Future of the wood value chain "Ostwürttemberg"

Client

Wirtschaftsförderungsgesellschaft mbH Region Ostwürttemberg (WiRO)

Project period

2022 – 2024

Results

Study on the wood value chain in Ostwürttemberg
Focus and Action Paper on the Wood Value Chain in Ostwürttemberg

The Ostwürttemberg region has a strong regional wood value chain. In view of climate change, this should now be optimally positioned for the future of the local economy Therefore, Intep conducted an analysis of the forest-wood-paper cluster and developed a focus and action paper with approaches for the sustainable development of the regional wood value chain.

The starting point

The wood value chain in Ostwürttemberg holds significant economic weight for the region and the state-wide forest, wood and paper cluster. The gross value added and employment figures highlight its importance in all areas of the value chain – from forestry to manufacturing, the wood, pulp and paper industry, construction and cluster-related players in mechanical engineering and tool manufacturing, with companies based in the region.

With the wood value chain project, WiRO aims to further strengthen the regional value chain in Ostwürttemberg. This involves, first, an analysis of the Forest-Wood-Paper cluster, and second, based on this analysis, the development of a focus and action paper to make the regional cluster future-proof with the involvement of stakeholders from business, science, and administration. The project was funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Food, Rural Areas and Consumer Protection.

Our contribution

WiRO commissioned intep, in a first step, to analyze the regional forest-wood-paper cluster. The study highlights the current strengths and challenges of the wood value chain. In the follow-up assignment, intep developed concrete approaches to address the challenges and consolidate the strengths in the form of a focus and action paper.

Intep identified nine key areas, ranging from empowering regarding climate-protective wood construction to dealing with timber price fluctuations and the smart use of calamity wood. The catalog of measures aims at the sustainable development of the regional timber value chain, and enables the Ostwürttemberg region to make this significant value chain more resilient and to develop it further in a sustainable manner.