Forest Industry

I

Introduction

Forest Industry, industry that supplies wood, paper, chemicals, energy, and other products from trees. The forest industry includes the lumber industry, which encompasses the various businesses that convert trees, or timber, into lumber products. People use products of the forest industry in numerous aspects of their lives. Lumber and plywood are used to construct many homes and business facilities, which are furnished with tables, chairs, desks, and other furniture made from wood. Paper is used for newspapers, magazines, and books. Wood utility poles often support the wires that deliver electric and telephone service. Commerce is dependent on wood containers and pallets, as well as paperboard packaging. The chemical industry uses wood as a base product for making turpentine, rayon, food flavorings, and cellophane tape. In many countries, people depend on wood for heating and cooking fuel.

In 2002, 3.38 billion cu m (119 billion cu ft) of wood were harvested from forests worldwide. Of this amount, 54 percent was burned for fuel and 46 percent was manufactured into wood products, such as lumber and paper. Even excluding wood burned for fuel, the total weight of wood harvested worldwide each year exceeds the total weight of metals, concrete, and plastics consumed worldwide each year.

Wood is an indispensable material for many reasons. Forests are widely distributed, making wood abundant and accessible. Wood can be cut and processed with relatively simple technologies. However, more advanced technologies make it possible to cut and process wood more efficiently. Forests are a renewable resource that can be replanted after being harvested. Furthermore, the variety of tree species that grow worldwide provides wood with a wide range of strength, durability, and other physical and mechanical properties, as well as visually attractive grains, textures, and colors.

II

History

Wood was used by early humans to make tools, hunting weapons, shelter, fire, and other necessities. As civilizations advanced, so did uses for wood. For example, stone blocks used for building were mined from quarries using dry wood wedges. The quarrier drove a dry wood wedge into a rock fracture then poured water on the dry wedge. The water caused the wedge to swell, helping to split the stone. Other uses included wood planks that were joined together and cut into wheels for carts, and wood lashed together to make boats and ships. In Greek and Roman times, great strides were made in the use of wood for architecture, shown by records of Roman writer and encyclopedist Pliny the Elder in the Ten Books of Architecture.

---

---

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Industrial Revolution began changing the way many wood products were produced. Machines replaced manual labor during this period of industrialization. Most wood products previously made by hand in small workshops or in the home were soon being manufactured in factories. The Industrial Revolution also led to advances in the way wood products are produced. For example, wood was blended with adhesives and other materials, such as fiberglass and plastics, to form composite lumber products, a type of wood product possessing a wider range of beneficial properties than standard lumber.

III

Products of the Forest Industry

The trees used as raw material by the forest industry are often classified as either softwoods or hardwoods. Softwoods, or conifers, belong to the group of plants known as gymnosperms (flowerless seed-bearing plants). Conifers include pines, cedars, spruces, larches, and firs, and conifers are common in the world’s temperate and boreal (northern) regions. Hardwoods belong to the group of plants called angiosperms (flowering plants). They include broad-leaved tree species such as oak, maple, beech, walnut, mahogany, teak, and balsa.

The name softwood does not imply that the wood of such a tree is softer than that from a hardwood. Indeed, the wood of some softwood trees is harder than that of some hardwood trees. All trees are formed mostly of cells whose length runs parallel to the stem. A smaller number of cells run perpendicular to the stem. Cells of both categories serve three functions in a tree: to transport water and nutrients, to provide mechanical strength and support, and to allow food storage. Hardwood trees have a greater variety of types of vertically aligned cells than do softwood trees. This greater variety often produces attractive grain patterns when wood is cut and finished along the length of these cells (the grain). Many hardwoods are desirable for making furniture, cabinets, and paneling.

A

Roundwood Products

The terms roundwood and log refer to the long section of the tree stem, or trunk. Roundwood products include fence posts, home-building logs, utility poles, and marine pilings. Roundwood products are manufactured by first removing the bark and then milling the resulting log to the desired shape and diameter. Some roundwood products are treated with chemical preservatives, such as creosote and chromated copper arsenate (CCA), to prevent damage from insects and rotting.