ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
Australian Forest & Wood Innovations (AFWI)* has committed development and research funding to THE PRECINCT project, being led by IndustryEdge. The multi-year, multi-phase project is an “Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Strategy and Feasibility to Catalyse Large-Scale Prefabricated Dwelling Adoption”.
Announced at the Forestry Australia Conference in Adelaide by the Federal Government and supported by significant industry financial and in-kind contributions, the project involves several integrated feasibility studies. It brings together industry, research and government partners to develop new engineered wood products, prefabricated dwellings and bio-based co-products at scale. The project aims to reduce exports of wood fibre and grow domestic manufacturing capacity to displace imported engineered wood products and produce high value dwelling components.
An initial and separately funded feasibility study has commenced and forms part of the integrated activities for the proposed precinct, which is targeted to be based in Portland, Victoria, close to Australia’s largest plantation fibre resource base, in close proximity to established manufacturing facilities and the Port of Portland.
Tim Woods, Managing Director of IndustryEdge said:
“IndustryEdge is grateful for the opportunity to lead development of The Precinct project and we thank AFWI and the Federal Government for the commitment and major contributions. Most of all, we want to thank the industry, research and community partners we have worked with over several years to bring this project into being.
“For more than five years, the Green Triangle region’s plantation forest industries have supported our work to progress from understanding fibre flows to assessing opportunities, developing product options and now developing this substantial domestic manufacturing capability.
“We are excited to continue working with our research and development partners and to engage even more deeply with the Green Triangle region, on a project that has potential to be nationally transformative.”
Mr Woods particularly thanked the Green Triangle Forest Industries Hub, Forest & Wood Products Australia, the Victorian Government, the Victorian Forest Products Association, several programs of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry, local government agencies and the individual companies and community members contributing financial support, time, expertise, access to resource and enormous goodwill to date.
* The AFWI investment program is funded through the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF), with co-investment from industry, universities, stakeholders and state agencies. This high-impact project has been endorsed, subject to final contracting with host institutions.
ENDS