The goal of the proposed Integrated Project is the development of products made of thermally treated hard wood and the industrialization of the manufacturing.

Three product lines are followed which are load bearing walls for the construction of industrial eco2buildings (300-5000m2), glue less solid wood flooring and noise protection barriers. With these products the technical and economic breakthrough will be targeted for thermal treated wood exhibiting superior properties in terms of durability, dimensional stability and sustainability. These products are designed to replace other energy and resource consuming materials such as concrete, aluminum and plastics.

The research and development activities will focus on gathering basic know-how concerning the wood properties with special attention being paid to static and acoustics and the manufacturing of the modified wood. The usage of thermally treated wood for load bearing construction parts is a technological innovation which will lead to a broad range of application in the industrial building construction area. The integration into the construction of industrial eco2buildings (showing less than 15 kWh/m²a maximum heating load) is a very promising approach for which the need has been expressed by leading architects in this sector.

Thermally treated hard wood offers excellent durability equal to tropical woods. Beside this important property, the market claims for additional functionality. The interdisciplinary approach of HOLIWOOD therefore additionally aims at the development of functional coatings, based on powder coatings and sol-gel technology especially adapted to thermal treated hard wood. These developed coatings shall basis on a modular design. For outdoor use the focus is on durable and ecological coloration and inhibition of the wood graying. Special attention is paid on the maintenance intervals (more than 20 years). For indoor use (flooring) the focus is on functionalities, namely hydrophobic, oleophobic, and scratch resistance properties.

The strong participation of SMEs in the proposal clearly demonstrates the importance of the investigated field of research in this traditional industrial sector. The core SME consortium works together since 3 years. Additional partners have been included to cover all necessary fields of research and development. Additionally training and demonstration is foreseen in order to prepare customers, merchants and architects for the new products in due time. For this reason the establishment of a business corporative network will be established, in order to workout training concepts and coordinate training activities on the new technologies and products developed. This network also develops and coordinates dissemination and exploitation strategies. Demonstration activities will complete the holistic approach within HOLIWOOD. For this purpose an industrial eco2building with prefabricated walls made of thermally treated hard wood will be erected. For the noise protection barrier system a demonstration track of approximately 1 km will be implemented.