In 2005 the estimated total value of the forest cluster was 40 billion euros. The cluster’s exports totalled approximately 15 billion euros, i.e. almost 30 per cent of Finland ’s total exports. In addition to the forest industry, in these calculations the cluster is considered to include forestry, engineering and maintenance for the pulp, paper and sawmill industries, the chemical industry serving the forest industries, manufacture of wooden furniture and wood or fibre packaging, as well as graphic publishing and printing. The cluster’s estimated investment in R&D during last year totalled 350 million euros. The consumption of domestic wood was almost 60 million cubic metres.

The key focus areas of the forest cluster’s research are:

• Intelligent wood and fibre products. Rapid development of information and data traffic technologies as well as bio- and nanotechnologies allow the development of intelligent and functional wood and fibre products and new business opportunities.
• Materials made of wood and its components. New possibilities for the use of wood should be investigated and their utilization should be developed.
• A biorefinery with versatile wood usage options. In addition to the current products, the future refinery will be able to separate materials, chemicals and energy products from wood, which, in turn, will create new business activities.
• Sustainable use of forests. Productivity of forests and profitability of forestry must be improved according to the principles of sustainable development. Public approval for the use of forests is a precondition for the forest cluster’s success.
• Increased value for wood biomass. Exploiting the properties of wood biomass and finding new ways to use wood will increase its value and direct the use to the different targets of use, depending on wood properties.
• Intelligent production technologies that save resources. Radically new energy-saving production systems operated with minimal resources to reduce capital-intensive investments and improve the efficiency and flexibility of the entire cluster.
• Future customer solutions. New attractive, customer-based and competitive products and service concepts for the needs of, for example, printed communication, packaging, construction and interior decoration, and for the needs of new product areas, such as chemistry and energy products.

The research strategy was prepared under the guidance of a steering group representing financiers and stakeholders. The steering group was chaired by Anne Brunila, Chairman of the Finnish Forest Industries Federation. The project group responsible for the research strategy consisted of nine individuals, one of whom was Metla’s Research Director Leena Paavilainen.

– Metla will be actively involved with implementing the research strategy together with the industry, forest owners and other research organizations, says Paavilainen.

According to Paavilainen, Metla’s expertise will be directed towards the following spheres of specialization:

• Cost-effective, ecologically sustainable silvicultural methods
• Properties of wood materials and their effective exploitation
• Biomass delivery chains tailored for finished products
• Utilization of wood biomass, new products and forms of business
• Profitability of forest industry and methods of forest policy
• Public approval for forestry and (sustainable use of forest resources to produce) environmentally friendly products

The complete research strategy of the Finnish forest cluster is published at:
www.forestindustries.fi

KCL, Metla and VTT to open an electronic work space for preparing the strategy

The implementation of the research strategy for the Finnish forest cluster means that research projects will need to be started as soon as possible in order to provide a quick start for the reformation of the forest cluster.To shorten the time of transfer from the strategy to practical research, KCL, Metla and VTT are providing a website as an electronic work space for the preparation work at Finnish Forest Cluster Research Portal. The website serves as a forum for proposing, commenting on, and composing various initiatives. The idea is to facilitate and speed the formation of the forest cluster’s project entities and researcher consortia in a spirit of open-minded innovation.

The three research institutes responsible for the website set up have no authoritative power regarding initiation of research programmes. The website users decide independently which type of entities they will form within the national and EU-level research programmes.