Timber End Use Course at Balcas Enniskillen
May 3, 2024
Following on from the recent and very popular woodland event that looked at Hardwood Timber End Uses at Clarke Cunninghams sawmill, the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) are now pleased to be able to offer a further course for farmers interested in managing woodland and who wish to explore the opportunities timber production may present for their farm.
This time we are being very kindly hosted by Balcas Enniskillen. Balcas are the largest timber processor in Ireland and one of the biggest in the UK.
We will again look at timber end use, market opportunities and added value, however this time exploring the processing of soft roundwood timber at industrial scale.
This is a unique chance to visit a state-of-the-art timber processing plant that handles 600,000m3 of timber annually – a volume that in layman’s terms means roughly 20,000 lorry loads per year (80 per day)!
The significance of this will be obvious – 250,000m3 of Balcas Enniskillen’s timber is sourced from Northern Ireland Forest Service – but 50,000m3 (meaning some 35 to 40 loads per week) is currently obtained from farmers and landowners in Northern Ireland.
This short half day visit will be very practical in nature and will focus on allowing conversation with Balcas experts. We will see the timber milling process and gain an understanding of the ongoing and developing market requirements for Balcas as a major purchaser of timber and consider the implications for growing trees for timber as an additional farm enterprise.
Lunch is very kindly being provided by Balcas and the course will start at 10.00am, sharp.
If you have on farm timber or are planning a forestry enterprise this introductory session will set the scene and allow you to talk about the issues involved in producing timber fit for sale in an informal, environment, with BALCAS and other interested participants. The courses will be held at Balcas Enniskillen on Wednesday 5th and Thursday 27th JUNE – remember – commencing at 10.00am sharp and finishing after lunch. For more information and to book your place on the course, please visit here.