Australasia's home for timber news and information

2016 Wood Design Awards

WoodWorks has revealed its winners for the 2016 Wood Design Awards. Source: Gizmag Intended to promote the benefits of building from timber, this year’s 16 winners comprise a varied assortment including a fire station, museum, library, and pavilion. The most eye-catching winner
Continue Reading →

Ligna registrations open

Online registration has begun for the first international LIGNA Conference, to be held at the Robotation Academy in Hannover, Germany on 3 and 4 May 2016. Source: Timberbiz The event is being staged by Deutsche Messe and the German Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers’ Association with
Continue Reading →

NZ house prices increase rapidly

The latest Reserve Bank bulletin contained few surprises for those who watch the real estate market in New Zealand. Source: The New Zealand Herald The well-informed sages at the RBNZ say house prices in New Zealand have “risen significantly over the past five decades” and
Continue Reading →

Furniture maker trials plantation timber

In an experiment where art meets science, a local furniture maker has put Tasmania’s plantation timbers to the test. Source: ABC News Phillip Blacklow wanted to compare plantation species to more commonly used regrowth timber known as Tasmanian Oak. He said he wanted to see whet
Continue Reading →

Clumsy possum halts logging at Errinundra Victoria

Victoria’s logging agency has halted the practice on the Errinundra Plateau in East Gippsland after the discovery of a colony of rare greater gliders. Source: ABC News The Goongerah Environment Centre conducted a night time citizen survey and found 15 of the rare possums in two
Continue Reading →

Tas Resources Minister takes aim after Lapoinya

Claims that our workplace protection laws somehow impinge on free speech are absolute rubbish according to an article in The Mercury by Paul Harriss, Tasmanian State Resources Minister. Source: The Mercury Mr Harriss said that what the laws actually do is protect free speech, while al
Continue Reading →

Forestry Tas boss exits

The flare-up of conflict over logging has been linked to the departure of four out of six Forestry Tasmania board members, including chairman Bob Annells. Source: ABC News Resources Minister Paul Harriss said Mr Annells decided not to seek reappointment as head of the government busin
Continue Reading →

NZ improves forestry safety

Data on the forestry industry shows there has been significant drop in workplace deaths and injuries, Worksafe New Zealand data shows in 2015 three forestry workers died on the job compared with 10 in 2013. Source: Radio New Zealand There was also half the number of serious accidents
Continue Reading →

$14m forest training centre in Tasmania

An Australian Research Council (ARC) Training Centre has officially been launched in Tasmania, where researchers will work with industry to transform the Australian forest products sector. Sources: Timberbiz, ABC Rural The ARC Training Centre for Forest Value, based at the University
Continue Reading →

Australian woodchip exports total 5.823m

IndustryEdge can report that analysis conducted recently demonstrates Australia exported 5,823,147 bone dry metric tonnes (bdmt) of woodchips in 2015, delivering a rise of 11.1% on the prior year’s strong exports. Source: Timberbiz The data released by the ABS shows that hardwoo
Continue Reading →