Södra Timber, part of the Södra forestry group, has given notice of 50 redundancies at its Traryd and Långasjö sawmills in Sweden. Twelve temporary employees will be made redundant at the same time.
“The sawmill industry as a whole is in a deep recession which is expected to last for a couple of years. To balance production and sales, the product range must be changed to some extent and capacity reduced,” said Peter Nilsson, president of Södra Timber.
Södra Timber Traryd is switching from spruce to pine production and going from a double to a single shift.
“Sawing pine in Traryd gives us better opportunities in a weak economy, and is also right in the long term as Södra Timber needs to increase the amount of pine in its mix,” said Nilsson.
The reduction in shifts will lead to volumes being reduced from some 100,000 cubic metres to around 50,000 cubic metres annually, and a personnel reduction of some 35 people. Trade union negotiations are starting immediately.
The change in wood type will commence immediately with spruce products being gradually transferred to Långasjö. This also includes a spruce contract for the Dutch market. It is anticipated the change in shifts will be implemented in March.
“The change to pine will help us further strengthen our Scandinavian business in the building materials trade by increasing our share of pressure-treated pine. A study will also be started this spring to evaluate the potential for sawing hardwood in Traryd as a complement to pine. This will be done in conjunction with Gapro, which is also part of the Södra group,” said Nilsson.
In recent years Södra Timber Långasjö has made a range of major investments to strengthen its competitiveness. The latest investment in a new planing mill, worth some SEK 180 million, which is ready to be commissioned.
Full production is expected to be reached in March. The new planing mill replaces two old mills and a trimmer which previously ran on a triple shift.
“The investments in the new planing mill enable us to plane and trim the same volume in two shifts,” said Nilsson.
The productivity improvement means that 17 permanent employees at Södra Timber Långasjö are receiving notice of redundancy and 12 temporary employees have been made redundant.