…was an exciting panel discussion at Weitzer Parkett, organized by Holzcluster Steiermark in cooperation with Creative Industries Styria. As a (crisis) manager and an expert in motorsport, I was invited to discuss wood as the material of the future with five top-class women from the wood industry, sustainability research and the automotive industry.
Source: Miriam Raneburger/CIS
We were a great mix of women from different backgrounds, a researcher from the University of Graz, a designer from Magna, a project manager from Weizer Energie-Innovations-Zentrum, personalist and communications manager from Weitzer.
Of course, it was great fun to share your own knowledge with others. But we also learned a lot from each other. I found the WoodC.A.R. project particularly exciting, in which research was carried out into using wood as side impact protection in vehicles. The project was so successful that there is a follow-up project that already takes a first step towards industrial use.
At least as exciting were the insights into series production at Magna. Unsurprisingly, the beautifully shiny wood paneling is a wafer-thin layer of wood, stretched onto the shaping parts made of other materials. In the decorative area, there is another hurdle to be overcome, that wood changes over the years, especially in color. However, as in many areas, one can expect a rethink in this area too, that customers are ready to accept that their car will change over the years as they do themselves.
My special thanks go to Christian Tippelreither for the invitation and our moderator Sigrid Mayer, who guided us through the evening so confidently. Many thanks also to everyone who worked in the background to make it such a successful evening!