timber news 3/2009 - SCA Forest Products AB

us a strength and long-term visionthat the majority of our competitorslack.”After coffee, the party leaves ona coach for NorrPlant, SCA’snursery. There, they are greetedby Hans Forsmark and StefanSvedin, who explain the sensitiveprocess involved in transformingseeds into the 101 million saplingsproduced.The idea of using snow to protectsaplings from the cold duringthe winter is a little difficult tounderstand, particularly when thethermometer is showing that thetemperature outside the greenhousesis nearing 30 degrees abovezero.Saad Azmi, procurement managerfor the Casablanca-basedRobelbois Group, considers puttinga spruce sapling in the buttonhole of his jacket to take home,but believes that growing conditionsare probably much betterin Sweden than back home inMorocco.Hamid Hajoui, CEO of Marocaineet Nordique des Bois,Manorbois, another Casablancabasedcompany involved in timberimports, says that the entire eventis an excellent idea.“Getting to see sawmills andsharing experiences with colleaguesfrom other North Africancountries has been very valuable,”he summarises.Stefan Svedin of NorrPlant, SCA’s nursery facility, talks about the initial developmentof a spruce sapling.The journey then continues north,to SCA’s sawmill in Bollstabruk,where the delegates are welcomedby sawmill manager KatarinaLevin and guided in the directionof the sawmill buildings.“We’re a little tired,” admitsEssam Hussein of Alexandria Construction& Supply. “First therewas the long journey from Egypt,then the light nights, and finallythe packed programme of events.“But,” he adds quickly, “it’s allbeen very interesting and wellorganised.”Kristoffer Lundholm gives theparty a full tour of the sawmill,from timber intake to the unloadingdock. The visitors followin his wake with a growing senseof curiosity. Many question marksare straightened out and hundredsof photographs immortalise everydetail of the sawmill.Rayed Abdullah Al-Ajaji ofJeddah-based Al-Muhaidib BuildingMaterials is most impressed bywhat he saw at the NorrPlantnursery.“You’ve demonstrated longheldknowledge and expertise thatI wasn’t aware of before,” he says.Gilles Hotelin, CEO of theRobelbois Group, is also satisfiedwith the visit to Sweden. It isn’t thefirst time he had been to Sweden,but it is the first time he’s experiencedan event of such scope andimportance.“I’ve learned a lot of newthings,” he summarises. “But, aboveall, I’ve had the opportunity tomeet my colleagues and competitors.Despite everything, we’re allbrothers.”Mats WigardtSawmill manager Katarina Levin welcomes the delegates to Bollstabruk.About Uni4 Marketing AB:Uni4 Marketing AB is joint venture between SCATimber, Holmen Timber, Martinsons Trä and SödraTimber.It is a leading supplier of solid wood products tothe Middle East and North Africa. In recent years,supplied volumes have increased substantially.9 | timbernews