers, but product manufacturers had visited their exhibit to learn about how they could leverage BIM to assist with their long term goals.

Other technology exhibitors included: • BuilderTREND – a construction management system for homebuilders and remodelers.

• Luminova – a 3D rendering firm offering two brand new virtual reality solutions for architects

and designers. Using two types of virtual reality headsets, the Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR, the solutions offer users realistic fly-throughs of commercial construction and projects and various interior fit-outs respectively.

• Redstack – a leading provider of design technology and services to architecture, building and engineering professionals.

• Rubysketch – a BIM software provider who has this year launched a new 2D/3D BIM software, PlusSpec, for architects, builders and education providers.

• Tenderfield – an online tendering and project management platform custom-built for the Australian construction and civil engineering industries.

The three-day trade event was home to more than 250 leading brands and represented the largest annual gathering of architecture, building, construction and design manufacturers and suppliers in the country.

“This is a once yearly opportunity for industry members to discover and learn about a range of new products and solutions, all under the one roof, that will help improve day-to-day operations and the way they do business,” Ali Mead, DesignBUILD Event Manager, said.

DesignBUILD will be back again next year from the 4-6 May 2016 and will be back in Melbourne at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre.

AWISA 2016 at Melbourne Exhibition Centre AWISA 2016 will be the first to take place in Melbourne since 1990, and the first to take place at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. The premier event will be held 6-9 July.

AWISA 2016 is organised by the Australian Woodworking Industry Suppliers Association Limited to provide suppliers with the opportunity to present and sell their products to the Australian and New Zealand woodworking and furniture industries. The exhibition has been held regularly since 1988 with the 2016 exhibition being the 14th of these well-supported and successful exhibitions.

Between 2000 and 2014, the AWISA exhibitions have had, on average, 8100 individual visitors attend each exhibition. The more impressive statistic is the number of visitations, which counts attendees every day they attend. The number of visitations has averaged 10,600 or 30% higher than the number of individuals who attended, which means that roughly a third of the visitors attended for a second day. This is an unusually high figure for an Australian trade show.

On average 40% of visitors travelled from interstate or overseas.

Two-thirds of attendees have been company owners, directors or managers, or in production or manufacturing management roles.

The majority of the space at AWISA 2016 will be allocated to companies exhibiting panel processing, solid wood and timber machinery, tooling, manufacturing software, plus ancillary products such as dust extraction and materials handling equipment.

This part of the exhibition will be the place for the cabinet, kitchen, furniture, joinery, timber, fit-out and panel industries to visit to select new equipment.

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

JUNE 2015

The AWISA – Design area was introduced at the 2012 exhibition as a separate area for products presented by suppliers of hardware and decorative products.

It has been a stand out success, and is possibly the best presented interior design show in Australia.

The hardware, decorative products and design software exhibited at AWISA have increased in sophistication over the years, as has the quality and size of the displays of these products. Coinciding with this has been the increasing importance of the design community to this sector of AWISA’s membership.

By creating the separate AWISA – Design area, AWISA puts emphasis on the exhibition’s strong design component. This makes the exhibition attractive to architects and interior designers as well as the traditional AWISA visitor.

The Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre features 30,000 square metres of column free exhibition space in one building, making it the largest exhibition building in Australia. AWISA has committed to 18,000 square metres of this space.

The facilities also include a large number of meeting rooms and other multi-purpose event spaces. The centre has hosted a number of other machinery trade shows with the logistics and services requirements of AWISA. The venue is next to Melbourne’s casino complex and is just across the Yarra River from the CBD. There are a substantial number of hotels within 2 kilometres of the venue making it an ideal location for the many interstate and overseas visitors who spend more than one day at the exhibition. The venue has direct access from Melbourne’s airport by motorway. www.timberbiz.com.au

Join the prefabrication revolution We know that, when it comes to carbon in the atmosphere, timber is on the side of the angels.

To discuss how you can be involved, contact us today.

But we also know that, by using the right equipment and techniques, prefabrication using timber adds good money to the bottom line while making building cheaper.

Laurie Martin, General Manager laurie@austimber.org.au

If you have consulting expertise, equipment, software systems, fastening systems or any other offering that can help improve prefabricated construction system manufacture, be part of the AUSTimber2016 house construction demonstration and seminar project.

Do it now and secure the first reward for taking action to boost your sales in 2016.

Norm Nelsen, Sales Director norm@austimber.org.au

Early Bird discounts to 30 June, 2015

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NEWS

Award winner described as an exemplary masterpiece

T

HE 2015 HIA-CSR Australian Housing Awards were unveiled at the residential building industry’s prestigious Awards ceremony at the Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre with Western Australian builder Gransden Construction being adjudged winner of HIA-CSR Australian Home of the Year. The project also won the award for the Australian Custom Built Home of the Year, partnered by Stramit Building Products.

Judges were impressed with the execution of the build and the material combination, and described this home as an exemplary masterpiece.

Other award winners are wide spread around Australia and include: • Giorgi Exclusive Homes from Western Australia won Australian Apartment of the Year, partnered

by HIA Finance.

• Mirvac Docklands from Victoria won Australian Apartment Complex of the Year, partnered by Toyota Fleet.

• BCG Constructions from Victoria won Australian Townhouse/Villa of the Year, partnered by NewHomesGuide.com.au.

• Strongbuild from NSW won Australian Townhouse/Villa Development of the Year, partnered by Rheem Australia, for Norwest Central - a multi-residential project.

• Strongbuild from NSW also won Australian Special Purpose Housing Project of the Year, partnered by HIA Vehicles for the Arbour Retirement Village in Berry.

• Stonehaven Homes from Victoria won Australian Spec Home of the Year, partnered by Stratco Australia.

• Metricon Homes from South Australia won Australian Display Home of the Year, partnered

by NewHomesGuide.com.au.

• Spacemaker Home Extensions from Victoria won Australian Renovation/Addition Project of the

Year, partnered by HIA Insurance Services.

• Crown Group from NSW won Australian Outdoor Project of the Year, partnered by HIA Insurance Services.

• Planbuild Homes from Queensland won Australian Project Home of the Year, partnered

by OneSteel Reinforcing.

• Brindabella Bathrooms from NSW won Australian Bathroom Design of the Year, partnered by GWA Bathrooms & Kitchens.

• Bubbles Bathrooms from Victoria won Australian Bathroom of the Year, partnered by GWA Bathrooms & Kitchens.

n Winner of HIA-CSR Australian Home of the Year ... “an exemplary masterpiece”. Photos by Gransden Construction.

• JAG Kitchens from South Australia won Australian Kitchen Design of the Year, partnered

by Laminex Australia. The same kitchen by JAG Kitchens also won Australian Kitchen of the Year, partnered by Laminex Australia.

• Adam Cocks from South Australia won the Jim Brookes Australian Apprentice of the Year, partnered by Stratco Australia.

• Henley Properties Group from Victoria won Australian Professional Major Builder of the Year, partnered by Reece. Henley Properties Group is a leading Australian home builder; operating for more than 25 years.

• Latitude 37 Group from Victoria won Australian Professional Medium Builder / Renovator of the Year, partnered by Reece.

• Ronald Young & Co Builders from Tasmania won Australian Professional Small Builder /Renovator of the Year, partnered by Reece.

• Rebecca Rossi from Western Australia won Australian Business Partner of the Year, partnered by BUPA HIA Health Plan.

HIA Managing Director Shane Goodwin said the HIA-CSR Australian Housing Awards are the pinnacle of housing awards and reflect the increasingly diverse and competitive Australian housing industry.

“HIA is committed to recognising the outstanding achievements of our members. Each year a high calibre of entries is presented, reflecting the exceptional standard HIA members place on workmanship, innovation and design.”

“This year, we have seen outstanding projects.

HIA members have exceeded themselves in quality workmanship and design. It is my pleasure to congratulate each winner for the hard work and dedication they continue to display. From sustainable initiatives to incredible workmanship, these homes are remarkable and we are proud to call these winners HIA members.”

nR ebecca Rossi from Western Australia won Australian Business Partner of the Year. n Australian Apprentice of the Year Adam Cocks from South Australia.

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AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

JUNE 2015

www.timberbiz.com.au

NEWS

Changes at Gottstein as trust enters its 44th year of service

J

UNE MARKS the month 44 years ago that the Joseph William Gottstein Memorial Trust was established to create development opportunities for those in the forest and wood products industries.

The educational trust fund founded in June 1971 recognises the outstanding contributions of CSIRO scientist Bill Gottstein who was tragically killed during an AusTIS conference in Papua New Guinea while photographing a tree felling demonstration.

Since then, more than 150 Gottstein fellowships, industry awards and scholarships have been awarded to people working or studying in a broad range of sectors from the forest resource to the sawmilling, wood processing, engineered wood, composites and pulp and paper sectors, most involving overseas study.

Dr Silvia Pongracic, a respected CSIRO scientist who brought wide experience in the forest industry to the trust and who was awarded a Gottstein fellowship in 1997, has stepped down as national secretary after a six-year term.

Gottstein Trust chairman Brian Farmer has week announced that Brisbane-based industry journalist Jim Bowden would take over the secretarial duties of the trust.

“Jim’s professional qualifications are well established after a 50-year-plus career in journalism, public relations, conference and special events management, promotions and marketing,” Mr Farmer said.

An agriculture writer and the foundation editor of Australian Timberman and Timber & Forestry enews, Jim has been involved with the industry since 1977, during which time he has led trade missions to Europe, the US and the Philippines, organised and managed industry conferences and exhibitions, was on the organising committee of the 1982 AusTIS conference and worked as a consultant to a number of industry organisations and companies.

He is a foundation member of the Rural Press Club, life member and current president

of Brisbane Hoo-Hoo Club 218 and is currently responsible for the education and marketing program at the Engineered Wood Products Association of Australasia.

Dr Pongracic will retain her close relationship with the Gottstein Trust as coordinator of the Gottstein forest and wood science courses. The next week-long wood science course, which is a good introduction to the forest and wood products industry in Australia and covers all aspects of processing wood, is scheduled for February 2016.

The Gottstein Trust is overseen by a board of trustees who are industry leaders and funded by contributions that support the development of outstanding individuals in the industry.

Throughout his life, Bill Gottstein provided an outstanding example of the type of person the trust’s founders would like to see continue in the industry. His loss provided the catalyst for the creation of the trust fund, in the hope that it would become the instrument for finding deserving people who might one day follow Bill’s footsteps and emulate his example.

The trustees believed there could be no better way of promoting the welfare of the industry than by providing for it as many people as possible with the skills and dedication so eloquently demonstrated by Bill Gottstein – an outstanding scientist and engineer with a practical, hands-on approach to his work and an effective way of communicating with the people with whom he came into contact.

Information about Gottstein Trust fellowships and application details are available from the national secretary, PO Box 330, Hamilton Central, Qld, 4007, or phone 0401 312 087. Email secretary@ gottsteintrust.org Information and registration details for the Gottstein Wood Science course should be directed to Dr Silvia Pongracic at Private Bag 10, Clayton South, Vic 3169. Tel: 0418 764 954. Email: coursedirector@gottsteintrust.org.

Visit www.gottsteintrust.org

n Meeting at the FWPA offices in Melbourne to discuss plans to stimulate greater industry interest in the J. Gottstein Memorial Trust are Dr Silvia Pongracic, Gottstein science course director, Adrian Wallis, a former national secretary of the trust, and Jim Bowden newly-appointed secretary. Mr Wallis was Gottstein secretary 2001-2009, followed

by Dr Pongracic who completed a six-year term as secretary.

The end of the specialist paper trail THE SHOALHAVEN Paper Mill (Australian Paper, which is owned by Tokyo-based Nippon Paper Industries Co. Ltd.) will close in August. A total of 55 workers will be made redundant on 31 July, with the remaining 20 staff to switch off machines on 28 August.

Nowra sub-branch secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union’s Pulp and Paper Division, Jack Evans, said the mill’s looming closure signalled challenging times ahead for many families.

“These guys have worked in the same industry, in the same place, for the last 20 years and upwards and it’s going to be a difficult change that they need to make,” he said.

Company spokesman Craig Dunn said the mill www.timberbiz.com.au

had been suffering financial losses over several years, due to a significant and sustained drop in demand for its security grade paper.

Australian Paper says workers will be paid their full entitlements.

The Shoalhaven Paper Mill officially opened in February 1957.

In November 1961, an expansion program was approved and building commenced on an administration block, water treatment plant, power house, canteen, pulp mill and a second paper machine by 1962.

In 1996 a $7.5 million waste water treatment plant was installed bringing the mill’s waste water quality AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

JUNE 2015

to world’s best practice standards.

In 2008 the existing coal-fired boiler was decommissioned following the purchase of a more environmentally efficient gas-fired boiler. This reduced greenhouse gas emissions, such as CO2 by approximately 50%.

7

HOUSING

National new home lending posts solid April gains

A

BS HOUSING finance figures released for April 2015 show an increase in lending for new homes to both owner occupiers and investors “In a positive update for new home building activity in early 2015/16, finance for new housing climbed higher across the board in the month of April this year,” said Housing Industry Association Chief Economist, Dr Harley Dale.

“In April 2015 there was a 4.3% increase in the number of owner occupier loans for construction, while the equivalent number of loans for the purchase of a new property rose by 1.6%,” he said. “The April results include an increase in lending for investment in new residential dwellings which took the annual value to in excess of $9 billion for the first time ever.

“The number of first home buyer loans for owner occupiers remains low, but is running at its highest annual level in a year, although that of course excludes those first time buyers entering the investment market. In April 2015 the number of trade-up buyer loans reached its highest level since prior to the GFC,” said Dr Dale.

ABS figures broken down by region continue to highlight wide disparities in new housing conditions. The total number of owner occupier loans for new housing increased in six out of eight States and Territories in April 2015.

Over the three months to April this year the seasonally adjusted estimate of new loans increased by 4.9% in New South Wales, 4.7% in Victoria, 3.4% in Queensland, 1.6% in South Australia, and 20.6% in the Northern Territory. The number of loans fell over the same period in Western Australia (-4.4%), Tasmania (-10.3%), and the Australian Capital Territory (-8.7%).

ABS APRIL KEY FIGURES Trend estimates

Seasonally adjusted estimates

Mar 2015 to Apr 2015

Mar 2015 to Apr 2015

Value of dwelling commitments(a)(b) $m

% change

$m

% change

Total dwellings

32,109

1.4

32,712

2.9

Owner occupied housing

18,924

1.3

19,218

3.1

Investment housing - fixed loans(c)

13,186

1.4

13,494

2.6

Number of dwelling commitments(a)(b) no.

% change

no.

% change

Owner occupied housing

53,546

0.7

53,951

1.0

Construction of dwellings

5,947

-0.2

6,121

4.3

Purchase of new dwellings

2,696

1.1

2,766

1.6

Purchase of established dwellings

44,903

0.8

45,064

0.5

Housing affordability can be fixed, says HIA PUBLIC SPECULATION about a housing bubble ignores the real culprits of Australia’s housing affordability problems, says the Housing Industry Association (HIA).

“We wouldn’t be having this conversation if Australia would get the disproportionately high level of taxation off new homes and improve the supply of new housing,” said HIA Chief Economist Harley Dale.

“The truth is that most of the problems having an impact on housing affordability are caused

by Governments and therefore Governments can fix them.

“The two biggest taxes on a new home are stamp duty and GST - the latter which doesn’t apply to existing homes - and when combined with all the other taxes, levies and charges on a new home can be over 40% of the final price,” he said.

“New housing, which provides a necessity of life, namely shelter, is the second most heavily taxed major sector of the Australian economy.

“Equally, delays in planning and restrictions on land supply, mean that new housing is not reaching the

TIMBERMAN, August 2012 – 6

FRAME AUSTRALIA

FRAME AUSTRALIA

buildingSmart with BIM J

OHN MITCHELL, chairman of buildingSmart Australasia looked around the room at the FRAME conference in Melbourne and asked if anyone knew what BIM was. Did anyone use BIM? The silence was telling.

Certainly there were people in the audience who had some knowledge while some like Claudelle Taylor of the Leighton Group had experience with BIM but mostly the audience was struck dumb.

As Mitchell went on to say, the building industry is not renowned for its affinity with and use of high tech computer software programs but it is time. Other industries have already embraced similar systems, and other countries are embracing Building Industry Modelling (BIM).

So what is Building Industry Modelling?

“BIM is 3D object model that is like a building database, easily visualized,” said Mitchell. “We can extract significant intelligence out of it.”

Currently there is a lack of integration along the supply chain linking parties and between project phases but it’s not impossible to fix.

As Mitchell said other industries such as the Australian Air Conditioning Manufacturers Association has already started supply chain integration.

Other issues that plague the building industry are its reliance on the lowest bid strategy rather than a value for money proposition. There is poor understanding of optimized and properly documented designs. According to Mitchell the “Getting it Right” study in Queensland in 2005 identified this problem. That was seven years ago and it still lingers.

market quick enough to respond to demand, which ultimately puts upward pressure on prices.

• “In 2013 HIA released its Housing Australians blueprint to address housing affordability and create economic activity in the sector, and many of these action items were re-iterated in the HIA submission to the Taxation White Paper this week.

“A number of these points were also taken up in the recommendations of the recent Senate Inquiry into Housing Affordability, so Government has the answers,” said Dr Dale.

Key points for governments to address housing affordability include: • Appoint a dedicated Federal Minister for Housing.

• Phase out stamp duty on new homes to reduce costs and improve labour mobility.

• Reinvigorate the planning system for faster approvals.

• Support alternative funding models for residential infrastructure so new home buyers don’t pay upfront for whole-of-community assets.

• No increase in the GST on new housing.

There is also inadequate and ineffective use of technology and a lack of appreciation of the benefits of open communication.

In 2010 Mitchell’s organization commissioned a survey with the Commonwealth’s help that looked at adopting BIM in the Australian construction sector.

Implementation Plan. The starting point was the outcomes of the MESH conferences in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney in early 2011.

The roadblocks are these: • Lack of model building protocols • Little product data for BIM object libraries • Legal and insurance impediments

We do need it, we need to build better, we need to make better use of resources.

“The economic potential is extraordinary, extraordinary, a $4 billion potential per annum - $4 billion productivity potential per annum, this mirrors many other studies around the world,” said Mitchell.

“We do need it, we need to build better, we need to make better use of resources, we need to be more efficient and deliver higher value for money.”

The lessons from the 2D CAD current technology are clear, after 20 years there are still no common guidelines, no consensus in either government or industry and the documentation instead of improving is deteriorating.

“There is significant risk if we do not align with international BIM developments – it’s a worldwide turn to BIM,” said Mitchell. buildingSMART Australasia was commissioned at the end of 2111 to undertake the development of a BIM

• Poor standards for information exchange • Inconsistencies in information handover protocols • Skills gaps • Lack of strategic research focus • Industry resistance to process change The participants at the stakeholder consultation workshops conducted by buildingSmart proposed key recommendations. First and foremost was that a BIM adoption roadmap should be completed.

Commonwealth, State and Territory governments should be encouraged to require full collaborative BIM for their building procurements and they should develop procurement processes and assistance packages to encourage its adoption.

Legal and technical instruments needed to support the introduction of BIM should

7 - August 2012, TIMBERMAN

Lend Lease lends its might to CLT be developed and aligned with relevant international codes and standards. We must think globally.

Education is a must to enable the industry to meet the demands of technology for new workers and re-training for those already in the industry.

Easy access must be facilitated to building product manufacturer’s certified information for use in all types of modelbased applications through an Australian on-line BIM products library.

Open standard data exchange protocols should be established that support collaboration and facilitate integration of the briefing, design, construction, manufacturing and maintenance supply chain throughout the entire life of a built facility.

Governments around the world are seeing the advantage of BIM as it can be used to support automated code checking, ensure buildings meet environmental and energy performance requirements, make certain asset and management information is available at all tiers of government for operational, maintenance, fiscal and strategic planning.

The global construction software industry is well advanced in the change to BIM. All the major vendors Graphisoft ArchiCAD, Nemetscheck Allplan and Bentley Triforma have IFC certification, and now Autodesk Revit has committed to IFC compliance.

Only by adopting BIM, by accepting new processes and by sharing information will the building industry stay competitive.

A

FTER LISTENING to Andrew Neiland from Lend Lease it was difficult to understand why it has taken so long for Australia to embrace CLT, and even harder to understand why it has taken the major construction companies this long to make it all add up.

Initially it seemed odd that Neiland, who comes from the accounting side of the Lend Lease business, was presenting to a timberoriented audience at the Frame Australia conference.

That soon passed as he recounted the reductions that Lend Lease faced through the use of CLT in its new multi-storey Forte apartment building in Melbourne.

Admittedly it won’t be just reduced costs – but that’s the main take-away point, the other reductions relate to significantly lower construction noise, less occupational health and safety issues, and a smaller environmental footprint.

The big cost reduction will come courtesy of reduced construction time, reduced truck movements, less labour, reduced building weight leading to reduced foundation requirements and more.

“It’s lightweight, timber is roughly a fifth the weight of concrete,” said Neiland. “[with precast concrete] you only get a couple of pieces on a truck and that’s about it, you can truck a vast number of CLT panels in one go, so get a huge reduction in truck movements.

“In terms of how the site looks the general comments we have from our construction teams is clean, and how quiet and how orderly the site is,” said Neiland.

“One mobile crane, a couple days of CLT ready for installation and a crew of four guys putting it into place - very quiet and efficient process.”

Victoria Harbour was the instigator Melbourne’s Victoria Harbour has been a development hot spot for some time and Lend Lease was trying to make the most of the limited land available. On North Wharf the company was faced with a problem.

“The building conditions are not great, it’s on silt so we looked for a lightweight construction solution and came up with CLT,” said Neiland.

“That was most viable option and we found a lot more benefits than just light weight. So they assembled a team of designers and engineers to go and have a look at it.

“They saw the opportunity immediately – for an all expenses paid trip to Europe.”

It paid off, representatives from Lend Lease visited 14 projects in Europe, they visited the CLT producers and met with architects who had worked on similar projects and came away very impressed.

“They came away very impressed that it was a proven solution where the owners and occupiers really enjoyed the outcome, and really enjoyed living in these buildings,” he said.

Due diligence on the project took three years to complete.

What Lend Lease did discover and what the company has brought into play with the Forte construction in Bourke Street, Melbourne – only a few doors down from Lend Lease HQ – is that using CLT is a design process.

“It’s not taking a concrete building and replacing concrete with timber, it’s a new process. It’s about completing all your design up-front rather designing as your going,” said Neiland.

“It’s about a factory process where you sign off on the drawings, you work out all the crane movements, you work out the logistics, the truck movements then you manufacture. By doing

this we are minimizing waste and reducing errors and building faster.

“If you design it well it will last, if you design it poorly it won’t.”

Australia’s building code doesn’t take into account timber buildings taller than three storeys so for Forte Lend Lease had to undertake a fire engineered solution and that’s not something that everyone can do. It may be a barrier to highrise CLT construction in Australia unless it is addressed.

Forte is nine storeys tall (with a ground floor retail area) with 23 apartments and four townhouses.

Lend Lease was faced with a certain amount of dismay when it came to fire approvals.

“Melissa Chandler who is our building codes expert said it was the most interesting conversation she’s ever had with the fire brigade in her life.

“Saying we’re building 10 storeys of timber, the lift well, the fire stairs and we’re leaving the fire stairs exposed timber. The look on their faces was priceless. We convinced them it was a good idea,” said Neiland. “We did the fire testing of the CLT panels with the CSIRO to achieve our approvals.

“While it is not of a size that requires sprinklers we are installing sprinklers for this one,” he added.

As the ground floor is to be a retail space that floor is designed very differently to the apartments and so it is mounted on a concrete slab which was laid in February this year. The CLT installation started in June and it is anticipated that it will take eight weeks to put up and should be finished in August.

The whole building should be finished in October this year.

Neiland said that for his company it wasn’t just about building a building in CLT it needed to be a step change in sustainability and that is

certainly what has happened. This will be the first 5-star green star building built in a residential environment.

Each apartment is dual aspect and will take 25% less energy to heat and cool compared with a typical apartment, which equates to roughly $300 a year saved. All apartments will have a smart meter to link to an in-home display, which shows real time and historic data on energy consumption.

Not only that, but simply by using timber 1451 tonnes of carbon is saved (cradle to site).

Like every new idea there were challenges, the biggest was the logistics of shipping a building from Europe to Australia. KLH in Europe is the manufacturer of CLT for the Forte construction and so the panels had to be shipped to Australia and then stored awaiting installation.

Out it came – 485 tonnes of timber, 759 CLT panels shipped in 25 containers in two ships.

Lend Lease then did some other due diligence on the project, at 32.17 metres tall was it the tallest timber building in the world?

“We came across Nikolai (Sutyagin) who was friendly old chap in Russia who was lonely and in 1992 he started to build a timber house for himself. He went a couple of storeys up and just kept going and he didn’t stop until he got to about 44 metres.

“So we couldn’t go out with the claim that it is the tallest timber building so we modified it with a clause that it’s the tallest apartment timber building,” said Neiland.

For the future Neiland said that Lend Lease is considering building up to 50% of its residential apartments using CLT. “For us Forte is not a one-off demonstration building,” he said.

You can see live webcam vision of the Forte building under construction at http://www. forteliving.com.au

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WoodTECH

Sawing, scanning and mill optimization highlighted

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O REMAIN internationally competitive, local sawmills increasingly are looking at tools and technologies that can be used to increase lumber yields, improve grade recoveries and get higher production speeds out of their saw-lines.

Lowering the service or maintenance requirements of equipment and reducing the sawing costs for their operation are also high on the list of “must haves”.

Sawmillers in the last few years, with consolidation amongst both producers and equipment suppliers, increasingly are working much more closely with their technology providers.

The last couple of years has seen the development of some of the most sophisticated sawing technologies and saw designs seen in recent times.

WoodTECH 2015 in September will be providing an insight into some of these new developments for local mills.

The Forest Industry Engineering Association (FIEA) is well known for running regular world class programmes that showcase the very latest developments in sawing and scanning technologies. For well over 15 years events like SawTECH, ScanTECH, Lumber QC and Wood Manufacturing have been run. They’re in fact the only independent events of their type run in Australasia. The last major event run for local sawmillers was the inaugural WoodEXPO that ran in both New Zealand and Australia two years ago. Over 1100 turned up.

This year, WoodTECH 2015 is running. It will run in both Australia and New Zealand. As well as new sawing, scanning and mill optimization technologies, there’s also a much greater emphasis this year on the practical issues of selecting and running saws, low cost improvement tools and on smaller to medium sized operations which are such an integral part of the Australasian sawmilling industry. A better understanding on how saws within the mill are being selected, maintained and operated and how to get the best out of each saw centre will be an integral part of WoodTECH 2015.

As well as new equipment, the environment in which the production team is working and interacting is a critical part of working smarter. From reconfiguring production lines in the mill through to finding faster ways to identify and reject unacceptable products, the returns through the power of the “team” are significant. For the first time, teamwork – harnessing the collective power of saw-doctors, maintenance teams and production personnel on site will be explored in depth.

World leading suppliers of sawmilling technology from outside this region already committed to presenting at WoodTECH 2015 include; Comact, Canada, USNR,USA, HewSaw, Finland, MiCROTEC, Italy, ScanMeg, Canada, Brunson Instrument Company, USA, SiCam Systems, Canada, AriVislanda, Sweden, CalSaw, USA, Switchback Systems, Canada, WaneShear Technologies, USA and JoeScan, Canada.

Some of the keynote presenters at WoodTECH 2015 include; www.timberbiz.com.au

• Ronald McGehee. Ron is a leading innovator and well known in sawmilling circles around the world. He has more than 30 patents and numerous inventions to his credit. After finishing University Ron, working for Ukiah, became a one-man engineering and sales “department” for lumber mills throughout North America and Canada. Ron’s first design breakthrough came in 1982, when he invented and patented a lubrication system that eliminated the need to water-cool circular saws. The small Ukiah shop grew into a multimillion-dollar business, which Ron’s father sold to Harvey Industries in 1987. To this day, all sawmill manufacturers supply a lubrication system based on Ron’s invention.

• He sold the successful Maxi-Lube system and founded the McGehee Equipment Company, where he designed a revolutionary cutting machine. In 1998, Ron sold this company to CAE Inc. and remained with CAE McGehee for three years, as President. In 2004, Ron founded 2RS in order to bring a new linear edger to market. His newest venture, WaneShear Technologies, was formed in order to build a revolutionary new edger that can process lumber at a rate of 60 pieces per minute, regardless of piece length. The first WaneShear, hailed as the world’s highest-production edger system, was shipped to Alabama in May 2012.

• Stephen Falk: Switchback is a Canadian company specializing in getting teams working together – reducing injuries, improving communication and shifting negative cultures within a crew, site or company. They have worked wonders with forestry crews in B.C. and were rated top presenters at this year’s Forest Industry Safety Summit that ran in both New Zealand and Australia.

The objective for Steven Falk

and Switchback at this year’s WoodTECH 2015 event is to get both management and production staff to better understand how to harness the “power” of teamwork within the mill environment.

• Joe Shields: Joe is also well known to local wood processors.

He works alongside the service and engineering departments of sawmills around the world to reduce both maintenance and downtime.

Specializing in edgers, gang saws, bandmills, planers and chipper systems, Joe has concentrated on alignment and system diagnostics for service trips to mills around the world. Joe will be joined by Harry Penn, also from USNR, a world renowned specialist on bandmill operations. Together they’ll be providing a special interactive session for local mills on saw alignment, maintenance and troubleshooting.

The WoodTECH 2015 event is long overdue. This latest technology series will provide an essential and independent update on an array of exciting new wood scanning, sawing and mill optimization technologies

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

Greater emphasis this year on the practical issues of selecting and running saws, low cost improvement tools and on smaller to medium sized operations. as well as some innovative human resource practices best suited to local processing operations. As with previous events, it’s being designed for both senior management as well as production and operational staff from local mills.

The event will be running in Melbourne, on 16-17 September and again in Rotorua, on 22-23 September.

Further information on the series can be found on the event website, www. woodtech.events

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JUNE 2015

9

FRAME

Timber construction ... it’s faster, it’s cheaper and it’s sustainable!

T

HE BUILDING industry is now giving serious consideration to timber and wood as a viable alternative to steel and concrete construction, due to the changing circumstances for medium density construction in cities and inner urban areas.

That was the unequivocal message from Frame Australia 2015 in Melbourne recently.

These changes have made timber viable and at lower cost for residential and commercial developments, so we are in a transition to a new way of building as outlined by opening speaker Tony Arnel who said “timber and engineered wood products are emerging as a sustainable solution for the building industry. Project teams are embracing timber and EWP as a renewable building material, and using it to build faster, cheaper and more sustainably than ever before”.

Conference Director Kevin Ezard said he thought the response from the target market of building design and construction was very good.

“We had many high-profile architects attending from both Melbourne and Sydney firms, and the engineers were well represented with most major consultancies attending.

“Construction was also well represented with major names such as Mirvac, Australand, Grocon, Lend Lease, Porter Davis, and a host of medium size builders.

“The timber industry represented the major attendance which was very pleasing as they are the sector with the most to gain from the market

shift to building in engineered wood construction systems,” said Kevin.

It’s interesting to note a breakdown of professionals at the conference Architects & Engineers Building construction Total sector Timber & engineered wood Prefabrication Building materials Total sector Others

19% 18% 37% 36% 12% 10% 58% 5%

Commenting on attendances, Kevin said attendance (on a comparison with last year) figures didn’t really compare as the 2015 conference program was primarily for delegates from building design and construction, and was a new event for that market.

“Our projected attendance was 300 and we reached 250, so for a first time event that was still very good.

That also is the reason Principal Supporter of the Frame 2015 event was the WoodSolutions Program, which is a major resource for designers and builders in providing access to information on timber products and technical data to assist in specification.

“This new initiative will not alter the existing Frame Australia conference format which is held every two years with a focus on engineered timber and the manufacture of prefabricated timber building systems, with the next event due in 2016,” Kevin said.

Wrapping up and summing up the 2015 event has been succinctly put...

Congratulations on another successful conference. “Frame” is a vital component of the industry calendar and provides an ideal forum to highlight the potential benefits & opportunities that will present themselves to our industry, in the not too distant future.

All presenters created an awareness of the need to identify and investigate future trends and for the attendees to better position their businesses to capitalise on these emerging trends. -Wayne Skulander, General Manager, Ezequote Pty Ltd. (Delegate)

“I thought it was, once again, very well organised and managed – so well done to you and the team. I also found the exhibits very interesting this year.”

-- David Waldren | National Executive Design Manager | Grocon (Speaker) So, with the 2015 event a success, what’s next on the agenda for Kevin?

“At this stage we are planning to hold the building design and construction program as well, to make it a two-day conference, but this is to be confirmed.

Tentatively the dates will be mid-May 2016 in Melbourne.”

n The scene is set at Frame 2015. Photo credit "The Tradies Hub”, a sister company to 360south that is a supporter of Frame Australia. The Tradies Hub builds very affordable websites designed for tradesman.

Australian bid for code change to allow taller timber buildings “Changes will not only bring Australia up to pace with much of the rest of the world, but will deliver a wide range of benefits to local residents, property buyers and the building industry.”

AUSTRALIA IS poised to join similar countries around the world with proposed changes to the National Construction Code Volume 1 to allow timber construction in taller structures – up to 8 storeys for buildings including apartments, hotels and offices.

Over the past two years, the industry services body Forest and Wood Products Australia Limited (FWPA) has been consulting with representatives from the timber, building and insurance industries, regulatory bodies and fire and emergency authorities during the development of a Proposal for Change to the National Construction Code Volume 1 (NCC).

Essentially, the proposal is to create a voluntary deemed-to-satisfy (DTS) solution for the NCC 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 (approximately 8 storeys).

Currently, timber building systems are restricted to 3 storeys under the National Construction Code’s DTS provisions with taller buildings requiring the design and documentation of an ‘alternative solution’ to gain approval. Alternative solutions, while practical on some larger projects, are generally found to be too 10

costly for smaller constructions.

The proposed solution will cover both traditional timber framing and innovative massive timber systems (such as cross laminated timber or CLT, and Glulam) and comprises the use of appropriate layers of fire resistant plasterboard and sprinkler systems.

Preliminary economic modelling indicates potential savings in the order of 10-15% in multi–residential and commercial build costs, primarily due to shorter construction times.

The modelling also suggests net benefits 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.

“The proposed changes to the Code will not only bring Australia up to pace with much of the rest of the world, but will deliver a wide range of benefits to local residents, property buyers and the building industry,” said Boris Iskra, FWPA’s National Codes & Standards Manager.

He explained that the benefits of taller timber buildings not only included lower costs but will also deliver increased opportunities for innovative design and construction, faster build times leading to reduced truck movements and local disruption as well as improved environmental outcomes.

“This is just one of the many activities through which we are seeking to broaden market opportunities and add value to the forest and wood products sector,” said Ric Sinclair, FWPA’s Managing Director, “as the industry’s services company we can tackle issues that are too large or complex for individual organisations, delivering the benefits to all our stakeholders, both private and Government.”

A copy of the proposed changes to the National Construction Code can be downloaded from http:// www.abcb.gov.au/consultation/ncc-public-commentAUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

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draft.aspx – NCC 2016 Volume 1 Public Comment Draft The proposal open for public consultation until 3 August and if successful will be implemented in May 2016.

To comment on this article contact: boris.iskra@fwpa.com.au or phone (03) 9927 3240 j.hudswell@ryanmediapl.com.au (08) 7127 6370

nB oris Iskra, FWPA’s National Codes & Standards Manager.

www.timberbiz.com.au

FRAME

New centre of prefabrication a game-changer “Ideas from this project will enable the prefabricated building industry to produce innovative and customer specific building products required in future markets.”

“The Centre will secure the Australian industry’s competitive advantage leading to local employment growth and increased exports of prefabricated products and services,” he said.

“Through this program, we will train emerging industry professionals, enable industry, with world-leading research capability, to develop and apply new materials, processes and technologies that will create products, processes and business models,” Professor Hargreaves said.

Ideas from this project will enable the prefabricated building industry to produce innovative and customer specific building products required in future markets.

The ARC Training Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated Housing is a highly collaborative venture involving four Universities (The University of Melbourne, The University of Sydney,

Market increase The Centre aims to provide new knowledge, methods and technologies, as well as highly skilled PhD and postdoctoral researchers, to support the research and development needed to propel the prefabricated housing sector well beyond the current 3% share of the construction market.

The Centre will train the next generation of industry-ready Australian engineers and scientists through creating a sustainable research partnership between university-based researchers and the Australian prefabricated building industry and composite material manufacturers. This will enable the development of sustainable, reusable, smart, and affordable building systems and contribute to creating a globally competitive prefabricated housing manufacturing industry in Australia.

The current prefabricated building market in Australia is a modest $4.5bn of the total $150bn construction industry. Projections for the 10 year outlook indicate a potential market share growth to 10% or $15bn if current challenges can be overcome. The global market in 2014 was estimated at $96 bn.

n Prefabricated CLT panels for the Forte building

ENE

CO

Competitive advantage

Curtin University of Technology and Monash University) and nine Partner Organisations (mostly companies).

R

T

HE UNIVERSITY of Melbourne will soon be home to an advanced centre for prefabricated housing, a move that is expected to transform the Australian building industry.

The University has been awarded $4 million establish the Australian Research Council (ARC) Training Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated Housing.

The ARC Training Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated Housing to be led by Professor Priyan Mendis and Dr Tuan Ngo from the Department of Infrastructure Engineering, is funded for four years and includes support for six post-doctoral fellow positions and 14 PhDs. Professor Mendis said the Centre aims to unlock the potential growth of Australia’s prefabricated building industry by creating a co-operative training system between industry and universities.

“The Centre will enable the next generation of engineers and architects to apply advanced manufacturing ideas to prefabricated modular buildings,” he said.

“This emerging highly trained workforce driven by the needs of the customer will identify innovations in the use of advanced materials, design for manufacturing and assembly.”

Professor Mark Hargreaves, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Partnerships and External Relations) said the University of Melbourne is proud to lead the delivery of innovation and excellence through the ARC.

Q U A L I T Y & I N N O VAT I O N

Key drivers In Australia, demand for low-to midrise residential buildings, project homes and public housing are key drivers of demand in prefabricated construction.

For example, over the coming decade, Melbourne will require 60,000 public housing units, and Sydney will require a further 80,000. High-quality, lightweight, prefabricated modular systems will contribute to housing stock with excellent amenity for occupants, at substantially lower cost when compared with traditional housing.

Expected outcomes of the Centre: • Supporting a 10% growth of market share by 2025 which will create 20,000 new jobs by 2025; • Construct up to 90% faster than traditional methods • Reduce total costs by up to 50% • Addressing shortage of affordable and end-user focused residential housing • Achieve 100% re-use of componentry, recycle 80% of site waste • Reduce transport, labour, and site preliminaries by 70%

• For 30 years, GILBERT has been the market leader in the design and manufacturing of planermill equipment with over one hundred installations.

• From moulding applications to high speed mills, the Gilbert Planer is very versatile and is the fastest planer in the world.

• ACORA and GILBERT together offer single item solutions to complete turnkey projects.

Expand export opportunities Secure and maintain competitive advantage in global value chains

ACORA’s local knowledge is always on hand and with GILBERT’s depth of engineering, we offer a great solution for your operation.

Thank you for your trust!

n Prefabricated CLT panels

www.timberbiz.com.au

PO Box 122 11 Government Road Eden NSW 2551, Australia

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

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Tel: +61 (0)2 6496 1222 Fax: +61 (0)2 6496 3097 Email: info@acora.com.au

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www.timberbiz.com.au

FRAME 1. V ojtech Helikar (Czech Trader) and Milos Slavic (Novatop).

THE FRAME

2. S haron Gibson and Sandy Kam (Latrobe City Council).

3. N icholas Boey and Ali Habibi (Northrop Engineering) and Kith de Silva (Wesbeam).

4. H artley Higgins (Publisher, Ryan Media) Jack Bowen (Bowens - Builders’ Choice) and Jim Bowden (Brisbane-based forestry and timber journalist and newly-appointed Secretary of the Gottstein Trust).

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5. Paolo Lavisci (PNGFP Building Systems) and Daniel Moroder (Structural Engineer, Prestressed Timber Limited, NZ).

6. E ileen Newbury (Marketing and Communications Manager, FWPA), Nick Hewson (AEC) and David Simpson.

7. J ames Gourley and Andrew Nunan (Drouin West Timber & Truss).

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8. Anthony Antonino (Smart Frame).

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9. Max Albanese (Meyer Timber).

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10. Robert Armour (FrameQuip) and Peter Rose (Active Fasteners).

11. R ob de Brincat (Tilling SmartStruct) and Sam Leslie (XLam).

12. Chris Philpot (Planet Ark).

13. S ylvia Pugnaloni (General Manager Australasia and South-East Asia, Rotho Blaas).

14. P hil Ladson (Multinail Australia).

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15. S tefano Muscoloni (Technical Salesman and Field Engineer, Rotho Blaas).

16. Timothy Goodall and Kym Eagleson (Warrnambool Timber Industries).

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17. D uncan Bourke (Timber Design & Fabrication Manager, Timber Imagineering).

18. James Fitzpatrick (Managing Partner + Head of Design, Fitzpatrick + Partners, Architects) and Marc Howe (Sourceable).

19. T homas Lill (Director International Sales, BeA. -- Active Fasteners).

20. E dwina Goodall (Director, ED Quick Design Systems).

21. Kosta Kambelos (K&G Properties).

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22. Terry Parsons (Braford Industries).

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23. E rkki Valikangas (head of Overseas Business Development, StoraEnso).

24. M ichael Webb (Webb Consult) and Will James (George Fethers & Co Trading).

25. Andrew Lewis (Jag Timber).

26. S tefan Marquart (Australian Framing Automation) and Jamie Strong (Strongbuild).

27. Peter Carruthers and Steve Koch (Arch Wood Protection).

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28. E lliot Goblet [Jack Levi] (the man with possibly the driest and quirkiest comedy in Australia) and Frame Conference Director Kevin Ezard during a “quiet” moment at the conference. One of Elliot’s gems ... “I went to a restaurant and there was a sign that said ‘We take all cards’ so I gave them a sympathy card with the words ‘sorry I left my wallet at home’”.

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29. R obin Jack (Director, XLam), Laurie Martin (General Manager, AUSTimber Events).

30. Philip Ladson (Multinail Australia), Mark Smiles (MiTek) and Wendy Boyd (Multinail Australia).

31. E lla Bennett (Pryda), Kersten Gentle (Executive Officer, FTMA Australia).

32. Trevor Innes (Timberlink) and Geoff Stringer (Hyne Timber).

www.timberbiz.com.au

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FRAME

Timber prefabrication story needs to be sold

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N THE near future, if you want to make money in timber manufacturing in Australia, you need to work out where you sit in supplying the prefabrication construction system market. Do you supply whole buildings, components or modules?

Do you have an installation service or do you work in partnership with a supplier of such services?

At the recent Frame Australia conference there were a few important facts laid out for anyone running a business in the Australian timber industry.

There is a quest to increase prefabrication’s share of the Australian construction market in the near future. While the figures used were seen as best estimates of the current situation, raising the share from 3% to 10% is not overly ambitious when compared with levels in Europe.

The strongest component delivering savings on major construction sites is the ability to use domestic trades to do the work. The greatest limitation to expanding the amount of work done in this way is the lack of domestic trade workers experienced in prefabricated construction.

Multi-level buildings’ share of the housing market is increasing at a rate that is expected to see it being larger than single unit dwellings by 2030. With prefabrication being the most economic method of construction and timber having numerous advantages over other materials, it stands to reason that timber manufacturers need to ensure they are capable of supplying product into prefabricated construction systems.

At the moment, there is a limited number of manufacturers with experience in manufacturing for

AUSTimber ready to highlight prefab perfection

australasian

the prefabricated market and these manufacturers will be first choice suppliers to property developers who are looking to benefit from the economics of prefabrication but don’t wish to experiment with untried suppliers.

So, how does the Australian timber manufacturing sector develop competency, and domestic construction tradespeople gain experience in prefabrication?

It seems this competence will be most widely developed if prefabrication construction systems are used in building single unit housing. It is also likely that, until group builders actively explore prefabrication and fine tune the economic benefits it can bring, individual architects, timber manufacturers and builders will need to find ways of working together to develop an offering attractive to home buyers.

Once enough projects are delivered for the general public to gain an understanding that prefabrication is an economic way of building attractive houses, group builders are likely to introduce a prefabricated option to complement their standard slab, stick frame and brick veneer offerings. At that point momentum should build for prefabrication systems and the number of experienced architects, manufacturers and builders will have grown sufficiently to keep pace with this growth.

The trick will be to get projects with a high enough public profile that the message of prefabrication gets through to the general public and they start to search out businesses that can deliver a house using this method. The pull-through factor.

XLam Cross Laminated Timber coming to Australia NEW ZEALAND-based XLam is expanding its Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) production capacity both in New Zealand and Australia. In fact, the first Australian order for a project in Sydney has already been accepted.

The installation of a second press at the New Zealand based plant will see CLT production capacity double.

This a significant announcement for the Australian commercial construction, design and architecture industry particularly in the multi-residential market.

XLam exhibited at the FRAME Australia Conference.

In Australia, there are currently only two CLT buildings located in Melbourne using panels shipped all the way from Europe. In New Zealand alone, XLam has already completed 80 building projects since 2012.

XLam is the only CLT manufacturer in the Southern Hemisphere.

Weekly shipping services direct from Nelson in New Zealand’s South Island to Australian ports will enable XLam to supply early Australian projects from across the Tasman.

Plans are well under way to establish an Australian plant. Meanwhile, XLam will take a selective approach to the Australian market, focussing on bespoke projects which look well suited to the CLT system on one hand and the Australian Building Code on the other.

Their expansion will also see the creation of jobs both in New Zealand and Australia and XLam is already calling for expressions of interest from qualified structural engineers.

Spokesperson for XLam, Robin Jack said this expansion into Australia and increased production in New Zealand was in response to significant interest and recognised success of CLT for construction, “Cross Laminated Timber is a strong, quality product for complete residential and commercial construction, including prefabricated flooring, walls and roofing.

“It is entirely prefabricated in the factory before being loaded onto trucks in the order in which it will be craned off straight into position at the construction 14

site. This results in faster, safer construction with all associated cost benefits,” he said.

“It is aesthetically pleasing, versatile to suit contemporary designs, uses a natural resource and can even be reconfigured, relocated and ultimately recycled.

“This is the timber construction era, there is no doubt about that but there is currently a void in CLT availability throughout Australia which we will fill.

“As the only producer of CLT in the Southern Hemisphere, we underwent a long journey prior to reaching the ‘sales’ stage,” he said.

“No one had used locally grown plantation radiata pine for commercial production of CLT, and it’s very different from European species. Months of product trials and development occurred, providing scientific rigor and professionalism throughout this development stage.

“This process was essential for us to truly gain a deep understanding of the structural performance we can achieve with our species for custom designed panels engineered to deliver a specific performance in a specific building.

“Further, the experience gained from our first 80 projects has deepened and refined that knowledge, enabling us to tune our designs for optimum price:performance ratio,” Robin said.

XLam’s rapid expansion has been financially supported by the Hyne Board of Directors in an agreement signed in recent weeks. Hyne Timber was established in 1882 and is the largest, privately owned timber company in Australia. The Hyne Board of Directors recognised the void in CLT availability in Australia and consider it in the interests of the broader timber industry to make additional timber options available to builders and designers particularly multiresidential projects and commercial construction.

Significant technical information, case studies, photos and the long list of benefits of using CLT for construction are detailed on the XLam website. To learn more about our XLam’s CLT visit xlam.com.au / xlam. co.nz AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

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“At AUSTimber2016, we are working to have a real house constructed to lock-up stage at our Manufacturing exhibition site before dismantling and relocating it for finishing on a site in a subdivision,” said AUSTimber General Manager Laurie Martin.

“Once it is finished and has had a couple of months of inspection by the general public, the intention is to auction it with all money over the reserve going to an important local charity.

“We intend to use this project to demonstrate to the general public the benefits of prefabricated construction while providing manufacturers and constructors real, practical information in seminars on the equipment, software, fastening systems and services they need so they can start or expand their current business to supply the prefabrication market,” Laurie said.

“At the moment we have an award-winning architect with experience in delivering a prefabricated house champing at the bit to work on this project and a major subdivision developer keen to provide a prime location for the resulting house.

“There is also strong interest from our television media partner to give good coverage of the project right along its delivery path and Latrobe City Council is looking to work with us to make the permit process as smooth as possible.

“We’re now looking for a manufacturer, timber supplier, construction company and any other possible suppliers to this project to put their hands up to be part of the team delivering it. If you are interested in being on the team, contact me and let me know how you might like to be involved,” Laurie said.

n XLam CEO Robin Jack.

nX Lam CLT erection process

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FRAME

LIGNA 2015 confirms reputation as industry’s leading global tradeshow LIGNA 2017, 22 - 26 May

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IGNA, THE leading timber and panel processing technology show, reported a 68% surge in attendance from Asian visitors on the previous exhibition. The biannual event, which took place in Hanover, Germany, from May 11 to 15, attracted 96,000 visitors, a 7% rise on the show in 2013. Of these 40,000 came from outside Germany, against 32,000 two years ago.

Attendance from Asia was 4,700 against 2,800.

Within this figure, the biggest upswing came in visitors from the Near and Middle East, up 86%, while South East and Central Asian visitor numbers increased 62%.

Central and South American visitors were ahead 65% at 2,800.

Overall by nationality the biggest visitor contingents were from Austria, France, Italy, the USA, Russia and the UK. A key focus of the technology on show, and discussions at the inaugural Ligna Wood Industry Summit, was automation and manufacturing integration. Within this subject a major topic of conversation was the concept of Industry 4.0 in the timber sector.

Industry 4.0 is billed as the next generation of manufacturing technology and systems. The aim is a factory where machinery, including robotics, control technology and human management and operators are seamlessly integrated for maximum efficiency, automation, quality control, flexibility and productivity.

Such systems also interface with the internet to tap into wider shared information and management and control services, further increasing cost effectiveness of the plant and its responsiveness to market trends and customer demands.

Ligna saw illustrations of how the Industry 4.0 concept could work in the furniture sector, with live demonstrations of production in simulated factory settings. These showed how through the latest control and automation technology, the modern plant can combine the output rates and cost benefits of mass production and yet still handle customised and bespoke orders.

The solid wood working live displays also demonstrated a lot of new technologies , with the spotlight also on integrated manufacturing for maximum output and yield at minimum cost.

Here’s how some of the experts saw Ligna:Wolfgang Pöschl, CEO of Michael Weinig AG and Chairman of the German Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers’ Association ... “This LIGNA has more than met our expectations, which were high to begin with. Once again it has generated even more momentum in an already positive market environment, and demonstrated the potential that new technologies hold for everyone in the wood industry. This is precisely what our customers from around the world expect from their flagship fair.”

Rüdiger Schliekmann, managing partner of IMA Klessmann GmbH, Germany ... “LIGNA 2015 was once again a complete success for us. Our customers were delighted.”

Hansjörg Felder, General Manager of Felder KG, Austria... “LIGNA once again confirmed its reputation as the industry’s leading global tradeshow, with an unrivalled depth of international participation. This is the platform of choice for displaying our innovations.”

Tuomo Moilanen, of Ponsse Plc, Finland... “The Wood Industry Summit enabled us to enhance and

expand our network of international leads across the board. At the Summit we definitely met our goals. The high ratio of international visitors at LIGNA is the event’s unique selling point from our point of view.”

Wolfgang Stadie, Director Sales and Marketing of MAKA Systems GmbH, Germany... “LIGNA scored a real hit with ‘Surprisingly Versatile’. Right from the start, this special display helped us reach new target groups.”

Luigi De Vito, Director of the Machinery Division, SCM Group S.p.A., Italy... “This was a special LIGNA edition for Scm Group, which is showcasing a vast range of technology in each of the dedicated halls: from intelligent cell systems to advanced software suites; from joinery machines to working centres for the homebuilding sector, to technologies for surface finishing. It means making the best of all opportunities generated in the most important woodworking trade show. As worldwide specialists for the wood industry, we experienced great interest on the part of our global customers; this is true confirmation that LIGNA is the international, leading event in the wood industry that can’t be missed.”

1/21 Birkett Place • Sth Geelong VIC 3220

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MILL UPGRADE

Multi-million dollar project helps transform Tarpeena Mill

n A n overview of the Tarpeena log yard and pipe work.

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HE TARPEENA mill has come a long way in its impressive 57+ year history and, as the latest upgrades suggest, it’s got an even longer future. The latest in the upgrades has been the installation of a new Gilbert planer mill.

But how did all this come about?

Back in January 2013 Timberlink purchased the softwood sawmilling assets from the Receivers after Gunns had hit the wall. At that time there was State Government funding available to help put the industry back on a competitive basis in the region and the new Timberlink business made this opportunity a priority. [The funding was for projects to increase site volume while remaining focussed on wood fibre recovery and wood grade recovery].

“When we had a look at the site most of the current production areas were at their maximum capacity so then we started to look at the bottleneck production areas and identifying those and putting a capital program in place to improve those areas,” said

Sawmilling and Process Engineer Neville Hill.

“Where we started was in our planer mill. Our old planer was designed at around 300m per minute and we were operating that on a three shift, five days a week rotation roster; there was just no more time available,” he said.

“We developed a site functional specification of our requirements and sent the prospectus to suppliers. We received four offers of planers so we shortlisted the ones we wanted to have a look at.

existing planer mill adjacent to the old planer and the cutover was done during Christmas.

“The new planer is rated at 600m per minute. That’s the design capacity that we want to run at but I should add the planer has been up spec’d to run at 850m per minute.

“We decided to add some future protection into the planer speed so we could do 850mpm but it is actually currently running at 600mpm.

Fact-finding tour

“Another component that was exciting about the Gilbert system was that we can actually have a closed door process for planer adjustments.

All the planer adjustments are servo driven so our tooling people won’t have to enter the planer enclosure to make adjustments. There’s a safety switch on the door that stops people entering until the machine is completely isolated.

That was one of the additional drivers around selecting the Gilbert. From a

“Three of us actually travelled to the US and Canada to have a look at what was being offered. Throughout the process Gilbert was one of those and through that fact-finding tour we came back and agreed that Gilbert was the best option,” he said An order was placed in November 2013 and unit was commissioned in January this year. It was installed in the

Special safety system

safety perspective it was one of the items that got it over the line,” Neville said.

“Eden (NSW) based Acora Reneco built the infeed and the outfeed for us. We have our own drafting and engineering people and we designed the infeed and outfeed and put it to tender.

Acora was successful in that tender for several reasons; one is they had some experience in doing it and it was a nice tidy up to have them involved in the infeed right through to the planer they were going to install,” he said.

Neville would be the first to admit that the project would have been a minefield without the complete cooperation of all involved.

Total team effort “To the team’s credit ... we still needed to produce so we were doing that around installing the planer. Acora installed components that they could, around us running the old planer because we had to remove some of the bits of the old planer to get this to work after Christmas. So, the prep work that went in prior went as planned. We dry ran the planer in September. We actually moved some product through the planer in a dry run prior to shutting down over Christmas to do the cutover.

“Technically we had it running; we could position everything. We did the

“It’s not just about more volume throughput; this investment is about more value throughput and that relates to efficiency, scale, recovery and meeting ever changing market requirements and remaining competitive.” nP laner drive station.

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MILL UPGRAPE training of our Planer operators and tool room people.

All of that happened last September as a preliminary to doing major training during operations in January.

“This had been the plan; it was what we set out to achieve and we did actually achieve that.

“We have a current scanning system in our dry mill and we have actually run both the scanners in parallel for the last three months while the old control system engineers iron the bugs out of the new one -- which is pretty unique. With both projects we haven’t seen any negative impact on our production or our quality.

“It’s a three year project and we are currently about 50% of the way through that project,” Neville said.

The total project cost is about $20.5m.

The last word goes to Timberlink who very neatly summed up the project ... “It’s not just about more volume throughput; this investment is about more value throughput and that relates to efficiency, scale, recovery and meeting ever changing market requirements and remaining competitive.”

Huge success “The normal commissioning issues that you have implementing new equipment, well, we’ve mitigated that risk. That side of it was a huge success.

“Acora and Gilbert were on board with us for that.

They were part of that planning process. We said this is what we’d like to do and they actually saw no issues with that and worked along side us to actually achieve that.

“Mind you we had some very good people on this team. We developed a team of people for this major project -- eight people from Timberlink working on this project, all with differing skill bases,” Neville said.

The whole planer mill project is currently due to be signed off which is pretty good because it was only installed in January, and the cost for this part of the upgrade has been $11.5 million.

Next on the upgrade agenda is the installation of a continuous kiln which should be started about midyear.

Then it will be back into the green mill for more modifications. A second board edger will be installed and the site will add another 23 sorter bins will be added to the board sorter. n At the control panels.

n New Gilbert machinery introduced to the Tarpeena sawmill.

n Planer, infeed table and support frame.

nE mployee uses new Gilbert Programing Grinder.

The history of the Tarpeena site IN 1907 the South Australian government commenced large scale plantings of radiata pine in the South East. By 1930 there was sufficient radiata pine plantations to build two sawmills in the South East, one at Mt. Burr (1931) and later Nangwarry (1941).

The first owner of the Tarpeena Site was South Australian Perpetual Forests Ltd (SAPFOR). SAPFOR had its forestry headquarters based in Tarpeena from the early 1920s. Initially plantations were cut from bush mills set up at the source of the plantation with flitches from these bushmills being sent to centalised flitch mills based at Tarpeena and Lake Mundi. The case from these flitches were taken by train to Adelaide and Melbourne.

In 1958 SAPFOR moved toward a framing operation out of Tarpeena and built a traditional framing mill consisting of a greenmill, kilns and drymill to enable them to do so. So the history of the current Tarpeena sawmill commenced in 1958.

SAPFOR continued to operate the Tarpeena sawmill until 1988 when South-East Afforestation Service Pty Ltd (SEAS) purchased SAPFOR including the Tarpeena Sawmill. SEAS changed its name to SEAS Sapfor Ltd. In 1995 SEAS Sapfor Ltd changed its name www.timberbiz.com.au

to Auspine Limited and in February 2008 the shareholders of Auspine sold the business to Gunns Limited.

Gunns Limited went into receivership on 25 September 2012 and Timberlink Australia (Timberlink) purchased the softwood sawmilling assets from the Receivers on 31 January 2013.

Today the Tarpeena sawmill operates on a 40 ha site with a 520,000 tonne sawlog capacity. The Tarpeena sawmill employs 200 people and provides a full range of timber products into the Australian framing market.

The logyard sorts log by cutting pattern using MPM scanning technology after the sawlog is debarked.

Debarked sawlogs are stored by cutting pattern waiting processing in the greenmill.

The greenmill uses laser technology to scan approximately 500 points along a log to get a very accurate view of the log. The sawline is a “set sawline” in that the saws are prepositioned to cut the particular pattern that the sawlog has been sorted for.

The final process for the timber is through the Drymill. Within each piece of timber there can be various structural attributes due mainly to it being a natural fibre. To optimise that piece of timber it is important to identify and capture the various structural AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

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properties to ensure all our timber meets the highest quality standards. The recent installation of the Gilbert planer replacing the old Waco moulder uses “pull through technology”. Despatch The despatch area is kept busy all year round with an estimated 6,000 truck movements per annum (22 trucks per despatch day). Tarpeena supplies product to all States. The preferred markets are Victoria and South Australia due to proximity to the sawmill.

The Tarpeena Site annually supports Local events including the Rotary Club Science Engineering Challenge, Mt Gambier Timber industry and local sporting groups. The Tarpeena site acknowledge that the youth of today, are the next generation of potential employees, promoting the Timber industry through these forums supports that ongoing sustainability of our business.

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PLYWOODS

Austral Plywoods extends its premium product range

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ROM MAKING butter boxes in the 1920s to making premium grade plywood ... that’s the story of Brisbane-based Austral Plywoods.

It’s been a long, well-planned learning and growth schedule that today sees Austral Plywood regarded as a leading Australian manufacturer in this demanding field.

“Our resource is a very special one because Hoop Pine Plywood only grows in Queensland. Hoop Pine trees in particular take 50 years to mature before they can be harvested and it is vital we source from these plantations so we ensure the resource is renewed. Austral Plywoods source logs from HQPlantations in southeast Queensland and all our products have Chain of Custody certification under the Australian Standards AS4707:2006,” says Lizan Yee, Assistant Sales Manager.

“We maintain a process quality control system in compliance with the EWPAA-JAS-ANZ product certification scheme. Our A-Bond products have a Super E0 rating, the lowest formaldehyde emission rating obtainable making our products perfect for Green Star Rated projects or environmentally sustainable projects. Our Hoop Pine was recently used in the ‘Superpodhome’ project (superpodhome.com), one of the first certified passive buildings in Australia, and the first passive house system to win a ‘Good Design Award’ in May 2015.” Lizan says with obvious pride.

Austral Plywoods manufacture a range of panel products, specialising in Marine plywood and appearance grade plywoods. Austral Plywoods have been involved in a number of high profile projects including the Brisbane Supreme & District Courts, Perth Arena and Melbourne Recital Centre. These projects have earned Austral Plywoods a reputation for high quality products and excellent customer service.

“We are particularly proud of The Melbourne Recital Centre where each panel was three sheets of 25mm ‘A’ core Hoop Pine Plywood. The panels had deep acoustic carvings in the face, distributing even sound quality

“ In recent years, we have concentrated on the ‘niche’ markets. ” around the theatre. On the ABC show ‘Catalyst’, the concert hall was described as ‘acoustically perfect’ mainly due to the quality of the Hoop Pine Plywood,” says Gary Holmes, Sales and Marketing Manager.

“From making wooden dairy boxes for butter in the 1920s, Austral Plywoods has come a long way. In recent years, we have concentrated on the ‘niche’ markets. Austral Plywoods is now regarded as Australia’s leading manufacturer of premium grade hoop pine plywood and our expertise has grown into decorative panels for walls, ceilings and cabinetry. The product range is mainly for plywood that is ‘seen’ and we produce either B-B grade or A-C grade faced grade plywoods for those decorative applications. Our Marine plywood is the ‘Rolls Royce’ of plywoods being all ‘A’ grade veneer throughout the construction. This year we introduced two new exciting products, Ariaply and Endurapanel,” Gary says.

Austral Plywoods’ Ariaply is used in semi-exposed applications and Endurapanel can be used in fullyexposed applications for facades, which is the first time Austral has recommend their plywood to be used fully-exposed.

Both of these new products boast a seven year coating warranty and a 25 year bond warranty. These products are also treated against mould and rot plus they are ‘envelope-dipped’ ensuring all edges are sealed and ready to install. These are easy to install and are designed to save projects on labour and installation costs, a common complaint in the industry.

Austral Plywood’s client bases are wholesalers who are located conveniently all throughout Australia and New Zealand. From butter boxes to structural beauty -- the Austral Plywood story has been a long time in the making and it looks like it’s got an even longer future.

n Veneer being clipped, photo by Austral Plywoods

n G rading before hot press, photo by Austral Plywoods

n Peeling lathe, photo by Austral Plywoods

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n Trim saws, photo by Austral Plywoods

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AUSTRALIAN TIMBER DESIGN AWARDS

Small Budget and Certified Timber award winner 2014 (House of Cupboards by WilderCoyle Furniture and Design) is our feature for this edition of Australasian Timber in the lead-up to this year’s prestigious Australian Timber Design Awards.

House of Cupboards was a dream come true

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WARD-WINNING WilderCoyle furniture and design is a collaborative partnership between Nicholas Coyle Furniture Maker and Sunny Wilder Architect. “We are a multidisciplinary design practice where together we design and construct anything from furniture items to whole houses,” says Sunny.

“All of our pieces are crafted in our own studio workshop and centre on the use of native Australian timbers.

“We are committed and passionate about creating high quality yet affordable solid timber furniture in a contemporary, refined and minimalist style. We believe that furniture should last many lifetimes.

Our inspiration comes from the spacial nature of the furniture object, timber as a raw material and the notion of true craft,” according to Nicholas and Sunny.

WilderCoyle furniture and design was formerly The Timber Trip, a furniture company Nick Coyle began in Brunswick Street Fitzroy 20 years ago.

“The business has moved on in many ways since then and we wanted to rebrand using our names,” says Sunny.

The WilderCoyle workshop, showroom and studio is now located in the coastal town of Pambula, southern NSW. “We moved here from Melbourne 41/2 years ago to follow our dream of building the House of Cupboards, a flat pack sustainable low cost house prototype and to be closer to nature and closer to supplies of beautiful native hardwoods.

“Sustainability is important to us; we have been using recycled timbers before it was fashionable; we continue to use them and sustainably harvested Australian Timbers. We are committed to using native timbers to make a beautiful product.

“We are a long established business working commercially and domestically crafting bespoke furniture for our clients.”

The brief they set for their award-winning project: • Plenty of storage and for it be an integral and structural part of the house • Low cost and affordable designer home • Prefabricated using solid hardwood, in our own workshop • Easy to deliver and easy to put together on site • Quick to build • Sustainable • Bushfire resistant • Efficiency and flexibility • Aesthetically pleasing and liveable When asked how they arrived at the award winning design/construction, Sunny said: “We joke that we came up for the idea of structural cupboards because in the last traditional house we built for ourselves it took Nick years to complete the joinery - (i.e. a joiners house has no cupboards). So, when we set out to design this house we designed it so the cupboards were integral to the structure of the design, not something to be finished off later.

“In essence there is truth to this and we believe that cupboards and storage should be an integral part of the house and we were interested in working with a space

“ This project is an example of how a natural, low-tech material such as timber combined with traditional joinery techniques can be used in a new and innovative way.” where the cupboards and storage informed the layout of the house.

“We have long been interested in modular and prefabricated housing and see that this is a really important way forward in the construction industry and the general house market. We were investigating how timber can be used as the primary construction element of a prefabricated housing product, not just a pretty cladding.”

Solid timber is used to create the grid pattern of structural cupboard sections. The timber cupboards are pre-fabricated in the workshop and utilise mortice and tenon joinery to be assembled easily and quickly on site. The timber cupboard sections are left visible to express the structure of the house.

“Due our use of timber we were able to build quickly, economically and aesthetically reducing time and waste on site,” Sunny said.

“This project is an example of how a natural, lowtech material such as timber combined with traditional joinery techniques can be used in a new and innovative way.”

What did the award meant at that time?

“The award really meant a lot to us; it was great to receive recognition for our work from our peers and the timber industry. Although we won the small budget project we were also shortlisted in the Judge’s Innovation Award, this was special to us as it highlighted the creative thinking behind the project.

“It hasn’t quite given us the leverage to develop the project further into a housing product commodity that that can be packaged and sold - but this is the vision we have for the product!

They are currently working primarily as furniture designer makers specialising in solid timber joinery and construction.

Some of their major clients over the 10 years have included: Commercial clients: OxfamAustralia, National Australia Bank, The Melbourne Aquatic Centre, National Gallery of Victoria, Sturmer Agencies.

Bar and Restaurant fit-outs include: La Luna Carlton, Gerald’s Bar Carlton, Cumulus Inc, Gold Field’s, Mrs Jones, Ichi Ni, Bar, Lourinha, Casa Cuccio, Barlotta South Melbourne, The Price Wine Store Sydney.

Sunny Wilder, Architect WilderCoyle Furniture & Design 0419 111 250

From humble beginnings

THE AUSTRALIAN Timber Design Awards were born out of the need to honour the growing use of timber in housing and commercial construction.

First held in 1999 with a humble field of 25 entrants it now attracts more than 100 per year. “The diversity of entrants to the Awards is enormous with entries such as houses, exhibition centres, libraries, medium density residences, art, hospitals, bridges, wharves, joinery and furniture showing the huge range timber and wood products use,” said Andrew Dunn, chief executive officer of the Timber Development Association when speaking about the history of the awards.

Winners will be announced in Melbourne at the Awards Presentation Night in mid-September. www.timberbiz.com.au

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ASSOCIATIONS

Meeting future market demand Fitec

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

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ABMA AND the SA government held a forum for industry stakeholders in Adelaide on May 27.

The forum aimed at improving links between our industry and South Australian policy and decision makers. Discussion topics included: • Meeting future market demand – A strategic directions issues paper for the national industry • Future liaison and collaboration between industry and government • Managing Work Health and Safety obligations The forum was well attended and included participation by federal and state politicians.

A Fitec strategy meeting was held in Sydney on May 20. Newly-appointed general manager, June Dunleavy, put the agenda together and the result was a sound strategy and plan moving forward into the next three years. A new Fitec board of directors is being put together to assist in driving the organization forward and will be holding its first meeting in early August.

SA Management Committee

Under the chairmanship of Andrew Bone (Bone Timber), the TABMA SA management committee met in Adelaide on May 5. In attendance were Simon Angove (Le Messurier), David Thomas (Freeman Wauchope), Brenton Thain (Gunnersen), Nick White (Footersville), Alicia Oelkers (TABMA State Manager Qld and SA, Jim Dickens (TABMA SA field officer) and the writer. This committee is instrumental in deciding the future direction of TABMA in SA and assisting in the positioning of Fitec in the state.

TABMA Queensland

Under the stewardship of Queensland chairman Michael Gaske and Queensland State Manager Alicia Oelkers, TABMA Queensland is in a very strong position and has a record number of placements of trainees and apprentices. The SE Queensland market currently appears to be very strong and this is assisting us in placements and in general staff recruitment. With Fitec and TABMA operating out of the same premises there is pleasing collaboration between the two organisations which is leading to excellent results.

Vale Barry Warren

We were very saddened in April to learn of the accidental passing of industry stalwart Barry Warren. Barry, through his positions with Dindas, Wesbeam and Tilling Timber, was a great friend and supporter of TABMA and he will be greatly missed. We extend our condolences to his family.

Understanding product moisture content David Hayward ATFA Technical Manager.

When it comes to timber based flooring products we often want to know what the moisture content is. This is often because flooring manufacturing standards refer to moisture content and we want to know if the product complies. But a product’s moisture content does not tell all the story and when it comes to different types of flooring products, is it right to compare one products moisture content with another? David Hayward, ATFA Technical Manager explains how there may be more to this than you first thought.

Firstly, if timber based flooring products were not hygroscopic then we would not care too much about moisture content. Hygroscopic means that the product has the ability to absorb moisture from the air under moist conditions and is also able to release moisture back to the air under dry conditions. When a product absorbs moisture from the air its moisture content increases and therefore when releasing moisture there is a corresponding decrease in product moisture content. However, what is most important with these products is that with a change in moisture content there is also a change in the dimensions of the product. It is this change in dimension or expansion and contraction that occurs in boards which makes knowing a product’s moisture content so important.

Therefore by knowing the moisture content of the flooring product being installed and the local area conditions we know to expect that floorboards

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will shrink, swell or stay much as they were after installation.

Relative humidity is what determines whether the air is considered moist or dry. Generally we like to live in conditions of about 50% to 60% relative humidity. This we find comfortable and above 75% in warmer climates we often feel uncomfortable and may comment how humid it is. Conversely conditions below about 40% we would consider as dry.

The relationship between relative humidity and moisture content of solid timber is well understood as is the change in board width with changing relative humidity and moisture content. Indicatively this is shown in the adjacent diagram.

Therefore, if we live in house conditions where the relative humidity averages about 60% we also know that solid timber flooring at about 11% moisture content will remain stable and the effects from board expansion or shrinkage over the seasons will be small.

Due to this natural solid timber flooring is often manufactured at a moisture content of about 11%.

Now this is important. When it comes to other product types we want them to also be stable in usual living conditions that say average 60% relative humidity. However, generally their moisture content will not be the same as for natural solid timber. If we take strand woven bamboo for example, then at 60% relative humidity its moisture content will be lower than that of solid timber and likely about 8.5%. This is due in part to the manufacturing process where the product is bonded under high pressure forces. Another example is thermally modified timber flooring where the thermal modification process lowers the products moisture content. Therefore in conditions of 60% relative humidity the moisture content of thermally modified wood will be significantly below that of the same wood that has not been thermally modified.

From this it is evident that the moisture contents of different product types cannot be directly compared

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and for that matter, the degree to which these different product types expand or shrink under changing relative humidity conditions will also differ.

One final word of caution relates to the use of moisture meters on different products, whether this be the capacitance type meter that rests on the board’s surface or a resistance meter with pins, these meters are designed for natural solid timber products and will not provide sensible readings if attempts are made to use them to estimate the moisture content of the likes of strand woven bamboo. To obtain true moisture content of these other products it is necessary to determine the moisture content by the oven dry method.

So it is important that we do not mislead ourselves or others when it comes to product moisture contents.

Under normal living conditions many of the newer products entering the marketplace are going to have different moisture contents to that of natural solid timber and the degree to which they shrink or swell to seasonal changes in relative humidity will also differ.

Natural solid timber flooring differs in its moisture properties to that of both strand woven bamboo and thermally modified wood. So take care to only compare apples with apples.

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ASSOCIATIONS

National wage increase JOBACTIVE – a new Government initiative On 1 July 2015, the Australian Government is introducing new employment services called Jobactive to better meet the needs of job seekers and employers and improve job outcomes.

This will replace Job Services Australia.

Brian Beecroft Chief Executive Officer Timber Trade Industrial Association

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HE FAIR Work Commission has released the 2015 Annual Wage Review decision under the Fair Work Act, 2009 on 2 June 2015. This is the sixth annual minimum wage review to be conducted by the Fair Work Commission.

This decision increases modern award wage rates by 2.5% and also increases the national minimum wage from $640.90 to $656.90 per week, being $17.29 per hour, up by 42 cents per hour.

The increase is more than the $5.70 per week that many business groups recommended, but less than the $27 the trade union movement had sought.

The increased rates will take effect

from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2015.

All employers should ensure they meet the new minimum obligations from 1 July 2015. Please remember, the increase is fully absorbable into over award payments.

At this time, it is recommended that employers take the opportunity to check the award classifications of their employees in order ensure that they are being paid at the correct rates. TTIA Members with any queries are invited to contact the TTIA hotline on (02) 9264 0011.

What do the changes mean for employers?

The network of Jobactive organisations across Australia will help employers find staff for their business, at no charge to them. These organisations will screen candidates to ensure they meet an employer’s business needs.

The Jobactive organisation will work with job seekers to support them to take part in Work for the Dole or other activities to prepare them for the work environment. Any training job seekers do will be relevant to employers’ needs and real job opportunities.

Employers will have access to wage subsidies for young people, mature age people, Indigenous people and long

term unemployed people to take on job seekers and provide job specific training where needed.

There will also be more tailored online services available to employers which will enable them to fast-track advertising and manage vacancies, find and manage suitable candidates and connect with Jobactive organisations.

What support is available for employers during the transition?

Employers who have recently taken on a job seeker through a Job Services Australia provider will continue to receive the support and assistance they need.

The Job Services Australia providers the employer currently works with will contact them to let them know what is happening and whether they will continue to deliver services. Details are available on the organisations that will be delivering Jobactive from 1 July 2015.

If you have any questions about these changes or would like more information, you can: Call the National Customer Service Line on 1300 854 414 or 13 62 68 or go online https://jobsearch.gov.au/jobactive

Apprenticeship or traineeship to suit your business Whittakers Timber Products at Greenbushes Western Australia has now completed all production on site, everything is now on the market and must be sold.

By Eric Siegers Executive Officer Timber Merchants Association RECENTLY THERE was a test case run at the Fair Work Commission that covered, among other matters, the issue of payment for an apprentice’s training costs. As a result, modern awards are being varied to reflect the following provisions: Employers are now responsible for paying course fees and textbooks, unless the employer already owns the textbooks. Payment is required within six months of the commencement of the relevant stage of an apprenticeship, and can be made directly to the training provider. This payment is subject to the apprentice making satisfactory progress in their studies.

• if an apprentice is required to attend training that necessitates an overnight stay, travel costs are payable by the employer. This can sometimes be offset by government funding that may be available to assist with such costs. This clause may not apply if the apprentice could have attended training closer to home.

• time an apprentice spends at training or assessment is time worked for the purpose of • wages & other employment conditions such as leave accruals.

But most businesses question the value of apprenticeships, and there are numerous alternatives to acquiring the appropriate candidates at costs that help the business and minimise the impact. www.timberbiz.com.au

View our website www.whittakersequipmentsale.com.au

A number of Government Apprenticeships and Traineeships have been designed to be flexible, whilst simultaneously providing nationally recognised qualifications.

There is likely to be an Australian Apprenticeship or Traineeship to suit your business needs, as they are available in a variety of qualification levels in most occupations across Australia, as well as a diverse range of emerging careers. The purpose of various Government-sponsored programs is to provide solid education to the apprentice while assisting with the costs direct to the employer without necessarily going through a third party. For instance in Victoria there is a free service where State Government Funded Training, with national accreditation is available. Importantly, as an employer of a trainee you may be eligible for incentives that can go directly to your organisation to support the apprentice in question.

TMA has formed a relationship with Apprenticeships Melbourne to help members access the best apprenticeship solution for their business, offered as part of the membership where any proceeds from Government go direct to the member.

This is a great way to bring new entrants to an industry where we are confronting a growing retirement issue in a way that incentivizes businesses to acquire new people and ideas. In an industry where we need more people working with new and creative ideas knowing we have at least one source that can help us.

AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

All plant & equipment is being offered at super low prices on an as is where is basis!

The Company Directors say, “SELL IT ALL” Complete near new 2006 MEM sawmill 1 x band saw head rig and carriage 3 x one man bench saws 1 x 6 blade edger 3 x fault dockers Assorted green mill transfer decks, chain and spares Complete automated stacking line Comprehensive saw shop 1 x complete fulgrum 525HP chipping plant 4 x 120m3 HB conventional kilns (installed 2006) Kiln sawdust/thermal oil heating system 3 x Weinig 22B moulders including infeed/outfeed system 4 x manual up-cut fault dockers Assorted dry mill outfeed decks 2 x MPB endmatchers max width 150mm 1 x MPB endmatcher max width 200mm 1 x optimizing docker Grecon/Dimter 350 model Tool grinding shop, assorted heads and profiles Assorted dust extraction systems including cyclones and all pipe Assorted forklifts from 2.5ton to 17 ton (14 x machines in total) 4 x Loaders with log grabs, standard bucket and oversize chip bucket Compressors, air storage vessels, air line and refrigerated dryers Huge inventory of smaller items View our website www.whittakersequipmentsale.com.au or telephone Chris on (08) 9459 6877 – mobile 0409 083 977 or Geoff on (08) 9302 2022 – mobile 0409 302 200

JUNE 2015

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ASSOCIATIONS

Conference coverage was most extensive

By Kersten Gentle Executive Officer / FTMA Australia

T

he 2015 FTMA Australia National Conference was held at Novotel Twin Waters on the Sunshine Coast on 28 April and was a great success with close to 150 delegates attending.

Of course with all FTMA Australia Conferences, there is always plenty of networking and fun and this starts on the Red Activities Day sponsored

by Pryda Australia and Hyne Timber.

This year delegates played Golf or participated in the Segway event which featured plenty of stacks and laughter.

The winners of the Golf Challenge were Colin & Andrew Clements of AAA Trusses and Sandy Ogg of CHHWP. The Red Activities Day finished off with the Official Ice-Breaker BBQ which was held on a beautiful beach location with music, networking and with laser clay shooting. Guns and alcohol don’t usually mix but I can assure you it was only laser clay shooting and the competition was hot all night with the champion of the night being Paul Colless of Calco Trusses & Timber taking out the prize, narrowly beating his sister Christine.

The FTMA Conference had a large trade exhibition with 15 exhibitors in the Wandiny Room with all delegates receiving good networking opportunities with the sponsors/ exhibitors with some even enjoying a massage at the Vekta Automation stand.

Fabricators are the ones who decide on the final program through surveys and this year it was clear that they wanted to learn various tools that would assist their business skills and produce a leaner factory.

The Prefabricated Ground Floor FTMA project which was presented on by Alastair Woodard of Wood

Products Victoria outlining the intensive work carried out over the past 12 months culminating in the production of a business plan. The session then heard from fabricators who have actually been involved in the project manufacturing with some also installing the new flooring systems.

Michael Hartman followed up on the importance of upskilling your employees and the benefits it brings your business. The perfect example was the new skills needed for the development and possible installation of the prefab flooring.

Harley Dale as always painted an honest picture of the current housing market showing that NSW was the boom state over the coming 12-18 months and the issue our sector faces with the increase in multi-residential housing. As an industry we need to learn to adapt to the new housing demands and in FTMA’s opinion, if our sector doesn’t step up and take up the opportunity of more modular styled / panelised prefabricated buildings than someone else will. This is our space and I encourage all fabricators to talk to their nail plate companies because there is so much work being done in this field.

An FTMA Member told me they could listen to Alastair Woodard all day as he speaks with so much passion and expertise and this was no different when he spoke about the Wood Solutions program and how fabricators could help promote the program to builders and architects and also learn more about the benefits of timber that could assist in promotions of their product.

Business expert John Simon talked on the subject of what if your business worth and how do you maximise its value to a buyer covering key issues

n Andrew Bricknell (MiTek), Peter & Andrea Alexander (Peuker & Alexander VIC)

such as due diligence, knowing your business and finished with the great advise of getting yourself a good advisor and start planning years ahead to get the best outcome.

FTMA Board member Clive Martella touched on the tricky issue of detailer and estimator skill levels.

As an industry we have developed nationally recognised qualifications for our industry but the questions was put forward as to how this relates to the pay levels for estimators and detailers.

Clive’s business has a detailed skill level set that recognises the different levels which isn’t just beneficial for the business but gives the employee targets and growth opportunities.

Clive finished by saying he believes this is something our industry is lacking and he firmly believe this should not be left up to others to introduce, who do not have an excellent knowledge of our industry. We as an industry need to be the ones to stand up and take the next step forward. I believe it will be something that will not only benefit the employer and the employee, but it will protect both parties.

Peter McLean who has been working

n A lastair Woodard from Wood Products Victoria presented on FTMA Prefab Flooring Project with panel: Greg Dobson (Custombuilt Frame & Truss), Peter Ward (Drouin West Timber & Truss), Ella Bennett (Pryda Australia) and Kersten Gentle (FTMA) GOLD

SILVER

BRONZE

SPONSORS

SPONSORS

SPONSORS

Australasia

with ForestWorks & FTMA on the Innovation Skills Program talked about the benefits of Industry Clusters stating that no single company alone has the ability to solve the industry’s most challenging problems. His presentation has already resulted in a fabricator wanting to set up a cluster in his regional area to work together on waste and I believe this is only the starting point and that regional based clusters can benefit our industry in a wide range of areas.

The last session of the day focused on the topic I have talked in great lengths about which is Waste Management so I won’t continue to go on about this except to say following the conference more work is being done and I believe this is an area fabricators can save money in to the future.

The final presentation was by a nervous but knowledgeable Barry Edgley of Alpine Truss on Job Management Software which demonstrated the importance of tracking quotes, production and delivery. Streamlining definitely saves your business money and I believe the days of the white boards tracking deliveries and jobs is gone and over the coming 12 months we look forward to working with members to ensure they are looking down this path. All the nail plate companies and even some timber companies have scheduling / job management software that can help fabricators and FTMA urges fabricators to follow up, as like all I have spoken to who have gone down this path, I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised.

The conference finished with the traditional National Conference Dinner sponsored by Multinail Australia and this year we presented 2 Inaugural Recognition of Service to Industry Awards to TimberTrader News Founder Greg King and Trussquip Director Ross Rayner who have both contributed

MEDIA

INDEPENDENT & AUSTRALIAN OWNED

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www.timberbiz.com.au

ASSOCIATIONS

nM ultinail team – Bill Bagnall, Trent Taylor and Trent Bucholz

n Winning Segway Team: Rose Dee (Austbrokers Phillips), Justin Flanagan (Calco Trusses), Wendy Boyd (Multinail), John Dallimore (Hyne), Christine Flanagan (Calco Trusses) & Phil Ladson (Multinail)

nG ary Webster, Aaron Bishop, John Cannard, Robbie Andrews, Richard Knowles, Colin Taverner

nB ill Bagnall (Multinail) with Wayne Hondow & Andrew Bricknell (MiTek Australia)

nS helena Serrano (Vekta Automation), Mark Smiles (MiTek) and Neville Johnson (Alpine Trusses)

nA shley Price (Key Components Pty Ltd NSW) and Dean Kidd (Dahlsens)

Nothing goes to waste in modular biobattery RESEARCHERS AT the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Energy and Safety Technology have developed a “biobattery” in the form of a highly efficient biogas plant that can turn raw into a variety of useful energy sources including electricity, purified gas and engine oil. The new plant design, currently being put to the test in a prototype plant in Germany, is said to be highly modular and economically viable even at the small scale.

A new biogas plant developed at the Fraunhofer Institute could solve this problem by taking a number of materials that would normally have to be disposed of at great cost (like industrial biomass waste, sewage sludge, straw, scrap wood or manure) and process them with high efficiency into a more useful output, all through a highly modular, flexible design.

The raw materials pass through a sluice in an airless environment and into a continuously rotating screw. There the material is heated and broken down into biochar and volatile gases. The www.timberbiz.com.au

gases are in part purified and collected, and in part condensed into a liquid containing a mixture of water and high-quality oil.

The end products can be used in various ways: the oil can be turned into fuel for ships or airplanes; the gases are used to produce electricity in a combined heat and power plant; and the biochar can be used as fertilizer.

Besides the flexibility that comes from accepting multiple raw materials and producing multiple outputs, another crucial advantage to the biobattery is that, according to the scientists’ financial analysis, even a small-scale plant requiring a small investment would be financially profitable.

Because of the built-in modularity, the plant could then be gradually upgraded to process more materials with higher efficiency. The technology is being demonstrated in a pilot plant that can process 30 kg (66 lbs) of biomass per hour, and plans are being made for larger installations.

Source: Fraunhofer Institute AUSTRALASIAN TIMBER

JUNE 2015

so much to our industry. Greg & Ross were worthy inaugural recipients and a criteria for this award will be developed with a sub-committee formed to judge future award winners.

FTMA Australia thanks everyone for their attendance, making this the biggest fabricator attended conference nationally for the past 6 years.

Of course we thank the amazing sponsors who helped subsidise the conference and ensure awesome networking opportunities. Sponsors such as Multinail, Pryda, Austbrokers Phillips, HealthCare Insurance, Vekta Automation, Daw Trading, Carter Holt Harvey Wood Products, Dindas, Hundegger, Hyne Timber, LP Building Products, McCormack Hardwood Sales, Mitre10 & StoraEnso Australia.

FTMA will stick with our successful formula of having the National Conference every two years with the next National event in 2017 but the board has approved a change for the coming 12 months which includes webinars and seminars throughout the country so stay tuned on how FTMA Australia is working hard to help your business succeed.

Finally FTMA Australia has posted all the Conference presentations on the Members Resources section of the website and has also upgraded their website to ensure members greater access to a wide range of resources including HR/OHS, Employment Contracts and other information. If you’re a member and have forgotten your login details please flick me an email at kersten@ftmaaustralia.com.au or look in your white FTMA Membership Folders which includes your login details.

Clearance Sale

Mt Beauty Timber Industries Pty Ltd is seeking to clear all sawmilling plant & equipment from our site at Mount Beauty in N/East Victoria.

Most items priced under $20,000 List of items include; • Gibson Log Carriage with McKee Load Deck • Twin Circular Log B/Down Unit & Outfeed • Macsim Sizing Carriage with Loading Deck • 72” Klamath Band Saw • Isles Forge 54” Band Resaw & Roundabout • Grey Circular Saw Bench & Infeed • Sumner Multi Saw Edger • 48” Precision Chipper and Chip Screen • Twin Saw Board Dock/End Trim System • Board Unscrambler • Goldsmith & Vollmer Saw Sharpeners • Armstrong Band Saw Sharpener & Tensioner • 120M3 Solar kilns x 2 • Stainless Steel Reconditioning Chamber • Ingersoll Rand SSR 2000 10L Air Compressor • Transfers, Rollcases, Trolleys, Blowers & more

To view all items and prices visit our website at www.mtbeautytimber.com or contact Bruce on 0428 361497 or mbtimber@bigpond.com 23

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