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The FWPA-supported National Centre for Timber Durability and Design Life hosted its fourth annual showcase last month, with an impressive 35% uptick in attendance. This increase is a clear reflection of the growing interest in and engagement around the organisation’s research that exists amongst industry stakeholders. Source: Timberbiz Throughout the day delegates were given updates on the latest developments resulting from key centre-led work, as well as the progress of other ongoing activities. Centre director, Professor Tripti Singh, outlined the key areas the team is currently focused on during her presentation outlining the overall vision for the future of the centre. “We continue to work hard to foster collaborative, relevant and impactful research projects that will address key industry challenges and create a future in which timber is recognised and celebrated for its durability, versatility, and sustainability,” Prof. Singh said. “The development of an effective outreach strategy focusing on building trust amongst timber consumers will also be crucial to the future success of the sector, and this will be a high priority for the team going forward.” During his opening address, Dr Chris Lafferty, FWPA Research and Development Manager, emphasised the many exciting opportunities that now exist for industry to engage directly with researchers, helping to make sure project outcomes are widely understood and applied in real-world settings. “We encourage all showcase attendees and industry members more generally to ask any questions they may have, to challenge researchers when necessary, and to persevere in their quests for answers so that no enquires go unresolved,” Dr Lafferty said. A total of 18 presentations were given by centre-based staff and students during the event, as well as key research partners including the University of Queensland (UQ) and the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF). The showcase was attended by around 75 guests, approximately 50 of whom attended in person, with an additional 25 watching the presentations online. This figure represents a sizeable increase on the attendance figures of showcases held during the previous three years. The mix of attendees was diverse and included academics from various universities, and representatives from industry members and key industry bodies. One of the highlights of the day included an update on the centre’s National Timber Circularity Project. This three-year industry-funded initiative recently completed its first year. This work’s objective is to address and overcome the challenges and barriers associated with recycling treated timber and Engineered Wood Products (EWPs), to extend service life and create additional opportunities and income streams for industry. As part of the centre’s circular economy project, significant advancements already made by the researchers include the quantifying and analysis of the current condition of end-of-life resources nationally. Regulatory challenges have also been assessed by the team, with the completed draft report now being used to support the development of information sheets that will support industry for the reuse of treated timber and EWPs amongst regulators. The showcase also provided a unique opportunity to update industry directly on the developments associated with major Centre-led work, including projects focusing on the moisture and decay performance of timber, the various impacts of climate change on timber products, the treatability of the Australian softwood timber resource, and service life prediction models. Attendees also enjoyed updates on projects investigating the effects of moisture on timber product connections, the fire performance of wood, accelerated fungal decay and termite testing, and the smouldering issues associated with CCA-treated timber. Professor Ross Young, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research and Development at UniSc, presented the event’s concluding remarks. “I would like to highlight UniSC’s ongoing commitment to forestry research, as well as congratulating the Centre team for its continued hard work in leading nationwide research and development activities that will have a tangible and positive impact for the forestry industry in Australia,” Mr Young said. Following the recent showcase event, Professor Nami Kartel has announced his decision to step down from his position at the Centre due to personal family reasons and return to Turkey. Consequently, the centre will soon initiate a search for a new Centre Research Fellow. FWPA extends its gratitude to Professor Kartel for his significant contributions to the Centre and its activities and wishes him all the best in his future endeavours.  

TAFE NSW Tumut is supporting the rapidly changing face of the timber industry with a record number of female first-year apprentice saw technicians being trained at the campus. Source: Timberbiz According to Jobs and Skills Australia, just 1% of the nation’s saw technicians are female but the gender balance is shifting, with three new female apprentices being welcomed to TAFE NSW Tumut for their first training session this week. Kelsey Sheehy from Oberon, Hayley Hampson from Riverstone and Brisbane’s Hayley Wilson are all part of the new cohort, the most female saw doctors in a single class in the history of TAFE NSW Tumut. The campus is one of only two forestry training providers in Australia, giving apprentice saw doctors from across the nation the skills and experience to forge long careers in the industry. Meanwhile, Tumut and Tumbarumba are home to a global forestry industry, with nearly 18 per cent of the region’s workforce employed in the industry. Ms Sheehy, 20, was a self-confessed “girly-girl” at high school and dreamed of a career as a nurse or a hairdresser. But after taking a part-time job as a production worker at Highland Pine in Oberon, she fell in love with the fast-pace and frenetic energy of a timber mill, securing a job as an apprentice saw technician earlier this year. “I never thought I’d be doing a job like this but it’s such an interesting profession and you get a front row seat to such an important industry,” Ms Sheehy said. “Saw doctors are a critical part of the industry and it’s great to be working on the machines. “I’m really proud to be part of the first generation of women coming through as saw doctors. “This is my first week of TAFE NSW training, but it’s given me deeper insights into how different mills operate and it’s been great to meet the other apprentices.” As part of their training this week, students were treated to a tour of Visy Pulp and Paper, a world-class facility which produces over 680,000 tonnes of high-quality paper each year. TAFE NSW Tumut forestry teacher Fred Dean, who also works as a leading hand at local mill AKD, said first-year apprentice saw technician enrolments were at their highest point in the history of the campus. “It’s such a specific trade and people are realising there’s so much job security in it as we’ll be using timber for many years to come,” Mr Dean said. “It’s great to see female saw technicians start to come through. Technology has really changed the game in saw technology and it’s now more than just a hands-on trade.” Saw technicians, also known as saw doctors, are an irreplaceable part of the timber industry, repairing, setting and sharpening saw blades for timber production, often working within fractions of millimetres. TAFE NSW Tumut draws apprentice saw technicians from across the nation’s timber regions for three, one-week face-to-face learning blocks each year on the campus’s industry standard equipment.  

A major new firefighting water resource has been established in a Wattle Range blackspot in South Australia through the sophisticated redesign of the local drainage network. Source: Timberbiz Hardwood plantation company ABP (Australian Bluegum Plantations), in partnership with the CFS (Country Fire Service) and the South Eastern Water Conservation and Drainage Board, have constructed a first of its kind dam at Coles, in the heart of the plantation estate, which has successfully captured water from the Bakers Range South Drain as a specific firefighting resource. With enough supply to fill the state’s Black Hawk helicopter 600 times over, the two megalitre reservoir has been strategically placed in a dry zone with no readily available water resource coverage. ABP director Laurie Hein was instrumental in designing the concept, which fills a basin dug into the drain bed, retaining the water when flows subside. He said the Coles fires of 2022, which impacted 3000 hectares of land including plantation resource, had highlighted the major resource gap with crews forced to travel significant distance to refill, impacting response times. “Every minute counts in a fire response with access to reliable and accessible water resources critical in controlling a blaze,” Mr Hein said. “By redirecting this water resource, holding it up in the environment longer, we have been able to create a generational asset that will play an instrumental role in controlling a fire, reducing the risk of spread and causing catastrophic damage. “This dam will not only protect our plantation estate but will provide landscape wide coverage defending neighbouring farmland, key environmental assets and importantly the broader community.” CFS regional commander Jason Druwitt said firefighting crews had previously utilised public water resources, such as the Naracoorte Swim Lake, disrupting community-use during high fire danger days. “The dam replaces a previous blackspot in the region and offers a faster and more effective water source for our ground crews and our firefighting aircraft,” Regional Commander Druwitt said. “If you add to the mix the recent investment in AI Fire Detection Cameras, I believe our region now has the most sophisticated layers of surveillance to enhance how we respond to, and mitigate the risk of, bushfires. South Eastern Water Conservation and Drainage Board presiding member Brett McLaren said the first dam had been such a success, planning was now underway to develop two additional sites on the drainage network, working with fellow hardwood plantation owners. “This project is a key priority in our strategy to minimise flooding and retain water for the broader benefit of our community, and importantly in this scenario assisting communities and industry in an emergency response,” Mr McLaren said. “This project has been a great demonstration on how through community partnership we can use innovative methods to hold up water in our environment for localised use. This dam and the others to be constructed will play a significant role in community safety for generations to come, helping to protect lives, properties and infrastructure from potential bushfire events.”