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The Finnish Sawmilling Industry Association says wood construction should be recognised as part of Finland’s sustainable growth, competitiveness and clean transition investments. Source Fordaq The Finnish Sawmilling Industry Association has called for wood construction to be placed more firmly at the centre of Finland’s sustainable economic growth, competitiveness and clean transition investments. In comments prepared for Ministry of Employment and Economy officials’ talks, the association said Finland has a strong forest and sawmill industry base, supported by renewable domestic raw material. According to the association, this base can support higher value-added business, exports and regional vitality. The association said the growth of wood construction can increase the value added of domestic wood and strengthen investments, exports and employment across Finland. It also said that the use of domestic wood in construction should be increased more widely, beyond wood construction alone. The association said the growth of the wood construction market should be seen as part of Finland’s competitiveness, industrial policy and low-carbon built environment. In its view, wood construction offers a concrete way to combine climate goals, eco-nomic growth, investments, exports and regional vitality. It also highlighted the role of wood in construction quality, comfort and user-friendliness, noting that research shows people feel comfortable in wood-based buildings and perceive wood as a pleasant material in housing and public spaces. The association emphasized that a long-term and predictable operating environment is a key prerequisite for investments, innovations and the growth of higher value-added wood-based solutions. The Finnish Sawmilling Industry Association presented five key proposals for strengthening wood construction in Finland. Introduce life-cycle-based carbon limits for buildings. Increase the use of wood in public construction and public procurement. Direct RDI funding towards wood construction innovations and new wood construction solutions. Strengthen training and expertise in timber construction at all levels of education. Launch a national timber construction programme led by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, supported by a high-level cross-administrative steering group.   According to the association, Finland is not yet fully using the potential of wood construction and wood use to strengthen the added value of domestic wood, investments and regional vitality. It said the use of wood in construction has decreased significantly in Finland over the past 20 years. Wood construction is also still growing too slowly in relation to national climate, growth and export targets. The association said the current regulatory and market environment does not sufficiently support the growth of wood construction or the wider use of wood in construction. The association said Finland needs new high value uses for domestic wood, and that wood construction represents a significant opportunity. It added that the sector can increase investments, exports and employment throughout the country. While wood construction has been promoted in several government programmes and strategies, the association said practical measures and their effectiveness have remained fragmented. It called for more long-term and cross-administrative implementation to grow the wood construction market. Proposed solutions include creating a predictable operating environment, using public procurement to develop the market, directing RDI funding towards new wood construction solutions, and developing regulation and permitting processes in a way that enables investments. The association said the share of wood construction in Finland is still growing too slowly in relation to climate, investment and employment goals. Slow market development, it said, weakens the opportunity to create new jobs, in-crease investments and raise the value added of domestic wood in Finland. It also limits opportunities to strengthen regional vitality and exports linked to wood construction and wood products. To address this, the association called for stronger timber construction teaching at different levels of education, closer cooperation between universities, educational institutions and companies, and better availability of skilled labour for the expected growth of wood construction. The Finnish Sawmilling Industry Association also linked wood construction to Finland’s climate goals and clean transition investments. It said emission reductions in the built environment are progressing too slowly and that the potential of wood construction is not being fully used as part of climate, in-vestment and industrial policy. The association called for construction guidance to take account of buildings’ cli-mate impacts across their full life cycle. It also said the potential of wood construction to reduce life-cycle emissions and act as long-term carbon storage in the building stock should be recognised. It added that substitution effects of materials should be considered as part of the climate impacts of construction. In its final remarks, the association said the growth of wood construction can strengthen Finland’s competitiveness, increase investments and raise the added value of domestic wood products. It said the same growth can also support regional vitality, employment and exports throughout Finland. The association concluded that Finland has excellent conditions to increase the share of wood construction as part of sustainable economic growth and competitive industrial policy, but that a long-term and predictable operating environment will be essential for new investment.  

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Spruce has long been the default choice in the Swedish construction sector. However, interest in pine as a structural timber is now growing both within the sawmill industry and among construction stakeholders. Source: Timberbiz According to Norra Timber, this shift is about broadening the perception of which timber species can be used in construction and creating greater flexibility at a time when raw material availability is changing. “It is the strength class that determines performance, not the species itself. Properly graded and strength-classified pine performs just as well as spruce in structural applications,” said Erik Högbom, Sales Director for Building Products at Norra Timber. The industry body Svenskt Trä has also highlighted that pine has significant untapped potential in construction, and several Swedish sawmills are now expanding their product portfolios with pine-based structural products. In Sweden, spruce has traditionally dominated structural timber applications, largely due to convention. However, when timber is graded to strength classes such as C24, both pine and spruce meet the same technical requirements for load-bearing structures. Both species are already used in applications ranging from roof trusses to floor joists. “Spruce has become the norm more out of habit than technical necessity. By also using pine, the construction industry gains access to equivalent alternatives and a broader supply base,” said Mr Högbom. For builders’ merchants and contractors, this means greater flexibility to plan projects based on availability and demand, rather than relying on a single species. “We are seeing a clear increase in demand for pine studs. Many customers value the ability to choose between equivalent options, strengthening both supply security and competitiveness in their projects,” he said. This development is also driven by changes in raw material availability. In recent years, spruce supply has been affected by factors such as bark beetle infestations, storm damage and strong demand across Europe, while the availability of pine has increased. As a result, more stakeholders are reassessing how different timber species are utilised. A broader use of pine can also contribute to more efficient resource utilisation across both forestry and the wood processing industry. “When both pine and spruce are used in structural applications, we make better use of the forest resource and strengthen the long-term availability of structural timber,” Mr Högbom said. According to Norra Timber, advances in sawmilling technology, kiln drying and grading processes have also played a key role in changing perceptions of pine as a structural material. Modern quality control systems now deliver a more consistent and predictable product than in the past. “A lot has changed over the past decade. With today’s production methods and quality control, pine studs are a highly consistent, high-performance product – making pine just as suitable as spruce for structural use,” Mr Högbom said.

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