Hosted by the Australian Furnishing Industry Stewardship Council, Australian Furniture Association and RMIT University, and running over February 24 and 25, Grow. Promote. Protect. Forum 2026 built on the momentum of recent Commonwealth and State-funded research projects that have identified key recommendations for industry growth.

This episode is from a day one panel session, including guests Simon Dorries, CEO at Responsible Wood; Robert (Bob) Panitzki, Business Development Manager at Furntech-AFRDI; Mark Lazarus, Director at Lazarus Legal; and Amma Boakye, Practice Project Officer at IP Australia.

The moderator is Patrizia Torelli, CEO, The Australian Furniture Association

Episode guide

0:25 – Introduction to panellists.

5:20 – The first things businesses should do to protect their intellectual property.

6:29 – Types of different IP.

8:08 – Some of what’s patentable, copyright-protectable, trademarked. And why you might not need all of these.

9:33 – The role of IP Australia and some of the tools its website offers.

10:40 – A recap of patents, trademarks and design patents.

11:50 – Plant breeders’ rights.

12:55 – Responsible Wood Australia, Standards Australia, and these labels being used in a misleading way.

13:43 – When deception on standards has fatal results.

15:05 – Where certification chain of custody comes in.

16:50 – Countering greenwashing that wrongly uses RWA certification.

18:10 – The types of certifications AFRDI issues and how it deals with forgeries.

19:25 – The example of a plastic monoblock chair.

20:50 – Clients claiming compliance to the full standard when only being part-way there.

24:10 – Checking that what’s sourced is legitimate.

25:14 – Unfortunately we live in a world where there’s not a lot of enforcement.

26:40 – How the AFA can go into bat for those that have been unfairly treated during a procurement process.

27:30 – The imported knockoff chairs that removed the toes of a cafe-goer in Queensland.

29:02 – Why it would be difficult to take action against a non-compliant overseas manufacturer in the above case.

34:17 – A tolix bar stool copy was identical to what it was based on, but made with thinner steel and featuring a dangerous shear point. “But outside of that you probably couldn’t tell the difference.”

36:02 – Voluntary standards and ones that are policed.

36:50 – A question from the floor about standards discussions across countries.

37:52 – Alignment across countries on intellectual property.

39:18 – A question from the floor on shifting liability to a supplier, and why a well-drafted indemnity provision is definitely enforceable.

42:40 – A question from the floor about tools to check on suppliers’ certification credentials.

44:50 – A question from the floor on the economic conditions in China and how they’re playing out for importers.

47:50 – The collapse of the Chinese domestic construction market. Timber and other products have flooded the market as a result.