Wood can be used in a wide variety of areas and industries and is a high-tech material of the future. A total of 140 ideas for the Salzburg timber industry were submitted for the second Open Innovation Salzburg ideas competition. Now the winners have been announced.

Hardly any other material is as deeply rotted in our history, culture and economy in the Salzburg region as wood. Almost half of the state is covered with forest and the renewable resource has been with us for thousands of years. But wood is anything but old-fashioned: new technologies and processes help us to fully exploit the incredibly versatile application possibilities of this high-performance natural material. Nowadays, wood is no longer just designer furniture, modern timber construction or chic – it is also the pulp in your T-shirt, the basic material for innovative bioplastics or the 20-sstory high-rise building. Wood is the sustainable smart material and grows on our doorstep.

Ideas For The Future Of The Salzburg Timber Industry

On behalf of Pro:Holz and the Holzcluster Salzburg, from 4.2.2020 to 4.4.2020, Open Innovation Salzburg called for innovative proposals that delight customers of small and medium-sized companies and help Salburg wood companies to strike a balance between tradition and master modernity. The aim was to promote the innovative strength and competitiveness of Salzburg woodworking companies through creative ideas and to strengthen them along the entire value chain from the forest to the customers. New technologies or customer groups were just as welcome as improvements in production or innovative business models.

These Ideas Won:

The five best ideas were awarded at a small press event on June 9, 2020:

1^st Place: “Urlaub im Holz”
2^nd Place: „bikeshit – wooden components”
3^rd Place: “SPIELtischlerei”
4^th Place: “Change & Combine WOODEN Furniture”
5^th Place: “Tree to Plank Experience”

The winning projects were judged by an expert jury in terms of originality, feasibility, usefulness and scope of ideas and sustainability. The three most active community members were also selected. Details on the individual ideas are available on the ideas platform ideen.openinnovation-salzburg.at.

At the next stakeholder meeting, the Online Open Innovation Afternoontalk on June 24, 2020, the winners will present their submissions from 4 p.m. and share their experiences with the audience.

Participate Now: „Innogebirg Pongau“

Until 18 June you can take part in the “Innogebirg Pongau” ideas competition on the crowdsourcing platform www.openinnovation-salzburg.at. We are looking for ideas on how ot open innovation culture and processes in terms of Open Innovation in Pongau and how to create a collaborative, innovation-promoting environment for new ideas and solutions.

Behind the Open Innovation Salzburg platform is a consortium of competent partners: ITG – Innovation Service for Salzburg, Salzburg Research, Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Seeburg University, Salzburg University and the State of Salzburg.

Contribution Pictures © proHolz/Holzcluster Salzburg