Charges Over Deceptive Plywood Grading

6 June 2007

A Queensland company accused of assigning a stress grade to plywood products that allegedly failed to meet Australian structural standards will have to defend its claims in the Federal Court.
The action against Jag Ply Pty Ltd by the Engineered Wood Products Association of Australasia (EWPAA) highlights a toughened stand over very real concerns that some imported plywood products may not comply with Australian Standards and have potential to fail when used in structural applications.
The EWPAA sees this issue as a major threat to consumer safety; the potential damage that would be caused to the Australian plywood industry in the event of product failure or a fatality would be enormous.
EWPAA's charges against Jag Ply are based on allegations of 'misleading and deceptive conduct' where a number of plywood sheets and veneers were incorrectly graded and failed to comply with Australian standards.
In the EWPAA's Statement of Claim in the Federal Court, the association asserts that of 150 structural plywood sheets labelled by Jag Ply and purchased in the Brisbane and Melbourne markets, 70% failed the standard for veneer quality, 83% of sheets tested were labelled with an incorrect or misleading stress-grade and 17% of sheets tested failed requirements for bonding.

TimTech Strengthens Australian Profile

TimTech Chemicals has strengthened its staffing resources in Australia with the appointment of John Thorpe as market development manager.
Thorpe has more than 20 years’ experience in the timber treatment and protection industry and brings valuable knowledge in termite and insect protection to the company.
In recent years, he has been running his own company, supplying a range of remedial timber treatment products to the market. These products will now be included in the TimTech range of chemicals.

Tassie Forests Adjust To Change

Forestry Tasmania will emerge from a restructure stronger and more capable of dealing with future challenges, says managing director Bob Gordon.
“It has been widely reported that we are reviewing the size of our workforce, a process that has been prompted by adverse market conditions,” Gordon said.
“With more and more areas of native forests reserved from harvesting, it is inevitable that the industry has had to adjust to changing circumstances.
“Forestry Tasmania will always act in a commercial manner as required by law, but we will do it within the constraints of managing the forests for the benefit of all. That will require a change in how our success is measured. When our foresters think in 90-year time frames, success cannot be measured by a profit result over 12 months.
“Profits will fluctuate according to the market, but sustainable forest management must remain constant.”

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