Impacts on the wood properties under changing conditions of environment and industry

Besides the traditional uses of wood in the construction, pulp- and paper making and furniture industries, the energy recovery industry based on renewable resources such as wood has been growing strongly during recent years. Shortages in the supply affect the price of the raw material, and this affects its supply and leads to an oscillating rawmaterial price because of permanently changing supply and demand. Forestry as the supplier of wood is trying to provide the most beneficial mix of raw materials to meet the market conditions. In this study, parameters related to silvicultural operations which influence the wood as raw material for sawn timber are studied. By defining a strategic cube, it was possible to illustrate the impact of the different parameters on the type of available raw material. The method provides estimates of changes in the mix of raw materials caused by changing parameters. The results show that besides the climate conditions the demands of the different wood-using industries have a strong impact on the quality and quantity of available raw material. Climate change and innovation or trends in the construction and furniture industries, for example, influence silvicultural management, and this affects the raw material mix.Godkänd; 2015; 20150613 (dicsan)