OUR HISTORY

1919 - 2019 

For 100 years the name FAYS has been associated with forest 

1919                 

Arthur Fays - my grandfather - decided at the end of the First World War to set up his own

forestry business (planting and management of forest estates) and logging.

 

                                      1945                 

                                                At the end of the second world war, his son, André, joined him in the forestry and logging business,                                                      specializing first in the purchase of standing timber (hardwood and softwood), then developing a site

                                                for cutting logs in smaller lengths to be used by the collieries and other industries of the time, before

                                                turning to the management of sawmills in Belgium and Germany.

                                               

                                               Together, they carried on managing forests in their native Belgian Ardennes for many years, proving to

                                               be forewarned professors instilling in me at a very early age love and respect for the forest, raising my

                                               interest in wood and its technical knowledge.

 

By spending a large part of my childhood in forests and plantations, I unknowingly charted my professional course: having chosen nature and the great outdoors, I focused on forest management, devoting myself to bring in line upstream and downstream.

1973                 

At the age of eighteen, following emancipation validated by my parents and in conjunction with my studies, I was able to set up my first company and take my first steps in the professional world by managing small private estates and reforestation projects.

A few years later, I moved into logging and exporting hardwood and softwood logs; then processing, importing and exporting logs and sawn timber, and finally international trading and expatriation to manage industrial sites, leading to access to tropical forests. While temperate forests were my cradle, tropical forests and the richness of their biodiversity have always made me dream; it was therefore inconceivable not to take an interest in these fragile universes, prey to numerous covetousnesses.

 

2000                 

The transition to the 21st century is marked by the reorientation of my activities:

Oriented towards supporting governments, recognized organizations or private interests, refocused on expertise and consultancy in tropical and temperate zones, now bound by a Fayswood code of ethics, their foundation lies in moral values guaranteeing the execution of any mandate with respect for everyone's interests.

 

2010             

Since then, in Madagascar, an experimental site has been set up to rehabilitate hills and abandoned or degraded environments with a view to rural development, leading to numerous forestry and agroforestry management trials. 

Today, these methods, having won over a number of partners, are being transposed to other regions of the globe.

 

As an international upstream/downstream forestry expert, I am involved at every stage in the life of forests and timber, from the search for and development of plantation or reforestation sites and planting to the export and transport of finished products.

With over 50 years' professional experience, my services cover :

• Agroforestry management (Madagascar)

• Forestry management (Europe, Indian Ocean)

• Plantations supervision (Indian Ocean, South and Central America)

• Timber quality and measurement approvals (Africa, Europe, Indian Ocean, South and Central America, Asia)

• Training (Africa, Europe, Asia)

• Project management (Africa, South America, Asia, Indian Ocean)

  

                                                                                                                                            

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   "I work with passion to make live any projest                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  in which I take commitment"                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Richard Fays

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

• ATIBT expert
• ATIBT expert in charge of revising grading rules (2005-2010)
• Vice-President of the ATIBT Arbitration Chamber (2005-2010)
• Chairman of the ATIBT Training Commission (2005-2008)
• Approved ATIBT grader for African logs & sawn lumber 
• TAM Technical Expert 
• Earth & Forests Technical Expert

 

 

As a Belgian and above all a native of the Ardennes, I'm very proud of my origins in an extremely rich and varied

low-mountain region, covered in forests from which it probably takes its name, “Ar'Den”, in Celtic, meaning “the

dark”, and stretches across 4 countries (Germany, Belgium, France, Luxembourg).

 

                              The digitized wild boar that marks the borders of the Belgian province of Luxembourg is the

                              worthy representative of a magnificent forested province, perfectly symbolizing the character of its inhabitants,

                              mostly natives, and their determination to defend their ideas.

 

                              I'm very proud that this province, with its grandiose landscapes combining coniferous and

                              deciduous trees, often majestic, is mine.

                              It's always a great pleasure for me to cross its borders and immerse myself in the simple, subtle scents of its

                              forests and fields, transporting me back to my youth.

 

 

 

Nevertheless, I chose to live in tropical zones, and more precisely on an island of prodigious richness in terms of diversity and biodiversity - Madagascar - where I've never been able to rediscover the sensations of the Ardennes or Gaume terroirs, but where, on the other hand, I've found many others, quite specific to this exceptional environment.

  

So, every time I travel in Belgium (and in temperate forests) or return to Madagascar, I'm lucky enough to find olfactory sensations that are typically adapted to the region I'm in.