Forest Products Industry

What is the most exciting wood innovation of the year? You can have your say by voting for your favourite in the New Wood public vote throughout September. The public vote organised by the New Wood initiative, which showcases new wood-based materials and solutions, is now open. Source: Forest Fi What the nominated solutions have in common is their innovative use of wood and their contribution to sustainable development goals. The wood-based material itself may already be well known, but the commercial product or application must be new. “The new solutions included in the public vote will also be featured in the New Wood exhibition, which travels to events for decision-makers and other influential figures in Finland and around the world. Last spring, even King Charles took an interest in sustainable wood-based solutions when he visited the New Wood exhibition in London”, says Virpi Korhonen, Project Manager of the New Wood initiative. The public vote features eight new products. They replace fossil-based raw materials and use wood as a renewable raw material. Most aim to reduce the product’s carbon footprint compared with other potential materials. Almost all the nominated solutions also stand out for their Finnish origin and recyclability. The innovations featured by New Wood are presented on Forest.fi’s Innovation section, which also includes articles on the solutions nominated for the public vote. A video featuring the nominees can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pivhjt6pDNYY You can cast your vote directly at https://www.lyyti.fi/questions/a8fb909510 Everyone who votes will be entered into a raffle to win a Mysoda Glassy sparkling water maker made from wood composite, worth EUR 239. Voting is open until the end of September 2026. “Through the New Wood public vote, we want to highlight the unique wood-based products being developed in Finland. The forest bioeconomy is a sector where new, competitive products are constantly emerging”, said Mr Korhonen. The public’s favourite will be announced at the national Metsäpäivät event on 22 October 2026 at Clarion Hotel Helsinki Airport. The solutions will also be on display at the Metsäpäivät exhibition on 22–23 October 2026. The solutions nominated for the New Wood 2026 public vote are: Cellulose-based gel for low-chemical cosmetics / ChemLess Technologies Food packaging paper made of fossil-free raw materials / Metsä Tissue, Greaseproof Papers Renewable black pigment / UPM Lignin-based epoxy adhesive and coating / LignoSphere Company Knitted dress made from shipwreck / Aalto University Lignin-based interior tile / MO6 Fibre-based, recyclable and home compostable single use cutlery / Fiberdom Wood-based acoustic panel / Fiberwood

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The growing importance of short-rotation eucalyptus and acacia plantations is increasing the demand for cost-effective, durable harvesting solutions capable of sustaining high utilisation rates. The market has lacked solutions specifically suited for smaller base machines that can withstand demanding 24/7 plantation operations while maintaining low operating costs. Source: Timberbiz Kesla’s new KESLA 15RH and 15RH twinAX harvester heads have been developed to meet precisely this market need. The all-new KESLA 15RH and 15RH twinAX harvester heads have been specifically designed for harvesting small-diameter timber, particularly in eucalyptus and acacia plantations, where high utilisation rates, reliability and low operating costs are key productivity factors. The design focus has not been on achieving the lightest possible structure, but rather on durability and reliability in demanding operating conditions. The heads are engineered to withstand the stresses of excavator-based operation and continuous around-the-clock work. The hydraulics of the 15RH and 15RH twinAX heads, including valves and feed motors, can be configured in several different ways depending on the hydraulic capacity of the base machine and whether the primary objective is maximum delimbing force for challenging trees or high feeding speed for applications such as debarking. The feeding and cutting geometry has been specifically designed for so-called one-pass debarking. The head’s structures, shafts and bearings are exceptionally robust for their size class. As a result, it is the only head in its size and weight category designed to withstand continuous eucalyptus and acacia debarking operations in demanding working conditions. Thanks to its size and timber-handling capacity, the head is also well suited to light thinning harvesters. However, due to the weight resulting from its robust construction, the ideal base machine is a 6-8 tonne excavator. The KESLA 15RH is equipped with the well-proven KESLA saw unit, while the 15RH twinAX features the virtually maintenance-free twinAX cutting system. Operating costs for this shear-type cutting system are extremely low, as there are no conventional chainsaw-related expenses such as saw chains, guide bars or lubricants. Shear cutting also offers safety benefits, as there is no risk of chain shot. “As the market-leading manufacturer of independent harvesting heads, our strategy guides us towards developing products for growing market segments. We see strong growth in the cultivation and harvesting of short-rotation eucalyptus and acacia plantations, yet there has been a lack of sufficiently cost-effective mechanised harvesting solutions for this application,” said Mika Tahvanainen, Product Management Director at Kesla Oyj. “The superior cost-efficiency of our solution is based on the use of a small and affordable excavator as the base machine, combined with the KESLA twinAX cutting system, which delivers exceptionally low operating costs. Our strong presence in plantation markets and extensive expertise in excavator-based harvesting solutions enable both us and our partners to succeed in this new market segment.”

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