Professor Alexander Stahr and numerous renowned researchers in the field of timber construction have established a new nationwide network in Braunschweig
Renowned timber researchers from across Germany gathered in Braunschweig on 16 June 2026 to establish the “HolzForschung Deutschland” research network. The 30 initiators and founding members aim to pool the discipline’s resources through this new network. “This network is an important milestone on the path towards greater collaboration among timber researchers in Germany,” says Katja Frühwald-König. The professor from the Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Applied Sciences is one of the spokespersons for the new network.
With the launch of ‘HolzForschung Deutschland’, the diverse research landscape centred on wood as a resource is, for the first time, gaining a unified voice. Given the growing importance of wood for climate protection, sustainable construction, the substitution of fossil raw materials and the circular economy, the network creates a strong platform for pooling scientific expertise and promoting the transfer of knowledge to society, industry and politics. “In the coming years, timber research will address strategic topics such as resource sovereignty, timber as a high-tech material and ‘Wood Intelligence’, amongst others. Wood is not only a material with proven positive properties; it also represents a positive outlook on the future,” says Prof. Markus Rüggeberg from Dresden University of Technology and the network’s second spokesperson.
Interdisciplinary networking
“HolzForschung Deutschland” brings together individuals from numerous universities, higher education institutions and research institutes. Its members include scientists from a variety of disciplines, such as materials research, civil engineering, architecture, process engineering, chemical technologies and the arts. The network thus reflects the diversity of German timber research. From HTWK Leipzig, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexander Stahr, Head of the FLEX.institut and the Timber Construction Research Centre at HTWK Leipzig, is part of the new research association and acted in an advisory capacity to the network in the run-up to its foundation.
“Renewable raw materials, above all wood, are the central pillar of our vision of a circular bioeconomy. We can only successfully tackle the major challenges on the path to a more sustainable future through trust-based personal exchange and interdisciplinary collaboration,” says Prof. Raoul Klingner, Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Wood Research (WKI) in Braunschweig.
The aim of “HolzForschung Deutschland” is to strengthen the visibility, networking and collaboration of scientists in Germany in the long term. Furthermore, the network aims to initiate and support joint research and knowledge transfer projects, promote scientific exchange on the topic of wood, and specifically raise awareness of wood among the younger generation.
The launch event at the Fraunhofer WKI in Braunschweig was preceded by an intensive preparatory process. Since 2025, the participants have been working on the substantive and organisational foundations of the association during three meetings in Hamburg, Dresden and Freising. The founding members hope to see a strong influx of new members following the event. Membership is open at any time. An inaugural general meeting is planned for later this year.
