Friday Offcuts – 10 May 2013
Click to Subscribe - It's FREE! Thanks to all of those in Australasia and further afield who have been helping us bring together this regions first “business to business” show for sawmilling, wood manufacturing and wood panels companies, WoodEXPO 2013. We’re there. The one-day Wood Processing Summit, 2-day Technology Workshop programme and exhibitions and networking and social activities have now been set in place for both countries.The extensive list of leading technology providers participating - as of this week - are contained in the story below. With four months to go it’s pretty impressive. Please find attached a copy of the; Australian WoodEXPO 2013 programme, and New Zealand WoodEXPO 2013 programme. Both programmes can also now be downloaded from the event website, www.woodexpo2013.com. Further details and updates will be provided in the lead-up to this region's first EXPO designed specifically for sawmilling, wood manufacturing and timber panels companies within the region. We have an interesting story for you this week where its reported that interest by investors in renewable energy has apparently waned. "Cleantech" as they call it, was seen by many as an opportunity to profit from one of the biggest economic shifts in history — moving from fossil energy to renewable energy. It appears though that returns over the past five years from alternative energy sources including bioenergy haven’t quite matched up to the hype. According to the Cleantech Group, the value of global clean technology deals fell 29 percent last year with the amount being spent on conventional fossil fuels as part of these deals, nearly tripling. Finally, the Tasmanian peace deal got over the line last week but the sniping from the sidelines from disenchanted green groups continues. This week a Senate inquiry looking at how the exit programme for contractors harvesting and carting wood from Tasmania’s forests was managed has taken centre stage. According to media coverage this week, it appears that some of the contractors who had received payment for leaving the native forest industry have in fact picked up the grant and have still been working. A series of fraud allegations is under investigation by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry - which is itself under attack for its management of the exit program. The findings will be reported on when released.
Our Partners & SponsorsFriday Offcuts is made possible through the generous support of the following companies. 
This week we have for you:
Claims green groups 'outflanked' by loggers
So, the blame game begins. ABC News reports former leader of the Australian Greens believes green groups have signed up to a deficient forestry peace deal for Tasmania because they were outmanoeuvred by the logging industry. Bob Brown claims Tasmanian Greens MPs had no choice but to back the forest peace deal bill. Mr Brown had urged MPs to reject the bill, after the Legislative Council radically changed it.Four of the five state Greens MPs backed the changes despite Mr Brown's opposition and that of national leader Christine Milne. The move has split the Greens party and Tasmania's environmental movement. Mr Brown is not criticising the four MPs who ignored him but is blaming the environmental groups who negotiated the peace deal with the timber industry. Mr Brown says he is still prepared to lobby against Tasmanian timber products in Japan, an action which could undermine the forest peace deal. The Wilderness Society's Vica Bayley has taken to the internet to defend his decision to sign up to the peace deal. In the Tasmanian Times Vica Bayley says “ Provided people on all sides don’t allow the ghosts of their past, the scars of past failures and the depth of their entrenchment preclude them from seeing the opportunities, Tasmania can move forward...and...the Agreement was born from discussion, dialogue, compromise and consensus”. Renewable energy losing investor momentum
A decade ago, large investors in so-called clean technology had a straightforward goal: finance companies that would help eliminate the world's dependence on oil, natural gas and coal. But as profits from wind, solar, biofuels and other alternatives consistently fell short of expectations — and as the fossil fuel business boomed — things got complicated. Venture capitalists and other investment funds started stretching the definition of clean technology almost beyond recognition in an effort to make money while clinging to their environmental ideals.Today, clean technology investment funds are not trying to replace the fossil fuel industry; they're trying to help it by financing companies that can make mining and drilling less dirty. The people running these funds acknowledge the apparent hypocrisy, but defend a more liberal definition of clean technology. Environmentalists have mixed feelings. They welcome technologies that reduce the environmental footprint of oil and gas development. But they worry the newfound abundance of oil and natural gas — and all the money that can be made helping drillers — has distracted clean technology backers from what once seemed to be their main goal: to make oil and gas a thing of the past. The new energy technologies have proved much harder to master than predicted. Dozens of solar, biofuels and battery companies failed, unable to show enough promise to go public or attract the attention of bigger companies. Even when clean energy companies have gone public, they haven't fared well. An index of clean energy companies is down 69 percent since it began in 2005. A similar index of traditional energy companies is up 75 percent over the same period. The value of global clean technology deals fell 29 percent last year to US$7 billion, from a record US$9.9 billion in 2011, according to the Cleantech Group. But the portion of that sum focused on conventional fossil fuels nearly tripled, to a record US$556 million. Source: Associated Press A “Who’s Who” in global wood processing technologies
The programmes for the one-day Wood Processing Summit, 2 days of Technology workshops, 2 days of exhibitions and the networking and social activities being planned around the three day "business to business shows" can be downloaded from the editorial this week. They can also be downloaded directly from the event website, www.woodexpo2013.com . With four months to WoodEXPO 2013, the listing of global technology providers to Australasia’s sawmilling, wood manufacturing and wood panels industries is already very impressive. “We delighted to have this region’s largest gathering of wood products expertise yet seen in this part of the world” says Brent Apthorp, FIEA Director. Participants in the WoodEXPO 2013 September series to date include;
Limited space is also still available to exhibitors at both venues but you’ll need to be quick to secure the last remaining stands. Contact our WoodEXPO 2013 Trade Stand and Sponsorship Manager, Gordon Thomson, if interested in being involved in the WoodEXPO2013 exhibitions. Forestry Tasmania head steps downThe Chief Executive of Forestry Tasmania, Bob Gordon, announced yesterday that he had reached agreement with the Board to facilitate a transition to new leadership. Mr Gordon said Forestry Tasmania faced significant challenges to implement the Tasmanian Forests Agreement and adjust to its new operating environment.“The Board and I have come to a mutual agreement that now is an appropriate time for me to move on. I have been proud for the past six years to lead what I believe is an outstanding organisation through some very difficult times” said Mr Gordon. “However, I have reached agreement with the Board that now is the right time for a change My departure will allow the Board to select a long-term leader that can take the organisation forward into what I believe is a challenging but exciting future”. On behalf of the Forestry Tasmania Board, Bob Annells, Chairman, Forestry Tasmania acknowledged the tremendous contribution Bob had made to the organisation, and to the forest industry. "He has been a proud standard bearer through many difficult times, and has served the industry with absolute dedication”, he said. Mr Gordon will be leaving early in July, and in the meantime will be taking leave and attending to Forestry Tasmania business overseas. The Board will initiate a comprehensive executive search for his replacement. In the interim, Chief Operating Officer Steve Whiteley will take on the role of acting CEO. What to do with those forests in the ETS?
Carbon Match this week in their weekly newsletter report a growing number of post-1989 forest owners in New Zealand are now seriously considering the tactical withdrawal of a portion or all of their post-89 forest from the ETS. With NZUs trading a little shy of the $2 mark and ERUs zipping out of the door at $0.14 there is an enormous arbitrage opportunity here, and it's been spotted like a duck at dawn."But it's too good to be true...isn't it?", "Pure speculation" say others. Well yes, perhaps it feels a little off to be opting out simply to avail oneself of the arbitrage. But actually, is this really speculative? In fact, we think that this is a prudent thing for all post-89 foresters to be considering, given the regulatory uncertainty that has impacted foresters to date. This is something on which all post-1989 foresters should seek specific advice. Forestry law specialists Duncan Cotterill are producing an advisory note on this matter which will be published imminently (so CarbonMatch will link to that note in their next weekly update). To sum up, we have the following situation: • Relatively high compliance costs - field measurement etc… • Low reward for participation; • A large overhang of NZUs - witness the 47 million NZUs allocated in respect of the second tranche of pre-1990 as advised in MPI's sustainable forestry bulletin - that alone should be roughly enough to cover NZ's demand from 2015-2017 inclusive under current ETS design; • No clear information on what the NZ ETS looks like post 2015, or what sort of price ranges we might see; • A limited window left during which foresters can access much cheaper international credits; and • The prospect of much higher carbon prices in the long run. The risk is that forest owners who don't seek advice on this option may in future find themselves in the position of having spent a lot of money to stay in the scheme, achieved little or no return for their involvement, but with costly liabilities beginning to crystallise over their post-1989 holdings. Source www.carbonmatch.co.nz Biomass first for Japan
Nippon Paper Industries has decided to implement a biomass power generation project using 100% unused woody materials, making it the first project of its kind in Japan. New wood biomass power generation facilities will be constructed at the Yatsushiro Mill (Yatsushiro, Kumamoto) and launched as a new energy business from spring 2015.The wood biomass power generation facilities to be newly constructed at the Yatsushiro Mill will exclusively utilise unused woody materials such as timber from forest thinning in the Kyushu region for fuel. In addition, the power generation project will be able to make a significant contribution to expanding the use of domestic forest materials to achieve the goal of 50% woody material self-sufficiency presented in the Forest and Forestry Industries Revitalization Plan which serves as the road map for promptly revitalizing Japan’s forests and forestry industries. To achieve sustainable growth into the future, Nippon Paper Industries is working to transform its business structure as a comprehensive biomass company by pursuing the development of businesses other than paper manufacturing, the company says. Source: pulpapernews.com Board appointments to drive C3 expansionC3 Limited, New Zealand’s largest provider of on-wharf logistics services, has strengthened its Board team as the company seeks to continue its expansion across the Australasian port network.Board Chairman Jon Mayson confirmed C3 Limited Chief Executive Dean Camplin and international ports, logistics and container terminal operations adviser Tony Boyle had been appointed to the Board, providing C3 Limited with the strategic vision the company needs to build on recent growth and continue its push into new markets. Established in 1950, C3 Limited provides port sector services such as marshalling, stevedoring, warehousing and on-wharf logistics management to some of New Zealand’s leading companies including Carter Holt Harvey, New Zealand Steel and RD1 Nutrition, and the major forestry owners, both in New Zealand and Australia. The company currently handles 14.5 million tonnes of cargo annually across 15 ports in New Zealand and Australia. More >> Information portal for NZ forests plannedScion, through Future Forests Research is undertaking a project to design a web based information portal for New Zealand’s planted forests. The idea is to develop a one stop shop for information that gives a clear view of all aspects of our planted forests – covering a wide range of economic, environmental and social indicators. The focus is on forests at the moment, and at this stage they aren’t planning to include processing information in the portal.Information will be drawn from a wide range of sources and the idea of the portal is to present it in easy-to-understand form that is useable by a wide range of interested parties. Currently the concept is for a portal that presents regularly updated trend data on forestry indicators, with supporting information on topical issues related to our planted forests and a range of links to other sources of information. If able to help, the following short questionnaire will help Scion in the design of the interface and the content of the portal. To access the short questionaire, click here. Smart packaging on the horizon
A new study by IDTechEX comes to the conclusion that the market for Smart Packaging – that is packaging enhanced with imprinted electronics – will grow from 75 million to 1.45 billion US dollars over the next ten years. The reason: imprinted electronics are to become 99 per cent cheaper soon, and cartons are of course the ideal media for all things printed.Electronics on packaging already exists, from flashing bottles of rum to talking pizza cartons, to sprays which dispel insects with electrically charged aerosols. There is even pharmaceutical packaging which registers how much medication was consumed and when, and also reminds patients. Even the design of mobile phones can be reprogrammed. The new study suggests that this is just the beginning. The study is based on a qualitative survey of more than 50 globally operating companies covering the entire supply chain. The results suggest that imprinted electronics will drop in price by 99 per cent. This is the reason why many leading brand owners have established multi-disciplinary teams to ensure that the new paper-thin electronics will be present on their mass packaging. It should offer consumers a number of benefits and make competitors look old-fashioned. With these new technologies, the role of packaging will gain even more importance as a medium. These days, Smartphones can already read printed codes and access the product via a website. The new processes will also add NFC (Near Field Communication). And, as for codes, cartons will be the ideal medium for imprinted electronics. Source: Pulpapernews.com Inquiry hears forestry exit targets not metA Senate inquiry has heard a taxpayer-funded program to reduce the amount of native timber harvested and hauled in Tasmania failed to meet its objective reports ABC News. The Federal Government spent AU$45 million to help native forest harvesters exit Tasmania's ailing timber industry.The inquiry was called after National Audit Office concern that contractors missed out on compensation from the scheme overseen by the Commonwealth Forestry Department. The audit office has told the inquiry it was supposed to reduce the volume of native forest harvested by 1.5 million tonnes but that was not achieved. Forestry Tasmania's Bob Gordon has revealed the state-owned company increased its harvesting contracts by about 200,000 tonnes after the federal payments were made. "Too much harvest and transport capacity was lost and FT was left in a position where it had no alternative but to increase the capacity," he said. Mr Gordon says the federal Forestry Department had ignored his warning that buying out contractors would hamper Forestry Tasmania's ability to meet its obligations. Forestry Tasmania has defended its actions in relation to federally-funded payouts. An update on the inquiry can be found here. Pine beetle goes under the microscope
The days of the mountain pine beetle gnawing, unchecked, through the forests of B.C. and north-central Alberta could be numbered, thanks to a microscopic breakthrough. Scientists at the University of British Columbia and the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre have decoded the genome of the voracious pest, permitting the first crystal clear look at how the little beetle wreaks such tremendous havoc.A study published in the journal ”Genome Biology” shows the genome, the genetic coding that makes the beetle unique, reveals extreme variations among individuals of the species, more than four times as many differences as those found among humans. The wide variety equips the mountain pine beetle to easily switch from its current diet of lodgepole pine to target other trees, such as jack pine forests. Researchers from the University of Northern B.C. and the University of Alberta say the bug also has genes that allow it to defeat a tree's defence compounds and others that degrade plant cell walls, allowing it to suck up nutrients from the tree. The pine beetle is only the second beetle ever sequenced and Christopher Keeling, a research associate at the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre says identifying its genome can help manage the pest in the future. Source: Wood Business Swedish forest logistics company invents new wood supply system
Over a billion euro can be saved in the Swedish forest industry every year if the transport of felled timber from the forest to the final customer is made more efficient. Inventors Lennart Olving and Maria Drott have developed a revolutionary patented total concept that will be presented at Elmia Wood. “All the hardware is available and the corresponding system of handling unit loads is already standard in many other industries,” Lennart Olving explains. The invention involves using unit loads to simplify handling and thereby condense and shorten the entire chain from the harvesting site to the final destination. With a unit load carrier, individual logs can retain their harvesting data all the way to the customers throughout the transport chain. Over the past 30 years Olving has worked in both the mechanical engineering and pharmaceutical industries. He has specialised in production flows using the lean model, a method that increases efficiencies by removing bottlenecks and minimising waste. Maria Drott is a forest owner and she and Olving developed the concept together in their joint company Green Wood Logistics AB. “We thought about all the timber that sometimes spends months lying by the roadside before being driven to the customers,” Drott explains. Leaving products to sit for so long violates one of the basic principles of the lean model. Storage, even on the roadside, costs money. The longer it takes before the logs are industrially processed, the greater the threat to their quality. In the analysis that is the foundation of their invention and their company, Olving and Drott discovered that their solution can give savings of up to about 15 euro for every cubic metre solid volume excluding bark of timber felled in the Swedish forest. Currently, the forest is first inventoried and valued and the trees are then felled and measured in the harvester head. “The harvester’s computer gathers masses of information about each log,” Olving explains. “But the link between the data and the log is lost the second that the log is put on the ground.” In the next step the forwarder operator does a visual inspection of the logs, sorts and loads them, takes them to the landing, and then does a further sorting while unloading them on the roadside. A logging truck fetches the sorted timber and delivers it to the customers, where log scalers assess the incoming shipments. Despite this multi-stage sorting process, some of the timber ends up in the wrong place, with pulpwood at the sawmill, saw timber at the pulp mill, and so on. This information loss is a known problem. One of several solutions is to mark each individual log while it is still in the harvester head. The markings are then automatically read during the next transport stage. “But with even individual marking of each log, handling damage is still a problem as is the length of time the timber spends lying by the roadside,” Olving says. Green Wood Logistics’ patented solution is based on a load changing load carrier. This can be used in the same systems and on the same trucks as those used to transport gravel, wood chips, etc. Instead of using a load bed, stackable load carriers with folding bunks are used. The invention has been named Lean Wood Supply System. If today’s machines are equipped with a load changing function, the load carriers can be used by many different machines. For example, a harwarder that is equipped with a load changing function can load the logs directly into the load carrier, which is then set down when it is full. A forwarder equipped with a load changer can then fetch the load carrier and drive it out to the road, where an ordinary truck equipped with a load changer fetches it. Green Wood Logistics AB has built up a network with a high level of diverse skills. The big challenge is to make the flow more efficient. This will call into question many routines and conventions in the forest industry. But both inventors are hopeful that this is possible. “Productivity in the forest industry has stood still in recent years,” Olving says. “According to our initial calculations our method can save over a billion euro per year and thereby improve the industry’s profitability.” Petition calls for inquiry into NZ forestry safetyA petition in the name of Darien Fenton, Labour’s Health and Safety spokesperson and presented by Green MP Denise Roche was tabled in Parliament on Wednesday asking the government to conduct an inquiry into forestry safety. More >>Tetra Pak sales in Australasia up nearly 10%Switzerland-based Tetra Pak International SA is finding growth opportunities for its carton packaging in Australia and New Zealand due to increased exports of dairy products from those countries to Asia, reported the North Queensland Register on 3 May.Last year, Tetra Pak’s sales in New Zealand and Australia were up nearly 10%, twice the rate of growth globally, mostly due to increased dairy exports from those countries to destinations such as China, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia. Tetra Pak expects that its sales in the Oceania region will keep rising by about 10% due to investment in dairy processing capacity fuelled by export volume growth, the North Queensland Register reported. Jobs
Buy and Sell
...and one to end the week on...is it time?
 And on that note, have a great weekend. Cheers. Brand PartnersOur Partners & Sponsors Friday Offcuts is made possible through the generous support of the following companies.
Copyright 2004-2026 © Innovatek Ltd. All rights reserved
|
