09 Feb 2017 Border Mail, Albury-Wodonga (General News) by David Johnston A MULTI-MILLION dollar Melbourne building extension will be one of the first projects to use a sustainable timber material produced at the Logic industrial hub at North Barnawartha. XLam is nearing completion of its $25 million cross-laminated timber factory at Logic with the Victorian government approving the 10-storey extension of the Southbank Boulevard which will become a hotel. Planning Minister Richard Wynne approved the application with the Andrews Labor Government also confirming it provided financial assistance in establishing the XLam factory at Logic. Last year, XLam announced it would build its Australian headquarters in Albury or Wodonga and settled on Logic. A government spokesman would not divulge the size of the regional jobs fund-investment attraction grant provided to XLam. The federal government provided $2.5 million to XLam last year. The Victorian government also kicked-in an undisclosed amount of financial assistance in the creation of a railway terminal at Logic and the expansion of Mars Petcare, also located in Wodonga. Member for Northern Victoria Jaclyn Symes said the announcement was an early win for the XLam factory in Wodonga. This is all about promoting innovation, supporting employment in Melbourne and boosting jobs in northern Victoria, she said. Victoria is home to some of the most advanced, innovative manufacturing methods available. This is a great win for the regional economy and jobs in Wodonga. An XLam spokesman declined to comment when contacted. The Southbank property is being developed by Hume Partners Property and will become a short-stay hotel. Cross-laminated timber is an engineered wood product renowned for its exceptional strength and rigidity. It will also be used in Australias tallest engineered timber building (45 metres) to be built in Brisbane and has already been used in the construction of a 10-storey Docklands apartment tower. Once operational, the XLam factory will produce 60,000 cubic metres of cross-laminated timber annually. Timber for the factory will be sourced from the Tumbarumba area with 30 direct roles in manufacturing and service-linked roles to be created with a further 24 indirect jobs. XLam has been producing cross-laminated timber in in New Zealand for five years and shipping it to Australia to compete with European rivals. Joss Construction is building the XLam factory. Caption Text: STATE OF THE ART: Cross-laminate timber to be produced at the XLam factory at Logic will be used in a Melbourne hotel development. Licensed by Copyright Agency. You may only copy or communicate this work with a licence.