All posts by Jo English

Sawlog prices

Brazil’s wood-based product exports increased by 8.4% in September

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In September 2018 Brazilian exports of wood-based products (except pulp and paper) increased 8.4% in value compared to September 2017, from $248.3 million to $269.1 million, reports ITTO.

The value of pine sawnwood exports increased 20% between September 2017 ($41.9 million) and September 2018 ($50.4 million) and the volume of exports increased 17% over the same period (202,500 cubic metres to 237,700 cubic metres).

Tropical sawnwood exports also increased rising 31% year-on-year from 42,500 cubic metres in September 2017 to 55,700 cubic metres in September 2018. In terms of value, exports increased 21% from $19.5 million to $23.5 million over the same period.

September pine plywood exports increased 31% in value year-on-year from $48.7 million to $63.6 million. Export volumes also increased, rising 13% over the same period, from 165,900 cubic metres to 188,200 cubic metres.

In contrast, tropical plywood exports declined 28% in volume, from 16,300 cubic metres ($6.3 million) in September 2017 to 11,700 cubic metres ($5.5 million) in September 2018.

Brazil’s wooden furniture exports continue to do well and in September 2018 totalled $44 million compared to $40 million in September 2017 a 10% rise.

Boise Cascade

Boise Cascade closes sales of its lumber mills

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Boise Cascade Company has completed the sale of its northeast Oregon lumber mills in Pilot Rock and La Grande and the particleboard operations in Island City to Woodgrain Millwork. The sale officially closed on November 2, 2018.

Boise Cascade is one of the largest producers of engineered wood products and plywood in North America and a leading U.S. wholesale distributor of building products.

JS-50

JoeScan Debuts Next Gen Scanner

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JS-50 prototype turns heads at TP&EE

JoeScan gave visitors a glimpse at the future of sawmill scanning during TP&EE in Portland, Oregon. The 3D laser scanning leaders brought a pair of interactive demos to their booth, showcasing a variety of innovations exclusive to their latest JS-50 prototype devices.

By leveraging sixteen years of sawmill industry engineering, as well as the latest advances in hardware technology, JoeScan has built their best 3D scanner yet. The new JS-50 scan heads bring twice the speed, resolution, and data density, all in a package ¼ the size and weight of earlier models

Performance benefits were demonstrated on a log supported by two flights that visitors pushed through a towering scan arch. The on-screen visualization laid bare the improvement in data density. Visitors also commented on how the dual camera design produced data around the flights that would be missed by single camera scanners.

The second demo offered a hands-on test of the JS-50’s new dovetail snap-mount and single cable connector. Untrained visitors were able to remove and replace scan heads in less than ten seconds with this intuitive new system.

Using a power-over-ethernet architecture cuts the number of cables needed in half. For instance a large system would go from 48 cables down to just 24. This cable uses a single industry-standard RJ45 ethernet plug, making for extremely tidy junction boxes. It also removes the need for a dedicated power supply, reduces cable management complexity, and dramatically improves troubleshooting time.

“Our inspiration for the snap mount was the repeatability of picatinny rail systems used by the military for rifle optics,” says mechanical engineer Vadim Kovalev. “We wanted to create something that was very easy to use, and that would allow for heads to be swapped without recalibration.”

But perhaps the most visually stunning feature of the new JoeScan is its size and shape. The JS-50 comes in at a slender 19 inches by 3 inches by 1½ inches and sports a sleek, bow-like style. This makes it significantly easier to handle and install than earlier models. The smaller package also opens it up to applications without much room for scanning hardware.

Overall the JS-50’s new features proved to be very popular with show attendees. Both sawmill operators and optimization experts agreed that the new model will raise the bar JoeScan has already set for simplicity and reliability in sawmill scanning.

“We are pleased with the positive response the JS-50 is generating,” said Jason Farmer, JoeScan’s vice president of engineering. “But we aren’t surprised. We’ve built a compelling technology roadmap, focused exclusively on the sawmill industry, and the JS-50 is our first step down that path. It is an exciting time to be scanning with JoeScan.”

These prototype units impressed, and the final commercial version of the JS-50 will be available for purchase in early 2019.

TP&EE

JoeScan debuts Next Gen Scanner – JS-50 prototype turns heads at TP&EE

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At JoeScan’s TP&EE booth, a group of sawmill industry leaders gathered to toast Galloway Lumber, the winner of the Longest Running JoeScan contest. This announcement ended the months long search for the longest continually operating JoeScan 3D laser scanner.

With champagne and beer glasses held high, marketing manager Brad Michael and JoeScan founder and president Joey Nelson gave a short speech to the crowd packed around their booth.

During the ceremony, Nelson identified the winning scan head. “This is really special because it’s the very first JoeScan ever installed. It’s still running great, almost sixteen years later.”

The winning scanner first went to work on the bucking line at Galloway’s British Columbia sawmill in February of 2003, or just over 5700 days ago. “If this isn’t a testament to our ‘Made for Sawmills’ motto, I don’t know what is,” Michael added.

Although there was only one winner in the contest, JoeScan was quick to acknowledge all of the sawmills and systems integrators that have worked with them over the years. “From our oldest partners to our newest friends, you’re the reason we’re here today,” Michael said. “Here’s to sixteen more years of successful sawmill scanning!”

For additional information about this topic or assistance with media files, please contact Brad Michael at +1.360.993.0069 x7007 or email at brad.michael@joescan.com.

Photo: Golden  toast announcing the winner

Waratah

Waratah Forestry Equipment celebrates 45th anniversary

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Waratah Forestry Equipment is celebrating 45 years of innovation and serving customers in the forestry industry.

The company pioneered mechanized harvesting with first-class products paired with unparalleled customer support.

Established in Tokoroa, New Zealand in 1973, the company transitioned to meet local loggers’ heavy-duty delimbing needs creating a delimber-feller-buncher featuring a four-roller fixed head.   Following that innovation, a red grapple processor for the Canadian markets marked the beginnings of the 600 Series and solidified its place as the original red head in the industry.

Today, Waratah heads are found in all logging applications from felling on steep slopes, to cut-to-length hardwood harvesting at the stump, to processing on a landing or debarking on endless plantations.

“We’re dedicated to serving loggers across the globe,” said Heather Robinson, general manager of worldwide distribution, Waratah. “As an industry leader and the manufacturer of the original red head, we’re in a unique position to offer customers experience, expertise and innovation. We’re excited to celebrate the past 45 years and look forward to the next 45.”

Since its inception, Waratah, which has factories in New Zealand and Finland, has grown to support a global market.

“Waratah is based on quality, innovation and many years of experience,” said John Alemann, general manager, Waratah, New Zealand. “With 45 years under our belts, we are able innovate better and use our expertise to push the envelope.”

Waratah has continued to innovate by finding new ways to increase productivity and provide customer solutions including reliability and durability. For example, the Waratah HTH622C 4×4 and HTH624C 4×4 help minimize waste and maximize profits as powerful four-wheel drive heads that offer multi-stemming, independent log shuffling, 360-degree rotation and more.

TimberRiteTM H-16, Waratah’s measuring and control system, is another recent innovation. This system provides unique versatility with configurable settings for improved head performance, productivity and measuring accuracy.

In addition to the TimberRiteTM H-16 system, Waratah developed WaratahMateTM – a phone app that works with TimberRite to wirelessly share the machine’s production data in real-time. Developed exclusively for Waratah customers, the new app makes it faster and more reliable to send measuring system data back to the company.

“We’ve got a huge legacy in this business,” said Alemann. “We are looking forward to developing and providing opportunities that will keep our customers ahead of the competition.”

For more information about Waratah, please visit Waratah.com or contact Sarah Larson at slarson@mindfirecomm.com.

Waratah Forestry Equipment, headquartered in Rotorua, New Zealand, has served the global forestry industry for 45 years, manufacturing harvesting, processing and heads as well as harvester and forwarder cranes in its state-of-the-art facilities in New Zealand and Finland. The company’s extensive support and parts distribution network, rigorous global application testing, advanced manufacturing systems and sophisticated quality measures delivers customers with durable and reliable forestry equipment that is Built to Work. For more information, visit here.

Holtec

Holtec supplied log yard to Piveteau Bois in France

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Holtec supplied log yard to Piveteau Bois in Saint Florence. The log yard is designed for processing 500,000 cubic metres logs per year.
Short logs and long logs are loaded, butt-reduced, debarked, measured, cut and sorted in parallel. The start-up is closed to finishing.

Piveteau Bois is one of the three largest saw mills in France with a cutting capacity of about 800,000 solid cubic metres and a pellets production of about 200,000 tons per year at three sites.

Fibria

Fibria invests in forestry technology

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Smart Forest Project applies big data/analytics, Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence technologies in planted forests

São Paulo, October 05, 2018 – Based on a diagnosis, Fibria structured the management of forest digitization initiatives in the Smart Forest Project. Led by the Forestry area, a data collection, communication, analysis and publishing supply architecture was created, in which all actions of new technologies are centralized in the Smart Forest Project.

“Planted forests are the starting point in Fibria’s production chain. Wood provides the raw material for producing pulp, electricity and, increasingly, the inputs required for the development of new products and applications. We started this diagnosis back in 2015 and took the Industry 4.0 concept to the forest. These are day-to-day technologies applied to the field that improve the availability of data for decision making, while also increasing productivity, security and employee development,” says Caio Zanardo, Chief Forestry Officer of Fibria.

The implementation of new technologies will be on four fronts: planting, harvest, wood logistics and systematic data analysis. More than 50 projects have already been implemented and several of them have already produced results.

“There are some global mega trends that have a high probability of impacting the forest environment.  Demographic changes (urbanization), climate change, scarcity of resources and energy efficiency, which can be mitigated or optimized by using new technologies, either in managing forestry assets (land, forest and machinery), or in managing inputs or behavioral management (people, safety and productivity),” says Luiz Eduardo Sabbado, manager of forestry operations development at Fibria.

Trucks with Telemetry
In the last five years, the Forestry Logistics area has reduced accidents with lost time injuries by 43% and accidents with and without lost time injuries by 60%. The main reasons for this reduction are driver training and the use of precision technology to monitor operations. In 2016, 100% of the fleet had telemetry. To improve traffic at the mill, Fibria created an automated truck entry system at the Três Lagoas (MS) unit. Similar to an automated toll system, the New Log Track technology ensures that the unit receives and tracks a timber truck every three minutes, without traffic lines or jams.

Fire surveillance video towers
Fibria has over one million hectares of forests across seven states in Brazil, which include planted forests and environmental conservation areas (native forests).  Fire is always a risk threatening the forests, people and biodiversity. To reduce response times to fire alarms, towers equipped with video cameras were installed to detect fire outbreaks. By 2017, 50 towers had been installed at the Três Lagoas (MS) and Aracruz (ES) units, with range of up to 20 km. Fibria adopts a forest fire prevention policy that places tremendous emphasis on raising awareness among neighbors, partners, contractors and participants in our social programs.

However, prevention does not ward off all risks. Fibria has trained fire response teams in its plantation areas, which depend on early alerts to be able to control outbreaks still in their early stages. The cameras on towers are a valuable tool for this. In 2017, the total area affected by forest fires declined by 46% in relation to 2016. Compared to 2015, the reduction was 94%.

Automated nursery
The world’s first automated eucalyptus seedling nursery is located at the Três Lagoas Unit. It spans an area of 48,000 square meters, with annual production capacity of 43 million eucalyptus seedlings. Operating like a “seedling factory”, the nursery has 24 robots to select, plant, diagnose the seedlings and even automatically ship them for transport, all based on artificial intelligence. The technology was imported from the Netherlands, where it is already used for the automated planting of flower seedlings. This model will enable Fibria to achieve a three-fold increase in productivity compared to a traditional nursery.

The quality of seedlings produced by the automated process is better than those produced by the traditional process, with production cost being approximately 25% lower. Moreover, the automated nursery incorporates sustainability concepts in its operation: the containers in which the seedlings are planted are made from biodegradable paper and not plastic, which results in reduced waste, less water consumption and lower environmental impact.

LIDAR technology
It is an innovative technology for the measurement of areas, terrain and trees for inventory. It surveys the forest by capturing data through a laser sensor, which are then analyzed by specialized software. This project, started in 2011 at the São Paulo Forestry unit to improve the precision in measuring areas and terrain characteristics, was essential for implementing mechanized harvesting in areas with inclination of up to 33º, with data of embedded terrain, through digitized maps for greater safety in harvesting machinery. Fibria reduced the cost of monitoring and updating areas by 12%, and also implemented many modernization projects, which resulted in a 1.2% increase in its planted area.

About Fibria
The world leader in eucalyptus pulp production, Fibria strives to meet, in a sustainable manner, the growing global demand for products from planted forests. With annual pulp production capacity of 7.25 million tons, the company has industrial units in Aracruz (Espírito Santo), Jacareí (São Paulo) and Três Lagoas (Mato Grosso do Sul), as well as in Eunápolis (Bahia), where it operates Veracel in a joint venture with Stora Enso. The company has 1,092,000 hectares of forests, which include 656,000 hectares of planted forests, 374,000 hectares earmarked for environmental preservation and conservation, and 61,000 hectares destined for other uses. The pulp produced by Fibria is exported to more than 35 countries and is the raw material for educational, health, hygiene and cleaning products. Learn more at www.fibria.com.br

 

More information | FleishmanHillard

Fibria Media Relations
Andrea Donadio
+55 (11) 3185-9934
andrea.donadio@fleishman.com.br
Anne Dias
+55 (11) 3185-9940
anne.dias@fleishman.com.br

Ence

Ence acquires Iberdrola’s 90% stake in Puertollano solar thermal plant in Spain

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Ence Energía, S.L.U. has signed an agreement with Iberdrola Renovables de Castilla La Mancha, S.A.U. for the acquisition of its 90% stake in Puertollano solar thermal plant, for an amount that could reach up to Euro 145.8 million. The agreement is subject to IDAE, owner of the remaining 10% of the plant, not exercising its right of first refusal.

The agreed price amounts to Euro 139.5 million, excluding a cash balance of Euro 41.5 million. Additionally, the agreement defines an earn-out up to Euro 6.3 million.

With this transaction, Ence takes its first step towards diversification to other renewable technologies, which allows the Company to obtain similar profitability to that of its biomass generation plants. This acquisition will provide Encewith a stable annual EBITDA of Euro 18 million before synergies.

The solar thermal plant in Puertollano is adjacent to the new 46 MW biomass plant that Ence is building in the same location, in the former Elcogas site. This is an example of a successful transition from a fossil fuel generation model to renewable energy while keeping rural industrial employment, thanks to the use of surrounding agroforestry biomass as fuel.

China-U.S trade

China-U.S. trade dispute sparks uncertainty

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The market uncertainty being caused by the China-U.S. trade dispute is now one of the most important topics to watch, even amid myriad changing developments and issues that continue to impact market dynamics worldwide. The first volley was made by the U.S., and then (on August 23) China retaliated with a 25% import tariff on U.S. SYP logs.

Following that, on September 17, the U.S. announced 10% tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports (effective September 24). The next day (September 18), China announced 5%–10% tariffs on $60 billion of U.S. goods (also effective September 24). Most of the timber and wood products exported from the U.S. to China are included on the list of items affected.

Southern yellow pine log shipments from the U.S. South had been slowing before the implementation of the 25% tariff, impacted by China Customs’ decision in April to increase phytosanitary inspections and begin full enforcement of documentation requirements on incoming log shipments; as a result, the July trade data revealed a drop in SYP log exports of 25% from April. In addition, the CFR price of SYP logs being offered by U.S. suppliers has seen large declines in the last several months versus other species.

While the U.S. represented only a modest share of China’s total log and lumber imports in H1/2018 (13% of softwood logs, 2% of softwood lumber, 7% of hardwood logs, and 21% of hardwood lumber), fully 54% of U.S. log exports and 38% of lumber exports went to China in 2017. Clearly, the U.S. export industry relies heavily on the China market.

China’s predominant wood products exports to all markets are wood furniture and seating products (63%), followed by plywood (14%). Of China’s timber and wood products exports to the U.S. in 2017, US$12.9 billion (35.7% of the total) went to the U.S., led by wood furniture and seating (US$9.28 billion). Overall, the U.S. represented 41% of China’s wood furniture export value last year.

There is little doubt that both countries will be impaired by this tariff war, with both ultimately losing competitiveness in each other’s markets.

Source: Russ Taylor, Managing Director, FEA Holdings – Canada Inc

Red Stag

Red Stag to showcase timber construction

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Rotorua-based timber products company Red Stag is about to embark on several building projects to showcase the potential of timber as a construction material in large-scale building projects. Red Stag is New Zealand’s largest saw miller, employing 300 people with annual turnover of NZ$220 million.

The building projects come ahead of plans to build a NZ$35 million Cross-Laminated-Timber plant near its Whakarewarewa plant at Rotorua to be operating in 2019 and producing laminated panels up to 16.5m in length and 4.9m wide.

The first project will be five-level apartments at Clearwater Resort on the northern outskirts of Christchurch using cross laminated timber, and other panel products. The Ministry of Primary Industry through its Primary Growth Partnership is covering about 8 per cent of the NZ$20m Clearwater project.

After completion of the Clearwater project there will be two in Auckland – a retail and office complex, and a hotel. The Government was already building three-story timber structures in Auckland as part of Housing New Zealand projects, managing director of Red Stag wood solutions, Jason Cordes, said.

Red Stag is also planning to expand its truss and frame operation located in Hamilton Airport’s industrial park which produces frames and trusses, floor cassettes and wall panels – designs which bring floor and wall construction together in components to speed up construction.

Cordes, said the New Zealand industry was on the verge of providing large scale laminated timber construction. The opportunities offered in large-scale timber construction had already been demonstrated overseas, he said.

“In Christchurch we will showcase good architecture, good engineering and the best in acoustic properties and fire-resistance. We will make the whole process transparent so everyone can see how it is done and how economically viable timber can be.”

Source: Stuff.co.nz