Sustainable, forest-friendly, low-carbon and zero-emission boating.
Vendia Woods produces high-quality boatbuilding plywood from locally sourced raw materials. Working closely with forest owners, we select the perfect pine trees in the forests around Luopioinen to make Vendia boat planks.
Wood from Finland – we know our forest owners
In 1937, a pine tree was planted on the grounds of Ämmätsä Manor, at the edge of a clearing. The young pine had a promising start to its growth. The trunk of the young pine was so slender that it could still be grasped by one hand, when the lower branches were broken off in the August storm Maire in 1961. It was the straight, branch-free trunk that caught the eye of a forester walking through the forests of Ämmätsä Manor in November 2022. Could the slow-growing, straight, 90-year-old pine tree have what it takes to make a high-quality marine grade plywood?
Ämmätsä Manor's forests, like 90% of Finnish forests, are managed sustainably. The PEFC3 certification (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes) guarantees that the origin of the wood is traceable and that the forest is managed in such a way that it regenerates after harvesting.
The trunk selected for the Vendia comes from the upper canopy layer. The younger trees growing next to it will provide the next straight, dense, knot-free trunk suitable for a boat plank in perhaps 50 years' time.
Complete production in Finland
Around 20 % of the carbon footprint of Vendia plywood, comes from transportation. The logs from Ämmätsä are processed into sliced veneer nearby, less than 200 kilometers away. Mahogany Oy is a Finnish company specializing in the production of sliced veneer.
Manual production
Carefully selected logs are sliced into 1.5 and 1.2 mm thick veneers using a special veneer slicing machine. This process is very demanding, especially when the appearance of the end product is important to ensure quality. The log we are following here is used to produce 153 m2 of sliced veneer, which is sorted so that only the flawless veneers are used as face veneers for the Vendia plank.
The pine from the Ämmätsä forest is fully utilised - it is completely sliced into veneer and even the veneers that are not of sufficient quality or width for the boat planks are used for other purposes. Vendia planks are manufactured by hand. The selected veneers are glued in layers, the surface layers are flawless. The veneers of the inner layers are laid crosswise. This makes the structure strong and flexible in many directions. The planks are transported to a press where they are pressed at a pressure of 15 kg/cm2 and a temperature of 80 °C.
The boat builder receives the Vendia planks in the needed width and length and can use them immediately. High-quality, dense and resin-free veneer requires less sanding. The planks are easy to work with and do not crack or break, so there is less waste in this respect too.
We know and understand our customers
Finally, the board is in place - in the Blue Tree Boat Builders workshop it becomes a beautiful, well-shaped and durable part of a modern eco-friendly boat.
Vendia: carbon-binding, non-toxic, without microplastic emissions. A beautiful canoe, a traditional rowing boat or a luxurious electric yacht - all for sustainable water travel.
Climate-friendly Vendia
Vendia planks have a lower CO2 footprint than sawn solid wood planks. In addition, no material is wasted. Ämmätsä's pine wood is fully utilized - it is completely sliced, and even the veneers that are not of sufficient quality for the boat plank are used for basketry, for example.
The layered structure stabilizes the board and makes it resistant to transport and storage conditions. The planks can be stored in rooms with fluctuating humidity and temperature without any problems; no energy is required to maintain a constant level.
The planks are produced in the desired width and length. High-quality, dense and resin-free veneer requires less sanding. Planks that are easy to work with do not tear or break, so there is less waste in this respect too.
The Vendia plank sequesters carbon, even though carbon dioxide emissions are produced during its manufacture. The biggest carbon footprint of the material is the glue used to join the veneers together. This accounts for around 70% of the Vendia board's carbon footprint. Vendia planks have a long carbon binding life. The finished plank only sequesters about 20% less carbon than a log grown in the forest. Our estimated carbon footprint is 160 kg of CO2 per cubic meter of finished product. Wood binds around 900 kg of carbon per cubic meter. The carbon sequestration of Vendia panels is therefore around 740 kg/m3.