New Zealand’s National Centre of Excellence in Wood Manufacturing – the Radi Centre – has been launched.
The centre is a three-way partnership between Forest Industries Training, the Waiariki Institute of Technology and the University of Auckland. It aims to transform the New Zealand forest industry into one that manufactures high-value products for export.
Keynote speaker, deputy prime minister Jim Anderton, said the Radi Centre is unique in New Zealand and internationally. He said: “New Zealand is the only developed country with a significant forestry industry – and a desire to move from forestry to wood procesing – that has lacked a comprehensive range and capability in higher education, research, technology transfer and industry problem-solving all aimed at the wood processing industry.”
He added that a forest industry that used its abundant resources of radiata pine to manufacture high-value products for export would be a much different industry from the present low margin international commodity industry.
The Radi Centre will eventually bring together professionals from different disciplines who will form an innovative new think tank, DesignWood, to create new approaches to design that feature wood, innovative development of new wood products, and construction techniques.
