Forestry & British Timber articles from April 2002

Forestry & British Timber archives from April 2002

Going against the flow.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Some NGOs suffer from tunnel vision. Take the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Its reason for living is to protect wild birds. Their quarterly magazine is superb. It runs a retail department `par excellence'. And, writes Don Kennedy,...

Playing safe at Longleat.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `The Western Log Group (WLG) - is ideally placed to head the introduction of ACQ preservative into the UK where they have 20 years' experience in the playground and garden market'. The comment came from David Harling* of CSI Wood Protection...

All change - but not all bad.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `Climate change will have a variety of impacts on our forests. Our trees and woodlands play a role in locking up carbon, are a renewable energy source and a sustainable construction material'. But, added forestry minister Elliot Morley speaking...

Another year's grace.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... To help farmers manage their woods during the FMD outbreak, the Forestry Commission in Wales boosted its woodland improvement grant (WIG) rate from 50 to 75%. It has now extended the claims deadline for the originally short-term increase from...

Ystwyth's fast-track guarantee.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `The Ystwyth Valley is an examplar showing how the woodlands of Wales can benefit rural communities'. Citing the `Wales woodland strategy' description, Dominic Driver commented on the decision of Cydcoed* - of which he is programme manager - to...

Weinig backs colleges.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... The woodworking machinery giant Weinig has underlined its commitment to training by donating (#60000) to Stoke-on-Trent College. The company will send UK customers and employees to the college for machinery courses. Copyright: CMP...

GM trees take centre stage.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `Over its 18 years' life, I believe that the Scottish Forestry Trust* (SFT) has made a significant contribution to the forestry scene in Britain'. The comment was made by Sir David Landale in his final annual report for the year 2000-1 as its...

Auction on!(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... The annual auction/demo/open day at the main depot site (Coast Road, Dalbeattie, Dumfries and Galloway) of Jas P Wilson will take place this year on Saturday 13 April. While the auction (postponed last year due to FMD) starts at 12, gates...

Big treat for Baltic.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Baltic Pine, the conservatories and timber products specialist, has installed the largest diameter pressure treatment plant in the world. The #600 000 unit is 2m across and 10m long and has the capacity to treat timber for 200 of the firm's...

Workshop wizardry.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... The timber trade, processors and researchers are being targeted in a new Scottish-Irish marketing initiative. In Dublin on April 29 and in Edinburgh on the next day, study workshops will highlight the importance of innovation in promoting...

Royal appointment.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Prince Charles showed a `healthy silvicultural knowledge', according to forestry consultant Alastair Bartholomew*, when he visited a farm as part of a tour of FMD-hit Galloway. David Finlay, who has warmly embraced the concept of farm...

FSC goes into `group' custody.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Forestry contractors, woodworkers, small sawmills, portable mill operators, carpenters, joiners and hauling companies are among those expected to benefit from the launch of the FSC group `chain-of-custody' (CoC) timber certification and...

Community warmth.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `Using wood-fuel and creating local markets... could have really positive spin-offs in greening the environment and helping local economies'. Dr Helen McKay - on behalf of Paul Hill-Tout, chief conservator, Forestry Commission England - was...

`Delay tractor vibe changes'.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `Hold your horses' is the cry to Brussels by the authors of a new Health and Safety Executive-funded report on agricultural tractor vibration levels*. It follows a pilot study of `whole-body vibration' (WBV) emission levels in a range of modern...

New forest for Skye community.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... A west Highland community is celebrating their success after becoming new owners of woodlands in north Skye. The Kingsburgh Forest Trust received a Scottish Land Fund grant of #148 805 and a Community Land Unit grant of #38071 to buy the 178...

Croydon's eco-warriors.(Croydon Borough Council)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Every year - according to the London Tree Officers' Association - the capital's tree-surgery work produces more than 60000t of woody waste. Croydon Borough Council (CBC), in harness with local environmental charity BioRegional (BR) is...

Thinking small on Saturday.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Ironbridge, Shropshire will host the first of two Saturday woodland courses*. A joint exercise by the Small Woods Association (SMA) and the Forestry Contracting Association, they will marry up indoor information sessions with field trips. ...

How to stay on top safely.(safety in the lumber industry)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... One-handed use of top-handled chainsaws up in the tree leaves operators at greater risk of injury as they have less control over them, according to Health and Safety Executive inspector Adrian Hodkinson. He was introducing a new HSE research...

Now Belgium makes it!(joins nine other countries in forestry scheme)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Belgium is the latest country in the Pan European forest certification council (PEFC*) scheme to join nine others under the umbrella that already accounts for a certified total of 41m hectares. Its scheme underwent a ten-month assessment by...

Letter: Ogg rebuttal.
April 5, 2002... From Len Yull, `Sir, David Ogg's article on certification, "The Truth Behind the Spin", (February p15), displays such a failure to understand the difference between accreditation, certification and standards, that I fear he himself has...

Letter: Points to ponder.
April 5, 2002... From Stephen Arnold `Sir, I have recently read various arguments about the professionalism of timber merchants. Some of the comments seem to be from corespondents who know very little of the timber trade. Many years ago someone once asked...

Letter: Continuous Cover Forestry in Wales.
April 5, 2002... From Mark Yorke `Sir, While being delighted to read (Feb p6) your brief summary of the forthcoming FC and Bangor University's CCF project (Tyfiant Coed) to be established in Wales, as a means of "encouraging forest owners to move to CCF",...

Ex-Kronospan team buys into chipboard.(George Reynolds (UK) Ltd.)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Joe Martoccia, a leading figure in the UK wood panel products sector, has led a team of four in buying out the George Reynolds (UK) Ltd chipboard plant. Mr Martoccia was previously deputy managing director of sheet materials giant...

BWF safety plan.(British Woodworking Federation)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... The British Woodworking Federation has produced a new health and safety action plan for its sector with the aim of seriously reducing the 113 000 man-days it loses annually through employee injury and illness. The BWF says that the poor...

Frame slur refuted.(reasons for fire's severity are debated)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... A `Sunday Telegraph' article which said that the fire at the Yarl's Wood immigration centre was so severe because it was a timber-frame building has been proved wrong. The attack on timber frame was in a column by building writer Jeff Howell on...

Coillte buys out OSB mill.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 5, 2002... The Irish state forestry business Coillte has taken 100% ownership of the oriented strand board plant in Waterford which it co-owned with American forest products giant Louisiana Pacific. The Irish organisation previously held 65% of the...

Handrahan spends #1. 8m.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Timber products and mouldings specialist WJ Handrahan is installing new equipment, worth #1.8m, at its Kingswinford and Huthwaite sites to boost productivity by 25%. Among the machines it is installing are a Weinig moulding line, and...

Regs good for wood.
April 5, 2002... Building group and timber frame housing producer Stewart Milne says that the new Part L building regulations will benefit the timber sector. At a special conference it organised for architects and developers, the Scottish-based firm said...

DLH buys into US hardwoods.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 5, 2002... The international hardwoods specialist DLH has extended its offer of American species with the acquisition of PW Hardwood LLC. The latter has a turnover of $30m and, with the existing DLH business in America, takes its turnover in the...

Beating off legal challenge.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Palgrave Brown is celebrating the failure of an appeal by a German company that reneged on an agreement with the UK timber products specialist. The dispute with the German firm Stinnes goes back to 1999 when it approached PB as a potential...

Willamette purchase concludes.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... The Willamette business is now officially part of fellow American forest products conglomerate Weyerhaeuser. After a prolonged takeover battle, the latter now owns 97% of Willamette's shares. Geoff Rhodes, sales and marketing director...

Velux backs wood.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Around 80% of the new Velux `Academy' training and customer service centre in Kettering is wood. The 11000m2 structure features a glue-laminated timber frame and uses cedar shingle cladding. A spokesperson for the window producer said...

Into the frame.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Nexfor, the wood-based panel products giant, has gone into the timber frame kit market. The company used the Ideal Home Show at Earl's Court in London, to unveil its new `Addspace' timber-frame extension product. It claims that the...

Timbmet training.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Major hardwood distributor Timbmet has put 11 of its employees through the pilot for a new training programme organised in conjunction with the Institute of Wood Science. The course, in six sections, is based on the recently launched IWSc...

Time for dinner!(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... `Deck the hall with holly' is the cry for humans at Christmas. For New Forest (NF) ponies it has a special meaning associated with the dining room throughout the winter. That's what Hampshire foresters tell us as a result of one of their...

Sustainable Scotland.
April 5, 2002... Sustainable woodland management is the general theme of 11 seminars - listed below - being run by the Forestry Commission Scotland between April and October this year. Some are in association with such groups as the ICF and the RSFS. Delegates...

APF 2002 Diary.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... APF Exhibition secretary Ian Millward* continues his countdown to this year's forestry show of show's - APF 2002 at Lockerbie (Sept 25-8). On the whole February was a good month for the APF/IFF Exhibition. The site meeting on February 20...

GRIST TO THE MILLS.(report on UK sawmillers)
April 5, 2002... There can be no doubting the entrepreneurial spirit and dogged determination of UK sawmillers, as Martin Pearce reports. Despite a long, long period of low margins, they have continued to invest their faith - and lots of their money - in...

Wood wise: The view from the sharp end.
April 5, 2002... In which our monthly contracting contributor Nick Hilton of Woodwise Forestry* invents a few new sports, breaks a few ribs and does his bit to keep the rabbit population down. As I write, March has arrived and, naturally, our thoughts are...

DANGER BELOW GROUND.
April 5, 2002... Root disease-causing pathogens are widespread in Scots pine forests as William J.A. Bodles,* Steve Woodward* and Carlo Leifert,** of the University of Aberdeen report. We are all routinely familiar with the crown and stem of our forest...

MURPHY'S LAW.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Frequent truck replacemen, and keeping the operation at an easily maintained scale are among the principal factors behind one Irish haulier's success in round timber transport as Eoghan Daly reports. Having witnessed the many pitfalls faced...

PM Boosts Payback.(R.T. Nicholson and Son uses PM On Board weigher)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Paul Nicholson, who manages the family-run specialist timber haulage business R T Nicholson & Son, based near Hexham in Northumberland, reckons he's never looked back since installing his first PM On Board weigher. Now all of his eight...

Repeat and repeat.(Mark Hawkes standardises Foresteri loaders)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Mark Hawkes of Omagh in County Tyrone has standardised on Foresteri loaders, since starting his timber haulage business. In February 2000, he purchased a reconditioned Foresteri 910 loader, from Caledonian Forestry, on the recommendation of his...

Double Celebration.(Caledonian Forestery Services, Kesla OYJ)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... This year, Caledonian Forestery Services Ltd is celebrating ten years of working together with Kesla OYJ Finland, the manufacturers of Foresteri loaders. Caledonian work closely with Kesla to provide their Foresteri customers with first-class...

Lowloader chosen for King Trailer's `consultative approach'.(MJ Forster)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... MJ Forster, based in Longtown, Cumbria has recently taken delivery of its King Trailer* - a GTS44 stepframe lowloader - which will be used to transport forestry machinery throughout Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The new trailer replaces an...

New models from Loglift and Jonsered.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... Loglift has introduced three completely new designs of loader, which are now in full production. The Loglift 82S takes over from the 81S, which is now being phased out after several years production. The new 82S is said to have a higher slewing...

`Leaving a on the ground'.(Oxfordshire Woodland Group)
April 5, 2002... The Oxfordshire Woodland Group works on the principle that when small woods are managed correctly, their benefits are many - improved landscape, a richer wildlife resource, more valuable timber and more effective shelter, as Suzanne Kelsey...

4x4 MARKET UPDATE.
April 5, 2002... Eamonn Wall reports on the bouyant state of the UK 4x4 market and how new company car tax rules may influence it. Last year was another record year for car sales in the UK and the 4x4 market was no exception. Even sales of new tractors...

PROBABLY the BEST off-roader in the world!(Range Rover)(Column)
April 5, 2002... Eamonn Wall introduces us to the new `icon' - the extraordinary new Range Rover. `We believe the new Range Rover is the world's most capable vehicle, with the greatest breadth of ability of any vehicle ever made', said the head of Land...

`Club Class' Rover.(MG Rover Group Ltd.)(Brief Article)(Column)
April 5, 2002... The market for high-class diesel estates is growing fast, fuelled by the new company car tax rules. So Rover recently introduced an estate version of their award-winning 75 in order to capture their share of this growing market sector. Eamonn...

Promoting affordable small-scale management.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... `Whilst ideal for darting about and covering variable terrain quickly the ATC (all-terrain cycle) is far from ideal for more demanding work'. Riko's* Steve Cabrol has little time for the quad bike as workhorse concept, even with the...

Little brother joins the family.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... Last year Kawaski `raised the standard of heavyweight all-terrain vehicles' with the launch of the KVF650-A. With its sleek new design and 41hp engine it was firmly placed as the company's flagship model. Utilising this combination of...

More lives for Supacat.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... Hard to believe that the Supacat* 6x6 is now in its 20th year. It was, however, first developed in 1982 and has reached its Mk3 version - a long way from those early years. The basis of the vehicle remains very similar - 6x6, with large...

Centaur of attention.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... Latest from Crayford Special Vehicles Ltd* - the Centaur `reinforces the company's over 30-years' well-proven record in the forestry market. While in the 1960's, there were `over 60 manufacturers of various types of low ground pressure or...

All-new for 2002.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... Not content with re-launching and rebranding its ATV range, Suzuki* has introduced three new models and opened purpose-built production facilities in Georgia, USA. All new Suzuki ATVs will be named after mountains. The first three are...

Low impact - high achievement.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... `You don't know what you've got until it's gone!' The truism, which could perhaps equally well be applied these days to an efficient rail network or NHS, could also serve to sum up Kevan Dowe's philosophy in relation to countryside...

Osborne's Swedish models.(Advertisement)
April 5, 2002... AT Osborne* have been importers for the Moheda range of trailers and cranes and for FMV cranes since the early eighties. Both are of Swedish manufacture. Moheda originally made for FMV then did their own thing. The Osbornes carry both ranges...

Botex benefits.(lifting ability is main selling point)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2002... It is now 18 months since Jas P Wilson* moved Botex production to Lockerbie to be carried out by European Forest Machinery (EFM). In that time around 75 cranes have been produced and sold to various markets including arboriculture, contractors,...