The wood industry or timber industry (sometimes lumber industry – when referring mainly to sawed boards) is the industry concerned with forestry, logging, timber trade, and the production of primary and (e.g. furniture) and secondary products like wood pulp for the pulp and paper industry. Some of the largest producers are also among the biggest owners of forest. The wood industry has historically been and continues to be an important sector in many economies.
Distinction
In the narrow sense of the terms, wood, forest, forestry and timber/lumber industry appear to point to different sectors, in the industrialized, internationalized world, there is a tendency toward huge integrated businesses that cover the complete spectrum from
silviculture and forestry in private primary or
or
via the logging process up to
wood processing and
timber trade and transport (e.g.
timber rafting,
,
).
Processing and products differs especially with regard to the distinction between softwood and hardwood.
Production chain
Lumber and
wood products, including
Timber framing,
plywood, and
woodworking, are created in the wood industry from the trunks and branches of
through several processes, commencing with the selection of appropriate logging sites and concluding with the milling and treatment processes of the harvested material. In order to determine which logging sites and milling sites are responsibly producing environmental, social and economic benefits, they must be certified under the Forest Stewardship Council Forests For All Forever (FSC) Certification that ensures these qualities.
Harvesting
Mature trees are harvested from both plantations and native forests. Trees harvested at a younger age produce smaller logs, and these can be turned into lower-value products. Factors such as location, climate conditions, species, growth rate, and
silviculture can affect the size of a mature tree.
Timber mills
The native hardwood saw-milling industry originally consisted of small family-owned mills, but has recently changed to include a small number of larger mills. Mills produce large volumes of material and aim to ensure delivery of a high quality standard of product. Their goal is to do this efficiently and safely, at low cost, with rapid production time and high output.
Production and use
Once the timber has been manipulated in the required fashion, it can be shipped out for usage. There are many different purposes for wood including
plywood, veneer, pulp,
paper, particleboard, pallets, craft items, toys, instrument-making, furniture production, packing cases, wine barrels, cardboard, firewood, garden mulch, fibre adhesives, packaging and pet litter. Western Australia has a unique substance called ‘
biochar’, which is made from
jarrah and
pine and sometimes from
crop and
forestry residues, along with the former materials. Biochar can be used to manufacture
silicone and as a soil additive.
Softwoods, such as the Australian eucalyptus, are highly valued, a are used mainly for construction, Pulpwood, and cladding. The term 'round wood' describes all the wood removed from forests in log form and used for purposes other than fuel. Wood manufacturing residues, such as sawdust and chippings, are collectively known as "pulp".
Transport
Originally, trees were felled from native forests using axes and hand-held
Crosscut saw – a slow process involving significant manual labor. Since sawmills were traditionally located within forests, milled timber had to be transported over long distances via rough terrain or waterways to reach its destination. Logs were later transported via train and tram lines, first by steam-powered log haulers then by
Steam locomotive, and finally diesel and petrol-powered locomotives. Even in the modern era, timber is dried in
Kiln. When the first steam railway in Australia opened in Melbourne in 1854, timber transportation changed dramatically. Trains made the transportation of lumber quicker and more affordable, making it possible for the Australian sawmill industry to move inland.
Wood is transported by a variety of methods, typically by road vehicle and log driving over shorter distances. For longer journeys, wood is transported by sea on timber carriers, subject to the IMO TDC Code.
Top producers
As of 2019, the top
Forest owners in the US were structured as real-estate investment trusts and include:
In 2008 the largest lumber and wood producers in the US were
As these companies are often publicly traded, their ultimate owners are a diversified group of investors. There are also timber-oriented real-estate investment trusts.
According to sawmilldatabase, the world top producers of sawn wood in 2007 were:
| +
! Company
! Production or Capacity in m3/yr |
| 8,460,000 |
| 6,900,000 |
| 6,449,000 |
| 4,646,000 |
| 4,300,000 |
| 3,760,000 |
| 3,550,000 |
| 3,200,000 |
| 3,100,000 |
| 2,800,000 |
| 2,500,000 |
| 2,200,000 |
Issues
Safety
Noise
Workers within the forestry and logging industry sub-sector fall within the agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting (AFFH) industry sector as characterized by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has taken a closer look at the AFFH industry's noise exposures and prevalence of hearing loss. While the overall industry sector had a prevalence of hearing loss lower than the overall prevalence of noise-exposed industries (15% v. 19%), workers within forestry and logging exceeded 21%.
Thirty-six percent of workers within forest nurseries and gathering of forest products, a sub-sector within forestry and logging, experienced hearing loss, the most of any AFFH sub-sector. Workers within forest nurseries and gathering of forest products are tasked with growing trees for
reforestation and gathering products such as
and barks. Comparatively, non-noise-exposed workers have only a 7% prevalence of hearing loss.
Worker noise exposures in the forestry and logging industry have been found to be up to 102 dBA.
Injury
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has found that fatalities of forestry and logging workers have increased from 2013 to 2016, up from 81 to 106 per year. In 2016, there were 3.6 cases of injury and illness per 100 workers within this industry.
Illegal logging
Economy
The existence of a
wood economy, or more broadly, a
forest economy (in many countries a
bamboo economy predominates), is a prominent matter in many developing countries as well as in many other nations with a temperate climate and especially in those with
Boreal climate. These are generally the countries with greater forested areas so conditions allow for development of local
forestry to harvest wood for local uses. The uses of wood in furniture, buildings, bridges, and as a source of energy are widely known. Additionally, wood from trees and
Shrub, can be used in a variety of products, such as
wood pulp,
cellulose in paper,
celluloid in early photographic film,
cellophane, and
rayon (a substitute for silk).
At the end of their normal usage, wood products can be burnt to obtain thermal energy or can be used as a fertilizer. The potential environmental damage that a wood economy could occasion include a reduction of biodiversity due to monoculture forestry (the intensive cultivation of very few trees types); and CO2 emissions. However, forests can aid in the reduction of atmospheric carbon dioxide and thus limit climate change.
Paper is today the most used wood product.
History of use of wood
The wood economy was the starting point of the
worldwide, since eras preceding the
Paleolithic and the
Neolithic. It necessarily preceded
Bronze Age by many millennia, as the melting of metals was possible only through the discovery of techniques to light fire (usually obtained by the scraping of two very dry wooden rods) and the building of many
and rudimentary tools, as canes, club handles, bows,
,
. One of the most ancient handmade articles ever found is a polished wooden spear tip (
Clacton Spear) 250,000 years old (third interglacial period), that was buried under sediments in England, at
Clacton-on-Sea.
[Tecnologia Dalle Origini al 2000, pag. 18]
Dimensions and geography
The main source of the lumber used in the world is forests, which can be classified as
Virgin forest, semivirgin and plantations. Much timber is removed for
firewood by local populations in many countries, especially in the
third world, but this amount can only be estimated, with wide margins of uncertainty.
In 1998, the worldwide production of "Roundwood" (officially counted wood not used as firewood), was about , amounting to around 45% of the wood cultivated in the world. Cut logs and branches destined to become elements for building construction accounted for approximately 55% of the world's industrial wood production. 25% became wood pulp (including wood powder and broccoli) mainly destined for the production of paper and paperboard, and approximately 20% became panels in plywood and valuable wood for furniture and objects of common use (FAO 1998).[ FAO 1998 ]
By 2001 the rainforest areas of Brazil were reduced by a fifth (respect of 1970), to around 4,000,000 km2; the ground cleared was mainly destined for cattle pasture—Brazil is the world's largest exporter of beef with almost 200,000,000 head of cattle.
Importance in limiting climate change
Regarding the problem of climate change, it is known that burning forests increase CO
2 in the atmosphere, while intact virgin forest or plantations act as sinks for CO
2, for these reasons wood economy fights greenhouse effect. The amount of CO
2 absorbed depends on the type of trees, lands and the climate of the place where trees naturally grow or are planted. Moreover, by night plants do not
photosynthesis, and produce CO
2, eliminated the successive day. Paradoxically in summer
oxygen created by photosynthesis in forests near to cities and urban parks, interacts with urban air pollution (from cars, etc.) and is transformed by solar beams in
ozone (molecule of three oxygen atoms), that while in high atmosphere constitutes a filter against
ultraviolet beams, in the low atmosphere is a pollutant, able to provoke respiratory disturbances.
In a low-carbon economy, forestry operations will be focused on low-impact practices and regrowth. Forest managers will make sure that they do not disturb soil-based carbon reserves too much. Specialized tree farms will be the main source of material for many products. Quick maturing tree varieties will be grown on short rotations to maximize output.[ Trees and their role in carbon management for land and business , The Woodland Trust.]
Production by country
In Brazil
Brazil has a long tradition in the harvesting of several types of trees with specific uses. Since the 1960s, imported species of pine tree and eucalyptus have been grown mostly for the
plywood and paper pulp industries. Currently high-level research is being conducted, to apply the enzymes of
sugar cane fermentation to cellulose in wood, to obtain
methanol, but the cost is much higher when compared with ethanol derived from
maize costs.
-
Brazilwood: has a dense, orange-red heartwood that takes a high red shine (brasa=ember), and it is the premier wood used for making bows for string instruments from the violin family. These trees soon became the biggest source of red dye, and they were such a large part of the economy and export of that country, that slowly it was known as Brazil.
In Canada and the US
There is a close relation in the forestry economy between these countries; they have many tree genera in common, and Canada is the main producer of wood and wooden items destined to the US, the biggest consumer of wood and its byproducts in the world. The water systems of the
Great Lakes,
Erie Canal,
Hudson River and Saint Lawrence Seaway to the east coast and the Mississippi River to the central plains and
Louisiana allows transportation of logs at very low costs. On the west coast, the basin of the
Columbia River has plenty of forests with excellent timber.
Canada
The agency Canada Wood Council calculates that in the year 2005 in Canada, the forest sector employed 930,000 workers (1 job in every 17), making around $108 billion of value in goods and services. For many years products derived from trees in Canadian forests had been the most important export items of the country. In 2011, exports around the world totaled some $64.3 billion – the single largest contributor to Canadian trade balance.
Canada is the world leader in sustainable forest management practices. Only (28% of Canadian forests) are currently managed for timber production while an estimated are protected from harvesting by the current legislation.
The Canadian timber industry has led to environmental conflict with Indigenous people protecting their land from logging. For example, the Asubpeeschoseewagong First Nation set up the Grassy Narrows road blockade for twenty years beginning in 2002 to prevent clearcutting of their land.
United States
-
Cherry: a hardwood prized for its high quality in grain, width, color, and rich warm glow.
[A History of the Vegetable Kingdom – Page 334] In the United States, most cherry trees are grown in Washington, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, California and Oregon.[ Cherry Production National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA, Retrieved on 19 August 2008.]
-
Cedrus: this genus is a group of of the family Pinaceae, originating from high mountain areas from the Carpathians, Lebanon and Turkey to the Himalayas. Their scented wood make them suitable for chests and closet lining. Cedar oil and wood is known to be a natural repellent to moths.
-
Douglas fir: a native tree of the United States west coast and Mountain States, with records in fast growth and high statures in brief time. The coast Douglas fir grows in coastal regions up to altitudes of about 1,800 meters; the Rocky Mountain Douglas fir grows farther inland, at altitudes ranging from 800 m to 3,000 m or higher. The wood is used for construction, for homebuilt aircraft, for paper pulp, and also as firewood.
-
Hybrid poplar is being investigated by Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee
-
Walnut: a prized furniture and carving hardwood because of its colour, hardness, grain and durability. Walnut wood has been the timber of choice for gun makers for centuries. It remains one of the most popular choices for rifle and shotgun stocks.
Nigeria
Wood obtained from Nigeria's wood industry undergoes processing in various wood processing sectors, including furniture manufacturing, sawmill operations, plywood mills, pulp and paper facilities, and particleboard mills. As of 2010, workers are typically not given any safety training.
In the Caribbean and Central America
-
Mahogany: has a straight grain, usually free of voids and pockets. The most prized species come from Cuba and Honduras. It has a reddish-brown color, which darkens over time, and displays a beautiful reddish sheen when polished. It has excellent workability, is available in big boards, and is very durable. Mahogany is used in the making of many musical instruments, as drums, acoustic and electric guitars' back and side, and luxury .
In Europe
Italy
Populus: in Italy is the most important species for tree plantations, is used for several purposes as
plywood manufacture, packing boxes, paper,
, etc. It needs good quality grounds with good drainage, but can be used to protect the cultivations if disposed in
windbreak lines. More than 70% of Italian poplar cultivations are located in the
pianura Padana. Constantly the extension of the cultivation is being reduced, from 650 km
2 in the 1980s to current 350 km
2. The yield of poplars is about 1,500 t/km
2 of wood every year.
The production from poplars is around 45–50% of the total Italian wood production.
[Fonte:http://www.federlegno.it/tool/home.php?s=0,1,29,37,417,1042]
Portugal
-
Cork oak for cork: are trees with a slow growth, but long life, are cultivated in warm hill areas (min. temp. > −5 °C) in all the west area of Mediterranean shores. Cork is popular as a material for . Even if the production as stoppers for wine bottles is diminishing in favor of nylon stoppers, in the sake of energy saving granules of cork can be mixed into concrete. These composites have low thermal conductivity, low density and good energy absorption (earthquake resistant). Some of the property ranges of the composites are density (400–1500 kg/m3), compressive strength (1–26 MPa) and flexural strength (0.5–4.0 MPa).
[Karade SR. 2003. An Investigation of Cork Cement Composites. PhD Thesis. BCUC. Brunel University, UK.]
In Fennoscandia
In Sweden, Finland and to an extent Norway, much of the land area is forested, and the pulp and paper industry is one of the most significant industrial sectors. Chemical pulping produces an excess of energy, since the organic matter in
black liquor, mostly
lignin and
hemicellulose breakdown products, is burned in the
recovery boiler. Thus, these countries have high proportions of renewable energy use (25% in Finland, for instance). Considerable effort is directed towards increasing the value and usage of forest products by companies and by government projects.
-
Scots pine and Norway spruce: These species comprise most of the boreal forest, and together as a softwood mixture they are converted into chemical pulp for paper.
-
Birch is a genus with many species of trees in Scandinavia and Russia, excellent for acid soils. These act as pioneer species in the frozen border between taiga and tundra, and are very resistant to periods of drought and . The species Betula nana has been identified as the ideal tree for the acid, nutrient-poor soils of mountain slopes, where these trees can be used to restrain , including in southern Europe. Dissolving pulp is produced from birch. Xylitol can be produced by the hydrogenation of xylose, which is a byproduct of chemical birch pulping.
Outputs
Combustion
Combustion of wood is linked to the production of micro-environmental pollutants, as
carbon dioxide (CO
2),
carbon monoxide (CO) (an invisible gas able to provoke irreversible saturation of blood's
hemoglobine), as well as
nanoparticles.
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of impure
carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow
pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of
oxygen. Charcoal can then be used as a fuel with a higher combustion temperature.
Wood gasogen
Wood gas generator (gasogen): is a bulky and heavy device (but technically simple) that transforms burning wood in a mix of molecular
hydrogen (H
2),
carbon monoxide (CO),
carbon dioxide (CO
2), molecular
nitrogen (N
2) and water vapor (H
2O). This gas mixture, known as "
wood gas", "poor gas" or "
syngas" is obtained after the
combustion of dry wood in a
redox (low in
oxygen) with a limited amount of atmospheric air, at temperatures of 900 °C, and can fuel an internal combustion engine.
[UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Gasogens Report (Original report dated 1944): now in the possession of the University of Wisconsin]
Construction
Wood is relatively light in weight, because its
specific weight is less than 500 kg/m
3, this is an advantage, when compared against 2,000–2,500 kg/m
3 for reinforced concrete or 7,800 kg/m
3 for steel.
Wood is strong, because the efficiency of wood for structural purposes has qualities that are similar to steel.
Bridges, levees, microhydro, piers
Wood is used to build bridges (as the
Magere Brug in Amsterdam), as well as water and air mills, and
microhydro generators for electricity.
Housing
Hardwood is used as a material in
lumber houses, and other structures with a broad range of dimensions. In traditional homes wood is preferred for ceilings,
,
and
. Wooden frames were traditionally used for home ceilings, but they risk collapse during fires.
The development of energy efficient houses including the "passive house" has revamped the importance of wood in construction, because wood provides acoustic and thermal insulation, with much better results than concrete.
Earthquake resistant buildings
In Japan, ancient buildings, of relatively high elevation, like
, historically had shown to be able to resist earthquakes of high
Seismic scale, thanks to the traditional building techniques, employing elastic
Kinematic pair, and to the excellent ability of wooden frames to elastically deform and absorb severe accelerations and compressive shocks.
In 2006, Italian scientists from CNR patented
Shipbuilding
One of the most enduring materials is the lumber from
southern live oak and
white oak, specially live oak is 60% stronger than white oak and more resistant to moisture. As an example, the main component in the structure of battle ship , the world's oldest commissioned naval vessel afloat (launched in 1797) is white oak.
Woodworking
Woodworking is the activity or skill of making items from wood, and includes cabinet making (cabinetry and furniture), wood carving, joinery, carpentry, and woodturning. Millions of people make a livelihood on woodworking projects.
See also
-
Forestry
-
Lumber
-
Canada–United States softwood lumber dispute
-
Forest Stewardship Council
-
Low-carbon economy
Notes and references
Bibliography
-
Jared Diamond 2005. Collapse. How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. New York: Viking. .
External links
See also
-
Deforestation
-
Forest Products Association of Canada
-
Forest Stewardship Council
-
Hardwood/softwood
-
Illegal logging
-
Lumber industry on the Ottawa River
-
National Hardwood Lumber Association
-
Pulp and paper industry in the United States
