Balsa is one of the fastest growing lightweight wood species
which is native to South America. Majority of the balsa wood used in Europe is
commercially harvested from plantations. Due to its fast growth, the wood
density is very low, making balsa the lightest commercial timber available.
Balsa wood is used in many industrial applications such as aerospace, defense,
as renewable energy, marine, rail and road transport facilities. Few major
drivers supporting the growth of balsa wood market in Europe are the booming
wind turbine industries, growing defense activities, growth in aerospace
industry, expanding marine sectors, growing demand of weight saving composite
to increase the efficiency of land transport. The other properties of balsa
wood are strength, versatility, high impact strength, good sound and thermal
insulation, excellent fatigue resistance and a wide operating temperature range
which are added advantages compared to other materials. Balsa is botanically
termed as Ochroma Pyramidale is the lightest commercial timber available in
European market. Based on the appearance of grain in wood, they are categorized
as grain A, gain B and grain C types. Grain B type of balsa wood is extensively
used and accounts for the largest market share in Europe. Grain B segment is
used for all-purpose balsa items. Balsa wood possesses commercial importance
due to its exceptional lightweight and insulating properties.
According to the study “Europe
Balsa Wood Industry Situation and Prospects Research report”, balsa wood
is used as a core material in structural sandwich panels, in wind turbine
blades to boats and aircraft. The wood is spongy in texture which makes it
light and soft. Balsa wood is used in making makeshift pens for calligraphy,
used in laminates together with glass-reinforced plastic fiberglass for making
high-quality balsa surfboards, ship decks, building boats such as pleasure
crafts. The leading vendors in Europe’s balsa wood industry are 3A Composites
(Switzerland), Gurit (Spain) and DIAB International AB (Sweden).
Geographically, Europe balsa wood industry is spread across Germany, Russia,
UK, France, Italy and other regions.
It was observed that there is less demand for balsa wood but
will witness a gradual growth over the next few years due to the increasing
demand for lightweight and durable wood in marine, aircraft and wind energy
industries. Europe accounts for a largest market share due to the presence of
large number of balsa wood processors, cheap labor cost and increasing
applications. There is a heavy competition from polymers which are durable and
convenient to use, which may restrain the growth of European balsa wood market
in the next few years.
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