Naturally, our ideal source material is wood
Woodland makes up approximately 42 % of the European Union’s (EU-28) landmass, while Austria is covered by up to 48 %. In all countries where Lenzing sources its wood supplies, reforestation exceeds the quantities harvested for sustainable usage by a third.
Lenzing AG procures sustainably forested wood for cellulose production at its sites in Lenzing (Austria) and Paskov (Czech Republic). Our wood and pulp procurement procedures follow strict guidelines. At Lenzing, we use scrap wood for our own highly efficient power stations. By carrying out small-scale activities in timber trade, we also serve as a trusted partner of local forestry businesses.
More than half of the raw material we procure comes from Austrian forests, with a smaller part coming from other European countries. Lenzing primarily makes use of timber generated by thinning, a practice applied in sustainable foresting. Thus, the timber that is unsuitable for high-grade products, such as furniture, finds a meaningful purpose in our production of botanic fibers.
Documents for suppliers
Wood assortments
Conditions of purchase
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (German)
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (English)
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (French)
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (Czech)
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (Hungarian)
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (Polish)
- General Terms and Conditions of Wood Purchasing and Delivery (Slovakian)
Production
Wood yard
The Lenzing wood yard is one of the most modern plants of its kind in Europe. This innovative wood processing plant is designed for the production of 230,000 tons of pulp. This is the equivalent of one million tons of wood. The plant processes hard wood (beech). The beech logs are mainly delivered by rail (62%) but also by truck (38%). Quality assessment, weighing and sampling is followed by unloading either directly for production or storage.
The wood processing steps
The wood yard was rebuilt in 2002 as a state-of-the-art plant. The logs are debarked and the bark is used for energy production. The washed logs are reduced to chips, briefly stored in silos, screened and transported to the digester house.
Debarking
Logs with a length of up to eight meters are debarked in a drum with a length of 35 meters and a diameter of five meters. Slow rotation (3 to 8 rpm) of the drum rubs the logs aginst each other and results in gentle debarking. The logs are then dropped onto a conveyor belt with a sensor for the detection of oversizes, which stops logs with a diameter in excess of one meter.
Chipping
Having passed the stone trap and the metal detector, the new horizontal chipping unit with ten knife chipper reduces the logs to an optimum chip size of 19 x 30 x 5 millimeters. The resulting fines and the bark are burned on site for energy production.
Intermediate storage
Part of the bulk good is stored in two silos with a capacity of 10,000 m³ each for supplying pulp production during night and for maintaining a buffer to cover supply down times. A conveyor screw at the bottom of the silo transports the chips out of the silo onto conveyor belts for screening. The acceptable fraction is separated from oversize pieces (re-treated in post-chipping) and from fines. A unique conveyor system, the Ropecon®, transports the accepted fraction to the digester house. Ropecon® is a combination of ropeway and conveyor belt.
The wood yard surface water is collected in a basin and pumped to the waste water treatment system. There are no gaseous emissions.
Partners in Forestry
Europe’s forestry sector is more than our supplier—Lenzing’s forest management experts have built close relationships and are considered trusted partners.
The typical forestry operations in Central Europe are small-scale. For these small wood farming businesses, our wood procurement acts as a valuable service provider: We support our partners by organizing their key processes—from timber harvesting to efficient logistics solutions. Hence, we enable sustainable foresting in small-scale silviculture, that is both environmentally and economically sound. Lenzing settles accounts with wood suppliers on a monthly basis. This ensures that even micro-operations and part-time foresters can draw their regular incomes from doing business with us.
