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AFTER more than 40 years in the timber industry, Tu Kui Foh has arrived at a firm conclusion.

“The world trend points to one thing – the future is in planted timber,” said the Director and shareholder of Integrated Wood Processing Sdn Bhd (IWP), Tawau.

IWP is among the largest customers of Jawala’s newly harvested Industrial Tree Plantation (ITP) logs.

Tu was present at Sapulut Forest Reserve to witness the commencement of Jawala’s commercial-scale harvesting operations.

“I have more than 40 years’ experience in the timber industry in Sabah,” he said. 

“Of course, we started with natural forest logs.”

Ironically, it was in China where he first immersed himself in plantation timber.

“In 2010, I started working with plantation timber in China,” he told Daily Express.

“At that time, we had a plantation in China and the species was hybrid eucalyptus.

“It was a cross between Eucalyptus grandis and Eucalyptus urophylla – a species that is very popular in China today.

“They have more than four million hectares of this species and it has become one of the biggest raw materials for the timber industry there.”

Bringing Plantation Timber Lessons Back to Sabah

“So I learned about plantation timber from China.

“Then I came back to Sabah and we started this factory in Tawau – Integrated Wood Processing.

“Founded in 2018, we started operations in 2019.”

IWP’s Target: 30 Per Cent Plantation Timber

“We are still a relatively new company.

“Of course, we use natural logs, but our target has always been to use 30 per cent plantation timber.

“This is because, even back then, the whole world was already demanding sustainable timber.

“They wanted plantation timber.

“China was already exporting plantation timber products. Indonesia, Vietnam and Japan were doing the same.”

Sabah’s Plantation Timber Challenge: No Consistent Supply

“But in Sabah, although the State Government has long encouraged plantation forestry, we couldn’t get a constant supply.

“In 2019, I used only one plantation species from Sabah – Eucalyptus pellita.

“This is a heavy timber, so we can use it for structural products and structural laminated veneer lumber (LVL).

“We export those products to Japan and they meet strict Japanese Agricultural Standard (JAS) requirements.”

Pushing R&D After Meeting Rahman

“Then in 2023, we met Mr Rahman here in this plantation.

“He always says this is a small plantation, but at 11,043 hectares it is actually the biggest in Sabah.”

At the time, IWP wanted to embark on serious research and development involving two plantation species.

“Laran and Batai – the local name for Albizia.

“The reason?

“Albizia products are already dominated by Indonesian producers in the international market.

“We found Indonesian Albizia is very light.

“The density is about 250kg per cubic metre.

“Whereas Laran here has a density of around 400kg per cubic metre.

“We believed it would be good for general plywood production.

“Indonesian Albizia is too light and too soft. It has no nail-holding power.

“Our Albizia has better density and therefore better nail-holding strength.

“The colour of Laran is also attractive – a creamy yellow. It can be marketed as a premium plywood product.”

High-Performance Engineered Products Through Two Years of R&D

“At one point, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) joined our R&D project involving three species.

“Albizia and Laran from Jawala, and Talisai Paya (Terminalia copelandii) supplied by the Forest Research Centre.

“The research took two years because we had to scientifically determine the density and engineering properties of the wood.

“It is not something you can simply claim.

“Then we had to convert the timber into engineered products, not just plywood.

“Laminated veneer lumber is essentially a replacement for sawn timber.

“So there must be acceptable MOR (Modulus of Rupture) and MOE (Modulus of Elasticity) values – standard engineering measurements used to evaluate structural performance.”

Proven: Five-Year-Old Plantation Wood Products Can Match Natural Timber

“The results showed that five-year-old trees from Jawala, when converted into engineered wood products, displayed timber properties comparable to natural forest logs.

“So we can market laminated veneer lumber for structural applications.

“By 2026, the trees were seven years old and Mr Rahman was ready to begin commercial harvesting.”

A Manufacturer’s Advice: No Need to Wait 10 Years

“Some people may argue that plantation trees should be left for 10 or 12 years before harvesting.

“But for a factory like ours, machinery technology has become very advanced.

“We can peel logs as small as 15cm in diameter.

“So I’m telling not only Jawala but all my friends involved in plantation forestry – you don’t need to keep the trees for 10 years.”

Seven to Eight Years Is Already Suitable

“I think seven or eight years is sufficient.

“If the average diameter reaches around 25cm to 30cm, it is already suitable for industrial use.

“For example, in 2023 we were peeling Jawala logs with diameters of only 24cm.

“We could still produce commercial plywood.

“Today, at seven years old, the diameter is already around 31cm.

“That gives us higher recovery because the logs are larger.

“And naturally, the value of seven-year-old trees is much better and more profitable for Jawala.

“For the industry, we can definitely use them.”

Seeking Consistent Plantation Timber Supply

“For manufacturers like us, we wanted to develop plantation timber products many years ago but we couldn’t get a constant supply.

“Even though we had already developed products for Europe, Japan and the United States, supply remained a challenge.

“Buyers would tell us: ‘Good, next month I want two containers.’

“But there were no logs.

“Now that Jawala is harvesting commercially, I think we can confidently tell our buyers we can supply consistently.

“It may not be huge volumes initially, but at least there is continuity.”

Competitive in Quality

“I believe we can compete on quality with plantation timber products from Vietnam and Indonesia.

“Albizia is already well known in the global market.

“The challenge is cost because Indonesian and Vietnamese producers can grow these trees more cheaply.

“Our next target is figuring out how to market our products competitively against them.”

Europe Offers Strong Potential for Laran

“For Laran, the creamy-yellow colour is very attractive for panel products and general plywood.

“We want to promote it strongly in Europe and Japan.

“The Japanese like this colour, but their economy is currently weak and they cannot pay the price we need.

“Europe is performing better, so we are focusing on expanding there.”

The Future of Timber

“The future is very simple.

“I always tell my friends that whatever humans need, we must learn to cultivate.

“If the Chinese had not domesticated rice cultivation thousands of years ago, the world today might not have enough rice.

“It is the same with timber.

“The world needs timber, so we must cultivate it rather than continue cutting from natural forests.

“Planted timber is the future.

“We need timber, therefore we must grow it.”

He noted that environmental and sustainability concerns are becoming increasingly important worldwide.

“The whole world is becoming more serious about environmental and sustainability issues.

“They don’t want you cutting natural forests.

“In three to five years, if I want to sell tropical hardwood, it may become very difficult to find a market.”

EUDR: Proving Products Are Deforestation-Free

Sensitive to changing consumer expectations and environmental regulations, Tu pointed to the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) as a major driver of change.

“In Europe, the EUDR requires companies to prove their products are deforestation-free.

“It discourages the use of timber that cannot demonstrate a sustainable source.

“Three to five years from now, it may become very difficult to market tropical hardwood or tropical plywood in Europe.”

He noted that Japan itself produces about 40 million cubic metres of plantation-grown cedar annually.

Tu distinguised himself as the man who helped develop “System R”, a pioneering GPS-based timber traceability system designed to map harvesting coordinates and strengthen supply-chain transparency – a capability likely to become increasingly important in an era of stricter environmental compliance.