Setting the gold standard: new president of EWPAA

By 30/11/2015Blog

“Engineered wood faces exciting challenges and a wealth of opportunities – all delivered under the EWPAA’s ‘gold standard’ for product certification,” the association’s newly-elected president Michael Murphy said this week.

“The aim is to focus our new directions on a single brand name, underpinning EWPAA’s commitment to bonafide building standards and services that are critical to its membership in Australia and New Zealand,” said Mr Murphy who was elected at the EWPAA’s AGM in Brisbane on November 11.

Photos:  Michael Murphy – President & Stuart Toakley – Vice President

He said the new EWPAA CEO Dave Gover had “hit the ground running” and had wasted no time in visited all members.

“My role as chairman will be to support Dave in the consolidation and strategic direction of EWPAA going forward,” he said.

Mr Murphy, who is marketing manager, LVL, with Carter Holt Harvey Woodproducts in Melbourne, succeeds Brendan Smith, site manager for Juken New Zealand’s plywood and sawmill operations at Gisborne.

Stuart Toakley, sales and marketing manager at Borg, was re-elected vice-president and Andrew Close, commercial manager, CHH Woodproducts, based at Mount Gambier, SA, takes over treasurer duties from Jim Bindon, managing director of Big River Group, Grafton, NSW.

Michael Murphy began his career in the industry in 1987 at Timberbuilt Solutions in Melbourne, working under his mentor Bruce Hutchings, considered Australia’s LVL-based building systems guru.

During his time at Timberbuilt, Mr Murphy went on to gain an honours degree in civil engineering from Monash University, graduating in 1989. When he received his degree, he was put on full time at Timberbuilt.

He later joined Carter Holt Harvey after the company purchased the LVL plant at Nangwarry in South Australia, and he has been with the company ever since.