A Change is Coming to the Timber Industry

by Robert M Littlejohn

From numerous discussions I have been having lately with many different people related to the timber and timber products industries, I now firmly believe that there is a major and innovative change in the wind and has already started here in Canada. If we think about it, there's nothing much that has changed in the timber industry for quite a few years and when it comes to making the timber, or timber products such as OSB and Plywood last longer, almost nothing has changed in the last century. Almost everyone has experienced what happens when wooden sheet materials have been exposed to moisture or water. They swell, buckle, spall and generally lose their structural integrity and fall apart. Probably OSB and particleboard are the best examples of this.

Much the same can be said for a whole variety of what they call pre-treated lumber; you know the type you buy at the big box DIY stores to build your deck. This timber is generally greenish in colour or at least on the outside it is. These types of timbers have been pre treated using a variation of methods, all of which contain extremely dangerous toxins and usually a fair amount of arsenic poison for good measure. Even so, with all these 'amazing high tech treatments' having been done, our timber decks, fences, posts, utility poles, docks and a vast range of other items all seem to end up with some form of rot or deterioration caused by moisture or water. It's true the pre-treated timbers do last much longer than those that have not been treated, but at what cost to our environment and ourselves we have to ask?

Like I said earlier, I believe a major change in coming and it's one for the better. For the better of our environment and for the timber itself and of course, for us.

So what can this innovative change be you are asking?

Well, let me explain it to you in very basic terms.

This is the change which was referred to by a very prominent US Scientist as being "The Silver Bullet the timber industry has been waiting for" and by another prominent Scientist who specializes in the preservation of marine artefacts, who after testing it said "This stuff penetrates wood better, instantly restores its dimensional stability and makes it impervious to almost all types of rot and insect attack permanently and the best of all is, it's all natural and organic! How good can it get?"

The so called 'Stuff' they were speaking of is an amazing all natural fluid carefully formulated around a cedar oil base and the way things are going, it appears that this fluid could easily work its way throughout the timber industries to completely replace all existing and rather dangerous methods of timber preservation.

Even OSB and panel manufacturers could incorporate this fluid into their process and guarantee the longevity of their final product. Posts, fences and even utility poles could all greatly benefit from this totally safe and environmentally friendly treatment and better still, with only one application their current life expectancy could be more than doubled, saving countless thousands of dollars ever year in renewals and replacements.

There is one small problem that has yet to be overcome. The industries I speak of here are usually Provincial Hydro companies for utility poles and major sized timber product manufacturers for most of the other items. These industries need to be educated and told of this amazing new product. They need to be shown how it works and exactly what it can do to both save them and make them money. Getting that type of information around takes time and usually a good amount of cash too. On top of all this, hydro companies are sometimes Crown Corporations and as such, someone trying to sell a new innovative product, even if it will save them millions of dollars each year, cannot approach them. They work to a rule wherein they have to decide what they want done, then they write out a specification and put it out to tender, as they must be shown to have undertaken best practices and accept the best price for what they want. So, how can they possibly specify having their millions of utility poles treated and preserved using this new technology, when they cannot be approached to be advised about it? Also, how could they be shown to have obtained the best price for these treatments, when there is only one company in Canada that can actually undertake them?

This my friends, is but one example of why it will take some considerable time for this wonderful invention to work its way across Canada and through the numerous areas of the timber industry. Until then, we must continue to buy and work with toxic and poisonous pre-treated timbers and watch our growing hydro bill dollars being spent on renewing endless utility poles throughout every Province. To all of these companies I speak of here, I would suggest that; being given the knowledge and proof of such an innovative all natural product as this unique cedar oil based fluid, is like being given a key that will unlock a system to save your company huge sums of money and allow you to accurately budget a maintenance and renewal program for years ahead. However, to be able to hear about the features and benefits of such a new and unique product, you first of all have to listen.

I have to wonder what David Suzuki would choose to treat his log cabin?

Bob Littlejohn MBA BSc

Article Source

A Change is Coming to the Timber Industry