2011

2timbernewsA magazine for SCA’s solid wood products customers | www.scatimber.com

Collaboration results in satisfied customers

New approach proves successful at shelving factory

Cassettes – an efficient loading solution

Advantages of pre-painted panels

timbernews | 2

timber news

SCA TIMBER is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of wood-based products, with an annual production of 2.2 million cubic metres. The product range is supplemented with service and distribution solutions for customers in the wood industry and builders’ merchant sector.  SCA Timber is part of SCA’s Forest Products business area, which produces publication papers for newspapers, magazines and catalogues, as well as pulp and renewable energy. SCA Forest Products also manages SCA’s extensive forest holding and supplies SCA’s Swedish industries with wood raw materials, in addition to offering cost-efficient transport solutions to SCA’s units.

TimberNews SCA Forest Products ABSE-851 88 Sundsvall, tel +46 60 19 30 00www.scatimber.com

Timber News is published four times a year

Editor-in-chief Björn Lyngfelt

Production Fryklunds

Repro & printing Tryckeribolaget

Subscribe to Timber News, please contact ingrid.lofqvist@sca.com

Feel free to quote us, but please name us as your source.

Bob Albery, Buying Controller, Wickes.Photo: John Attwell

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nnovationisabuzzwordatthemoment. It’sthesubjectofconferences,booksand expensiveconsultancyservices.It’salsoseenasthekeytoacompany’ssuccess.Butthetrendsofthetimearenottheprimarydrivingforcebehindcompanies’focusoninnovation.Rather,innovationisoneofthemostimpor-tanttoolsacompanyhasintermsofcreatingnew,moreattractiveproductswhentheoldonesbecomesubjecttoincreasinglystiffcom-petition.Inshort,it’sameansofmaintaining–andhopefullyincreasing–sales.

So what does innovationmeantoatimbercompanylikeSCATimber?Weworkwithwhatmustbeoneoftheoldestproductsintheworld.Forthousandsofyears,peoplehaveusedwoodtobuildhousesandmakeutilityitems. Andit’sclearthatwecanstillderiveinno-vationsfromwood.We’reconstantlylearninghowwecanbetterexploititsnaturalproper-ties. Using X-rays, 3D measurement andadvanced imaging technology, we knowexactlywhatpropertiesaloghasandhowtomatchtherawmaterialaswellaspossiblewiththedesiredproductcharacteristics.

But innovationdoesn’tonlyapplytotheprod-uctitself.InMunksundwe’vebuiltafactorythat manufactures window components.There,wefirstproduceknot-freecomponents,atotalofalmost50millionindividualpiecesofwoodinayear,whichwethentwistandturntoensurethatthecomponentthatwillsubse-quentlybecomeawindowframehasexactlytherightpropertiesintherightplace.Withmoderntechnologyandprocesscontrol,wecanindustriallymanufactureaproductthatwaspreviouslymadeusingknowledgeofthecraftsmanshiprequiredfortherawmaterialselected. InKramfors,togetherwithpartners,we’vedesignedafactoryformanufacturingamillionready-to-assembleshelvingsystemseachyear.We’vealsodevelopedanefficientproduction

andlogisticsmodelforsupplyingamillionready-packageddoorframesetstotheUKmarketannually.

We developsupply-chainsolutionssothatwecanefficientlysupplyhundredsofbuilders’merchantstoreswithsolidwoodproducts;atpresent,we’rebeingassistedinthisbyadoc-toral candidate from Linköping University(plusanotherfinancedbytheuniversity).Weworkwithourcustomersandtakeoverpartsoftheirsupplyprocesssothattheycanfocusontheirownproductsandcustomers.Wefinishourproductsthroughimpregnation,planingandsurfacetreatment.Noneofthisisrevolu-tionary,butfindingefficientsolutionsandbusi-nessmodelsthatimprovetheproductsfortheendcustomerandmakethemalittlelessexpen-siverequiresaninnovativemindsetatallstages. Wewillcontinuetodevelopourproducts,productionprocessesandbusinessmodels,andwewilldothistogetherwithcustomerswho,likeus,believethatitispossibletomakeagoodthingevenbetter.We’renowalsosettingoursightsevenhigherbymovingfromanambitionofbestpracticetoofferingourcustomersele-mentsofsubstantialinnovation.We’renotexactlyaimingfortheNobelPrize,butdefi-nitelyforsatisfiedandperhapsslightlysur-prisedcustomers–andforconstantlyimprov-ingbusinessforallparties.

Jerry LarssonTechnicalDirector, SCA Timber

What can actually be new about a plank?

I

contents

What can actually be innovative about a plank? 2

New approach required for new factory 3

Efficient loading solution for sensitive products 7

Team spirit creates good business 8

Getting to grips with the supply chain 11

Painted exterior claddingssave time and improvequality 12

Ready-painted products sold over the counter save customers’ time 13

Notices 14

Unsettled spring in solid wood products market 15

Elks’ annual dip 16

3 | timbernews

Building a new factory with the annual capacity to transform 45,000 cubic metres of sawn wood raw materials into a million shelves for IKEA requires both imagination and new thinking. “It’s resulted in a completely unique facility,” says Site Manager Lars-Erik Frage.

Thegreeneryon thebirch treeshas just started toappear.Onthe gravel outside TräTeam’s

factory,thelorriescomeinthickandfast.Somearebeingrelievedoftheirloadofsawntimberfromthesaw-millinBollsta,whileothersarebeingloaded with finished shelving des-tined for IKEA stores in northernEurope. Twoyearsago,anagreementwassigned between SCA Timber andIKEAonsupplyingtheclassicGormstorage shelving unit.The task wasassignedtoTräTeam,oneofSCATim-ber’s highly skilled sub-contractorsandlong-timepartners. But major investments in newtechnology were required to suc-ceed.Aboveall,itwascrucialthatthetechnologywasbothfunctionalandcost-effectivesothatitcouldcompetewithlow-costcountriessuchasRuma-nia.Toensuretheproject’sprofitabil-ity,avolumeofonemillionshelveswasrequired. “Wedefinitelyhadourworkcutout,”commentsTräTeam’sSiteMan-agerLars-ErikFrage.

Building a new facilityusing triedandtestedtechnologyiseasynowa-days. The supplier simply does theassembly work and hands over thekeystothepurchaser,whothenonlyhas to press a button.A few hourslater,productionisupandrunningatfullspeed.

“Allpotentialstumblingblockshavealready been analysed, documentedandattendedto,”concludesFrage. ButinthecaseofGorm,thecir-cumstances were completely differ-ent.Everythingwasnewandhadn’tbeen testedbefore.The requirementwastomanufactureamillionshelvesperyear–30shelvesaminute–withahighlevelofuptime.Therewasnoscopeforanyproductionlinedown-time.

“Itwouldhavebeenconsiderablyeasiertobuildafacilitythatmanufac-tures products in steel,” says Frage.“Woodisalivingmaterial,withknotsand varying hardness, which makesveryspecialdemands.”

The entire project,includingprocure-ment, planning and commissioning,hasbeencoordinatedbySCATimber.LennartWilhelmsson, DevelopmentManageratSCATimber,isoneteam

new approach required for new factory

What can actually be new about a plank?

timbernews | 4

The bags of screws are fed through, with the right number at the correct speed, to be attached to each shelf.

memberwhohasspentagreatdealoftimeonsiteinKramfors. “Ithelpstohaveseveralpairsofeyestoseewhat’sgoingon,”hesumsup.Andmanygreatmindsareneededtoanalyseanddealwithallpotentialflaws.The facility was ordered from localindustrialinnovationcompanyNylandDesign,whoseownerLarsStenströmhadpreviouslysucceededinpullingoffseveralseeminglyimpossibleprojects.Hewasaskedifhethoughthecouldfindasolutionforthistask–todesigna machine that could produce 30shelves aminutebasedonaprecisespecificationofrequirements.Hesaidyeswithoutamoment’shesitation.“Initially, the idea of procuring thetechnologyoutinEuropewasonthetable, but we soon realised that thephysicalproximitytoNylandDesignwasan importantargument in theirfavour,”saysWilhelmsson.

And now it’s on site: a completelyunique and largely automated pro-duction line, customised to meetIKEA’s requirement of always beingable to offer its customers a Gormshelf, regardlessofwhere inEuropethey’relocated.

Thetimbergoesstraightfromtheplaningmill to thenewcutting line,the lengths successively decreasing.There, tried and tested, well-knowntechnologyisusedtoassessthequalityof thetimber,sort itandthencut itintotherightlengths. Butafterthatstage,everythingiscompletelynew.Theedgelistscomereadycut,fourbyfourinonepiece,andaredrilledwithatoleranceof0.5millimetres.Fromanotherlinecometheplanks thatwillbecomeshelves.Theyaresortedandthennailedtotheedgelists.

The nailing line is fully automatedanduseshydraulicstoattachthe300nailsthatareusedeachminute.That’sabout66millionnailsayear. “As the hardness of the timbervaries,we chose tousehydraulics,whichpressesinthenailstothesamedepth each time, instead of com-pressed air, which shoots them intothewood,”explainsFrage. Following that, a bag of screwsandmountinginstructionsaregluedto each shelf before it is packaged,either looseor inapacketcompletewithlegsanddiagonalbraces. Simplyworkingoutawaytoget

thebagsofscrewsoutofthebigboxestheyaredeliveredinfromTaiwan,inthe right number and at the rightspeed,requiredalotofthinking. Atthesametimethelegsareboundtogetherinpairsanddrilledwith28holesinasingleresoluteaction.

The linewasprincipallyconstructedtoproduceshelvesandlegsseparately,producedasloosecomponents,andthisrepresented80percentofinitialproduction.Theremaining20percentcomprisedadditionalshelves,knownasunits,inseparatepackages.Thatproportionhasnowreversed,duetodemandfromIKEAcustomers.Theindividual shelf packets have nowincreasedto80percentofproduction,andthisnowtriggeredasecondphasefortheproductionline.

Amongstotherthings,corrugatedpalletsareusedascarriers.TheyaremanufacturedontheproductionlinebyarobotfromABB.Anotherrobotstaplesthefinishedproductsonthecorrugatedpalletstopackets. “Completelynewchallenges,”saysFrage,andlooksalmostfullofappre-ciation. Inanuntestedcontrolsystemof

5 | timbernews

“all those working at the factory have been involved in

building up something completely unique.”Lennart Wilhelmsson, SCA

Jan-Erik Frage, Site Manager, and Lennart Wilhelmsson, Development Manager at SCA Timber.

suchcomplexity,bugsnaturallyoccuronaregularbasis;afaulthereandafault there lead toa third fault thatno-onewasabletopredictinadvance. Andsincethespeedoftheproduc-tionlineissohighandthebugsoccurintermittentlyover longperiodsoftime,amobilecamerasystemhasbeeninstalledthatfilmsthetasksinwhichproblemsareencountered. “Thehumaneyehasquitesimplynochanceofkeepingup,”saysFrage.Now,theoperatorsnotedownwhenthefaultoccurredsothatwecanfinditonthefilmandseewhathappened.Thisissimpleandinexpensive–wejustneededtocomeupwiththeidea.”

Both FrageandWilhelmssonalsosaythatstaffcollaborationhasbeencru-cial to achieving successful results.The operators of the new line havebeeninvolvedfromthestart–they’veheavedthemachinesintoplace, laidcablesandseenthelinetakeshape.

Thismeansthatallnewemployeeshavealsotakenpartintheentireproc-ess.They’venotbeenpresentedwithafinishedconceptbutinsteadhavebeeninvolved in building up somethingunique– something that they takegreatresponsibilityforthemselves. “Theoperatorsarethebestmain-tenancepersonnel,”saysWilhelmsson,summingup.“Theyhelpwithtrou-bleshooting,canaccessthecontrolsystemandmakechanges,dealwithnon-functioning cables and changelayers. Andasthere’snoneedtowaitformaintenancestafftotackleanyfaultsthatarise,downtimeinproductionisminimised.

When the production line for theGorm shelving was commissioned,theaimwastoreachfullcapacitybytheendof2010orbeginningof2011,withamillionshelvesmanufactured. Andwe’vecomealongway,but

wearen’tquitethereyet.”Frageesti-mates that they’ve achieved 90 per-centoftheirgoal,whichisbeingcom-pensatedbysomeextratime. Butforacompletelynewanduntestedfacilityofsuchcapacity,hestillconsidersthatthegrowthinproductionhasbeensatisfactory.Hehasn’treceivedanycomplaintseither. “Ofcourse,theaimistoreach100percent–nothingelsewilldo–butwithsmall time adjustments, we’ve donewhatwecommittedtodoing.Allthatremainsnowistodothefine-tuning.”

Mats Wigardt

Images: Olle Melkerhed

Footnote:Gorm was the king of Denmark in the first half of the 900s. He was also father of Harald Bluetooth. According to king Sven Estridsen, Gorm was a “dreadful snake who was to a large extent antago-nistic towards all Christians”.

timbernews | 6

7 | timbernews

JELD-WENistheworld’sbig-gestdoormanufacturer.Fromitsoriginsasalocalfamily

businessinOregon,USA,thecom-panyhasexpandedintoamajorinternationalwoodindustrycor-poration. IthashadoperationsintheUKsince1999andiscurrentlythecoun-try’s leadingsupplierofdoorsandwindows.

Efficient loading solution for sensitive products

As SCA Timber grows and the customer base is consolidated, we are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of optimising the entire value chain. Flexible logistics is one example. This is why finished components are delivered on cassettes to door manufacturer JELD-WEN in the UK directly from the planing mill at Tunadal Sawmill.

When JELD-WENwasplanningtostreamlineitsrawmaterialsprocess-ingformanufacturingdoorsandwin-dows theotheryear, the companystarteddiscussingvariousalternativeswithSCATimber. Thediscussionsresultedincollab-orationwithSCATimber,whichhadsufficientresourcestobeabletointe-gratepartsoftheprocessinginthesawmillinTunadal,therebyguaran-teeingsuitablerawmaterial–finishedproduct componentsbasedon thecustomer’sownspecificationsandservicerequirements–insufficientvolumes.

OnefactorthatcontributedtoJELD-WENchoosingSCAasapre-ferred supplier was SCA’s logisticssolution. “Thisisabusinessthathasgrownenormouslyoverashortspaceoftime,”saysMarkusHenningsson,KeyAccountManagerforJELD-WENatSCATimber.Today,around20,000cubicmetresaresentfromTunadaltoJELD-WEN’sUKfactories. Twiceaweek,doorandwindowcomponentsareloadedonspecialcas-settesattheplaningmillinTunadalanddrivenonboardashipboundforTilbury,justoutsideLondon.There,theyareliftedoutontolorriestobetransportedontotheirfinaldestina-tions. Thecassettes–12metre-longand2.60 metre-wide iron platforms –wereactuallydevelopedforsensitivepaperproducts.Buttheyhaveprovedequallyeffectiveforprocessedwood.

With finished components,it’spar-ticularlyimportantthatthequalityismaintainedallthewaytothe

customer.Thewoodmustnotbedamaged,becomedamporgetdirty.Eachre-shipmentinvolvestheriskofdamage. Using SCA Transforest’s systemshipshasthusprovedanidealsolution:it’ssafe,carefulandresource-efficient.

Henningsson,whohasrecentlytakenupabusinessdevelopmentpostatSCATimberinFrance,isconvincedthatthesystemofusingcassettestotransportcomponentstotheUKisheretostay.“Butothersolutionsmayberequiredforothermarkets,”hesays. InthethesisthatMarkus,incol-laboration with SCA, presented atLinköpingUniversity,healsostatestheimportanceofflexible logisticsandefficientdistributionwhenthedegreeofprocessingatsawmillsincreases. “Withamorefit-for-purposerange,it’simportanttocomeupwithcost-effectivesolutionsfortheentirevaluechain,”hesays.“Andtoknowwhichsolutionisoptimalforeachproductandcustomer.”

Mats Wigardt

timbernews | 8

“Wickesisnotanevery-daycus-tomer:wearepartnersingrowth,”PaulOldhamstates.TheWickeschainof197storesUK-widefocusesontheexperiencedDIYenthusiastandthesmallertradesmen,withitsofferingofover4,000building,decoratingandgarden-relatedproductlines.Foundedontrustbuiltupoverrecentyears,theWickes-SCA‘teamspirit’ismani-festinthesupplychainforsolidtimberdecking,producedbySCAMunksundsawmill.ProductManagerAndersPeterssoncomments:“It’sanopenandtransparentpartnership.We’reactingasourcustomer’smanufactur-ingunit,asifwe’repartoftheirbusi-ness.”

This springhasseenWickes’solidtimberdeckingsalesincreasedramat-ically,despitethelack-lustreBritisheconomy.Addedtogether,thedeckingproductssoldtoWickes’consumerand tradesman customers wouldalmostreachfromLondontoCairo.What’sattherootofthissuccess?

ClosemonitoringofeveryfactorfromBritain’sfamously-changeableweathertosawmillproductionanddeliveries.Weeklytelephonemeetingsthrough-outthemaindeckingsales‘season’bringtogetherafriendlybutprofes-sionaldual-companyteam,withdis-ciplinesrangingfromadvertisingandmarketingtoprocurementandlogistics. Wickes’BuyingControllerBobAlberyrelates:“Thestrengthofthispartnershipliesintrust,collaboration,andinthecontinuitywegetfromworkingwithSCA.It’sahugeadvan-tagethatSCAownsthewholesupplychainfromtreetofinishedproduct.Thekeyfactorsforusareproductquality,consistencyacrossoperationsanddelivery,andtheabilitytomain-tainthesupplychain,evenwhenwe’rewayaboveforecasts.”

The Wickes sideofthedual-com-panyteamcomprises:BobAlbery;NicolaBourlet,Buyer;MikeFarrants,ProductManager;DaveMaddison,

SeasonalitySupplyManager;TarniaCarson,CategorySupplyManager;Akil Panjwani, Garden CategoryManager,andNickkiMalkan,SupplyChainAnalyst.TeammeetingsarechairedbySCA’snationalaccountmanagerNicAttwell,arenowneddeckingspecialist,andincludeSCA’sPaulOldhamonprocurement,andDavidFoster,SCATimberSupply’sheadoflogistics.AlsointegraltotheSCAsideofthepartnershipismillliai-son&shippingmanagerDianeBaileyatSCATimberSupply’sHullfacility.

Bob Alberysaysacombinationofunusuallygoodweather,alateEasterandanextrapublicholidayfortherecentroyalweddinghavebenefittedthedeckingsalesenvironment.Wickeshascapitalizedonthisthroughtar-getedadvertising:“TheWickesbrandisbeingrevitalisedbyprojectingprod-uctqualityinvariouscategories,”BobAlberycomments.“Ourdeckingismilesbetteronqualityandwebench-markpriceagainstourcompetitors.

team spirit creates good businessThe concept of ‘partnering’ - creating trusted cross-disciplinary project teams from construction clients and contractors - is now an established one. Innovative use of this concept in retailing has created a profitable bond of excellence between DIY retailer Wickes, its parent company Travis Perkins, and SCA Timber in Britain and Sweden. “It’s a fluid, responsive partnership with a single aim: satisfying end-user customers,” says SCA Timber Supply’s Head of Procurement, Paul Oldham.

9 | timbernews

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team spirit creates good business

“Thetelevisionadvertisingcampaignradiates solid timber quality andappealstocustomerdesiresforalast-ing,home-enhancingresult.Itsimul-taneouslypromotesWickes’reputa-tionforqualityinthewidermarket-place.“ComparingEaster2011withEaster2010,salesareexceptionallyhigh.It’sarealtestamenttoSCAthattheycanflexwithusandkeepussuppliedevenwhenwe’resomuchaboveforecast.WealsolooktoSCAforinnovation.Futuresuccessreliesonmakinglifeeasierfortheendcustomer,sowe’reworkingtogetheronareadystaineddeckingproduct.Thissavesthecus-tomer’stimefrominstallationfor-ward.“

Mike Farrants, Product Manager, Wickes; Nicola Bourlet, Buyer, Wickes; Bob Albery, Buying Controller, Wickes, and Nic Attwell of SCA Timber Supply. 

Paul Oldham, David Foster and Diane Bailey, SCA Timber Supply.

timbernews | 10

BobAlberyalsorealisestheimpor-tanceofphysicalaccesstothefutureofdeckingsales:Theorderingofdeck-ingisstillroughly80percentstore-basedand20percentbyothermeans,butanintegratedofferingisessentialintoday’smarketplace,”heasserts.“We’veopenedupanewcustomer-basethroughour‘Big&Bulky’supplyservice,launchedlastyear.Customerscanorderonlineorbytelephoneandhaveproductsdeliverednext-day.It’shadadisproportionatelybeneficial

effect on sales of longer deckinglengths.”

The Travis PerkinsdeckingofferingdiffersfromWickesinthebroadrangeofcustomertypesitneedstoserve.TravisPerkinsisinvolvedwithmajorcontractorsintheconstructionsectorandprovidersofsocialhousing,aswellasservinglandscapingcontrac-torsandjobbingbuilders.“Ourmar-ketingpropositionisaqualityprod-uct,capableofsuitingawidevariety

of end users,” explains MartinCunliffe,TimberBuyingManageratTravisPerkins. “Inourmarketing,deckingfea-turesamongstanumberofsolutionsinourannuallandscapingbrochure,whichwepresentinaformatthatbuildersandcontractorscanusetoshowtheircustomers.Itcoversourcompleterangefromsoftwooddeck-ingtocompositedeckingmadefromrecycledwood-basedmaterialsandhardwooddecking.Wepromoteour

11 | timbernews

Which factorsaremostimportantatmerchant or retailer level whenlaunchinganewproduct? ThisisthetopiccurrentlybeinginvestigatedbyWeiGuan,Ph.D.stu-dentatLinköpingUniversity.TheresearchisbeingconductedonbehalfofSCATimber.Weihasalreadypre-sentedherLicentiatethesisshowingthestructureanddevelopmentofthedistributionsectorintheUK.

The continuing project focusesonmarketingnewproductsandisbeingconductedinthreephases.Theinitialstageistoidentifyanddescribesuc-cessfulcasestudiesinthebuildingmaterialssector.Thesecondistolinkthemtoperceptionsandactivitiesatdistributorlevel.Thefinalphaseistheidentificationofkeyfactorsforsuc-cessfulproductlaunches,whichhope-fullywillhelpSCAimproveitsunder-standingofthebuilders’merchantmarket.

Daniel Ellström isthesecondPh.D.studentconductingresearchonbehalfofSCATimber.Daniel,whoisbeingemployedbySCAforthedurationoftheproject,startedinSeptember2010.

The project primarily targets thenationalbuilders’merchantgroupsintheUKandaimstoincreasesupplychainefficiencybystandardisingtheproductrangeofferedtotheirstores.Byencouragingacustomerwithmul-tiplestoresalloverBritaintosellthesameproducts inall theiroutlets,increasedefficiencycanbeobtainedinbothproductmanufacturinganddis-tribution.Thechallengeinthisprojectistounderstandtheeffectonlocalout-letsandparticularlyhowend-custom-ers-buildersandDIYers-wouldreacttosuchachange.

Getting to grips with the supply chain

Wei Guan and Daniel Ellström, Ph.D. students conducting research on behalf of SCA Timber.

Photo: Johan Holtström, IEI, LiU.

rangethroughlocalradioandthroughothermessagingmedia.” Fullboat-loadsofdecking,thistimeproduced at SCA’s Bollsta sawmill,arriveatadedicatedTravisPerkinsTimberSupplyCentreatKingsLynnontheUK’sEastAngliancoast,fromwhichthey’redistributedacrosstheTravisPerkins600+branchnetwork.“Forecastingsalesinamarketinclud-inglarge-scaleconstructionisatotallydifferentsciencetothatusedbyourcolleaguesatWickes.Influencingfac-torsvaryaswidelyasourcustomerbase.Theweatherandseasonalfac-torsaffectsmallertradecustomers,whilstthemacro-economicsituationaffectslarger-scaleconstruction. ForexamplewhentheUK’sreces-sionbegan,itwouldhavebeenlogicalfordeckingsalestofollowthemarketdownwards,butconverselytheywentup.That’sbecausedeckingrepresentslessofaninvestmentthan,say,pavingslabs,”MartinCunliffereports.

Workingwithconstructioncontrac-torsmakessignificantdemandsonthemerchantsupplierpartnership,MartinCunlifferelates:“Werelyoncompa-nieslikeSCAtofulfilpreciselythespec-

ificationandordersweplace:there’snoroomformanoeuvre.Theold-fash-ionednotionthat‘nearlyrightisrightenough’doesnotworkintoday’seffi-ciency-driven construction market.ConstructioncompaniesexpectTravisPerkinstodeliver,andweexpectthesameofoursuppliers.”MartinCun-liffealsoseesanemerginghierarchyinthedeckingproductcategory:“Speci-fiersarebeingattractedtorecycledproductswhicharebeingpromotedbyproducersasanenvironment-friendlyoption.Thistrendthoughisalongwayfromimpactingsoftwooddeckingmarkets,”heconfirms.

Summarisingtheinter-linkingrela-tionshipbetweenWickes,TravisPer-kinsandSCA,NicAttwellconcludes:“Businessneedstobeprofitableforallparties.TheseamlessintegrationwhichSCAanditscustomershaveattainedontimberdeckingshowsjustwhatcanbeachievedwhenallpartiesarefocussedtotallyonservingtheend-ofchaincustomer.”

Text: Camilla HairPhotos: John Attwell

“Construction companies expect Travis Perkins to deliver, and we expect the same of our suppliers,” says Martin Cunliffe, Timber Buying Manager, Travis Perkins.

timbernews | 12

As a building’s outer shell,exteriorcladdingisvulnerable,beingexposedtoweatherandtothechangingseasons,withtheirvaryingtemperaturesandhumidity.UVradiation,pollutantsandmicro-organisms,includingmouldandalgae,areexam-plesofexternalfactorsthatreducethedurabilityofthewood.Toefficientlyprotectthetimberandprolongdurability,itisimportanttosurface-treatthewoodwhileitisfresh.

SCA Timber’sexteriorcladding,madeofslow-grownNorrlandpine,isplaneddirectlybeforebasicsurfacetreatmenttoguar-anteethatthesurfaceiscompletelyfreefrompollutants.Apartfrompriming,thereistheoptionoftreatingthecladdingwithfurtherintermediatecoatsofalkyd-oracrylate-basedtopcoat.Whentheindustriallysurface-treatedcladdingisthenmountedonthebuilding,oneortwofinalcoatsarerecommended. Thevarioustreatmentoptionscanbecarriedoutusingthepaintcolourofyourchoicefromtherangesofwell-knownpaintsuppliers,basedontheinternationalNaturalColorSystem(NCS).Thereisalsotheoptionofselectingtheamountofpaintforeachindividualcoat;astandardcoatconsistsofa60my(180g/m2)paintlayer.

Text: Ingrid Löfqvist

Images: Per-Anders Sjöquist

It’s now possible for Scandinavian builders merchants to order sur-face-treated exterior cladding from SCA Timber’s painting facility in Stugun. These industrially-painted cladding offer advantages in terms of quality and time savings for both of builders’ merchant customers and housing producers.

painted exterior cladding save time and improve quality

SCA Timber’s painting facility has an annual production capacity of 20,000 m3. The boards are heated up for optimal paint penetration and are painted on three sides in the spray box, which has a capacity of 90 running metres of board per minute.

sca timber’s surface-treated exterior cladding• Industrially painted at our own painting facility

• Alternative surface treatments

• Amount of paint controlled by weighing the board before and after painting

• Controlled moisture content and drying process

• Varying sawing techniques for different profiles

• NCS colour of your choice

Ytbehandlad fasadpanel efterfrågas av både professionella hantverkare och enskilda konsumenter, säger Leif Lindholm, vd på XL-Bygg Fresks, här med SCA Timbers grundmålade fasadpanel.

13 | timbernews

ready-painted products sold over the counter save customers’ timeFor some years SCA Timber has been the main sup-plier of solid wood products to the family company XL-BYGG Fresks, comprising seven units, which is one of the hundreds of part-owners of the Scandina-vian builders merchant chain XL-BYGG. One of the products supplied is cladding, and the company is seeing increasing demand from their customers for surface-treated exterior cladding.

“There is a clear trendamongstourcustomerstobuymorefinishedproducts.Primedcladdinghaveformedpartofourrangeforoverfiveyears,andwe’reseeinganincreaseindemand.Theoptiontooffercustomersprimedexteriorcladding,perhapssupplementedbyanadditionalcoat,isrightforthetimes.Paintingahousetakestimebutinthestore,thecustomerispresentedwiththeopportunityofskippingoneormoretime-consumingtasks,accordingtoLeifLindholm,CEOofXL-BYGGFresks.

Lindholm and his employeeshaveseenageneralincreaseininterestinpackagedsolutionsthatencompasseverythingfromtheproducttoassembly–quitesimplyeverything

thatfacilitatescustom-er’sdecisionsandwork-load.XL-BYGG Fresksstoresalsoofferinteriordesignconsultations,

withtheconsultantvisitingthecustomer’shomeandpro-vidingadviceonconversions,colourschemesandchoiceofmaterials. “Gettinghelphasbecomemoreaccepted.It’salsoaquestionofage–theyoungergenerationhaveverylittletimeandprefertobuyservicesthatmakethingseasierforthemintheirdailylives,”saysLindholm.Hecontinues: “Sure,it’smoreexpensiveforthecustomertobuyprimedcladdinginsteadofuntreatedexteriorcladding,butyouhavetolookatthedealasawhole.Italsocostsmoneytobuypaint,brushesandcleaningfluids,andthelabourcostsalsoneedtobeweighedin.Asbuildersmerchants,weloseoutonpaintsaleswhenthecustomerbuysprimedproducts,butyouneedtolookatthecustomerbenefit.Acustomerwhoissatisfiedwiththequalityandservicewillreturn–inanycase,they’llneedtobuypaintforthefinalcoat,”saysLindholm,summingup.

XL-BYGGisachainofalmost100independentbuildersmer-chantsspanningthewholeofSweden.Togetherwithcol-leaguesinNorwayandDenmark,theyformScandinavia’shighest-profilebuildersmerchants,withatotalof270stores.

Text and photographs: Ingrid Löfqvist

Formoreinformation:www.xlbygg.se

Surface-treate dexterior cladding is in demand by both professional tradespeople and individual consumers, according to Leif Lindholm, CEO of XL-Bygg Fresks, pictured here with SCA Timber’s primed exterior cladding.

timbernews | 14

sca timber is co-ordinating the sawmills Munksund in Piteå and Holm-sund in Umeå into an organisation with joint management. Holmsund sawmill specialises in smaller dimension sawn timber and Munksund in thicker dimension timber. The change means that production will become more cost-effective, which will help make SCA Timber more competitive. Both sawmills only produce pine products. Holmsund sawmill will maintain its production level of around 90,000 cubic metres of sawn solid wood products, but will process more logs than today. Munksund Sawmill currently produces around 430,000 cubic metres of wood prod-ucts. The changes mean focusing on bigger dimensions but maintaining total production. “Productive and cost-efficient manufacturing facilities are necessary for long-term competitiveness. By having different areas of specialisa-tion at the sawmills, we can use both facilities better. We’ll also be able to make better use of the raw materials in the region,” says Anders Nilsson, head of Munksund sawmill and head of the joint sawmill or-ganisation.

SCA Timber invests in chinasca timber china has opened a sales com-pany in Hong Kong. The company purchases solid wood products from SCA’s sawmills and sells them on to customers in China and South East Asia. Products from external sawmills will also be purchased. With its four employees, the sales company has several advantages. For example, custom-ers are served by staff who speak Chinese, know the regulatory framework and work the same hours. Also, administration for the saw-mills that sell to China is simplified. Greater ad-ministrative efficiency gives lower sales costs. “This year, we’re counting on selling around 55,000 cubic metres,” says Mathias Fridholm, Managing Director of SCA Timber China & S.E. Asia Ltd. It is hoped that volumes will increase over the coming years. Between 2008 and 2010, imports of sawn solid wood products to China were doubled. Development in China takes place quickly, and manufacturing is moving away from a high de-gree of manual work to production in facilities re-sulting from new investments, similar to facilities in Europe. This means that demands on prod-ucts are increasing. “China is a market to reckon with where all raw materials and basic products are con-cerned,” says Jonas Mårtensson, President of SCA Timber. “It’s therefore important to build an organisation that can cope with the future and the greater demands on knowledge transfer and technical sales, something that Chinese customers are increasingly likely to demand.”

sca invests SEK 290 million in Bollsta sawmill

sca timber makes sawmills more efficient

in new postsdaniel holmgren, Product Manager for processed wood products at Munksund sawmill, took up a new post on 1 April in SCA Timber’s marketing organisation as Key Account Manager. Daniel will be working with sales and supply chain issues in relation to Dovista and Hedlunda Industrier, two of SCA Timber’s

biggest component customers.

Birgitta Boström, Product Manager at Rundvik sawmill, will be moving to SCA Skog, taking up a new post as forest manager at Västerbotten Forest Administration.

lars andersson, Sawmill Manager at Vilhelminasawmill, will be taking over Birgitta Boström’s post as of 1 September 2011 as product manager at Rundvik sawmill.

anders nilsson, sawmill manager at Munksund sawmill, will be taking over the position of sawmill manager at Holmsund Sawmill as of 1 September 2011.

gustav eriksson, Sawmill Manager at Holmsund sawmill, will be taking over the posi-tion of Sawmill Manager at Rundvik Sawmill as of 1 September 2011. Sten Olov Andersson, current Sawmill Manager, will be retiring at the beginning of 2012 and will be

working on projects within SCA Timber until that time.

sca is investing SEK 290 million in Bollsta sawmill, to provide two new biofuel boilers, greater drying capacity and an upgraded saw line. The investment will increase production ca-pacity, efficiency and profitability, whilst making the sawmill more environmentally-friendly. The biofuel boilers, which are fired with bark and other residues from the sawmill, involve a decrease in oil consumption of 3,400 cubic me-tres per year. Fossil-fuel carbon dioxide emis-sions from the sawmill will be almost entirely eliminated. Of the total investment sum, SEK 37 million will provide a timber sorting facility that will be

equipped with new technology for the entire timber management process. A new, 80 me-tre-long line with 78 sorting compartments will improve precision and provide opportunities to add further grades of timber. In the new facility, logs can be transferred to the sorting compartments at a speeds of 200 metres per minute. The combined effect of the investments will increase the sawmill’s production capacity from 450,000 to 525,000 cubic metres of sawn pine products per year

NOTICES

15 | timbernews

unsettled spring in solid wood products marketProduction limitations around the turn of the year sta-bilised the market after a troublesome autumn. But since then, we have been on a real rollercoaster ride. Our main markets in Europe have continued to slowly increase consumption, which has been entirely in line with our forecasts. Instability in the Arab world and in Japan, on the other hand, has had a negative impact. The biggest negative effect on our markets, however, has been caused by the sawmills’ high pro-duction rates in both Scandinavia and Central Europe.

Thetotallevelofnew-buildscontinuestobelowinbothWesternEuropeandtheUnitedStates.How-ever,aslowrecoveryfromthelowestpointin2010

isdiscernible.Thisgrowthisdistributedverydifferentlybetweeneconomicallystrongandweakcountries.Ger-many,FranceandScandinaviaareexperiencinggoodgrowth,whileintheUK,IrelandandanumberofMedi-terraneancountries,growthisweak. TheimportantEuropeanrenovationsectorcontinuestobesignificantlymorestablethanthenew-buildmarket.Severalcountriesareofferinggrantsforrepairs,mainte-nance,renovationsandextensions,thelatestofthesebeingDenmark. AsaresultofthedifficultiesfacedbyEuropeansawmillsinrespectoftheirhistoricmarketsinthemainlandEurope,exportstonewmarketshavegraduallyincreased.Thebig-gestofthesemarketareasisNorthAfricaandtheMiddleEast.Thisisaregioncharacterisedbyayoungandrapidlygrowingpopulationthatiscryingoutfornewhousing.ItisalsoapartoftheworldthatisexperiencingeconomicgrowthfarinexcessofthatinEurope.Inthelastfewyears,thevolumeofpinetimberimportedintotheregionhassoaredpastthelevelsintheEuropeanmarket.

The instabilitywehaveseenintheregionduringthefirstquarterhasinvolvedlowerconsumption,buttoalesserextentthanweanticipated.Inourassessment,wewilllose10–15percentofannualconsumptioninEgyptbutcon-sumptioninothermajormarketswillhardlyfallatall.Themajorexceptionhere,however,isLibya,whereallimportsandsaleshaveceasedsincethewarbrokeout.LibyaisarelativelysmallmarketforScandinaviansawmills,butitisimportantforAustria. Thebest-casescenarioisthatwearenowovertheworst–withtheexceptionofLibya.However,iftroublewastoflareupagaininEgyptand/orspreadtoothermajormar-ketsintheregion(Algeria,MoroccoandSaudiArabia),itmayhaveasignificanteffectonmarketbalance. ThenaturaldisasterinJapandestroyedcitiesandcom-munitiesinnorth-eastJapan.Here,weassessthatamajor

reconstructionprogrammewillbegininlateautumn.Sincetimber-framehousesholdamarketshareofaround55per-centinJapan,itisreasonabletoassumethatthissectorwillprovideanupturninvolumesoverthenext1–2years.Woodenhousesareconsideredtohaveexcellentpropertiesforwithstandingearthquakes,whichisanimportantfactorinJapan. SCATimber’ssalestoChinaaregrowingatarapidpace.AsearlyastheendofJune,wewillhavedeliveredmorethanwedidinthewholeof2010,andthetrendistowardsaconstantincrease.

Production in spring 2011inthefivemajorEuropeanproduc-ingcountries(Germany,Russia,Sweden,AustriaandFin-land)isassessedtobe6–7percenthigherthanlastyear,whichisarateofproductionbeyondthatforwhichsawmillshavesofarfoundsatisfactorymarkets.Weestimate,however,thatproductionlevelswilldecreaseoverthenextsixmonths,thereasonforthisprimarilybeingthesawmills’weakprof-itability.Asthecurrenthighproductionratemakespriceincreasesdifficultasameansofimprovingprofitability,theonlycourseofactionisforthesawmillstotrylimitingtheircosts.Themostimportantcostitemislogs,whichcanonlybereducedthroughlowerdemand.Lesslogsresultsauto-maticallyinlowerproduction.

The Euro pricesofsawnspruceproductsincreasedduringthespring,althoughthisincreaselevelledoutinQ2.Priceincreasesforpinehavebeenmorelimited.Despitetheseadjustments,thepriceinSwedishKronorhasfallensome-whatduetothestrongerKronainrelationtoforeigncur-rencies.IfproductionislimitedandtherearenofurthernegativeeventsinNorthAfricaortheMiddleEast,themarketshouldonceagainbeboostedintheautumn.

Anders Ek, Marketing Director, SCA Timber

Stocks at Swedish sawmills increased in spring 2011. The stock level at the end of April was at an historic average level.

stocks of sawn softwood in sweden (statistical group) January 2003-May 2011

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12 months mov. average 12 months mov. average

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timbernews | 16

EveryyearattheendofApril/beginningofMay,thestom-achsofthehungryelksstart

torumble. Justover150ofthebeastsmaketheirwayacrossRiverÅngermanäl-ven justbelowKjellMähler’sandIrene Hägglund’s tourist centre inKullberg, just north of Junsele innorthernSweden, to their summerpasture. But this year, the elks startedstompingaroundimpatientlyalongthe river bank in mid-April.Thesuddenspringweatherhadmadetheiceandsnowmelt.

PhotographerErlandSegerstedthadtohurrytopackhiscamera.Butafterthreedays’wait,hewasclosetogivingup.Hehadn’tseenasingleelkintheriver.But,atthatprecisemoment,twoelksclimbeddownintothewaterand

started swimming across the rivertowardsErland.He lifteduphiscameraandstartedsnappingaway. Laterthatevening,hesawhowanother twelve elks did the samething,butbythen,itwastoodarktotakeanyphotos. “Everyyearwecountmorethan150elksswimmingacrosstheriver,”saysMähler.“Wethinktherearejustasmanyagainthatmakethecrossing,maybeundercoverofdarkness.” HeandIrenehavelivedinKull-bergsince1994,wherethereisayouthhostel,cottages,abarnfordancingandabarbecuearea.They’veevendesignedaspecial‘elkroom’offeringvisitorsaviewofthespotdownbythewaterwheretheelksusu-allyturnuppriortocrossingtheriver.

It’s likelythatthey’vetakenthesamerouteforthousandsofyears.Onthe

neckoflandnexttotheriverwheretheelksnowclimbashore,thereisarowoftrappingpits. “Elks take ancient routes thatoftenfollowrivers,”saysarcheologistMargaretaBergvallfromMurberget(VästernorrlandCountyMuseum)inHärnösand.Forthisreason,therewereboth settlements and trapping pitsalongtheelkrouteintheStoneAge. Butthere’sunlikelytoeverbearushtoseetheriver-crossingactionatKullberg.Besides,boththeelksandtheweatheraretoounpredictable.Waitingdayin,dayoutfortheelkstoarriverequirespatienceandplentyoftime. “Wewouldn’twantalotofpeoplehereanyway,”saysKjell.“Iftherearetoomanypeoplearound,theelkswillprobablytakeadifferentroute.”

Mats Wigardt

elks’ annual dip

When the ice breaks in River Ångermanälven and the warmth of spring brings nature to life once again, it’s time for the elks to take their annual dip at Kullberg. There, hundreds of elks swim across the river on their way to summer pasture.

Each year, the elks choose the same place to swim across River Ångermanälven on their way to summer pasture.Photo: Erland Segerstedt