The Heat Is On With First Class Firewood & Isuzu Power Solutions

Start-up businesses always face risk and require an excess of hard work and perseverance. Wagga Wagga-based father and son duo Paul and Xavier Phyland have proved they have tenacity in spades after building First Class Firewood into a top-notch enterprise in just five years. 

When Xavier graduated from high school, he wanted to start his own business with some guidance from his father Paul. He began researching possible business solutions that were required in the community, eventually settling on sourcing and processing firewood. 

Firewood is used extensively in the southern states of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. Being based in Wagga Wagga on the New South Wales-Victoria border, Paul and Xavier believed their location was perfect for receiving trees to be processed into firewood and distributing to other states. 

“First Class Firewood’s main job is the production of bagged firewood which we distribute to service stations throughout the Riverina,” said co-owner-operator Paul. 

“Our business bags 10-kilogram bags of firewood and 10-kilogram bags of kindling and we also produce custom-made hardwood pallets to specific sizes which have been in high demand since 2020 with freight demand increases,” Paul said. 

First Class Firewood has a small team of students on university breaks and migrants who cut and bag the firewood. ​ 

“Everything is done on site in Wagga Wagga at the mill where we cut and bag the firewood,” Paul said. 

Rural Requirements  

Due to the rural location of Paul and Xavier's worksite, the duo needed a setup to power and maintain their machinery, including their log-docking saw, firewood splitter and kindling machine. 

Paul reached out to John Beattie at Wagga Motors when he was ready to upgrade his generator in mid-2022. ​ 

John recommended Isuzu Power Solutions’ GS020PTY generator set. This generator is integral to Firstclass Firewood's operations because their property is not connected to the power grid. ​ 

“There were a few choices in the generator market, from competitor brands and IPS,” Paul said. ​ 

“John was instrumental in our choice of the IPS GS020PTY gen set.” 

The IPS GS020PTY 20KVA generator is powered by the bullet-proof Isuzu 4LE1 engine producing an output of 20 kVA / 16 kWe (Prime), with a rated voltage of 415 VAC / 50 Hz. ​ 

“John and the Wagga Motors team were very knowledgeable about IPS products and gave us the best advice on selecting a genset for First Class Firewood. As Isuzu is such a well-known reliable brand, we had no doubt that Isuzu Power Solutions would be a perfect fit,” Paul said. 

Isuzu Power Solutions have a unique understanding of what is required to get the job done and sustain power and equipment in a variety of weather conditions and environments. 

Other features such as the unit’s external oil drain, coolant drain and fuel drain ports, along with its large lockable maintenance doors reduce downtime when the time comes for a service. 

Without the reliability of the IPS GS020PTY gen set, Paul and Xavier would simply not be able to operate. There is nothing to fall back on in the rural location of their business, so their generator needs to keep working, day-in and day-out. ​ 

Built For Aussie Conditions

“The safety and control features are good; we always feel reassured that we are safe working with it,” Paul said. ​ 

“It's extremely quiet. The lower decibels never create noise pollution, which is something we had to consider.” 

IPS gensets are designed with acoustic insulation, sound suppression technology throughout the canopy and crafted exhaust housings that reduce noise and balance high and low frequencies that work to prevent hearing damage when working on site. ​ 

Paul’s IPS GS020PTY has sound level or decibels of 51dB(A) @ 7m making it one of the quietest gen sets on the market. 

The IPS GS020PT has excellent fuel efficiency (5.2 litres per hour) for Paul and Xavier despite the fact Paul describes it as a “decent size” generator. 

A First-Class Future

With business exceeding expectations over the past four years, the father and son duo are looking to get some hard work done prior to the chilly months of 2023. 

“We're expecting a busy and wet winter this year. Xavier and I are looking forward to being able to use the summer to prepare and not feel rushed.” 

“Last winter when we were getting wood out of where it's located in paddocks, the mountains and the state forestry commission, we were impacted by the floods and the wet weather. It made it very hard to access the timber we required. 

“It was difficult for truck and heavier vehicle movement with the New South Wales floods and that created an over demand for First Class Firewood. ​ 

“No one could get into paddocks and we were experiencing a huge boom in business. Keeping existing clients happy but not being able to deliver the firewood due to flooded roads and paddocks was inhibiting production.” 

Paul and Xavier were so impressed with their IPS genset they purchased an Isuzu NLR 45-150 Traypack from Wagga Motors, a light-duty truck able to be driven on a car drivers’ licence, to deliver their product all over the Riverina. 

“We were so happy with the IPS genset, so we decided to inquire and then purchase an Isuzu truck for our local deliveries,” Paul said. 

Isuzu Power Solutions’ customers can always rely on the outstanding aftersales support provided by the National Dealer Network. With Wagga Motors backing up First Class Firewood, Paul and Xavier have support at every fork in the road. 

“Isuzu and IPS can be relied upon, they're not going anywhere, they're expanding parts and future service so you know ongoing support will never disappear or be an issue. 

“With such a good track record in Australia we felt secure when choosing IPS to support First Class Firewood,” Paul said. 

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