Australia’s hardware giants have invested heavily in recent years in purchasing plants that can manufacture timber wall frames and roof trusses, marking a major shake-up for the country’s long-established frame and truss industry. That includes Alpine Truss, one of the country’s largest frame and truss manufacturers, which today hosted dozens of timber and forestry professionals for the first day of the five-day Understanding Wood Science Course, run by the Gottstein Trust.
Today, Wood Central spoke to Helen Murray, convenor of this year’s course, who said that up to 30 course attendees boarded the bus to Wangaratta in regional Victoria to visit the Alpine Truss facility, which along with a tour of Alpine MDF Industries facility bookmarked an action packed day which also saw Vince Hurley, Managing Director of Australian Sustainable Hardwoods, the country’s largest hardwood manufacturer, and Kim Harris, General Manager – Technical for AKD, the country’s largest timber frame manufacturer, present to attendees during morning tea.
The visit comes after Wood Central last year revealed that the Alpine Truss plant had been acquired by Metcash, the country’s second-largest hardware retailer, as part of a $558 million mega deal. This deal also saw the retailer buy out Superior Foods and South Australia-based Bianco Construction Supplies. In recent years, Metcash has been busy expanding its footprint into timber suppliers and hardware to compete with Bunnings through its Independent Hardware Group (IHG), whilst Bunnings, which has a 50% total share of the market, has invested heavily in frame and truss to capture an even greater slice of the commercial market.
Please note: Wood Central will have exclusive coverage from the Gottstein course all week.
