The ambitious challenge addressed by the European BASAJAUN Project will be to construct two demo buildings using as few forest resources as possible. In this case, however, the magic comes from the R&D&I findings and the work of 30 partners. They will spend 48 months trying to get the most added value possible from forest products as a raw material for the construction industry.

AIMPLAS, the Plastics Technology Centre, is one of the members of this consortium led by Tecnalia. The project is expected to provide new materials and construction structures to be used to produce two full-scale demo buildings in Finland and France. The project will also involve digitizing the entire construction industry value chain and helping develop rural areas thanks to a true circular economy of the forestry sector.

AIMPLAS will participate by drawing on its experience in previous projects such as OSYRIS, in which materials of renewable origin were developed to build construction panels for office and residential interiors. For the BASAJAUN Project, AIMPLAS is developing bio-based profiles manufactured by pultrusion using resins from forest products reinforced with natural fibres. The materials produced will be adapted and functional verification will be performed before manufacture of the final prototypes. Their processability will then be checked, their combustion will be analysed and the materials will be mechanically characterized.

Other developments expected within the framework of the project include thermal insulation using foams manufactured from renewable sources, wood-plastic composites (WPC), fire-resistant composites, bio-based adhesives for laminated wood products, panels manufactured with forestry and wood waste, and fire-resistant water-based varnishes.