Research project The project develops and evaluates an automated, non-destructive approach to assessing the quality of sawn birch timber. It aims to support small and medium-sized sawmills in northern Sweden through better information for sorting and more efficient use of regional birch resources.
Birch has potential for wider use in higher-value wood products, but variations in timber quality make sorting demanding. This project explores how automated quality assessment can help sawmills identify characteristics relevant to timber use. Laboratory research at Umeå University will provide knowledge to support future sorting solutions adapted to regional hardwood processing.
ANNA OCH NILS HÅKANSSONS STIFTELSE
Birch is an important forest resource in northern Sweden with potential for wider use in higher-value wood products. Realising this potential requires reliable quality assessment to support sorting according to timber characteristics and possible uses. Small and medium-sized sawmills need solutions that are practical and financially accessible.
The project aims to develop and evaluate an automated, non-destructive method for assessing the quality of sawn birch boards. Laboratory studies using a varied selection of birch timber will investigate how reliably relevant quality characteristics can be identified and classified. Assessments will be compared with manual quality classification to examine the method’s reliability and limitations.
The research is conducted at Umeå University within the NDE laboratory. The findings will inform further development of sorting solutions for regional hardwood processing. In the longer term, this could support higher-value products, more efficient material use and a stronger regional bioeconomy.
