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Progress with Timber Standards

Standards

New Zealand’s Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association is a nominating organisation for both New Zealand Standards and joint Australian/New Zealand Standards technical committees. Source: ForestryExpo

It runs a number of technical committees with various specialisations, such as timber grading, timber structures and timber preservation. These WPMA committees then select representatives to attend the NZS or AS/NZS Technical Committees.

The WPMA reports that it has been a busy time for these committees and their representatives recently.

The Australian TM-012 committee has been wrestling with a minor revision of AS/NZS 1604 series (Specification of Timber Treatment). This is about to come out for public comment. This will then be followed by major revisions of AS/NZS 1604 and 1605 (Methods for sampling and analysing timber preservatives and preservative treated timber) series.

Also in Australia
AS/NZS 1328 (Glued laminated structural timber) is about to come out for public comment, and WPMA has just made a submission for the revision of AS/NZS 8008 (Finger jointed structural timber).

A suite of Standards for manufacturing and testing of reconstituted wood based panels is being revised AS/NZS 1859 (Reconstituted wood-based panels), AS/NZS 1860 series (Particleboard flooring), AS/NZS 4266 series (Reconstituted wood-based panels— Methods of test).

In New Zealand
The revision of NZS 3603 (Timber Structures) is about to resume after a pause caused by the need to resolve differences of opinion regarding whether there should be standard grades for LVL, and the change from Standards Association of New Zealand to Standards New Zealand as a part of MBIE.

A technical committee for the revision of NZS 3602 (Timber and Wood-based Products for Use in Building) has just been formed. WPMA will be providing 3 technical experts to this committee.

Standards New Zealand has called for nominations for the revision of NZS 3640 (Chemical Preservation of Round and Sawn Timber).

WPMA thanks those of its member companies who make available their employees to attend Standards meetings and produce Standards which will be of benefit to the industry and New Zealand.