The FWPA-supported National Centre for Timber Durability and Design Life hosted its fourth annual showcase last month, with an impressive 35% uptick in attendance. This increase is a clear reflection of the growing interest in and engagement around the organisation’s research that exists amongst industry stakeholders. Source: Timberbiz
Throughout the day delegates were given updates on the latest developments resulting from key centre-led work, as well as the progress of other ongoing activities.
Centre director, Professor Tripti Singh, outlined the key areas the team is currently focused on during her presentation outlining the overall vision for the future of the centre.
“We continue to work hard to foster collaborative, relevant and impactful research projects that will address key industry challenges and create a future in which timber is recognised and celebrated for its durability, versatility, and sustainability,” Prof. Singh said.
“The development of an effective outreach strategy focusing on building trust amongst timber consumers will also be crucial to the future success of the sector, and this will be a high priority for the team going forward.”
During his opening address, Dr Chris Lafferty, FWPA Research and Development Manager, emphasised the many exciting opportunities that now exist for industry to engage directly with researchers, helping to make sure project outcomes are widely understood and applied in real-world settings.
“We encourage all showcase attendees and industry members more generally to ask any questions they may have, to challenge researchers when necessary, and to persevere in their quests for answers so that no enquires go unresolved,” Dr Lafferty said.
A total of 18 presentations were given by centre-based staff and students during the event, as well as key research partners including the University of Queensland (UQ) and the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF).
The showcase was attended by around 75 guests, approximately 50 of whom attended in person, with an additional 25 watching the presentations online. This figure represents a sizeable increase on the attendance figures of showcases held during the previous three years.
The mix of attendees was diverse and included academics from various universities, and representatives from industry members and key industry bodies.
One of the highlights of the day included an update on the centre’s National Timber Circularity Project. This three-year industry-funded initiative recently completed its first year.
This work’s objective is to address and overcome the challenges and barriers associated with recycling treated timber and Engineered Wood Products (EWPs), to extend service life and create additional opportunities and income streams for industry.
As part of the centre’s circular economy project, significant advancements already made by the researchers include the quantifying and analysis of the current condition of end-of-life resources nationally. Regulatory challenges have also been assessed by the team, with the completed draft report now being used to support the development of information sheets that will support industry for the reuse of treated timber and EWPs amongst regulators.
The showcase also provided a unique opportunity to update industry directly on the developments associated with major Centre-led work, including projects focusing on the moisture and decay performance of timber, the various impacts of climate change on timber products, the treatability of the Australian softwood timber resource, and service life prediction models.
Attendees also enjoyed updates on projects investigating the effects of moisture on timber product connections, the fire performance of wood, accelerated fungal decay and termite testing, and the smouldering issues associated with CCA-treated timber.
Professor Ross Young, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research and Development at UniSc, presented the event’s concluding remarks.
“I would like to highlight UniSC’s ongoing commitment to forestry research, as well as congratulating the Centre team for its continued hard work in leading nationwide research and development activities that will have a tangible and positive impact for the forestry industry in Australia,” Mr Young said.
Following the recent showcase event, Professor Nami Kartel has announced his decision to step down from his position at the Centre due to personal family reasons and return to Turkey. Consequently, the centre will soon initiate a search for a new Centre Research Fellow. FWPA extends its gratitude to Professor Kartel for his significant contributions to the Centre and its activities and wishes him all the best in his future endeavours.
