01 May 2008

From softwoods for innovative building construction to hardwoods for creative interior design, timber is a natural choice for lasting, quality solutions that are cost-effective, environmentally friendly and carbon-neutral.

As a uniquely renewable building material, timber now consistently offers incomparable constructional design potential to both-end users and customers in the commercial and public sectors.
Given this scenario, the German wood product industry is now emerging as a leader in both sustainability and innovation, with the new range of modern wood products sought after by inventive builders and designers around the globe. In the Gulf region too, German products are gaining a foothold. At the 2008 Woodshow in Dubai, for example, the German Timber Promotion Fund showed how high-end wood products and advanced engineering solutions can contribute to the continued boom in infrastructure development and building construction in Dubai and in the Gulf region. In addition, the Fund has posted details of the various advantages of using German timber on its website www.germantimber.com.
Last year, the total exports of German softwood totalled 8.7 million cu m – 5.9 million cu m in sawn timber and another 2.8 million cu m in planed timber. Within the Gulf region, Saudi Arabia was also a major consumer of these products, purchasing 94,000 cu m – a 454 per cent increase over the previous year!
The total exports of German hardwoods comprising of mainly Beech and Oak reached 727,000 cu m last year. Dominating the German hardwoods exports was European Beech, a unique and highly-sought-after species with characteristics ideally suited for interior finishing and furniture production. In the Middle East, the UAE is a major importer of hardwoods, such as Beech in particular from Germany, importing some 6,000 cu m – a figure which is rising at 27per cent per year.
Germany’s range of technologically-advanced wood products are innovating the sustainable production of renewable raw materials, structural materials and value-added wood products for green construction. German manufacturers offer a range of specialty softwood products such as KVH solid structural softwood timber (precision material), Duo/Trio beams made from advanced materials for high dimensional stability and Glulam timber beams and columns for residential and large-scale structures to meet the demands of modern wood construction in private homes for both building and renovation works, public buildings, large-scale roofs and bridges. Innovative hardwood products are also available for creative interior finishing, wall and ceiling panels, furniture construction and design. These high-quality German timber products come from sustainably managed forests, are certified under internationally-recognised standards and are available in various dimensions.
It was German foresters who first coined the term ‘sustainability’ more than three centuries ago. In today`s world, forest resources in Germany are still successfully managed according to international sustainability principles as a source of raw materials, an ecosystem close to nature and a place for recreation.
Hence, Germany`s forests are now home to the largest volumes of Europe’s wood supply and some of the most productive woodlands in the whole of Europe. The country’s timber industry employs more than 1.3 million people in over 185,000 companies, showing annual sales of about 181 billion euros ($284.21 billion).  With about 31 per cent of its landbase forested (a productive area of more than 11 million hectares), Germany’s total wood supply is currently around 3.4 billion cu m, with room for growth even under strict sustainability principles. From the wide range of both hardwood (26) and softwood (seven) tree species harvested for economic purposes in the country, spruce, pine, beech and oak are the most significant and valued.
Levels of investment in the saw-milling industry suggest Germany is the up-and-coming timber supply giant in this market. German sawmills are celebrating their best market export results in years and many have since used value addition to extend their product range.
Investment in high-end technology, value addition and an annual production of more than 24 million cu m has made Germany’s sawmill industry a European market leader. Competitive, export-oriented companies drive the German wood-based industry. The export rate of the German sawmill industry is more than 30 per cent.
Through ongoing dialogue with both architects and building experts in the Gulf region on the advantages of modern wood products, Germany’s business relationships with the Gulf will continue to grow and diversify at an exciting rate.

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