Wood: A Brandenburg Growth Leader
Brandenburg is the region with the largest forests in Eastern Germany. These resources secure the growth of highly innovative SMEs and of large companies such as Klenk, Pfleiderer, Classen, Kronotex and Glunz. Most wood processing companies are located in the towns of Baruth, Heiligengrabe and Beeskow, and in the Lausitz, Uckermark and Prignitz districts.
• Turnover: €1.3 billion. With an increase of 16.2% over the previous year, the wood industry is one the fastest-growing sectors of Brandenburg’s economy.
• OSB production earns nearly 70% of the total turnover.
• Wood processing represents 7% of the region’s industrial production.
• 15,000 jobs in forest management and logging.
• More than 3,500 jobs in industrial wood processing (10.2% more than the previous year).
• 38 companies have twenty or more employees.
• The local pine species supplies more than 80% of the raw material.
(2006 data)
Good Market Position
Brandenburg’s wood industry is an above-average exporter and takes advantage of the region’s interface function between Central and Eastern Europe. High investments, a wide product range and footholds in niche markets are the key characteristics of the region’s growing wood industry.
Training
Specialists for the regional wood industry are trained at TU Berlin and at the Potsdam and Eberswalde polytechnical colleges. The universities in the German capital region also provide R&D facilities for the local forestry and wood processing industry.
Networking
An expertise centre based in Baruth interconnects the various actors in the wood industry, from sawmills to fibreboard and laminate manufacturers. Moreover, a regional network is currently being developed to improve networking among Brandenburg’s wood-processing SMEs.