Quality From The First Batch: Seven Decades Of Finnish Wood Technology
“There is a great deal of interest in thermal modification in North America right now, and the market is developing quickly.” – Jeroen Hinnen, country manager, North America, Jartek
Jartek’s thermal modification kiln at Arbor Wood Co. in St. Joe, IN.
Jartek’s North American Sales Manager, Jeroen Hinnen.
Jartek is a family-owned Finnish supplier of wood processing technology, headquartered in Lahti, roughly an hour north of Helsinki. The company’s roots date back to 1957, when it began developing equipment for the Finnish sawmill industry. Nearly seven decades later, Jartek has delivered hundreds of production lines and completed projects in more than 20 countries. Today, the company employs around 55 people and remains in the family.
“There is a great deal of interest in thermal modification in North America right now, and the market is developing quickly,” said Jeroen Hinnen, country manager, North America. “Combine that demand with Finnish engineering know-how and the wood-processing expertise already established in this market, and there is a strong opportunity for North American producers to create more value from regional species.”
Two product lines, one process view
Jartek’s offering splits into two segments that serve different customers.
The first is thermal wood modification. Jartek delivers complete plants and individual components: kilns for batch sizes from three to 130 cubic meters (roughly 1,300 to 55,000 board feet), heat production, process control software and species testing. The technology is fully compatible with the ThermoWood® process. Jartek was a founding member of the International ThermoWood Association in 2000 and remains its only technology-provider member, giving the company a unique position within the ThermoWood® network. More than 100 thermal modification kilns have been delivered to date, several of them across Canada and the United States, and the first industrial-scale kiln shipped in 1998 — making Jartek’s process experience roughly as old as the commercial thermal modification industry itself.
The second is lumber manufacturing: green sorting lines, automatic stick-stackers, grading and dry sorting lines with or without planer, and packaging lines. Safety is becoming more and more important, and it is challenging to combine fast and well running lines, automated process with good ergonomics while every piece handled being different. Jartek has put a lot of effort to this from single solution to complete lines. These are supplied as stand-alone upgrades or as complete, integrated solutions, for softwood and hardwood mills alike.
Tying both together is automation and lifecycle service — control systems, production data and optimization, condition assessments, modernizations, spare parts, maintenance and operator training.
Software written by people who know the process
Jartek develops its automation and control software in-house, supported by its own dedicated software and automation team. Our developers write, tune and optimize both the thermal modification programs and the control systems that operate sawmill sorting and grading lines. Because they work closely with our process engineers, the software is built around how the equipment actually behaves in production — not how a generic controller expects it to behave.
For thermal modification, the key practical benefit is repeatability. The software uses a separate, validated process recipe for each species, thickness and end product. It manages heating and cooling curves, moisture levels and process parameters while recording the complete history of every charge. The result is consistent color and consistent product performance, batch after batch.
On the lumber handling side, our grading lines combine moisture, visual and strength grading with automation designed to keep the line running at capacity while reducing the need for manual labor. The Nordic sawmill concept provides a proven foundation that can be applied globally, but the goal is not simply to replicate it one-to-one. Instead, Jartek works together with each customer to adapt the concept to local conditions, production goals and operating practices — while also bringing fresh thinking and new ideas to the table.
Custom orders are the norm, not the exception
Every project Jartek delivered is engineered around the customer’s business case first and the equipment second. A producer looking to run small batches of a high-value product needs a different plant from a mill scaling up to large-volume production. Species, dimensions, target capacity, labor model and existing foundations all influence the final layout and system design.
Jartek’s lumber handling and sorting machines at a customer’s mill.
Jartek’s approach is simple: the right solution starts with the end product and works backward through the process. This allows the equipment, automation and material flow to be designed around what the producer actually needs to manufacture — and how the investment needs to perform as a business.
For thermal modification, Jartek has its own testing capabilities for developing and validating process recipes before they are introduced into production. New wood species, dimensions and process parameters can be tested and fine-tuned in advance, helping ensure that the selected recipe performs as intended from the very first production batch.
This approach reduces start-up risk, shortens the learning curve and gives producers greater confidence when introducing new species, dimensions or products. Instead of using production time to discover how a process should work, the key parameters can be established and validated before the plant starts running commercially.
Installation and what happens afterward
Lead times are currently running at roughly six months from order to delivery for a thermal modification kiln project. In many projects, this works as a planning advantage rather than simply a wait: foundation work, heat supply, permitting and raw-material planning can progress in parallel with equipment manufacturing. Sorting, grading and packaging line installations are planned into an agreed production break.
Jartek supports the customer throughout both the installation and start-up phases of the project. A dedicated project team ensures that construction, erection and commissioning are carried out as planned, while Jartek’s process specialists remain closely involved during start-up and the first production runs. The goal is to make the transition into production as smooth as possible and to ensure that the plant performs as intended from the very beginning.
Support continues after handover. Jartek’s lifecycle services cover preventive maintenance, spare parts, remote diagnostics and support, condition assessments of existing equipment, automation and mechanical modernizations and operator and maintenance training.
Why it shows up in the numbers
For thermal modification producers, the measurable value comes from process consistency, product quality and efficient use of energy and raw material. Precise control of temperature, moisture and process timing helps achieve repeatable results from batch to batch, while reducing the risk of rejects and unnecessary energy consumption. The result is a more predictable production process and a more consistent end product — both of which are critical when producing high-value thermally modified wood.
Unloading a thermal modification kiln.
For thermal modification producers specifically, the commercial logic is a margin upgrade rather than a volume upgrade. Heat and steam — with no added chemicals — turn regionally available species into dimensionally stable, durable material with color that extends through the board, opening applications traditionally served by tropical hardwoods and other higher-value materials. Thermal modification is not simply an additional production step; it is a platform for turning every board foot of wood into greater commercial returns.
Jartek’s North American references include Arbor Wood Co. in St. Joe, IN; ThermalWood Canada in Bathurst, NB; and Western Forest Products on Vancouver Island, BC.
Jartek’s North American activities are led by Jeroen Hinnen, country manager, North America. The company’s website is jartek.com.
