| 25 T T Richard Loader ‘Significant growth’ for wood processor Sawn lumber is exported to about 20 different markets around the globe, with the single biggest market being New Zealand. Sequal Lumber REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Sequal Lumber was founded in 2006 by four Bay of Plenty families who saw the large volume of logs coming into market and felt it was important for New Zealand that they were processed domestically, rather than exported for processing. Built from scratch, the Kawerau site was completed just in time for the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. Executive Director David Turner says that while the first five years were challenging, multiple growth stages have resulted in rough sawn lumber being exported to about 20 different markets around the globe, with the single biggest market being New Zealand. “About seventy per cent of the product is exported, all from the Port of Tauranga. At the end of the 2022 financial year we exceeded our goal of processing 600,000 tonnes of logs. That represents significant growth year-onyear.” Powered by geothermal energy the addition of a kiln dryer in 2014 enabled Sequal Lumber to grow into different product streams beyond the green packaging that was its initial product line. Markets segments now include packaging, furniture, domestic re-manufacturing for products like weather boards, door jams and piles, and a lot of product is supplied into the process for engineered wood products like Glulam. The Eastern Bay of Plenty is a region rich in natural resources and David points to other industries including aquaculture in Opotiki along with tourism and lifestyle in Whakatane where there has been significant investment over the last five years. “In Kawerau we have horticulture and forestry, which are both in a significant position of strength. While forestry is challenged because of its predominant focus on the exportation of raw material to China, wood processing is doing particularly well. Sequal is investing significantly, and this Christmas we will shut down for six weeks and instal a new main saw line, which will materially increase our capacity to produce to service our export markets. We’re also adding drying capability and downstream processing. I see real growth in wood products globally over the next five years, and I think that’s true of horticulture as well, with on-going investment in kiwifruit.” David says those things all combine to underpin real wage growth and employment and the region has transitioned from a position of needing to create employment opportunity, to needing to work with the community to support people into employment. “We’ve had socio-economic issues in our environment for a long time and so there is some ingrained dysfunctional issues which effect some people’s employability. When you have a highly traumatised society, and that trauma has been driven through socio-economic dysfunction over generations, the unwind of that is not immediate — it will take time. One of the biggest concerns I have is the number of internationals that businesses need to hire to fill the roles that are available, because we’re not getting the local workforce either operating consistently at a productive level, or available for work. We need to be ensuring that as a community we’re focused on supporting young people into the work place. The issue has moved from employment opportunity to employability, and we need local and central government to be supporting people into employment, particularly our young people.” Providing Logistics Solutions Nationwide – Road, Rail or Sea Proud to be associated with the team at Sequal Lumber All Enquiries: Mark Jones - Branch Manager mark.jones@ksfreighters.co.nz www.ksfreighters.co.nz Timber Packaging Experts > Packaging Automation > Strapping > Timber Wrap > Tooling > Onsite Servicing 0800 850 060 rlbpackaging.co.nz Proud supply partners of Exclusive NZ distributor of TITAN Strapping Automation & Tooling.
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