Tenon purchases Australian timber company's assets

Tenon, which up until now has focussed its attentions on the North American timber moulding market, said it had expanded into Australia with the purchase of assets from Victoria-based Whiteline Timber Products for an undisclosed sum. Chief operating officer Tony Johnston said the move will make Tenon the second biggest supplier in the Australian hardwood mouldings and profile products. The company, trading as Tenon Australia, will offer a variety of mouldings, high grade boards and architraves to the Australian market, through Whiteline's established links to quality reseller chains and independent stores. Hardwood products will continue to be Australia-sourced and manufactured, however this will now be supplemented with softwood and hardwood products sourced also from Tenon's existing global supply chain, Tenon said. This will include high-quality pine mouldings and board products from Tenon's manufacturing site in Taupo. Tenon said it had acquired some of Whiteline's existing manufacturing assets, together with its sales and administrative staff. "We believe that, with our global supply chains and our large Taupo manufacturing site close to the market, we will be able to bring considerable additional value to our Australian customers,'' Johnston said in a statement. Tenon last week said The Empire Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tenon, had been made an exclusive distribution partner for Eastman Chemical Company's new perennial wood decking product into Lowe's US stores. Eastman is a Fortune 500 company with more than 80 years in the wood pulp industry. Tenon, originally Fletcher Challenge Forests, was once part of the Fletcher Challenge group before the it was split in three in 2001. Tenon is 59 per cent owned by Rubicon Forests, which was also part of the old Fletcher Challenge structure.