This piece was written and provided by FTMA Silver Sponsor, Timberlink Australia.
A $63 million capital investment at Bell Bay Tasmania will see an increase of more than fifty percent in on-island sovereign timber manufactured from sustainably managed pine plantations. The project will commence in 2022 with commissioning expected by the end of 2025.
The expansion project installation and construction are in two stages, from 2022, with full output achieved at the end of 2025 this will include;
- Offline Log Debarking and Sorting
- Sawmill expansion
- Residue and Energy optimisation
- Additional continuous Kiln for drying of timber
- Planer infeed systems
- Site infrastructure improvements
Timberlink Chief Executive Officer Ian Tyson said, “At the completion of this project, the combined output of Timberlink’s Bell Bay Tasmania and Tarpeena South Australia manufacturing facilities will position Timberlink to increase supply of manufacture of structural timber for use in the construction of homes in Australia. The project has been brought forward by over two years to support additional supply into the Australian market.”
Federal Member for Bass Bridget Archer said the significant investment is yet another example of Timberlink committing to the region.
“As an elected representative, I’ve had a long-standing relationship with Timberlink since they began production in Bell Bay in 2008 and I appreciate the ongoing economic and social benefits the company provides to our local area,” Ms Archer said.
The upgrade will increase both the volume of renewable plantation pine logs that can be processed and the yield per log, creating a workplace of the future, with high tech machinery improved accuracy, safety, and job security. The planned investment is in addition to major upgrades completed two years ago and the construction of Tasmania’s first Wood Plastic Composites manufacturing facility announced earlier this year for the Bell Bay site.
In addition to 25 contractor jobs during the capital upgrades and expansion, Timberlink expects that this project will create 18 new permanent full-time jobs at the facility for the next generation. It is estimated that the Timberlink Bell Bay manufacturing facility supports approximately six hundred direct and indirect jobs in the region.
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