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Dieffenbacher Technology Symposium sees more than 100 participants in Frankfurt


More than 100 participants from the global wood-based panels industry gathered at Frankfurt Airport for two days for the second Dieffenbacher Technology Symposium The May 19-20 event gathered at the b’mine Hotel Frankfurt Airport to discuss new solutions and best practices for the industry’s most pressing challenges. The symposium programme featured prominent guest speakers, including Geert Coudenys, R&D Director at Unilin Panels; Francisco Javier Blanco Fernandez, Plant General Manager of Finsa’s production site in Nelas, Portugal; and Michael Riffel, Senior Consultant at AFRY. Two other highlights: Timber


HP Co-founder and CEO Matthew O’Malia described how his company became a pioneer in wood fibre insulation


boards in North America with the help of a Dieffenbacher plant relocated from Germany to the US, and Prof Dr Mario Beyer, Head of the Chemical Department and Deputy Head of the Chemical Testing Laboratory at the Dresden Institute of Wood Technology (IHD), together with Venla Hemmilä, Material & Technology Engineer at IKEA, shared their insights related to low-carbon boards and bio-based resins. “We were very impressed


by the high level of interest our second Technology Symposium generated even before the event took place,” explained Stefan Zipf, CTO and member of the Management Board at Dieffenbacher. “The symposium was a big hit with our partners and customers. We had to raise the cap on attendance twice during the registration


Attendees at the Dieffenbacher Symposium at Frankfurt


period and still couldn’t offer everyone a spot for this year.” Dieffenbacher’s experts focused on hot-button topics, including fibreboard and waste- wood recycling, hybrid boards and special applications, the future of drying technologies and emission control, and the digitalization of wood-based


panel plants. In addition, attendees gained insights into new Dieffenbacher products and the company’s innovation process. International event host Camilla Biasio guided the audience through the two- day programme.


Dieffenbacher is looking to repeat the event in 2028.


Investors boost funding for US OSB expansion project Vanachai in Thailand milestone


Investors are providing US$28.5m of funding to assist the expansion of RoyOMartin’s OSB manufacturing operations in Corrigan, Texas. National New Markets Fund (NNMF) is investing the sum in New Markets Tax Credit Financing to help finance the US$115.1m facility expansion; which will create 123 new full- time positions and help retain 200 full-time jobs at the site. The current plant covers 407,125ft2


and supplies OSB


for specialty flooring and housing-related products. The new 370,400ft2


specialty


facility is under construction on the company’s existing 150- acre campus and will increase total production capacity by 70%.


“NNMF’s investment of New


Markets Tax Credits from the US Treasury Department is central to this manufacturing expansion,” said Roy O.


Martin III, Chairman and Chief Investment Officer.


“This is exactly the kind of


public-private partnership that makes large-scale growth possible in places that need it most — ensuring that rural Texas communities share in


that prosperity. Together, we are driving economic growth across the region, retaining and creating high-quality jobs, and making a meaningful, lasting contribution to a historically underserved community.”


Vanachai has achieved the first fibre production at Chonburi, Thailand with a pressurized refining system from supplied by Andritz. The development at the new MDF facility is an important milestone as Vanachai continues to expand its wood-based panel production capabilities. The pressurized refining


The Corrigan manufacturing facility


system is engineered to process hardwoods and various wood blends, with material introduced to the refiner via a constant feeder. This configuration ensures stable and uniform fibre processing across the full throughput range. At the core of the line is an S-Series pressurized refiner. “The successful start-up is a meaningful moment for us,” commented Phumsakdi Chullavullibha, Assistant Managing Director at the Thai company.


www.wbpionline.com | Summer 2026 | WBPI


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