“You learn about the opportunity right in front of you” and “I liked learning about the different types of timber and what the rings meant” where just two of the comments from students who attended Timber Queensland’s Grow, Harvest, Process: Introduction to the Forest & Timber Industry tour in the Maryborough district.
The tour was the final of three field days funded by the Maryborough Industry Training Hub during 2022 and 2023.
It was a hot day, but you can’t beat the sound and smells of a forest and sawmill that captured the senses of the teenagers on the tour.
The industry tours, held for Hervey Bay, Maryborough and Gympie region senior students, provided a first-hand insight into the working environment of three segments of the forest and timber industry supply chain and delivered an understanding of the vocational educational training requirements, apprenticeships, traineeships and career opportunities available in each area.
Over the past year, tours have visited Hyne Timber, HQPlantations, Sunchip Group, Laminex, DTM Timber and Mary Valley Timbers.
These locations have been eye-opening for students. Many of the attendees have grown up the in region but didn’t realise the wide range of career opportunities on their doorstep.
Enabling young people to see first-hand that they could spend their days playing with technology, extracting chemicals, virtually mapping, or doing business deals is really exciting.
The industry promotion videos and student workbooks developed for the tours are incredible tools that showcase the variety of roles available for school leavers in the region.
We hope to secure future funding to welcome more students to the modern world of Queensland’s forest and timber industry where bright and dedicated people get together and do great things!
