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C The Timber Preservers Association of Australia IT'S TIMBER - TREAT IT WELL !!
MAY ISSUE 2017
Correspondence: 3, Wright Street BRIGHTON VIC 3186 Telephone: (03) 9596 8166 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Web: www.tpaa.com.au Plant Register Web: www.tpaa.com.au/treatment-plants
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President: Gerry Gardiner (07) 3204 0444
Technical: Harry Greaves (0419) 585 193
Secretary: Jack Norton (0418) 989 398
Editor: Doug Howick (03) 9596 8166
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… … from TPAA President … …
President Gerry was pleased to
preside over the TPAA
Council meeting, which was
held in Melbourne on
Thursday March 23 starting
at 10:00 am.
A full agenda of items kept
Councillors busy and as
usual, Secretary Jack was
delegated and encouraged to
proceed with several projects for the benefit of the
Association and the timber treatment subsector.
* * * * * * * * *
… and from TPAA Secretary …
Jack’s rant … … It never
ceases to amaze me that our
industry finds it so hard to comply
with treatment specifications – at
least for landscaping products.
Perhaps we should give up and
stop calling palings and
landscape sleepers ‘preservative
treated’.
A couple of weeks ago, my
daughter asked for help to level out
the ground under her clothes line.
Her clothes line is about 4m long and is
one of those pull out things rather than a rotator.
The plan was to dig into the slope along one length and
use the spoil to raise the opposite side. This needed a
small retaining wall down one side.
The son in-law and I dutifully headed off to the local
hardware house (guess who??) and this is where the rant
comes in. After a short lesson in sapwood/heartwood
and preservative penetration, we sorted through two
packs of landscape sleepers and found two (yes, two)
that I thought had a chance of meeting the penetration
specifications in the Standard. We needed eight.
I admit that sleepers and palings are low value low cost
products, but the punters out there expect them to
perform and there are an awful lot of them pouring into
the market place.
I regularly get queries about the performance of
landscape sleepers and part of the advice is that if the
wall is more than 1m high then H5 treated sleepers
should be used. This is a requirement of the BCA. The
only problem with this advice is . . . . ‘where do you
buy H5 sleepers’ ???????
I am seeing increasing availability of non-timber
sleepers which cost a hell of a lot more than the timber
product but are obviously being sold. Otherwise the
hardware shop(s) wouldn’t stock them. You have to ask
why the punters are prepared to pay more and the only
reason I can think of is reliability!
As always, I am open to hear from you as to how we
might lift our game.
Jack Norton
C NTACT
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… and from TPAA Technical
Committee Chairman …
Standards Australia is currently
conducting a major review of
AS/NZS 1604 with the project
being undertaken by committee
TM-012. It is intended that this
review will deliver a more
performance-based standard
than the present version, e.g. it
will incorporate expected service
life for treated commodities. Note the
number 1604 may not be changed so beware of
potential confusion when it is published (expected to be
1/5/2018). It will be in three parts:
AS/NZS 1604 Part 1 – essentially a standard that
specifies preservative treatment for all wood-based
products (sawn, round, board, plywood and LVL, and
glued laminated), in one document complying better
with the National Building Code and providing
expected service life for treated commodities.
AS/NZS 1604 Part 2 – this will be the part that verifies
treated products are in compliance with the standard and
is very much dependent on a statistical approach. We
really need to see how much variation there is in
retention results in order to have some faith in
predicting the likelihood of getting it right! To this end,
a consultant is collecting and processing as much actual
data from the industry as it is willing to provide. The
objective is to have a number of different statistically-
based methods that give similar levels of confidence
that production of treated product complies with the
retention specified for that treatment, as required by
AS/NZS 1604.
AS/NZS 1604 Part 3 – this part is about test methods
and will be where the details of the current AS/NZS
1605 will be located. It has also been suggested that the
AWPC Protocols or something similar should be in this
part.
Harry Greaves
* * * * * * * * * Items provided in this CONTACT Newsletter
are drawn from a number of sources. The
source of the item is quoted, either by
publication or organization in line with the
practice of fair reporting.
TPAA does not necessarily agree with or
endorse the content of articles written by others.
* * * * * * * * *
Work Continues on Important
Timber Treatment Standards Standards Australia recently published amendments to
the AS(/NZS) 1604:2012 series titled Specification for
preservative treatment. This five part series specifies
requirements for:
• Part 1 – Sawn and round timber
• Part 2 – Reconstituted wood-based products
• Part 3 – Plywood
• Part 4 – Laminated veneer lumber (LVL)
• Part 5 – Glued laminated timber products
These are key documents for the timber treatment
industry, product certification bodies assessing product
compliance and also specifiers of timber products in
building and related applications. They are referenced in
a number of primary reference documents in the NCC:
Building Code of Australia.
Peter Juniper, Chair of the committee TM-012,
Timber Grading and Preservation, explained that “a
further major revision has recently been initiated and it
is currently proposed that all parts of the revised series
will be published as AS/NZS standards.
“This is an important step forward in the ongoing
development of timber treatment standards for Australia
and New Zealand. The committee is now focused on a
major review to adopt a more performance orientated
approach and the inclusion of timber treatment
verification methods.”
* * * * * * * * *
Now THAT’S a deck!
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Arsenic finding costs Tasmanian
greyhound trainer $2000 fine
15 Apr 2017, 12:44 p.m.
Leading greyhound trainer Anthony Bullock has been
fined over a positive swab
Tasmania’s leading greyhound trainer, Anthony
Bullock, has been fined $2000 for a positive arsenic
swab despite veterinary evidence that the finding
could have been caused by the dog chewing treated
timber.
The Bullock-trained Regent Assassin tested positive
after winning in Devonport on September 13. It had
been in Bullock’s kennels for only eight days prior to
the race
It was subsequently discovered that the dog had
chewed a considerable amount of timber in its
housing and a board removed for analysis was found
to contain arsenic.
The ORI regulatory vet gave evidence that “chewing
such timber could cause an elevated arsenic level.”
Bullock was not charged with administration but was
charged with presenting a greyhound to race when it
was not free of all prohibited substances.
He pleaded guilty and was fined $2000 with Regent
Assassin disqualified.
Bullock was Tasmania’s leading trainer last year with
168 winners.
* * * * * * * * *
Wood Protection Technologies
(WPT), Fulfills Advanced Orders for
its D-Fence Formulation
Marketwired - April 25, 2017
SAN DIEGO, CA - Eco Building Products, Inc. ( OTC
PINK : ECOB ) announced today that the Company's
subsidiary, Wood Protection Technologies, Inc., WPT,
has received and shipped orders ahead of schedule as
their new distribution agreement gains early
momentum.
WPT has entered into an exclusive licensing and
national distribution agreement with one of the
Industry's largest wood fencing manufacturers. The
Company expects widespread geographical distribution
and penetration across all of the various wood fencing
channels including home centers and pro distribution
yards by year end.
WPT has personnel onsite training staff and supervising
production system set-up, calibration and quality control
implementation. The Customer's plant has successfully
completed the necessary audit inspection by WPT's
third party, Quality Auditing Institute (QAI), and full
scale production has begun. Fencing protected by
WPT's proprietary formulation, D-Fence™, should
begin hitting "big box" home center inventories in June.
D-Fence™ is an environmentally friendly wood fencing
treatment incorporating WPT's patent pending, Wood
Surface Film Concentrate™ chemistry that protects
wood from mold, termites and fungal decay.
The Company's chemistry serves multiple end use
wood markets and fencing alone is roughly a $1.5
billion segment.
About Eco
Building
Products, Inc.
Eco Building
Products, Inc.
(Eco) is a
manufacturer of
proprietary,
environmentally
conscientious
chemistry utilizing patent pending ECOB
WoodSurfaceFilm™ and FRC™ technology (Fire
Retardant Coating). Eco's products protect against fire,
mold/mycotoxins, fungal-decay, wood ingesting insects
and termites. Eco is headquartered in San Diego, CA
and goes to market through licensed Affiliates
nationwide.
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Radial timber mill opened
A new state-of-the-art radial timber mill in Gippsland is
set to boost both productivity for the mill and jobs for
the region. Chris McEvoy, managing director of
Radial Timber Australia (and former CSIRO timber
treatment researcher – Ed.) said that the new mill
opening in Yarram is a first of its kind in the world.
“Using Australian-developed technology, this new mill
will have the ability of tripling the capacity of our old
mill, Mr McEvoy said. Radial sawmilling is a process
that initially cuts logs into wedges like a cake, in line
with the way a log naturally splits as it dries”.
“This is different to
conventional sawmilling which
removes the edges of a round
log to square it off before
sawing into boards. This type of
sawmilling allows us to produce
more timber from smaller logs
and can still successfully
process sawlogs with splits,” he
said.
Nathan Trushell, Acting CEO VicForests, said that the
sawmill shows a promising future for both Radial
Timber and the greater Victorian timber industry. “This
is a great example of how our industry is constantly
adapting and evolving,” Mr Trushell said.
The sawmill, which cost AU$4.5 million and took 12
months to build, provided local employment for the
duration of the build and will also provide jobs for a
number of new on-going workers at the mill.
“This expansion will secure our long-term viability
within the industry and more than triple our production,
bringing more jobs and activity to the region,” Mr
McEvoy said. “We are confident that between our
10-year contract with VicForests and over 2000
hectares of high value plantations that we have
established in the region that we will be around for
many years to come,” he said.
Almost 100% of Radial’s products, which include
shiplap cladding, decking, screenboards and a range of
unique radial products, end up in high end Melbourne
and interstate markets. Radial Timber is now in the
planning stages for a further expansion of a new dry
mill on the site adding another AU$1.3 million
investment into the region.
Federal Member for Gippsland, Darren Chester, will be
officially opening the mill in a ceremony that will
showcase this innovative technology and celebrate the
exciting economic potential it will bring to the area.
Friday Offcuts – 21 April 2017
* * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * *
The IRG48 conference
in Belgium is reaching
out beyond the research
and industry community
who attend on a regular
basis, and beyond our historical scope of wood
preservation. Young scientists in particular are
encouraged to participate.
So, 29-31 May 2017 you are also invited to the
conference XIV DBMC (Durability of Building
Materials and Components). More info on
www.dbmc2017.ugent.be.
The IRG48, IRG-WP Annual conference in 2017,
June 4-8, will have the same elements as detailed
during previous meetings. This year we will organise
special sessions on 3 topics: (1) Special session on
Timber bridges (contact Dr Christian Brischke –
[email protected]) (2) Special session on
Quality control of treated/modified wood (contact Dr
Miha Humar - [email protected]) (3) Special
session on Preservative treated wood at the end of
service life: waste or resource? (contact Dr Morten
Klamer – [email protected])
* * * * * * * * *
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NTU's new sports hall The Wave
The new NTU sports hall, called “The Wave”, is the
first large-scale building in South-east Asia with a
structure built completely using mass-engineered
timber.
ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN
Charmaine Ng
SINGAPORE - Instead of the usual concrete or steel
structure commonly seen in Singapore's buildings,
Nanyang Technological University's new sports hall
was built using mass engineered timber.
Known as “The Wave”, the building features a 72m roof
made of seven timber arches. It is the first large-scale
building in South-east Asia built with the technology,
and is one of four developments in Singapore that have
adopted the timber construction method.
To produce mass engineered timber, layers of timber
panels are glued together for strength and structural
stability. Then, they are cut to specific dimensions in
factories, before being shipped off for on-site assembly.
Here are five characteristics of mass engineered timber:
1. IT IS FIRE-RESISTANT
Mass engineered timber does not burn, instead it chars
at a rate of 0.75mm per minute. As a result, the timber
used to build the sports hall has an extra buffer layer of
50mm, which is "sacrificed" for charring in case of fire,
allowing for an hour of evacuation.
The charred layer also acts as an insulation and protects
the inner core from heating.
2. IT CAN BE PROTECTED AGAINST
MOISTURE AND TERMITES
Structures made of mass engineered timber do not
usually require special maintenance regime. The timber
is treated against termites and will be checked
yearly.
3. IT IS SOURCED FROM SUSTAINABLE
FORESTS
The timber is harvested from sustainably managed
forests, which means new trees are planted to replace
those that are harvested. Mature trees are also harvested
to prevent them from decaying and emitting carbon into
the atmosphere.
Mass engineered timber is recyclable and stores carbon
for life, helping to mitigate climate change.
4. IT MAKES CONSTRUCTION FASTER AND
EASIER
As the building process involves assembling
prefabricated parts, it took 14 workers about three
weeks to assemble the 72m wave-like roof of the sports
hall.
On the other hand, a roof made of steel or concrete
would likely take 30 workers and two to three months to
construct, according to managing director Kang Choon
Boon of B19 Technologies, the contractor for The
Wave.
5. IT IS STRONGER THAN CONCRETE OR
STEEL
Buildings with large roofs typically need columns or
scaffoldings to support the weight. However, mass
engineered timber is much stronger than concrete or
steel in terms of weight-to-strength ratio. This means
that the roof does not require any internal columns or
pillars to support the weight of seven timber arches that
are over 440 tonnes.
Instead, columns are designed to be on the exterior of
the building, leaving a cavernous three-storey space.
* * * * * * * * *
Think Outside the Box!
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TA ANN TASMANIA - LONZA
SPECIAL FEATURE
New H2 treatment adds value to
plywood veneers
Micro-encapsulation process
by Jim Bowden
LIKE giant blueberry jam sandwiches, the coated
and bonded eucalypt veneer sheets were quickly
served up for cold pressing – instantly taking them
off the menu for termites.
The breakthrough micro- encapsulation H2
treatment process, using a patented organic
bifenthrin mixture in the plywood glueline, has
added value, market appeal and maximised
protection for the range of premium- grade plywood
products manufactured at Ta Ann Tasmania’s
Smithton plant on the state’s northwest coast.
Ta Ann quality and safety manager Donovan Britton (left) and Lonza’s Noel Coxhead and Shane McFarling at the Smithton veneer peeling station.
Ta Ann peels environmentally certified native and
plantation eucalypts and radiata to manufacture
plywood. This mill originally commenced operation
in 2008 peeling eucalypt regrowth logs and
exporting veneers to Malaysia and other Asian
countries for further processing into finished
products.
In 2015, the company completed its plywood mill
and began converting a proportion of veneers to
finished products, producing boards from 17-35m m
thick. Much of this product was destined for the
short-term use markets, in applications such as
formwork ply.
As the demand for longer- term products increased,
the need for protection of plywood, particularly
against termites, became vital in some markets. In
2015, Lonza Wood Protection acquired Zelam
Pty Ltd, a New Zealand company specialising in
the protection of engineered wood products such as
plywood. LVL, MDF, particleboard and OSB.
“Zelam had been instrumental in developing the art
of protecting these products through the addition
of a biocide to the glue/resin used to bond the
veneers,” Ta Ann general manager Robert Yong
said. “This process depends on the heat applied
during the pressing/forming process to drive some
of this biocide from the resin into the wood veneer.
Termites sense the presence of bifenthrin at very low
levels and will seek alternative food sources,” Noel
Coxhead, engineered wood product manager at
Lonza, said Successful treatment using this
mechanism ensures the correct amount of chemical
is retained and present in the wood. Losses occur
during the addition and panel forming process. The
final determination of the correct levels is assessed by
chemical analysis of a sample of the treated board.
To mitigate some of these product losses during
treatment, Zelam developed the micro-
encapsulation process. The protectant (in this
instance, bifenthrin) is encapsulated in a polymer
micro-capsule where it resides until the capsule is
burst by the heat/pressure achieved during the
pressing process.
Since the early 1990s, Zelam has been protecting
panels for the Japanese market. More recently the
company expanded this opportunity to include
manufacturers in Asia, USA, Europe and now
Russia.
Ta Ann has chosen to use Lonza’s product,
Permatek 100 a 100g/l formulation of
encapsulated bifenthrin for the protection of its
combi-plywood products for structural
construction purposes.
Zelam’s Scott Connor explains. “From the instant a
termiticide is first added to the resin formulation,
degradation occurs, and the levels of termiticide are
compromised. “This can be due to pH levels,
residence time within the glue, temperature
pressure, time taken to bond the board as well a
post-press cooling period, all of which create a
breakdown of the initial active.
Feeding cross-banded veneer sheet into the roller coater to apply the resin/bifenthrin mix.
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“Micro encapsulation therefore protects the bifenthrin
throughout this process.” “The benefit to Ta Ann
customers is a reduction in actives required to achieve
final chemical retention requirements, resulting in
more reliable chemical readings and lower treatment
costs.”
Assembling the plywood pack … every second veneer is cross banded and coated both sides with
the resin/bifenthrin mixture.
Zelam Permatek 100 Encaps is particularly suited to Ta
Ann Tasmania, which produces TPly, a high quality
plywood product, manufactured from AFS/PEFC
certified Tasmanian eucalypts and certified under
EWPAA to meet AS/NZS 6669.
Ta Ann’s Ingkui Tang operates the unloading
station from the hot press.
Ta Ann quality and safety manager Donovan Britton (left) and
Lonza account manager Shane McFarling inspect a pack of
finished plywood at the Smithton plant.
After Lonza’s purchase of Zelam, Ta Ann Tasmania
now has the best of both worlds – it benefits from the
range of specialty products for engineered wood that
Zelam offers, and gains from the technical service and
knowledge provided by Tasmanian-based Lonza
account manager Shane McFarling.
Lonza’s Melbourne-based engineered wood
products manager Noel Coxhead inspects the cold
press.
Robert Yong said the Smithton operation was
approaching production target deadlines.
“The push is on to build up the scale of production as
quickly as we can,” he said. “We appreciate the good
support from our customers; the new mill’s loyal
clients are supporting us very well.
“We certainly value their added commitment to the
Zelam-treated range of products.”
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Part 1 of a series: Jack Norton
City of Residence: Brisbane, Australia.
Inhabitants at my residence: She Who Must be
Obeyed + 5 x grandies when they need to be spoiled –
filled full of sugar and returned to their parents
(payback!).
Start date and current position with TPAA: I
started as Secretary with the TPAA about 4 years ago
(the mind tends to scar over trauma) and before that,
42 years with the Queensland Government in the
Forestry Department and then its morphed forms until
Campbell Newman took over.
What I like best about working for TPAA: Actually
I really like helping people use our (treated) product
and to use timber correctly.
Best job: I love the science (I am a scientist by trade)
and it is just great when you get a project or
experiment or investigation to work. I really liked
working with treatment plant operators and seeing the
lights turn on when they understand why they do what
they do.
Worst job: I hated doing budgets.
Favourite place to live: What sort of question is
this?? It has to be Brisbane – Beautiful one day –
perfect the next. Gotta love the clear blue skies and
the outdoor living.
Motto or Personal Mantra: “Trier not crier”. I use
this a lot on my grandies. Ya gotta have a go! It is OK
to fail but you have to try! I also like something a CO
said to me a long time ago . . . . . “Any fool can have a
bad time – you have to be smart to have a good time!”
I’m happiest when: I am making noise and sawdust
in my workshop. I love tinkering and making stuff.
What I fear most: I couldn’t have answered this until
Trump became president. This guy really scares me.
I’m proudest of: My kids – I have three amazing kids
who all contribute to society and more importantly are
nice people. I would like to say it was good parenting.
Favourite sports or pastimes: I don’t follow sport -
it just doesn’t float my boat. I really enjoy the
outdoors. A most memorable experience is sitting on a
still warm sand dune with a glass of red wine in hand
in the Simpson Desert watching the sunset.
The Top 3 Highlights of my Life: 1. Marrying She Who Must Be Obeyed.
Married 45 years and she still
surprises me.
2. Being there at the birth of my kids.
3. The third one is yet to happen.
People would be surprised to know: I used to be
pretty good at the piano.
If I could do it all over again, I would: Do the same
again. I am pretty happy with my lot!
Favourite Memory: We have a tribal gathering every
Sunday Night. The Boss cooks up a storm and I love
sitting on the back deck watching the mayhem bounce
back and forth.
Pet peeves: Working in my workshop and looking for
the tool I had in my hand 30 seconds earlier . . . Grrrrr!
Favourite song, movie, book, or comedian: Movie(s): Monty Python’s Holy Grail, Live of Brian
and The Meaning of Life!
Book: I am into brain candy and really enjoy (as in
can’t put down) the Jack Reacher series by Lee Child.
Comedian: - Dave Allen who is all class – even
today.
Best Vacation: I can’t pick between the Larapinta
Trail, Patagonia including Antarctica or 10 days in
Iran. (Any fool can have a bad time).
Favourite Vehicle: Used to be a 1973 VW Kombi.
Still haven’t made up my mind on the next one.
Before I die, I would like to: Take a few of those
brain-eating zombie bastards with me!
* * * * * * * * *
OOOPS!