Events

EPF held its last meeting of the Fire & Explosion Safety Task Force on 25 May, in Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

This meeting, hosted by FINSA gathered around 30 experts from EPF member companies to exchange experiences and discuss best practices on preventive and protective measures as well as training requirements in WBP manufacturing.

Case studies and follow-up actions were discussed before a field visit to FINSA’s headquarters and factory. The next Task Force meeting will be held in Germany on the kind invitation of PFLEIDERER.

More details in our Press Release 

On the opening day of the Interzum Trade Fair, EPF was delighted to hold a press conference for approximately 30 trade journalists, members and guests.

Managing Director Mr Clive Pinnington presented the European wood-based panels industry’s provisional indicative 2022 results as well as an outlook for 2023 and beyond. The headline comments were:

• 2022 production fell by more than 6% compared to 2021, and is expected to finish at approximately the same level as the pre-crisis year of 2019;
• The year was characterised by a relatively strong first half, followed by a noticeably weaker second half, caused by softening user demand and falling consumer confidence;
• Whilst 2023 remains challenging, long-term prospects for wood-based panels remain healthy, as evidenced by continuing announced capacity investments

Technical Director Kris Wijnendaele then updated on EPF’s 5 Strategic Directions and presented 5 advocacy highlights being:

• Cascade in legislation (REDIII);
• New European Bauhaus;
• Material use of wood;
• Regulation for chemicals;
• Coalition for Circular Choices.

The final consolidated 2022 results as well as further advocacy updates will be given to the press at the next EPF Annual General Meeting on 23 June in Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

Press Conference Presentation – 9 May 2023 

Should you wish to know more about any of the above, please contact info@europanels.org.

EPF is delighted to have met Mrs Elisabeth Werner, Deputy Secretary-General of the European Commission’s Secretariat-General, responsible for Policy Coordination, and officials from the EC’s Secretariat-General this week, with partners of the Coalition for Circular Choices. This appointment held on 12 April followed the launch of the campaign of the cross-sectoral Coalition.

This was the opportunity, at a senior and influential political level in the European Commission, to deliver the executive summary of the Coalition’s strategic document for a competitive EU Bioeconomy and to be recognised as a role model sector and European global champion representing 4 million jobs and €520 billion turnover, aiming to make a positive climate contribution, equivalent of 30% of current EU fossil emissions.

On 1^st of December, the European Wood Policy Platform held its 1^st high-level meeting, co-chaired by Austrian and Finnish governments, in Innsbruck, Austria.

EPF was delighted to be invited to this kick-off event – the starting point of a platform aiming at creating synergies and bringing together knowledge and expertise from relevant stakeholders – government representatives, scientists, business experts, national organisations as well as European and international federations.

Mr Norbert Totschnig, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water and Management of the Republic of Austria and Mr Teppo Lehtinen, Director General of the Department of the Built Environment at the Ministry of Environment of Finland opened the session. Keynote speakers were Mr Ewald Rametsteiner (FAO), Mrs Anne-Christine Ritschkoff (VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland) and Mr Petri Heino (Director of the Wood Building Programme at the Ministry of Environment of Finland).

More than 60 participants attended the event. The exchanges mainly dealt with:

• wood construction
• innovation
• wood building technologies
• market information
• wood-based bioeconomy
• best practices and scientific case studies
• awareness raising, communication on the sector and ways to align policy initiatives and strategies such as the New European Bauhaus

Views were exchanged in support of the WOODPOP CALL on upscaling wood policy cooperation in Europe, which EPF highly values.

Hamburg, 14 October – “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear”. Mark Twain’s words of encouragement were quoted by EPF Chairman and SWISS KRONO Group CEO Mr Martin Brettenthaler in the opening speech at the 12th European Wood-Based Panel Symposium (EWPBS), held on 13-14 October in Hamburg. Mr Brettenthaler recognised the difficulties that the industry currently faces but urged the attendees to continue the sector’s exemplary work in terms especially of sustainability and decarbonisation. 

In the opening sessions, Mr Brettenthaler was joined by Mr Edi Snaidero, Chairman of the European Furniture Industries Confederation (EFIC) and by Mr Jori Ringman, Managing Director of the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI). With words such as “cascade”, “resource efficiency”, and “wood availability” recurring in all three tasks, it was noted with pleasure by the audience how aligned the sectors are as the wood-based panels industry seeks to establish itself as a role model industry within the European Green Deal. 

Mr Snaidero underlined the importance of the wood-based panel industry to the furniture branch, looking forward to increasing areas of integration and collaboration across the supply chain; Mr Ringman highlighted that the forest-based industries today make a positive climate contribution equivalent to 20% of current EU fossil emissions, noting that by working together in terms of emission reduction and carbon storage, this figure might reasonably rise to 30%. To optimise this effect, the wood-based panels industry and related sectors should continue to work together as a single, resilient, integrated ecosystem. Mr Brettenthaler assured the attendees that these industry partnerships have been set as a key objective for EPF, together with the 5 Strategic Directions of role model industry, climate, wood availability, harmonisation and regulation. 

Hosted by Fraunhofer WKI, EPF and iVTH, and with HyWax as primary sponsor, 320 delegates from 28 countries enjoyed two days of market updates, technical presentations and networking for the first time since 2018. The 13th edition of the EWBPS is planned for 9-11 October 2024, in Hamburg.