Key performance indicators

By 2021, new fundamental knowledge is developed around wood natural durability, wood permeability and treatability for both radiata and non-radiata species. This new knowledge will be then be used in targeted wood modification, durability and drying solutions.

Achievements

Thermal modification of Cupressus lusitanica showed promise in increasing the durability of boards containing sapwood without adding chemicals for use in outdoor products such as cladding.

Analysis of extractives from tōtara and Eucalyptus globoidea heartwood and sapwood found significant differences in extractables composition between old and young trees. Further work will establish how those composition differences may affect wood natural durability.

A new method for screening Volatile Organic Compound emissions was developed and validated at Scion and is now available as an in-house tool for commercial and R&D applications.

A new method to functionalise the surfaces of radiata pine with nanoparticles was designed and validated and now applied to developing new functionalised wood products.

By 2020, Scion has worked with Māori, and at least one Māori entity is active in building a new vertically integrated high-value wood manufacturing enterprise.

Scion worked with Taitokerau Māori Forests Inc (TMFI) on the Tōtara Industry Pilot to test the opportunity for a new industry based on regenerating tōtara on private land. The project formally ends on 31 August 2021, and TMFI agreed to lead the pre-commercial phase to realise the opportunities identified in the pilot.

By 2021, Scion, with science collaborators, government, and industry partners with non-traditional urban stakeholders, has developed a platform of high-value wood products to provide better performing, higher amenity built-environments in terms of affordability, performance and sustainability, e.g. tall timber buildings, prefabrication etc.

Lab-scale New Zealand-grown radiata pine wood fibre insulation products were developed at Scion and their thermal conductivity performance tested by BRANZ as part of a collaborative project. The test on the prototype insulation panels confirmed comparable thermal insulation properties to the ones commercially available with European-made wood fibre insulation products.

A method to account for the climate change mitigation benefits of storing carbon in wood products was developed and is being validated. The method uses a single-product perspective and relates the storage benefits to the longevity of the product-storage with a specific time horizon, which enables correlation with deadlines for achieving international climate change mitigation targets.

Scion’s new Te Whare Nui o Tuteata building attracted visits from science collaborators, government, industry partners, the design and construction sector and the wider community. This timber building showcases that a low-carbon future built with sustainable timber is both possible and desirable.

By 2023, tools, novel forest management approaches and new plant material will be embedded into New Zealand’s forests and forestry practices to support the industry’s target to increase radiata pine MAI from an average of 20 m³ ha-1 yr to 35 m³ ha-1 yr and in a way that enhances the sustainability of forest growing in New Zealand.

Scion and inFact developed FlowLab dataloggers for the Forest Flows Programme. A first of its kind, FlowLab enables continuous collection of big data from instruments at multiple locations throughout remote and steep forest, providing new insights in forest growth, management, and genetics x site x environment interactions. The combination of low cost, high operational reliability in a hostile forest environment and the flexibility to run different types of sensors, means this technology is world leading and has attracted overseas interest.

Scion developed a big data cloud platform that handles the streaming and storage of 300,000 observations every 24 hours. This cloud platform can connect with Forest Flow collaborators and provide real time, continuous analysis from multiple data sources. It provides an exemplar for data sharing across CRIs for the proposed pan-CRI National Environmental Database (NED).

Use of NuBalM for predicting crop nutrient and fertiliser demands shows increasingly that the gap between new target productivity levels and fertiliser recommendations are encouragingly smaller than industry has conventionally applied.

Modelling a productivity target based on NuBalM and starting to understand the nutrient gap has led to fertilisation for more than just deficiency mitigations. Several industry partners are trialling a balanced nutrient approach to address multiple limits at a single application.

Micro-respiration is a novel tool being developed for forestry soil screening. Micronutrients at different rates are easily tested for changes in soil activity using this new-to-forestry method.

A forest management company on the East Coast is supporting the development and implementation of precision nutrient modelling for better crop management and future decision making at smaller scales.

By 2023, the forestry industry, land owners, and central and regional government have adopted new tools, approaches and technologies developed to mitigate impacts from the increasing risk to New Zealand’s forests from pests (insects, pathogens, weeds), fire and wind in our changing environment (climate, trade and tourism), and to mitigate risks and take advantages of opportunities from climate change.

Find-A-Pest smartphone app was delivered in 2020 to help early detection of pests and increase the reach of surveillance methods. In 2021, after successful roll out with multiple primary sectors and regional councils, the application was updated to include image recognition.

A Scion-led study found that invasive insects and smoke (a potential carrier of biosecurity threats) are transported within atmospheric coherent structures across the Tasman Sea from Australia to New Zealand. A model was developed to forecast the occurrence and movement of atmospheric coherent structures and will be tested in 2021-22.

The automated fire growth and smoke modelling system web-tool went live, and discussions are underway with Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) on operational implementation of the system. The prototype was successfully used during the Pukaki and Lake Ohau wildfires in 2020 and for fire events. Updated projections of fire risk with climate change were produced and results communicated to MPI, FENZ and other government agencies.

By 2023, Scion has provided tools, new biotech and genetic solutions, new plant material (e.g. germplasm) and competitive niche wood products that will increase the confidence of growers of Douglas-fir, eucalypts, cypresses, redwoods and indigenous species to increase plantings of these species by at least 50 per cent over 2018 plantings.

Using a protocol developed for Pinus radiata, gene editing of Douglas-fir was developed and proof-of-concept of applicability obtained through editing genes involved in reproduction.

A population of Eadya daenerys was successfully imported from Tasmania and approved for release. Once successfully established this parasitoid wasp will sustainably control the Eucalyptus tortoise beetle protecting Symphyomyrtus species both durable (e.g. Eucalyptus bosistoana or non-durable species (E. nitens). Maximising the health and growth of Symphyomyrtus species of eucalypt forms a vital component of our growing eucalyptus industry.

New DNA data collected from Douglas-fir progeny trials and seed orchards was successfully combined with trial data for Swiss needle cast (Phaeocryptopus gaeumannii). Genomic predictions of tolerance to Swiss needle cast have been made for all seed orchard parents allowing removal of poor performers and increased confidence to plant Douglas-fir.

Ongoing: New technologies such as automation, robotics, sensors, new digital technology have been implemented in the cities/buildings/products/processing and forest growing value chains, demonstrating improved efficiency, cost reduction, improved safety, and better living and working environments.

A revised redwood growth model was developed and uploaded onto the Forest Growers Research (FGR) website. Radiata pine and redwood 300 Index productivity surfaces were developed for the FGR Tree Farmer application.

An augmented reality servicing tool was developed, with StaplesVR and Waratah, which provides a detailed ‘walk around’ view of the head. The user is guided through safety information, fault reporting, training, maintenance and service tasks.

A prototype proximity detection system was developed to alert machine operators to the presence of other people and machines nearby without overloading the usual senses.

Ongoing: Support forest growing, wood products and building industries to grow and develop by addressing domestic/international standards, regulations and market specifications.

Our commercial testing services on timber-engineering and wood-protection exceeded our commercial target by approximately 17 per cent and provided significant benefit to the forest growing, wood products and building sectors.

Scion helped revise three New Zealand timber building standards and two joint Australia/New Zealand standards. In the joint standards, a major revision and completion of merging all five parts of AS/NZS 1604 and four parts of AS/NZS 1605 into a mega document of three parts was completed and is now published.