Syd: Quality Control and Assurance for Wood Preservation: The Nordic and North American Schemes

Quality control and assurance (QC/QA) schemes have been developed or are under development in many countries to ensure that treated wood products are fit for purpose. The countries in the Nordic region (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden), and also the USA have mature schemes that are working well, and are accepted by industry. Industry in Australia is making great strides in developing its own scheme. Can we learn from the Nordic and North American experiences and build a first class QC/QA scheme that will give retailers and consumers great confidence in the performance of treated wood? This seminar and discussion forum will explore this key question. The seminar features the Head of the Expert Technical Group for the Nordic Wood Preservation Council, Dr Niels Morsing, and Professor Jeff Morrell, past President of American Wood Protection Association (AWPA), and one of the leading experts in QC/QA schemes in North America.

About the Speakers

Professor Jeff Morrell
Jeff is a Professor in the Department of Wood Science & Engineering at Oregon State University. He holds a Bachelors degree in Forest Biology from State University of New York (SUNY), Masters from Penn State University and a Ph.D in Mycology from SUNY. His research focusses on Biodeterioration and its prevention, and he has published over 300 peer-reviewed papers in these areas. Jeff is past president of American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) and the International Research Group on Wood Protection. He has served as the General Chair of the Preservatives Committees of AWPA and is currently the Chair of the Committee on Treatment Standards for Utility Poles. He has worked with a variety of treaters on quality control, particularly for difficult to treat species. His research group currently assists with third party oversight of preservatives for a number of companies. Jeff enjoyed a sabbatical at Queensland Department of Forestry and Fisheries and is a frequent visitor to our shores.

Dr Niels Morsing
Niels is Director of Wood & Bio based Materials Group at the Danish Technology Institute (DTI) in Copenhagen. He has been Chairman of the Expert Technical Group for the Nordic Wood Preservation Council (NWPC) for the last 5 years. The NWPC is responsible for the approval of preservatives in the Nordic region and the quality control system used by treaters. Niels holds Bachelors and PhD degrees from Technical University of Denmark, and worked for Junckers Indistries Ltd and Velux before joining DTI. At DTI he leads a group that works closely with the European biocide and formulating industry to evaluate the efficacy of preservatives of biocides according to European legislation. This is Niels first visit to Australia.

Seminar Date and Location

Sydney
Thursday 24th August
Location: Sydney, Amora Hotel Jamison (11 Jamison Street, Sydney)
Time: 10.00AM-3.00PM