Finnish sawmill companies foresee remarkable business potential in India

Wood from Finland, a national promotion program for Finnish sawn timber managed by Business Finland and the Finnish Sawmills Association is for the first time bringing several Finnish companies to the 10th edition of IndiaWood 2018 in order for them to interact with the Indian Wood Industry.

IndiaWood, one of the world's leading exhibitions for the furniture manufacturing and the woodworking industry, is organized once every two years. It offers its audience a comprehensive overview of the prevailing technological innovations and the latest manufacturing trends in furniture manufacturing, woodworking technologies, tools, fittings, accessories and raw materials.

According to a study by the World Bank, India's organised furniture industry is expected to grow 20 percent per annum over the next few years and is projected to cross USD 32 billion by 2019. The online home decor market in India is projected to grow at a CAGR of 50.42 percent in revenue over the period 2014-2019. The luxury furniture market is expected to garner USD 27.01 billion by 2020, registering a CAGR of 4.1 percent during the forecast period 2015-2020.

The Asian market is estimated to be the biggest consumer of furniture and India holds a major pie, according to a World Bank study. The FDI enterprise under Make in India has already resulted in a 60% growth in inflows and it is this campaign of the government with the objective of high quality standard that is steadily attracting international capital and technological investment in India thus facilitating localized production.

Foreseeing an enormous potential in India, this year 12 high-end Finnish sawmills and wood processing companies have decided to take part in IndiaWood 2018 for the first time, in order to capitalize on the opportunities, which the fast-growing Indian wood industry has to offer. The participating companies would include eminent names right from Versowood Oy, Keitele Timber Oy, Polkky Oy, JPJ-Wood Oy, Metsantuottajat Oy, Oy SWM-Wood Ltd, to AureskoskenJalostetehdas Oy, Kotkamills Wood Oy, VeljeksetVaara and will have representatives from senior management coming in and representing their companies.

"With such promising business possibilities, it is an excellent opportunity for the Finnish companies to come forth and connect with their counterparts here in India to discuss mutually beneficial trade and what better platform for that than India Wood. We are excited and hopeful to get the right kind of direction to tap the Indian market, which has recorded a high consumption figure for wood in the past few years and is inclined towards a much higher growth in the coming times", said HE Nina Vaskunlahti, Finnish Ambassador to India.

As the fourth largest sawn softwood exporter in the world, Finland is known for its fine wood and is considered to be an ideal place in the world for tree growth. It belongs to the cold climatic belt in which subzero winters alternate with warm summers resulting in a low-resinous, evenly patterned Finnish wood which is class apart and is known world-wide for its superior quality.

Finnish wood is used in interiors as a surface material for walls, ceilings and floors, furniture, stairs, windows and doors, in features and decorations. Finnish sawn pine and spruce are used in European and Middle East markets to alarge extent and utilized in decoration of holiday houses in North Indian mountain regions in the same style which is also popular in Central European mountain regions.

"Finnish softwood is well known for its excellent strength properties and visually attractive appearance, which have been well-accepted in emerging softwood markets, e.g. in China. A resource-efficient value chain from the sustainably managed forests to the end-users provide excellent raw material for various enduses. The 23 sawmill and woodworking companies in the Wood from Finland program have the annual sawing capacity of six million cubic metres. Most of these companies are members of the Finnish Sawmills Association. We are committed to studying new markets and customer requirements to better understand how to develop our products and services. Our aim is to maximize the value which our natural, recyclable and environmentally friendly material brings to our customers," says Kai Merivuori, Managing Director, Finnish Sawmills Association.

The different colors, structures, types and the different interior products made of wood such as panels, veneers, plywood and glued laminated boards enable the use of wood in countless different ways. In recent years, alongside the traditional wood-based materials, many new wood-based products have evolved, which include pressure-treated and heat-treated timber.

The Wood from Finland booth E260 at IndiaWood will be inaugurated on 8th March by H. E Nina Vaskunlahti, Finnish Ambassador to India in presence of ReimaSutinen, Ministerial Advisor, Ministry of Economic Affairs of Finland, Kai Merivuori, Managing Director, Finnish Sawmills Association and Juha Peltomaki, Program Director, Wood from Finland.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)