Educational work is required
Wood is a renewable raw material. The material for door production grows back again and again and is one of the most sustainable raw materials available for the manufacture of doors - in the context of intelligent forest management. The material is now also conquering other sectors and is scoring points with consumers, particularly thanks to its environmentally friendly and resource-saving properties.
More and more people are concerned about issues such as climate change, plastic floods in the oceans and environmentally harmful and inhumane production conditions. They want change and are opting for a more sustainable lifestyle.
In 2019, 63% of the German population decided to change their food purchasing behaviour (source) and switch to more sustainable products, only 28 per cent changed their clothing consumption, for example. This is also due to the fact that sustainable textile alternatives are still too little known. And very few people realise that wood plays a particularly important role here. Reason enough to take a closer look at the raw material for doors and its possibilities for textile production.
From wood to textile fabric
Several steps are required before wood can be turned into fabric or an item of clothing. First, the wood is chopped up and the cellulose in the wood fibres is separated from other components. Cellulose is one of the main components of trees. With its stable cell walls, it is particularly suitable for yarn production. In the production process, the cellulose is dissolved in a solvent and pressed through a fine nozzle into a spinning bath. The resulting regenerated cellulose fibres are then turned into continuous fibres that can be further processed into fabrics. Similar to cotton fibres, these can be printed and dyed just as well.
Viscose, modal, lyocell - a comparison of wood-based fibres
Viscose - Paving the way for more environmentally friendly fibres
Complex chemical processes are used in the production of viscose. Boiling and bleaching processes are used in conjunction with dissolving and spinning processes. As a result, viscose has a considerably poorer environmental footprint than the environmentally friendly alternative lyocell. Although the final fibre is cleaned of all chemical components, the chemical content in the production process is considerable. Viscose is therefore also referred to as a man-made fibre.
In Europe, beech wood is mainly used to produce viscose, while fast-growing plants such as eucalyptus are popular in Asia.
Modal, the better viscose?
Compared to the production of viscose, a different spinning process is used for modal, which gives the finished fabric different properties: modal is smoother, more heat-resistant, more absorbent and more dimensionally stable. This material is also a man-made fibre. Like viscose, modal is produced using a dissolving and bleaching process with chemical substances. You can find out more about modal here: https://www.bader.de/modal
Lyocell - chemical-free fibres made from wood
Thanks to the further development of the viscose process, lyocell has been produced since the 1970s as an environmentally friendly alternative to its predecessors. By using an organic solvent and producing the textile fibres from this solution, Lyocell does not require any chemical substances.
In Europe, mainly beech wood is used to produce textiles from Lyocell. One of the most important producers of wood-based cellulose fibres is the Austrian manufacturer Lenzing, which produces viscose, modal and lyocell.
Lenzing has specialised in the production of a specially developed variant of lyocell, which is marketed under the brand name Tencel. It is increasingly being used as an ingredient by producers of sustainable textiles in particular. Although it is officially described as a synthetic fibre, Tencel is obtained entirely from processed wood fibres. The yarn made from the wood fibres is produced using organic substances.
What are the advantages of wood fibres?
Textiles made from wood score points in several areas compared to synthetic fibres: They absorb moisture. The cellulose fibres of wood can absorb liquid through their pore structure, store it and release it again when required. This active moisture and thermoregulation makes wood fibres more hygienic and even more odourless than synthetic fibres. Bacteria, which are produced when sweating and cause unpleasant odours in clothing, love synthetic fibres as a breeding ground. Thanks to their natural properties, textiles made from cellulose fibres inhibit the growth of bacteria in the fabric and thus ensure a "better climate".
Another advantage of Tencel or Lyocell is that the clothing is biodegradable. Once the garment has fulfilled its purpose, it decomposes in the compost - without leaving any harmful residues in the soil.
Good for the climate - the climate-positive towel from Kushel
Of interest to all wood enthusiasts are the textiles from Kushel. The company's founders are setting a new standard in the industry with their products and produce high-quality textiles that give more resources back to the environment than their production consumes. By offsetting CO2 emissions, planting trees and compensating for fresh water consumption, Kushel towels, for example, are characterised by an above-average environmental balance.
For anyone still looking for gift ideas. The sustainable and durable Kushel textiles made of wood make beautiful Christmas gifts. They are also suitable as a customer gift with which companies can emphasise their environmental awareness in a very appealing way.
Sustainability at PRÜM
We are also aware of our carbon footprint and are constantly pursuing the goals we have set ourselves. For example, we are reducing our energy consumption in order to be more sustainable and environmentally conscious.
You can find out more about our energy policy here: https://www.tuer.de/unternehmen/energiepolitik.html
Further links:
https://www.bm-online.de/wissen/unternehmensfuehrung/der-mut-anders-zu-sein/
https://www.bm-online.de/praxis-und-kollegentipps/zu-gast-beim-kollegen/rundum-nachhaltig/
https://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/definition/nachhaltigkeit-41203#head3
