Projects

Climate-Resilient Value Chain for Forests and the Wood-Processing Industry

Scenarios of conduction for repair, refurbish & repurpose of prefabricated timber house components

The furniture industry has a significant environmental impact, yet circular economy practices are scarcely established and many furniture items end up as bulky waste. ReFurniture addresses key…

Energy & Ventialtion Implications of different Window Types compared to mechanical ventilation Systems

In an earlier project Holzforschung Austria investigated an alternative approach to use hardwood resources in glued construction products. “Strip-like laminations (SLL)” as semi finished products can…

Timber industry as key to CO2 storage

Detection and degradation of petroleum-based and bio-based coating polymers

Based on the challenging case study of the "Hinteralmhaus replacement construction," the Kon-Wert research project is developing innovative circular strategies for replacement construction and…

Demountable wooden structures for road infrastructure

Perception-based evaluation and optimization of the airborne and rain sound insulation of roofs

Qualification network for cross-trade planning and execution of driving rain-proof connections around the building component window.

In „MassStab!L“ (solid wood panels for stable indoor air) the effects of the in the future expected increased fluctuations of humidity and temperature on solid wood panels are examined with the…

Thermally agile building planning in timber construction

One-sided sealing of window to wall connections

Wood is widely recognized as a competitive renewable raw material for construction products. To maintain and improve this unique selling position, Europe is pushing the circular use of such products.…

Qualification initiative for (thermal) upgrade of box-type windows

Climate changes are leading to increased (re)forestation in our forests. As a result, the demand for tree shelters, especially alternative, biodegradable ones, is growing. Conventional, plastic-based…

Softwood bark is a by-product of the timber industry, today primarily utilised for heat and power generation. In the European research project SuperBark led by VTT (Finland), phenolic components and…

Decking e.g. for terraces and balconies is one of the most important and at the same time a very challenging application for wood in outdoor areas. The variety of requirements and options with lack of…

The European project „HyPELignum“ under the coordination of RISE (SWE) focusses on the development of printed electronics on wood and wood-based materials. Use-cases considered involve the replacement…

The aim of the project was to further develop the digitization of the online component catalog into a multifunctional planning tool. A thematic focus was on the analysis, selection and evaluation of…

Due to the further CO2 storage and resource savings in each new life cycle, its high availability and many synergistic effects, construction timber from previous use has a high potential for the…

Can we use wooden, structural measures to mitigate the increase in summer temperatures in public spaces in Vienna? Together with the Technical University of Vienna, we explored how wooden structures…

Project purpose was to establish foundations for an effective use of local hardwoods as construction products. The priorities were to develop new processing methods to increase the yields and a…

To participate in Horizon Europe, Holzforschung Austria needs to have a Gender Equality Plan (GEP). In this project, we have developed a GEP with the aim to increase female leadership. The institute…

Application und modification of kraft-lignin as additive for wood pellet production

In this project, hygrothermal simulation and simulation of time-dependent deformation and stress distribution in wooden floors was used to predict the effects of the future development of climate…

The main USP of the project was the development of a future-oriented ventilated wooden façade that counteracts and at least partially compensates for increased room temperatures due to climate change.…

Windows with shading optimising the trade-off between summery overheating, wintery heat protection and adequate illumination

Functional inkjet printing for smart wooden construction elements with integrated monitoring

The trend towards high-quality living surfaces is steadily increasing in structural timber constructions, especially when using cross-laminated timber. In order to keep the visible surface permanently…

Cracking is one of the main reasons for degradation of exterior wood coatings. Without proper maintenance, these cracks lead to complete coating failure. The project “Crackless Wood” aimed at the…

Quality and Assessment Programms for Wooden Decking

Numerical simulation of the fire behavior of wooden structures

“Bau-Cycle – Sustainable building material cycles by means of material analysis and pollutant separation” aimed to close essential gaps in the circulation of construction products, in particular the…

Building components with sustainable materials: focus (hygro-) thermal conditions

The goal of the project was the prediction of the probability of bluestain on sawn timber based on the interaction of different variables. The essential foundations for predicting the sensitivity to…

Sound protection by wooden roofs with roof top insulation

The aim of the project was to develop a new mounting method to simplify the installation of windows and doors, which should be suitable for new buildings and renovation and should also ideally be…

Vakuumglas-Kastenfenster: Performance - Monitoring in Sanierungsprojekten

Climate change. A buzzword that has become a turning point in the management of our forests. With a changing supply of wood species, the use of hardwoods in construction is now within reach. Since…

Today, the mainly used pigments for coatings in the outdoor area are of synthetic or inorganic origin. Their synthesis and the retrieval of raw materials needed for their synthesis are often harmful…

Depending on its origin, dust is composed of a mixture of organic and inorganic particles. These particles vary in size, shape and structure and can cause respiratory irritation and allergies in…

The time saving properties of timber construction based on high prefabrication standards is commonly lost in the course of implementing the technical building equipment, owing to complicated…

Timber-concrete composite ceilings have become increasingly popular in recent years. Current systems, however, mostly use notches or screws for the shear force transmission. These systems are quite…

The EU project READiStrength was a cooperation between Austria, Germany and Sweden. We exploited current developments in roundwood characterization technology (especially X-ray CT scanning), as well…

Window prototypes with integrated vacuum glass

The airtightness or the permissible air permeability can currently only be determined as a total parameter for the entire building using a Blower-Door measurement or for the individual component, e.g.…

Some complexing agents used in the pulp and paper industry fail to meet the environmental requirements and must be replaced in accordance with the statutory deadlines. On the one hand, the project…

Improving indoor-air-quality in wooden buildings with scavenger-materials

Roof underlay systems constitute the rainproof layers of pitched roofs. Thus, roof underlay systems are essential for moisture protection of ventilated roof constructions. In the current project, the…

The use of timber sleepers is still indispensable for efficient rail operations. Creosote, which has been used for sleeper impregnation for decades, will probably no longer be available for this…

This project works out the basis for resource optimization with methods of statistical process control. Optimal conditions get defined via consistent reduction in the variation of all relevant process…

Coating systems for exterior wood should be significantly improved with regards to its resistance to hail. This need exists because the usual types of softwood that are used outdoors with coatings…

In this three-year research project, Holzforschung Austria developed care and maintenance concepts to extend the usability and to improve the appearance of coated and uncoated wooden deckings. This…

Determining the content of organic substances in wood samples is currently associated with great analytical effort. The aim of this project was to develop quick and simple methods that should enable…

Increasing planning reliability for the sound insulation design of Austrian timber building

Structured Surfaces of Wood Flooring with Optimal Resistance against Chemical Influences

The present research project investigates the essential issues of fire and water damage restoration in the field of timber construction. A sustainable reconstruction of smoke damage as well as the…

The biocides available in wood protection are facing increasing restrictions by European legislation. As part of the “Terpenguard” research project, Holzforschung Austria is investigating terpenoid-…

In the container village of the Universität Innsbruck, containers were built in timber construction, one of them in solid wood construction and another in wood-clay construction. The indoor air…

Deposition control in paper making machines using innovative, biocide free coating techniques

The SmellProcess project is devoted to the unanswered question of how undesirable emissions can be avoided when storing wood fuel pellets. The implementation takes place in cooperation between…

Flat roof structures with intermediate rafter insulation represent physically demanding constructions. Particular attention is paid to the shaded areas here. In a completed HFA research project, the…

In the LäDouKi project, ensile strength tests were carried out for the wood species larch, pine and Douglas fir. With the help of these tests, a strength classification for the sorting classes…

In the cooperation project, the three Austrian Cooperative Research ACR institutes OFI, HFA and Kachelofenverband built up a unique infrastructure. Numerous production and optimisation tests were…

A long service life is expected from modern wooden windows. This requires permanently tight window corner connections. As part of the research project DauerFen, constructive solutions for stabilizing…

This R&D project, which was applied for within the FFG funding channel "Stadt der Zukunft"  together with TU-Wien, is to examine window systems with innovative glasses, especially vacuum glasses, for…

The aim of the project "Simulation-based optimisation of sawn timber production" was to model the process chain from round timber to sawn timber for spruce logs processed in Austria. The simulation…

The objective of the project was to develop an additive strategy for agricultural biofuels based on fuel indices and the characterization of raw materials. The aim of the use of additives is to…

The aim of this project is the application of the new European standards for solid biofuels by the affected market stakeholders. In order to introduce producers, dealers and consumers to the new…

Sida: Intelligent Densified energy carriers for Austria

Holzforschung Austria has set up a building acoustics laboratory at the Stetten location as part of the COIN funding channel. In this project, flexible wood construction test stands in a "modular…

The use of hardwood in construction creates new uses and sales opportunities. Due to the European relevance of this issue, the project is funded as part of WoodWisdom-Net. The focus of the project is…

In this European research project, methods for a reliable service life prediction of coated wooden components outdoors are worked out. The aim is to make valid estimations of the service life of…

Structured Surfaces of Wood Flooring with Optimal Resistance against Chemical Influences

Coating of Larch in Exterior Applications

Very dry room conditions such as those often found in buildings in low-energy and passive house construction with ventilation systems without air humidification pose a particular challenge for wooden…

This project aims at gaining knowledge for decisive improvements in the physical performance and thus also significant extensions of the maintenance intervals of oil-treated wood surfaces by…

This three-year research project dealt with the connection between wood as a building material and healthy living. The development of emissions in the interior of wooden houses was examined, houses…

Scope of this research is the integration of a thermal energy storage based on sorption materials into drying chambers for the industrial drying of timber. The technical drying of biomass is highly…

This project serves to expand current knowledge about the behaviour of new, alternative wood preservatives in weathered outdoor areas. For this purpose, examinations are conducted on wash-off…

This project examined safety and ecological aspects as well as the long-term behaviour of highly stressed terrace coverings made of wood and wooden materials.

The research focused on the work fields…

Fire protection represents a central safety aspect in construction. This research project aims at removing certain barriers which exist in public and mulit-storey timber construction. With financial…

Together with ÖZEPA, the goal of this project is to develop innovative products from fibre rejects and residual sludges from the pulp and paper industry which can achieve a reasonable market price and…

Currently, strength grading of sawn timber is almost exclusively done at the end of the processing chain. Thus, unsuitable timber is pushed through processes like drying and planing only to be…

When it comes to weathered wooden components such as windows, facades, balconies, fences etc., regular maintenance of the coating is of crucial importance. A maintenance indicator is to be developed…

Environmental declarations of construction products (Environmental Product Declaration, EPD) are becoming increasingly important in the construction sector, not least due to the standardization…

Fasteners and joining techniques are of immense importance for both new buildings as well as for rehabilitation of existing defective or heavy-duty load-bearing timber construction. Therefore HFA made…

The aim of this research project is to examine the criteria for the use, the well-being and health safety effects of oiled and waxed surfaces of wooden floors.

Formulations of treatment materials and…

With the financial support from the prokis04/2 program we enter into news fields of activity in the area of analytical chemistry. The primary focus is placed on compounds which are used as active…

This EU-funded research project “Pellets@las“ is designed to make the European market for solid biofuel, in particular for wood pellets, more transparent. The project aims to facilitate trading,…

Advantages in storage and processing lead to many companies removing the bark from round timber only immediately before the sawing. In order to be able to make optimal use of these advantages, the…

The aim is to determine the protection requirements for freshly cut timber with regard to the seasonal colonisation by microorganisms, depending on geographic and local environmental conditions by…

In the area of low-energy and passive houses, the focus of energetic optimisation has shifted towards cooling in summer and ventilation of rooms. In particular with new buildings without ventilation…

In the course of the review process for “ÖN L 1021 Measurement of round timber” questions arose concerning the determination of stem curvature and taper. To address these questions the cooperation…

All construction works are subject to aging processes. The current prokis04/2 research project aims at establishing methods for identifying safety defficiencies by analysing and monitoring a…

The focus of this project, which is being realized with well-known business partners, is the development of hardware fitting systems for the execution of passive house doors – optimised with respect…

This project is part of the European project “Grading of timber for engineered wood products” for which funding was sought through WoodWisdom-Net. The overall aim is to improve the reliability of…

The development of modern façade and window designs increasingly head in the direction of large,  integrated element-based solutions. For manufacturers of wooden windows (the majority of which are…

As part of this research project, a combination of four building types – low-energy house, sun house, passive house, plus-energy house – with several types of construction (concrete, wood, and brick…

The focus of this project is on the local and global fibre deviation of sawn timber, which is not adequately recorded by common sorting principles. With the help of new, microwave-based methods, this…

Even before cutting, the sawmill should know as much as possible about the properties of a piece of round timber. Only in this way the raw material wood can be put to optimal use.

In this project, an…

The development of a simple, non-destructive, and mostly contact-free method for strength grading of round timber and green sawn timber is central to this research project. Optical vibration measurement via interferometry is the method of choice. The feasibility of this measurement method is indicated by the correlations obtained: good correlations between the dynamic Young’s-Moduli of the sampled round timber and the dynamic Young’s-Moduli of the sawn timber cut from these logs and good correlations between the dynamic Young’s-Moduli of green sawn timber and the dynamic Young’s-Moduli of the sawn timber after drying.

This project aims at developing scientifically based designs for low-sloping roofs in wooden structures. These proven designs are to provide optimal moisture protection. To this end, insight gained…

This project aims at establishing criteria which will allow the identification of particularly low-emitting wood-based products. The range of parameters considered within these criteria spans the…

This project aims to initiate a development process which leads to design and construction concepts which are based on the service life. To this end, a new methodology for an implementable design tool…

In recent years, forest wood chips in Austria have changed from fuel for small furnaces to energy for electricity and heat generation on a large scale. The standardization landscape around wood chips…

The project "photovoltaics (PV) integrated into buildings for the prefabricated housing industry" of the Austria Association of Prefabricated Houses aims at advancing a technically feasible,…

The project “Serecarb” positioned within the “ERA-Net SUSPRISE” framework aims at developing new processes for selectively reclaiming calcium carbonate from the effluents from paper mills and sludge.…

In contrast to previous research projects, the main focus of this project is on the development of comprehensive renovation concepts for lightweight structures, taking into account sustainable,…

For numerous applications, paper and cardboard have to be coated with special materials in order to prevent migration of substances into the paper. Currently the most effective protective coatings are…

Taking different wood species into consideration, treatments and coatings for wood and veneered wood-based panels are to be developed which minimize colour changes as a result of environmental…

Fire resistance is determined using new test methods. However at present, the effect on the classification of timber components remains largely unknown. In the course of the research project the basis…