4^th Cooperation forum on bonding of wood and wood-based materials

Online event on 28 and 29 April 2021

On 28 and 29 April 2021, the 4^th cooperation forum on bonding of wood and wood-based materials took place. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the originally planned face-to-face event was changed to an online event. The conference was organized by the Forestry and Wood Cluster Initiative in Bavaria in close collaboration with the iVTH, Bayern Innovativ GmbH, Wood Research Munich and the Rosenheim University of Applied Sciences.

In his opening speech, Dr. Dirk Grunwald from Follmann GmbH & Co. KG gave a comprehensive overview of current developments and trends in wood bonding to the approximately 150 participants. In addition to introducing various trends such as “technology instead of chemistry“ or the possibility of debonding, he pointed out the increasing interest in adhesives from renewable sources.

The presentations that followed ranged from improving the bonding of wood to bonding on the construction site and the joining without adhesives. The future of bonding was explored in three contributions. In this context, Dr. Frauke Bunzel from Fraunhofer WKI spoke about alternatives to formaldehyde in adhesives for wood-based materials and also presented results of her projects at the Wilhelm-Klauditz-Institut. Dr. Erik van Herwijnen (WoodKplus) showed that renewable binders were already used thousands of years ago, using the example of birch pitch and bone glue. He then gave an overview of the developments and possibilities in the field of adhesives from renewable materials. Thomas Böger and Mathias Schuh from Wood Research Munich addressed hardwood gluing, which is a very topical issue due to the forest situation and the raw material situation.

In summary, it can be said that despite the lack of physical presence, the participants were given good opportunities for virtual exchange and networking during the breaks. In various groups, specific topics and also questions could be discussed via video chat.