Coillte, Ireland’s largest commercial forestry and land solutions company, today approved a €44.4m investment to improve and upgrade MEDITE SMARTPLY’s OSB plant in County Waterford.

The investment will upgrade the drying plant, which has been in continuous operation since 1996, and will deliver a world class drying/energy/screen system that will enhance resource efficiency and asset reliability while greatly increasing plant capacity.

The announcement comes at a critical time for the MEDITE SMARTPLY as it looks to scale up production levels to meet the continual strong demand for its products. The improved output, as a result of the project, will further increase product availability as well as enable the company to develop new market sectors and opportunities as part of the company’s strategy and growth plan.

“We are delighted to announce the latest investment into our SMARTPLY plant which will provide a welcome economic boost to the region while enabling us to deliver our best in class timber panel products to even more customers,” comments Pat Beardmore, Chief Operations Officer, MEDITE SMARTPLY.

“This is the second significant investment we have made in SMARTPLY in the past five years, with a €59m project back in 2016.  It is a unique product that is produced sustainably and to the highest level of quality. We’re delighted to be able to increase its availability to its international customer base.”

The first stage of the project is at an advanced stage and due for completion over the coming weeks. The project is due to finish in Q2 2022.