Wood machining: Past achievements, present capabilities, future opportunities

Abstract

The wood industry is a modern enterprise with ancient roots. Current processes develop from the past by the extensive incorporation of sensors and computerized machinery. It is said that the wood industry is the second largest user of optical sensors behind the electronics industry. The very large variation in the natural wood raw material presents substantial challenges when designing and operating wood processing equipment; robustness and efficiency are prime objectives. The connection between the academic needs of research workers and the practical requirements of industrial operation is not always as close as it could be. For the strengthening of all, the two groups are encouraged to collaborate more and to learn and understand more about each other's needs and concerns.

Keywords:

• Sawing
• milling and machining
• industrial engineering
• operations analysis and logistics
• forest products education

Acknowledgments

The wood machining research of the author is supported by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and by FPInnovations, Inc., Vancouver, Canada. Their financial support is acknowledged and appreciated.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.