The very successful WoodTECH 2019 series has just been completed. With the focus on green-mill or sawmilling operations, around 350 delegates from local mills and technology providers from around the globe, were involved in the technology series that wound up in Melbourne, Australia on 18 September. Details from the event can be found on www.woodtech.events/wt19. From discussions with mills and …
Cutting edge production techniques adopted
The strong scent of pine you get as you pass by logging depots at our major ports is one of the more obvious signs of our booming export industry for radiata pine logs from New Zealand. Around seven per cent of our land area is covered in forest logging plantations, which produced exports in the form of raw logs and …
Hundegger Australasia appoints NZ Manager
Hundegger Australasia are pleased to announce the appointment of Benedikt (Ben) Buerschgens to the position Regional Manager – New Zealand. The expansion of Hundegger machinery in Australia and New Zealand over the past 18 months, including the frame and truss segment, prefabrication, glulam and other mass timber applications has led Hundegger to make this strategic decision to support their valued …
Norske Skog announces sale of Albury Mill
Norske Skog this week announced the sale of the Albury assets to Australian papermaker Visy who plan to undertake feasibility studies into the potential future uses of those assets on the site. The sale is part of a broad Strategic Asset Review of the Australasian operations by Norske Skog’s owner Oceanwood. The review confirmed the need to reduce newsprint capacity …
Largest North American CLT plant opened
Engineered wood and building development giant Katerra’s new cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glulam plant is now open in Washington. Katerra says the 270,000 square foot facility is the largest of its kind in North America. Citing “off the charts” demand for its CLT, the US$150 million manufacturing plant will produce up to 13 million board feet of timber per year. …
Load detection and 3D collision warning for mobile intralogistics
Warehouses and distribution centres are increasingly looking to integrate digitalisation, automated guided vehicle systems (AGV) and other mobile platforms to optimise their operations. Flexibility, reliability, availability, and productivity are the major contributing factors in the efficient use of these vehicles. This is why it is so essential to detect potential faults as early as possible and respond to them appropriately …
Bolted connections and impact on machine reliability
As part of the WoodTECH 2019 series run by the Forest Industry Engineering Association, sawmillers throughout New Zealand and Australia were treated to some hands-on practical troubleshooting and mill maintenance sessions. One of these was given by the well-known sawmilling guru, Joe Shields from USNR. The presentation was titled “Primary Breakdown Machine Alignment and Maintenance Techniques to Improve Reliability”. During …
Mechanical apprentice shares his timber story
How did you decide your career path? Did you want to follow in your parent’s footsteps, or set your own career path? For OneFortyOne’s Sam Von Duve, it was a mixture of both that inspired him to launch his career as an apprentice at Mount Gambier’s Jubilee Sawmill. Sam is currently completing his apprenticeship in mechanical engineering, working at the …
First moves for Tasmanian hardwood CLT operation
Exciting news out of Tasmania is that a brand new, purpose-built hardwood CLT plant will be constructed in the state’s north-west industrial centre of Wynyard. Stirling Machinery has been selected by CLTP Tasmania to supply state-of-the-art machines for stage 1 of the project, due to be completed before the end of 2019. Both a domestic and international game changer, this …
Sawmill profits fall in North America
Sawmill profit margins have fallen substantially in North America over the past 12 months with BC sawmills margins in the 2Q/19 being close to their lowest levels in 15 years, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly. Costs for sawlogs declined in most major regions around the world in the first half of 2019. However, lumber prices have fallen faster in key …