The need to cope with the growing demand for products with added value, changing industry practices and new business environments are among the reasons for companies putting an increased emphasis on product development in the manufacturing of wood products.
One such company, UPM-Kymmene, has undertaken systematic research and development on plywood products combined with close customer collaboration for more than 30 years.
Just two years ago it expanded its existing R&D activities within its Wood Products Industry division to include timber products. At the same time it set up a new R&D centre in Lahti, 103km north-east of Helsinki.
Over the years millions of euros have been invested in state-of-the art equipment. “We are a leading international company in the field of research in the wood products industry with communication with the market and product units being very important for us and the driving force in what we do here,” said Antti Suonranta, vice-president, R&D.
“The WISA R&D Centre has unique expertise and facilities to offer to manufacturers,” added research manager Jaakko Lehto. “We are a world leader in glue technology for wood products and have considerable research knowledge of the core properties of wood. This expertise and our equipment for weather testing and the structural performance of wood products have been of great assistance in working with our industrial customers. Similarly, our position as a recognised testing laboratory by several national standards organisations supports customer development projects in product reliability testing.”
The R&D team gears its work around the specific needs and wishes of key customers. Existing products are improved continually, with the team regularly testing new processes and raw materials such as coatings and glues and performance such as strength, chemical resistance and fire.
Customer relations
“Confidentiality is extremely important in our customer relations,” pointed out Antti Suonranta. “Since we are able to conduct all our tests in-house, our customers can visit us and see how their products perform, for instance how well a window frame withstands our weathering tests or how well a plywood vehicle floor resists wear and tear.”
One example of the results of this research is WISA-Facade, a plywood panel coated with a water-borne varnish, which protects the wood against ultra violet radiation, blue stain fungi and mildew.
“WISA-Facade was developed as a result of a specific need expressed in the market place,” said Risto Allinen, manager of the further processing mill in Lahti where the new product was developed in conjunction with the R&D centre. “And we worked in close co-operation with paint manufacturers to achieve the desired results.
“Research and development is an ongoing process,” he added. “For example, there is still development work in progress together with film and paint suppliers on WISA-Form which was originally launched 25-30 years ago for the construction industry.”
A considerable investment has been made in new equipment for the processing mill with the latest being the installation of two CNC machines with robots for feeding panels in to be machined. Cameras are being installed for inspection purposes, which will be able to compare a machined panel with a customer-approved drawing, thus eliminating the need for manual measurement. “As far as we know this is the first installation of its type in Finland,” said Risto Allinen.
A key participant in the development of new joinery products is the Heinola speciality redwood sawmill, 30km to the north of Lahti.
By combining the unique R&D facilities in Lahti, the special sawing capabilities at Heinola, the laminated component production facilities of Luumäki, and the market expertise of the division’s joinery specialists in the market (Jason Enticott in the UK), special products have been developed, both sawn components (WISA Plus) and laminated ones (WISA Lam), in conjunction with customers.
Critical issues being met by these product solutions are the improvement of manufacturers’ raw material yield, reduction of repair work in the process, providing the best surfaces for factory finished painting, and supplying high heartwood content products.
“There are projects under way to examine the potential for combining WISA Plus timber products and WISA special plywood technology, as well as new treatments for increasing Nordic timber’s durability without using toxic chemicals,” said Antti Suonranta. “However, they will not become WISA products until they have satisfied the stringent tests of the R&D department.”
