Australia now has a national standard for visually grading recycled hardwoods used in flooring, cladding, lining, bench tops, joinery and decorative posts and beams after the release of the FWPA Standard G02 Recycled Timber – Visually Graded Decorative Products.
The new standard – the first of its kind – now lays the groundwork for formalising an Australian Standard and, importantly, establishes clear grading requirements for purchasers to make informed decisions:
“The industry has long sought greater clarity around recycled timber grading to further support the use of recycled timber products in the built environment, and G02 delivers just that.”
Boris Iskra, National Codes and Standards Manager for Forest and Wood Products Australia.
Wood Central understands the new standard, only the second industry standard developed by the FWPA’s Standards Development Program and its Industry Standards Reference Panel, comes months after it published the FWPA Standard G01 Recycled Structural Timber in October 2024.
Together, both offer a unified framework for grading recycled timber, “which can help reduce variability in product quality and foster better communication between suppliers and purchasers,” according to the FWPA, which published the draft standards for comment in September. Nonetheless, both “offer valuable information for stakeholders in the recycled timber industry, (to) facilitate better communication and understanding of product specifications.”
How do industry standards work?
According to Mr Iskra, the new industry standards will sit alongside Australian Standards – “which (still) serves the industry well” – with the long-term aim of incorporating industry standards into the Building Code of Australia. As it stands, the Stdnard Reference Panel comprises the following participants:
- Professor Keith Crews (Chair: Advanced Timber Hub, University of Queensland – Academia)
- Andrew Dunn (TDA-NSW – Industry Associations)
- Craig Kay (Tilling Timber – Importers)
- Gavin Matthew (EWPAA – Panels)
- Tom Rickerby (Wesbeam – LVL, I-joists)
- Peter Robson (Pentarch – Hardwood)
- Tim Rossiter (MiTek – Frame & Truss, product users)
- Dave Belfield (Wespine – Softwood, treated products)
To learn more about the FWPA’s Industry Standards, click here for Wood Central’s special feature last year.
