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Manufacturing

Laminex Toolara


Client
Laminex
Duration
Present
Location
Toolara Forest, Queensland, Australia
Value
Undisclosed
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Powering one of Australia’s largest MDF manufacturing facilities – a plant built on circularity, innovation, and global supply. For over 30 years, PHE Group has provided electrical support to Laminex Toolara as the business has grown, evolved, and led the way in efficient forest product manufacturing.

Located 30km outside Gympie, the Laminex Toolara MDF plant sits in the Toolara pine forest and produces decorative fibreboard products for domestic and international markets. Each year, it consumes around 500,000 tonnes of wood – using a finely-tuned process that compresses, cures, and finishes MDF into sheet products found in kitchens, bathrooms and offices across Australia, Asia, and the USA.

PHE has supported the Toolara site since the early 1990s, delivering upgrades across all major plant areas, as well as scheduled maintenance and fire suppression systems. Our scope spans power, control, instrumentation, and communication systems – delivered in parallel with Laminex’s operational, environmental, and innovation goals.

Recent works have focused on capacity upgrades for the Surround Line and G1 Press – part of Laminex’s continuous improvement approach to manufacturing and energy efficiency.

Aerial photo courtesy of Laminex.

Project Scope

Surround Line – Decorative Panel Line

  • Installation of cable tray support systems        
  • Installation of mains power to new 1600A load centre        
  • Installation of submains to MCCs
  • Installation of control and communication cabling
  • Installation of new lighting and general power
  • Project value: $370 thousand

Surround Line – New 1600A Load Centre

  • Supply and installation of custom-built 1600A load centre
  • Project value: $160 thousand

G1 Press Upgrade

  • Installation of new MCC for AC drives upgrade 
  • Installation of cable tray support systems
  • Disconnection and removal of existing DC drive cables
  • Installation of new AC drive cabling
  • Project value: $220 thousand

Outcomes and Benefits

  • Over 30 years of continuous delivery built on trust, site knowledge, and results has ensured efficient changeovers through familiarity with legacy systems.
  • Enhanced safety and risk reduction achieved through the integration of Firefly and GreCon fire suppression systems delivering improved sitewide protection.
  • Electrical infrastructure strengthened to align with Laminex’s sustainability goals and support future initiatives.
Project Images
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