Press Releases

The European Confederation of Woodworking Industries (CEI-Bois) and the European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry (EOS) welcome the outcome of the trialogue discussions between the European Parliament and Council on the Carbon Removals Certification Framework.

The European wood working industries (CEI-Bois) welcomes the publication today by the European Commission of its communication "Securing Our Future: Europe’s 2040 target and path to climate neutrality by 2050 building a sustainable, just and prosperous society". In particular CEI-Bois wishes to endorse this observation made by the Commission in their communication Securing our future:

“… bio-based materials that are sustainably sourced can not only store carbon over long periods (e.g., if wood is used as a construction material) but also replace fossil-fuel based materials …” (p.21).

Together with the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU, a coalition of European trade associations representing 20% of the EU’s manufacturing companies launched a debate on how a circular bioeconomy could enable a more competitive Europe, while at the same time helping the EU navigate through global challenges including climate change and a move away from fossils. 

The RESILIENTWOOD project, co-funded by the European Union, has embarked on a journey to address some of the most pressing challenges facing the woodworking sector in Europe. The conference showcased initial findings of the project aimed at providing social partners with an overview of the latest developments of the woodworking sector in Europe. Woodworking companies have undergone significant transformations, driven by technological advancements and evolving organizational structures. Attendees had the opportunity to delve into the latest developments and trends shaping the future of the sector.

Raimondas Imbrasas, Director, Lithuanian Wood Processors Association :  “One of the main reasons why we wanted to join CEI-Bois is because we want to know about upcoming decisions in the EU Parliament. Politicians in Brussels and decision makers at the Commission and Council need to listen more to businesses and society when they make changes in legislation. In addition we think that CEI-Bois have knowledge of lots of practises in the wood industry across Europe that they could usefully share with us. We would also like them to come to visit us in Lithuania and have meetings with institutions and companies.”

The annual General Assembly of CEI-Bois, the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries, took place in London 12-13th June 2023 hosted by CEI-Bois member Timber Development UK.
Delegates were pleased with the increasingly important role played by CEI-Bois in successfully promoting to the European institutions the greater use of sustainable wood in both construction and new build as one of the most effective and quick ways of decarbonising the built environment. 
The Assembly reviewed and discussed CEI-Bois’ work over the past year including the following areas of work much of which is related to seeking to influence EU legislation

“CEI-Bois is keen to highlight to the EU institutions the significant contribution that sustainable wood-based products can make in helping Europe reach its 2050 net zero climate target. In particular, timber construction products can help substitute for CO2 producing alternatives such as concrete while at the same time storing carbon in wood products in the built environment thereby helping increase carbon removals from the atmosphere. CEI-Bois has helped create this coalition to steer policy discussion in the direction of effective and immediate climate solutions.” - Silvia Melegari, Secretary General of CEI-Bois

In the first half of the meeting representatives from the woodworking and furniture industries, trade union and VET, discussed how to set up effective and meaningful cross-border cooperation in the sectors aiming at contributing to the social right of vocational education and adapting training schedules and curricula to future skills needs. The prospect of creating special courses on innovative aspects that are changing in economic processes and company functions as for example circular economy, sustainability, and applications of climate-friendly material such as wood were also raised. Promoting cross-border exchange has the potential to increase the attractiveness of the sectors and improve the industries’ image. At the same time, it benefits the learners by providing them with an opportunity to study abroad, gain experiences, learn other technics, and work organisations and improve their language skills. 

The European social partners from the woodworking and furniture industries, represented by CEI-Bois and EFIC, jointly with their European trade union representatives, EFBWW, welcome the Commission decision to declare the year 2023 as “European Year of Skills”. In line with the statement made by President Von den Leyer during her State of the Union, our sector strongly agrees in the need to tackle the shortage of skills in Europe by putting an emphasis on new qualifications, investment on professional education, upskilling and attracting the right skills to help companies and strengthen Europe's growth.

As the European Union increases its effort to become net-zero by 2050 the priority must be to reduce the emission of carbon into the atmosphere. At the same time we also need to remove carbon from the atmosphere and hence the importance of this Commission proposal.  Storing carbon in sustainable wood  products in the built environment is one way in which such removals can be achieved, as identified in this proposal. All carbon removals, whether in the built environment, farming, forestry or industry, need to be accurately accounted for hence the importance of the Commission’s proposed framework which will ensure Europe has high quality carbon removals operating under a strong governance system thereby avoiding ‘greenwashing’. 

The General Assembly representatives were pleased to see that CEI-Bois’ advocacy, with the support of its members, has been rewarded by the ever-growing attention wood’s ability to store carbon has received over the year and the increasing recognition of this climate benefit from both European officials and politicians.

The CEI-Bois General Assembly also voted for the new CEI-Bois Board Members composition.

Report from the Wood4Bauhaus Alliance side event held Friday 7th October at the High-Level EU Bioeconomy Conference, ‘Bioeconomy - Enabling the European Green Deal in Challenging Times’ 6-7th October, Brussels

The Wood4Bauhaus Alliance is especially pleased with paragraph 22 on page 12 which reads: “Stresses the importance of transforming, upgrading and retrofitting the existing building stock, including poorly planned and constructed buildings erected by totalitarian regimes, of applying nature-based solutions such as wood and of reducing waste and increasing durability, re-usability and circularity in the built environment; insists that this should include favouring renovation and adaptive re-use over demolition and new builds, as appropriate, removing barriers related to the handling and transport of waste as well as raising people’s awareness about embodied and stored carbon in materials to enable them to make informed choices”.

The Woodworking European Social partners, CEI-Bois and EFBWW have the pleasure to announce the launch of the European Union funded joint project RESILIENTWOOD (Grant Agreement n° 101051974). The project, funded under the Social Prerogative and Specific Competencies Lines (SOCPL) officially started on the 14 of September 2022 with the first kick off meeting in Brussels.

‘A new EU Forest Strategy for 2030 – Sustainable Forest Management in Europe’ is clear in its recognition of the ability of wood products to both store carbon and substitute for more carbon intensive materials. At the same time these wood products are both renewable and recyclable.
CEI-Bois & EOS particularly welcome the recognition that “wood is the only significant natural renewable resource that has the potential to replace some very energy-intensive materials, such as cement and plastics, and will be in greater demand in the future”.

The Summer General Assembly meeting and 70th Anniversary celebration was a two-days event under the slogan ¨The Future is Bright - the Future is Wooden¨ which included guided tour visiting several of the unique wood projects in Skellefteå, a visit to the HOLMEN sawmill in Bygdsiljum and a panel discussion bringing together key people involved in the prize-winning Culture House construction who emphasized how the rise of a building can help a whole region rise. The city of Skellefteå is the living example of the European Bauhaus concept where the growth strategy of the city is based on sustainability, innovation, inclusiveness, and culture.

The significant role for sustainable wood was discussed within both the New European Bauhaus and the wider strategy to tackle climate change at a high-level meeting held 9 June 2022 in the Vatican. Hosted by the Pontifical Academy of Science and Bauhaus Earth, the event also featured the Wood4Bauhaus Alliance.
President of the European Commission quotes the Pope in reminding that building with wood is good for the planet and good for its people

The European Confederation of the Woodworking Industries (CEI-Bois) is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year!  CEI-Bois has much to celebrate and is keen to focus on the future, especially on an increased use of sustainable timber to help decarbonise the built environment. Hence, the choice of the prize-winning, engineered timber Culture House in Skellefteå in northern Sweden as both the venue and focus of its Summer General Assembly meeting and 70th Anniversary festivities.

The webinar was jointly organised by the European Confederation of the Woodworking Industry (CEI-Bois), the Indian Embassy to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU, in Brussels and the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) on the 7 of April 2022. It explored current trends and opportunities for industrial wood products both from an Indian perspective - with a presentation of the India Timber Supply and Demand 2010–2030 report by co-author Dr Kant, which shows that although India’s forest cover has increased steadily for nearly two decades, timber production is still substantially less than consumption, and an increasingly large proportion of demand is being met by imports; and an European perspective - with a presentation by Mr Paul Brannen on recent EU initiatives that favour the use of more wood in construction and renovation due to its environmental benefits and its potential to help reach climate neutrality goals in Europe. 

The European timber industry is watching with great concern Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the correlated economic and financial implications. European sanctions against trading with Russia and Belarus are expected to produce a shock in the wood product value chain. The war in Ukraine is already impacting transport and supply chains in several countries.

“If we want to keep the effects of man-made climate change to within tolerable limits, we need to choose materials and products with a strong benefit, when looking at the complete environmental impact and performance.” said Dr Andrew Norton, Technical Advisor of the European Wood Industries (CEI-Bois and EOS).

Mr Sampsa Auvinen the Chair of CEI-Bois: 
“We see significant potential to increase the amount of wood used in both new build and renovation. Currently 0.5Gt of CO2 equivalent is taken out of the European forest each year in the form of sustainable timber, of which we believe approximately 15% ends up in Long Life Harvested Wood Products. CEI-Bois thinks we should be aiming to at least double this figure by 2050 so that wood can play its full role in tackling climate breakdown by making a significant contribution to decarbonising the built environment. There is a very simple way to respect the environment and to preserve it for future generations: simply by choosing wood products one reduces greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere which has great benefits for the environment.”   

“The primary purpose of the Time for Timber manifesto is to convey to those attending the COP26 in Glasgow that wood is the key material that can decarbonise the built environment both quickly and at scale. We will now be taking this manifesto to Glasgow with our international partners, which include the UK, Europe, Canada, the USA, New Zealand and Australia, to call on politicians to implement the recommendations and take action now.” - Paul Brannen (CEI-Bois/EOS Public Affairs Director)

The Wood Manifesto launch will take place on 28th October 11:45am UK time at the Royal Institute for British Architecture as part of a broader Built Environment Summit involving Architects Declare. Internationally leading engineered timber architect Andrew Waugh will launch the Manifesto.

​Commenting on the manifesto Sampsa Auvinen, Chair of CEI-Bois said, “Wood is the only sustainable structural material that grows worldwide which can enable a substantial decarbonisation of the built environment based on existing business models and proven technology; providing vast carbon sinks in our rural areas and carbon stores in our cities”.

Propiconazole is needed for a couple of reasons in the wood working industry. The humid European climate and certain regulatory requirements as contained in several European Standards such as EN 599-1 and EN 335 makes it necessary to treat the timber sash and frame against fungal attacks. This also increases the use of wood in construction products and more specifically in windows and doors. Timber window and door manufacturers are currently using the approved active substance propiconazole in combination with one or two other active substances (Tebuconazole and/or Iodopropynyl Butyl Carbamate (IPBC)) when impregnating timber. This combination is essential to keep the total amount of active substances at a minimum, limit the concentration of impregnation product and at the same time ensure a long service life for the windows and doors.

“As world leaders discuss our global responsibilities and collective response to climate change during COP26, our message for the future will be powerfully three dimensional: in wood there is hope,” said dRMM founding director, Prof Alex de Rijke.

Paul Brannen, director of public affairs at CEI-Bois, said, “The global timber and global forest sectors see COP26 as the unmissable opportunity for policy makers to put into action what we already know about nature-based solutions; global forests and wood products are essential to averting catastrophic climate change, and increasing the use of timber products is an easy way to help decarbonise construction, renovation and the wider built environment. Wood both stores carbon and substitutes for carbon intensive alternatives. We are also focused on globally recognised good governance as the key to growing forests around the world.”

The European woodworking industries have been advocating for a long time for an increased recognition of the role of wood-based products to decarbonize key sectors of the economy, such as construction and renovation. The carbon absorbed from the atmosphere is stored in the trees and consequently in the products, and that effect, paired with the substitution of fossil-based and energy-intensive construction materials, can help to drastically reduce the overall carbon footprint of the building stock.

In a welcome and timely move the EU Forest Strategy, published today by the European Commission, acknowledges this key contribution and the role of the woodworking industry in  helping to turn the construction sector from a source of greenhouse gas emissions into a carbon sink as set out in the Renovation Wave and the new European Bauhaus initiative and as advocated by Commission President von der Leyen.

LATVIA, WELCOME BACK! The Latvian Forest Industries Federation decided to re-join CEI-Bois as a Member in 2021. Mr Kristaps Klauss, Executive Director of the Latvian Forest Industries Federation recalled that although there is no doubt that wood in construction is overall perceived as a climate friendly material compared to other construction products, ongoing discussions at EU level raise concerns on future raw material supply. It is essential to provide a holistic vision to the EU Institutions and defend the interests of our Industry. In joining CEI-Bois, the Latvian Forest Industries Federation wants to play its role in collaborating with other sectorial organisations in creating favourable conditions and policy to enhance the role of our industries in the development of a green economy.

Advancements in building at both height and scale in engineered timber has understandably drawn attention to the potential of new build in wood to store carbon – a significant necessity in the battle against climate change. Switching to wood on a wider scale can help bring emissions down as trees naturally sequester CO2 from the atmosphere and the carbon is then stored in the wood.
This potential lay behind Commission President von der Leyen’s observation in her speech to the European Parliament in September 2020 where she stated, “We know that the construction sector can even be turned from a carbon source into a carbon sink, if organic building materials like wood […] are applied.”
What has received less attention is the potential of the Renovation Wave to store carbon and likewise make a similar contribution to tackling climate change.
Organised by the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries (CEI-Bois), the European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry (EOS) and the European Panel Federation (EPF) the Club du Bois met online on 27th May to consider the potential of the Renovation Wave to store carbon.

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Speaking to his theme - “Reforest the planet, retimber the cities” - Prof Schellnhuber stated: “We need to create an alternative carbon sink and wood construction is the perfect answer”. 
“We can turn the timber into construction material in the built environment, recycle most of the wood [...] you have cascade utilisation and immediately replant the trees that you have taken away and even increase the forest area, then you have what I call the ‘Forestry-Construction Pump’. Prof Schellnhuber is acknowledged as being the mastermind behind the Commission President’s initiative for a New European Bauhaus. 
Mrs Ruth Reichstein of the European Commission made it clear that:“The President of the European Commission has become a huge fan of building in wood and is delighted to see the New European Bauhaus conversation growing every day.  It is a project of hope, a project of recovery.  Within it, renovation can be as valuable and beautiful as new construction.  With this in mind, let us turn our cities into urban forests.” 

The wood4bauhaus.eu alliance has the pleasure to announce that Mrs Ruth Reichstein will open the wood4bauhaus conference on Thursday 8 April 2021 starting at 10.00 am CET. Mrs Reichstein is the pivotal European Commission official in charge of developing the New European Bauhaus, including liaising between the cabinet of President Ursula von der Leyen and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre.
Professor Hans-Joachim Schellnhuber of the Potsdam-Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany, who has recently been named as an ambassador for the New European Bauhaus High-level Roundtable, is confirmed as our keynote speaker.
These leading figures of the New European Bauhaus will provide first-hand insight of the President’s visionary new initiative and will seek to inspire the wood sector to contribute to the design and targets of the New European Bauhaus.

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The European wood-based sector launched the Wood Sector Alliance for the New European Bauhaus (Wood4Bauhaus.eu) to establish an open platform of stakeholders. This newly established sectoral alliance is initiated by several umbrella organisations: the InnovaWood EU network for wood research, innovation and education, the European Wood-Based Panel Federation (EPF), the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries (CEI-Bois), the European Federation of Building and Woodworkers (EFBWW) and the European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry (EOS). It has also the support of the Horizon 2020 project consortia BASAJAUN and WoodCircus.
wood4bauhaus.eu intends to become an active Partner of the New European Bauhaus and, as a first initiative, will hold on 8 April 2021 a Virtual Conference on how the wood sector can contribute to the new Bauhaus.

The initiative “TIMBIM” within the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries, CEI-Bois has launched a pilot project for a joint digital platform for information on construction products in wood. Within the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries, CEI-Bois, some member states are intensively dealing with the topic of digitization and developed together a common understanding of the topic in recent years. At the end of 2020, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed. The joint initiative “TIMBIM” supports the continuous knowledge-sharing and collaboration between participating member states.

Europe’s woodworking industries have warmly welcomed today’s launch of the design phase of The New European Bauhaus initiative and the accompanying website. Aimed at bringing the European Green Deal to life in an attractive, innovative and human-centred way the New European Bauhaus will have an initial five projects, two of which are of particularly interest to Europe’s woodworking industries, namely natural building materials and energy efficiency.

Ahead of the upcoming approval expiry date (31st of March 2021) of propiconazole, a wood preservative used for timber doors and windows, CEI-Bois, EuroWindoor and Small Business Standards (SBS) published a position paper that defines its role as preservative for wood-based products, recognises the need to extend the transition period and expresses the wish to initiate partnerships to develop long term sustainable alternatives.

On the occasion of this end of the year meeting the CEI-Bois General Assembly voted and approved the new Board of Directors and elected their new Chair Mr Sampsa Auvinen - “Very important field of challenges lies in front of us: digitalisation sustainable & green recovery, economic growth, forests resilience, are just some of the most important of them. Our organisation has been already working on these issues, but now, more than ever, it is essential that this Confederation, united with its Members and in strong collaboration with other Brussels based organisations raises a more valuable, and more efficient voice when dealing with the European institutions. My role will be to support the CEI-Bois Members and Team in doing so”.

CEI-Bois hosted the online Final Conference of the European-funded project Good Wood on the 9 of December 2020. The project was conducted under the leadership of Confapi, the Italian Confederation of the small and medium enterprises, and carried out between February 2019 and December 2020. The Good Wood Project was aimed at fostering social dialogue for the sustainable development of the wood sector, by carrying out workshops, seminars, study visits involving social partners in the project countries (Italy, Portugal and Bulgaria). In parallel, the project’s partners carried out a desk and field research, which was officially presented during the event by Centro Studi G. Tagliacarne.

CEI-Bois and EOS have appointed Paul Brannen, former UK Member of the European Parliament, to the newly created role of Director of Public Affairs. Paul Brannen will start his mandate on the 1 st of November 2020.

As the debate around the biodiversity and forest strategies has never been so high on the agenda, this joint initiative gives the floor to European forest owners and managers through a series of videos available on the dedicated platform forestbiodiversity.eu. The interviews concretely show that behind the concept of sustainable forest management, special attention is given to biodiversity preservation and climate adaptation- two essential objectives for the forest owners and managers when managing forests. Sustainable Forest Management provides a balance between biodiversity preservation, climate protection and socio-economic viability that local players, forest owners and managers, ensure on a daily basis. 

The European goal has been set: becoming the first climate-neutral Continent by 2050. However, to achieve climate neutrality and comply with the ambitious Paris Agreement target, all economic and business players should take a step further in their commitment to a greener society and economy. “The success of this commitment relies on measuring the climate impact of economic activities. In this respect the European Woodworking Industry believes that it is essential to develop criteria for a robust and transparent carbon accounting method to monitor and verify the emissions associated with materials and construction processes, including the benefits associated with carbon storage” stated Dr A. Norton, LCA/Technical Expert.

On 7 October 2020 the European Parliament, gathered in Plenary session, adopted the own initiative report “The European Forest Strategy – The way forward”, led by the Rapporteur Petri Sarvamaa (Finland, EPP Group). The European Woodworking Industries endorse the adopted report, which stresses the need for a balanced, independent and self-standing EU Forest Strategy for the post-2020 period, built on a comprehensive understanding of Sustainable Forest Management. This approach is the way forward to enable the European forests and forest-based Industries to tap into their potential of climate change mitigation and sustainable job creation, in line with the 2050 climate-neutrality objective of the EU. 

The European Woodworking Industries play a fundamental role in the transition to a sustainable, green, and carbon-neutral Europe. As an early supporter of the EU Green Deal objectives, the Woodworking Industries stress the importance of upholding climate ambitions in synergy with the efforts sustained by the EU, Member States and companies alike to recover from the economic and social blow inflicted by the still ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

CEI‐Bois and EOS are engaged in advocating for the interests of the European Wood Industries as well as promoting the use of wood towards the European Union institutions. CEI-Bois is the umbrella advocacy organization for the European Wood Working Industry, while EOS specifically represents the sawmill industry.

Sustainable Forest Management, as defined by the Forest Europe process and its criteria and indicators, ensures that the conservation of biodiversity is encompassed within management activities, without the need to impose new protected areas: today around 25% of the total forest area in EU28 is protected under the Natura 2000 scheme, and forest ecosystems make up 50% of the entire network (EFI 2017, Natura 2000 and Forests). Therefore, before any addition of protected forest areas or new legislation are considered, better implementation of existing nature legislation is needed on already designated sites, based on participatory planning and management, and on appropriate financing.

In light of the European Commission’s expected announcement of which business ecosystems will be targeted by the European Recovery Plan and new Industrial Strategy for Europe, the partners of the forest-based sector have sent a proposal to EU Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton to include the European Forest-based Industries Ecosystem as one of the ecosystems eligible for support in the plan.

The European Confederation of Woodworking Industries (CEI-Bois), the European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry (EOS) and the European Panel Federation (EPF), organised the 8 th edition of the Club du Bois, under the chairwomanship of MEP Mrs Maria Noichl, on 8 January 2020, at the Brussels premises of the European Parliament. The event gathered an important number of MEPs, industrialists and experts from the wood manufacturing and forest-based family, offering them the opportunity to learn about the priorities of the European Woodworking Industries for the term 2019-2024.