The acquisition of the Dormit Sawmill and palletiser at Dandenong and the sawmill at Swifts Creek saw Pentarch Forestry move into this space to be the primary manufacturer of pallets in Australia. At full operation, the palletiser is capable of producing more than 700,000 pallets per year using hardwood lumber produced at Dandenong, Swifts Creek and Eden. All pallets produced at Dandenong are supplied to CHEP under their proprietary brand for domestic consumption.
Pentarch’s Victorian sawmilling process makes sure every part of the whole log is used, with first-grade lumber used to manufacture the high-quality CHEP pallet, and secondary products such as industrial-grade lumber, sawdust, woodchip and mill fibre sent to third parties to produce packaging, paper, landscape supplies, animal bedding and biofuel.
The need for high-quality lumber used in hardwood pallets has also prompted innovation in log handling technology at Pentarch Forestry’s Allied Natural Wood Enterprises wood chip mill in Eden. A new log sorter, which extracts suitable lengths of sawlog from pulp logs to produce pallet components, was introduced at Eden and means more efficient use of our precious native timber resource.
As the timber supply chain evolves, so has Pentarch Forestry™ as we develop new ways of better utilising every part of every tree to create much needed timber and fibre products from our sustainable native timber sector.
Sawing
Timber sustainably sourced from our native forests is our most valuable and precious resource.
Primary Products
Hardwood pallets are produced by the Dandenong Palletiser, which is a four-station manufacturing process.
Secondary Products
Nothing is wasted from each log processed for pallets.
Dandenong
The 3.85ha Dandenong South mill site has been in operation since 1989 and houses a sawmill and Australia’s largest pallet manufacturing plant employing 49 staff.
It has a Telecant sawmill which squares smaller diameter logs and produces the bearers, intermediate and lead boards needed to produce a hardwood pallet.
Qualified timber graders visually check each piece of lumber for quality and strength to ensure only first-grade material is used in the fully automated four-station Palletiser.
At the Palletiser, the lumber components are nailed together as per the set pallet specification, then painted and marked according to CHEP’s proprietary branding, at a rate of approximately 200 pallets per hour.
The pallets, capable of supporting 2000kg, are then forwarded to CHEP for distribution.
Swifts Creek
With a Teletwin sawmill and a sophisticated Microtec sorting system, the facility at Swifts Creek in East Gippsland employs 18 locals.
The mill’s primary purpose is to provide pallet lumber components, sourcing timber from sustainable hardwood timber harvesting operations in Victoria and NSW, primarily from State Government harvesting operations.
The Microtec laser grading system is the mill’s unique feature, scanning timber lengths for imperfections to sort them into first-grade lumber for pallet production and industrial-grade lumber for packaging.
Massy Greene Drive South Burnie, Tas, 7320 PO Box 3033 Ph: 03 6430 7333
96-106 Ordish Road, Dandenong, Vic, 3175 Ph: 03 9706 5744
Lot 2, Edrom Road Eden, NSW, 2551 Ph: 02 6496 0252
Eden Chip Export Terminal Edrom Road, Jews Head Eden, NSW, 2551 Ph: 02 6496 0222
420 Herons Creek Road Herons Creek, NSW, 2443 Ph: 02 6585 7188
98 Indian Drive Keysborough, Vic, 3173 Ph: 1800 818 317
43 Mill Road Koolkhan, NSW, 2460 PO Box 437 Ph: 02 6644 7280
13056 Summerland Way Kyogle, NSW, 2474 PO Box 187 Ph: 02 6632 1866
Suite 12 Level 1, 84 Wises Road Maroochydore, Qld, 4558 PO Box 5561 Ph: 1800 818 317
148 Tweed Valley Way Murwillumbah, NSW, 2484 PO Box 56 Ph: 02 6670 8700
6016/6018 Princess Highway Narooma, NSW, 2546 PO Box 75 Ph: 02 4476 7908
838 Nudgee Road Northgate, Qld, 4013 Ph: 1800 818 317
176-178 Magill Road Norwood, SA, 5067 Ph: 1800 818 317
Unit D1, Regents Park Estate 391 Park Road Regents Park, NSW, 2143 Ph: 1800 818 317
50 BTU Road South Nowra, NSW, 2541 PO Box 5014 Ph: 02 4447 8262
Level 1, 99 Coventry Street Southbank, Vic, 3006 Ph: 03 9621 7900
Great Alpine Road, Swifts Creek, Vic, 3896 Ph: 03 5159 4438
