Leading Canadian Sawmill Machinery Manufacturer TS Manufacturing has recently acquired a majority shareholding in Automation & Electronics NZ Ltd and its AEUSA division based in North Carolina. The acquisition strengthens TS Controls division in the North American market by adding additional controls support combined with AE Optimization technology. A&E is a well-established company with a 33-year history in the Australasian …
New wood treatment plants fully automated
IWT-Moldrup, a Danish company that manufactures wood treatment operations, has in recent years supplied a number of semi-automatic wood treatment plants to Australia for treating 30,000 m3 treated timber per annum. Some plants have been delivered ready for expansion to fully automatic material handling at a later time. Many local companies did not want to go to the fully automated …
Mississippi State develops smartphone app to test lumber
Determining the stiffest piece of lumber is now easier with a new smartphone app created by scientists in Mississippi State University’s Forest and Wildlife Research Center. Called “Smart Thumper,” the app uses soundwaves or vibrations to determine stiffness, a quality that relates to strength, for individual pieces of lumber. Developer Dan Seale, professor in MSU’s Department of Sustainable Bioproducts, …
Lessons from workplace H&S fine
Two similar health and safety failings within three months have cost Rotorua timber company Claymark Limited over NZ$680,000 in fines, reparations and costs. WorkSafe, New Zealand’s primary workplace health and safety regulator, says that one serious injury on a company’s watch is bad enough, but that a second in close succession shows an unacceptable approach to worker safety. Claymark was …
Australia’s largest continuous timber kiln opened
The biggest single capacity continuous timber kiln in Australia was opened in Dardanup earlier this month. The Wespine-operated facility has the capacity to dry 180,000cu/m of timber per year, which allowed for the replacement of five existing kilns that operated with older technology. It will allow the timber producer to cut its gas usage by 40 per cent and lower …
Kaituna Sawmill – a good look inside a sawmill
A sawmill tucked away in a forested corner near Blenheim at the top of the South Island, New Zealand, is not so quietly producing a large chunk of the timber used for the country’s houses, decks, fences and furniture. Nelson Forests harvests about 1.2 million cubic metres of raw logs, and Kaituna Sawmill produces 65,000 cubic metres of high-grade, market-ready …
Södra announces its first robot employee
Södra welcomes Clerk, the company’s first digital robot employee. Södra was founded in 1938 and is the largest forest-owner association in Sweden, with a membership of close to 52,000 forest owners. The new robot, Clerk is a software robot that works in six departments and uses its expertise in everyday, repetitive and time-consuming tasks. “Digitalisation is creating a myriad of …
WoodTECH Update – Issue 11
Welcome to this year’s first issue of this region’s sawmilling and wood manufacturing newsletter, www.woodtech.news. Other than those unfortunately having to work on maintenance or new installations over the Christmas period we trust the break over the summer has been a good one. We’ve built in a number of stories into this issue which you should find interesting. First off, …
Clearance sought to acquire chemicals plant from Oji
The NZ Commerce Commission has received a clearance application from Ixom Operations Pty Limited to acquire chemical manufacturing assets in Kawerau from Oji Fibre Solutions (NZ) Limited. Ixom is headquartered in Australia but has chemical manufacturing, supply and distribution operations in several countries around the world. In New Zealand, Ixom supplies chemicals including sodium hypochlorite, hydrochloric acid and caustic soda. …
EOI for Australasia’s premier sawmilling event
The two-yearly technology update for sawmilling companies in New Zealand and Australia is being planned with local industry and key technology providers. It runs in September 2019. Record numbers attended the last event in 2017 and exhibition spaces sold out at both venues. 2019 plans to be even better. Mark the date now into your diaries. Early expressions of interest …
New wood panels prefab operation for Australia
Quintessential Equity has hailed the opening late last year of a new Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) processing and offsite manufacturing factory at Avalon Airport’s new industrial precinct, as a major win for both the City of Geelong and the building industry’s march toward more sustainable methods of construction. Executive Chairman of Quintessential Equity, Shane Quinn, said the launch of Cross …
Allied Timber Products sold to AAM Investments
The Australian Financial Review has reported that AAM Investment Group has acquired Allied Timber Products’ softwood sawmill and business located in Bathurst for about AU$25 million. This latest transaction is yet another addition to its diversified, unlisted investment offerings now valued at AU$160 million. The saw mill sits on six hectares and processes about 92,000 cubic metres of saw logs …
Wood processing clusters provide new opportunities
Establishing industrial clusters around wood processing is a promising prospect for regions with surplus forestry resources and can contribute substantially to New Zealand’s bottom line. In a recently completed research project, Scion identified four regions where wood processors could collaborate with other industries to provide, share and reuse materials, energy, water, and/or by-products for mutual benefit. If a cluster was …
Colour ingrained into the wood with new technology
Staining or painting timber is the traditional way to add colour to wooden products, but that colour is only surface deep. Any scratching or resurfacing can remove the colourful layer and affect the aesthetic of the wood. The full thickness colour technology developed by Scion fixes colourful dye throughout timber in a range of bright colours. The full thickness colour …
WoodTECH Update – Issue 10
Welcome to the latest update for Australasia’s sawmilling and wood manufacturing community. It’s the last WoodTECH issue for 2018. Thanks for your contributions that you’ve made during the year and ongoing support for www.woodtech.news. It’s certainly been appreciated. This month, with only days before we break for the traditional summer shut-down (other than those unfortunately having to work on maintenance or …
B.C. lumber mills struggling with log shortages
A wave of B.C. sawmill shutdowns and layoffs is a combination of reduced log supply, high log prices and a steep drop in lumber prices, forest industry executives say. Lumber prices hit a record of $650 per 1,000 board feet early this year as U.S. housing demand ramped up and B.C. producers piled up lumber due to a shortage of …
Bioenergy – State of the Nation Report launched
Bioenergy Australia on Tuesday released the Bioenergy State of the Nation Report (produced in collaboration with KPMG). The first state-of-the-nation assessment of the sector identifies Australia’s significant bioenergy opportunity and provides a criteria for kick-starting Australia’s bioenergy economy. The opportunity for Australia is significant and multi-faceted, offering an AU$3.5-$5 billion investment opportunity, mostly in regional economies, which the Australian government …
Historic sawmilling viaduct opened
An historic wooden trestle viaduct that once serviced the sawmilling industry has been restored and is once again open to visitors to the magnificent Waitutu forest in the South of New Zealand. Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage celebrated the reopening of southern Fiordland’s Percy Burn viaduct, thought to be the highest surviving wooden bridge in the world, following significant restoration work. …
NZ Timber Standards now out for public comment
This has been described by the Timber Design Society as one of the most important developments for structural engineers in recent years. They’re currently inviting all TDS members and others involved, to submit comments directly. Please follow the links below to submit your comments: DZ NZS AS 1720.1 Timber Structures – Part 1: Design Methods DR AS/NZS 1720.4:2018 Timber structures …
Predictive maintenance avoids downstream machine failures
It’s long been agreed that reactive maintenance isn’t effective. Instead of allowing equipment to reach the point of failure, issues can be spotted much earlier by detecting subtle changes in the machinery over time. With this insight, predictive maintenance is enabled and parts can be replaced before a total breakdown occurs. A predictive maintenance program is effective if the alert …
Nail laminated timber growing in popularity
With several installations under its belt, Timmerman Timberworks Inc. has opted to automate fabrication of nail-laminated timber (NLT) panels. The firm, based in New Lowell, Ont., is reportedly the only company in Canada to have done so. It is currently installing panels at 80 Atlantic Ave. in Toronto, the first new timber-frame commercial building to be constructed in the city …
PGF to support Taranaki sawmill project
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will provide a loan of up to NZ$1.8 million to TaranakiPine to allow the company to diversify and create new jobs, New Zealand’s Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced this week. TaranakiPine is in the early stages of producing factory finished engineered timber panels, which can be used in the construction of floors and …
Hyne partners with Stirling Machinery for GLT plant
Hyne Timber, manufacturer and distributor of high volume industrial, structural and engineered timber products have announced a major expansion of their Glue Laminated Timber (GLT) plant in Maryborough, Queensland. The move has involved the purchase and installation of 14 new machines supplied by Australian firm, Stirling Machinery, part of the Accurate Group. With the rise of the use of GLT …
WoodTECH Update – Issue 9
Welcome to the latest update for Australasia’s sawmilling and wood manufacturing community. Numbers of subscribers to this newsletter have really continued to grow over the last month or so – particularly after the turnout and interest generated from the WoodTECH 2018 series that ran in September. Thanks for your support and vote of confidence. If you have staff or workers …
Timberlink announces new appointments
Timberlink has announced the appointment of Jason Wilson (photo) to the newly created position of Chief Operations Officer (COO) to support its growth and development strategy. In addition, Duncan Mayes has joined the Timberlink team, taking up the position of EGM Innovation and Emerging Business. Previously, Jason has been the General Manager of Auswest Timbers, leading a business that has …
NZ mill worker injury brings hefty fine
Maintenance work leads to crush injuries – WorkSafe New Zealand says businesses must learn from previous health and safety failings to ensure workers are protected. Carter Holt Harvey Limited appeared in Whangarei District Court last week following an October 2016 incident at their Ruakaka plant. A worker suffered life changing injuries after he was crushed by part of a machine …
JoeScan debuts next gen scanner
JoeScan gave visitors a glimpse at the future of sawmill scanning during TP&EE in Portland, Oregon. The 3D laser scanning leaders brought a pair of interactive demos to their booth, showcasing a variety of innovations exclusive to their latest JS-50 prototype devices. By leveraging sixteen years of sawmill industry engineering, as well as the latest advances in hardware technology, JoeScan …
Mid-rise timber construction programme launched
A new programme launched on Monday in New Zealand aims to boost mid-rise building construction using New Zealand engineered and panelised framing timber, and deliver a range of regional, social, environmental and other benefits. Red Stag Investments Ltd, a company with its roots in forestry, wood processing and property development, has partnered with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to …
AKD Softwoods acquires NSW sawmilling business
Associated Kiln Driers Softwoods (AKD) is pleased to confirm that it has finalised the purchase of Carter Holt Harvey’s (CHH) New South Wales sawmilling business. The major assets of this business comprise of the Tumut sawmill, Gilmore treatment facility, a 50% interest in the Highland Pine Products (HPP) joint venture in Oberon and a distribution centre in Berkeley Vale. The …
Funding boost for Tairawhiti sawmill
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will invest NZ$500,000 in the Far East Saw Mill in Tairawhiti to increase wood processing capacity and get local people into jobs, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced on Friday. The total cost to recommission the Mill is just over NZ$3.6 million, with the rest of the funding coming from the Eastland Community Trust …