A parliamentary question regarding the certification process of railway sleepers produced from third-grade saw logs and potential conflict of interest for the Forest Products Commission (FPC). The answer clarifies the FPC's role in branding compliant sleepers and denies supplying logs specifically for sleeper production.

AnsweredQoN 8028Legislative Assembly
Asked
17 May 2012
Portfolio
Forestry

QuestionView source ↗

(1) Who, or which agency, certifies that the sleepers cut from third grade saw logs meet the Australian New Zealand standard for rail sleepers?
(2) Is there a conflict of interest inherent in the Forest Product Commission supplying logs for sleeper production and then certifying the sleeper product as meeting (or not meeting) the Australian New Zealand Standard for rail sleepers?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered
19 June 2012
Responded by
Minister for Forestry
Response time
33 days
(1) The Forest Products Commission (FPC) is the agency that, on request by the sawmiller, brands the railway sleeper as compliant with the specifications set out in the Australian Standard (AS) 3818 Part 2 2010 Timber - Heavy structural products - Visually graded - Railway track timbers. There is no requirement under the standard that sleepers be cut from any specific grade of log.
(2) No. FPC does not supply logs specifically for railway sleeper production. It supplies logs which are processed by sawmillers into a range of products according to their requirements and markets. Where railway sleepers are produced by sawmillers, they need to comply with AS3818 Part 2. FPC has skilled professionals to assess this compliance.
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