To make the construction industry more sustainable, we must use more wood in construction. Wood is the only renewable construction material that also stores carbon. However, the construction industry still mainly uses steel and concrete, which instead have a negative impact on the climate.

Founded in 2008, Flens Byggelement delivers wooden construction elements to all of Scandinavia. The company makes prefabricated wooden elements in its 12,000-square-metre plant located in Flen, some 100 kilometres south-west of Stockholm. According to Rickard Brännman, project manager at Flens Byggelement, there are many reasons why the industry should use more wood.

"Wood construction offers many advantages. It’s a renewable material that’s good for the climate. Since steel and concrete have accounted for the bulk of construction material used in Sweden, we must turn our attention to more renewable alternatives in order to tackle the climate challenges facing us,” he says.

Prefabricated wooden elements make the construction industry more efficient

Flens Byggelement focuses on streamlining the construction process and making it more efficient. In Rickard Brännman’s opinion, prefabricated wooden elements are part of the solution.

“Using wood in construction offers us great flexibility concerning the products we supply to the construction market, since it enables a more tailored and solutions-oriented approach with customers,” he explains.

A focus on prefabricated elements ensures that Flens Byggelement’s customers get higher quality products and have greater control over the products. It also makes processes more efficient. When constructing on site, builders may end up spending more than half of their working hours on matters unrelated to the actual construction. They may find themselves repairing defects detected only after construction has been completed.

“Such defects and inefficiency can be avoided by using prefabricated elements, manufactured in an indoor environment that can be controlled, instead of building everything outdoors at the construction site,” says Rickard Brännman.

Kerto® LVL has unique properties

Metsä Wood supplies Kerto LVL products to Flens Byggelement. Kerto LVL is an engineered product made by gluing several layers of three-millimetre-thick veneers to create a lightweight product that is fast to build with and sustainable from the climate perspective. Using Kerto LVL in everything from new buildings to renovation and repair helps Flens Byggelement meet customer needs.

“Specific properties, such as long spans, low U values and low deflection, are often sought, and Kerto LVL is a good choice in this respect,” says Rickard Brännman.

The strength and stiffness properties of Kerto LVL make it possible to build floor and roof elements with long spans and an optimal amount of wood. Lightweight Kerto LVL also reduces the weight of transports to construction sites, which is better for the climate.

“What is more, Kerto LVL elements are loaded into lorries in the correct order of assembly, enabling the construction company to simply lift the topmost element, put it in place and then do the same for the following ones,” says Brännman.