Mallorca has a forest mass area of 42% of its territory. This forest mass corresponds to the Mediterranean forest and currently 95% of the surface of the forest mass is abandoned.
Amarar wants to take care of the forests, for this he proposes a model that goes from one "Cut down and burn" to a new one based on "Cut down, manufacture, build, reuse and recycle", corresponding to a circular economy. For this, the industrial network is recovered to be able to go from “tree to furniture”.
Regional
Spain
Balearic Islands
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
2023-01-01
As a representative of an organization, in partnership with other organisations
Name of the organisation(s): Amarar Type of organisation: For-profit company First name of representative: Francisco Last name of representative: Cifuentes Utrero Gender: Male Nationality: Spain Function: Director Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: C/Sant Feliu 17 local 15 Town: Palma Postal code: 07012 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 606 40 05 38 E-mail:fcu@aulets.net Website:https://amarar.eu/
URL:https://amarar.eu/ Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): https://www.instagram.com/amarar_tramuntana/
Yes
New European Bauhaus or European Commission websites
Mallorca has a forest mass area of 42% of its territory. This forest mass corresponds to the Mediterranean forest, which is characterized by its adaptability to periods of summer drought. This forest mass has increased by 60% in recent decades, due to the abandonment of agricultural areas, and on the other hand, the forest has ceased to be managed. Currently there is a forest management only of 5% of the surface of the forest mass. This lack of management leads to an increase in fires due to the high undergrowth material that our forests accumulate.
GOAL
"From the tree to the furniture"
1.The objective is that to take care of our forests we have to produce something with added value and thus increase the performance of management that is currently carried out. If we manufacture value-added products such as furniture, we will be able to pay the owners of the farms for the extraction of the pine trees and therefore increase forest management from the current 5%.
2.The second objective is to transform the current value chain based on the production of firewood and biofuels, into a new one where quality wood is made available to the construction sector. In other words, moving from the “Cut down, manufacture and burn” model to a new one based on “Cut down, manufacture, build, reuse and recycle”, corresponding to a circular economy. For this, the industrial network is recovered to be able to go from “tree to furniture”.
3.Furniture designs have been developed based on the system of wooden wedges to make the joints. This allows solving the furniture only with wood and dispensing with other materials.
4.- Amarar collaborates with the Esment Foundation to develop prototypes that allow people with intellectual disabilities to assemble furniture, apply oils and finishes, to achieve the social inclusion of this group.
5.- Pedagogy and research with the ETSAL. From the experience of the project, how to use this type of wood in the design of architectural projects.
Mediterranean forest
Take care ecosystems
Circular economy
Durable furniture
Social inclusion
FROM THE TREE TO THE FURNITURE
The key objective of the project is to use the wood of the pines of the forest of Mallorca.
-During 2021 and 2022 we have used 100 pine trees to manufacture local wood, make prototypes and manufacture furniture. These 100 pines have managed an area of 100 HC of forest.
-We have established a network with property owners in Mallorca who believe in the project and are bet on to using pine trunks as quality wood. Tramuntana XXI Association (https://tramuntanaxxi.com/es)
-We have established a network of private and public forestry companies that have bet on for the project. The public company Ibanat (https://caib.es/seucaib/ca/organigrama/1224) has given us trunks to investigate Pinus Halepensis wood. And forestry companies such as Serveis Agricoles de la Tramuntana, Montepino and Motecal (http://motecal.com/) have bet on to supply us with tree trunks.
-Once the logs arrive at the workshop, we cut them into wooden slats and let the wood dry. We have managed to process 42 m3 of Pinus Halepensis wood and we have made 10 furniture prototypes and we have manufactured 80 pieces of furniture for the Esment Foundation (https://esment.org/es/menu/fundacion/).
All this process implies a new production system based on the care of the forests, on the creation of new activities in the wood sector and on the design and production of furniture that has a long durability. In addition, when the furniture reaches the end of its useful life, the wood can be reused because it is solid wood.
RECOVER ANTHROPIZATION IN THE MEDITERRANEAN FORESTS.
We have sensitized the public, through the media, talks in schools and the application of ETSALS in teaching, of the importance of taking care of our forests from a recovery of forest anthropization and the use of raw materials from the forest.
eco-social design
1. Design only with Pinus Halepensis wood. The objective is to design furniture only with wood, reducing the need to incorporate other materials such as metal and glue. The quality of the wood and the design would guarantee the durability of the furniture thanks to its high degree of modularity and repairability. In addition, the modularity of the pieces offers the possibility of using the same piece for different types of furniture, thus reducing the number of pieces required. To achieve this objective, we have designed nine prototypes to test the solution of the joints by means of wedges. Once the prototypes have been developed, we have built a total of 50 pieces of furniture for the Esment Foundation and private clients
2.- The “social” part of the design consists in the fact that the design is designed to incorporate groups at risk of social exclusion so that they can participate in the production of furniture. For this we have held workshops with the Esment Foundation to participate in the assembly and in applying the protection of the furniture. The workshops was carried out with great success since people enjoyed the action and participating in something that is done with their hands. In addition, working with natural materials such as wood and oil comforted them since they are materials that are pleasant to work with.
3.- The perception of furniture has been very well received for two reasons. First is the quality of the wood has been surprising. Unlike the pines produced in forestry, these pines grow in extreme conditions and of their wood is denser. In addition, the colors offered by the wood, are colors that recall the colors of the forest. The chromatic complexity of Pinus Halepensis wood expresses the complexity of the place where it has grown. On the other hand, the design of the furniture has had a great acceptance for the to the simplicity and honesty of how the aesthetics is the result of the construction.
Amarar's products are based on the principles of eco-social design where durability qualities, reusable and ultimately recyclable materials stand out, and on the other hand, work with vulnerable sectors.
1- AMARAR+ ESMENT PROJECT. The Amarar project has partnered with the Esment Foundation (https://esment.org/es/) to develop a project for the development of 100 pieces of furniture from 70 TN of local wood. To develop this project, Amarar and Esment have obtained a grant from the Department of the Environment of the Balearic Government (https://www.caib.es/seucaib/es/organigrama/2390691). These pieces of furniture are designed so that people with especial needs can participate in the manufacturing process. We are currently developing two lines of furniture design and manufacturing:
- Designs so that people with intellectual disabilities can assemble furniture, apply wood protection and packaging. We have held several workshops to check the feasibility of the procedure and it has been a success. (https://esment.org/blogs/las-personas-del-area-de-occupacion-participan-en-el-taller-de-montaje-de-mesas-de-casa-esment/).
- Designs so that people with intellectual disabilities can weave ropes into wooden structures to make chairs, armchairs and little tables.
2- MAKE DESIGNS FOR EVERYONE. We are currently developing two lines of work to make products that can be accessed by most family economies.
- Industrialize the process of cutting trunks, processing wood and making mubels.
- Make optimized designs to reduce the volume of wood.
3- FURNITURE FOR A WHOLE LIFE. The products that we find in the market that have different materials and closed designs, which means that the breakage of a piece of the furniture ends up in the landfill. Amarar products are durable furniture that can be used in different generations. The design of the furniture is made with wood and the use mainly of wood to solve all the joints and details.
Amarar has developed a methodology that allows the participation of civil society in the different processes of the project, from the forest to production:
1.- Establish a network of companies and designers who believe in the project.
- Through the Tramuntana XXI Association we have created a network of farm owners interested in participating in the project. This participation consists in the fact that the owners offer their farms to use the trunks of the pine trees for the manufacture of furniture.
- Amarar has also collaborated with different designers to manufacture prototypes made with wood and other materials from the biosphere such as the reuse of leather and cotton. We have worked mainly with the designer Pablo Erroz (https://www.pabloerroz.com/) and the Jaia studio (https://www.studiojaia.com/). Through the use of fabrics and ropes we have developed prototypes of chairs and armchairs.
- Finally, we have established a network of carpenters who want to work with Pinus Halepensis wood for the manufacture of prototypes and the industrial development of furniture manufacturing. In the last 20 years. Local pine wood has stopped being used and is currently a wood that is despised due to the amount of resin it has, which makes it a wood that you have to know how to work with. We currently collaborate with four carpentry shops for the development of products, which are Fusteria Galmes (http://www.fusteriagalmes.com/), That's Wood (https://thatswood.com/), Fuster Nadal Marruntx and Fusteria y Fusteria d 'Esporles
2.- Involve public institutions so that they participate in the development of the project and in the communication that another way of producing is possible.
There has been a very good reception by the stakeholders in the design and implementation of the project.
Local stakeholders
- Fusteria Galmes (www.fusteriagalmes.com). Amarar has partnered with Fusteria Galmes to cut the trunks, produce the wood and manufacture the furniture.
-Arimunani School (www.arimunani.com). They participated in the communication of the project, as well as in the dissemination of the values of the project.
Regional stakeholders
-Tramuntana XXI (www.tramuntanaxxi.com) and Pla XXI (www.plademallorcaxxi.com) helped us to get to know the owners of the forests as well as forestry companies
-Esment Foundation (www.esment.org/). Has been key to making prototypes and manufacturing a reality, as well as production designs with disabled and vulnerable people.
- Ministry of the Environment (www.caib.es/seucaib/es/organigrama/2390691) provides Amarar with pines from different areas of Mallorca to investigate the different qualities depending on their location. The use of a pond to submerge logs in water for months. This process is an ancient technique that improves the quality of the wood.
- General Directorate for Innovation (www.caib.es/govern/organigrama/area.do?coduo=2390343&lang=es). they has supported the project through a documentary that has been broadcast on different public television channels. They also held an exhibition in May 2022 to explain the project in its entirety.
-UIB (www.uib.es). Collaboration with the departments of the University to learn about the ecosystems of Mallorca's forests, as well as the technical characteristics of pine wood.
National stakeholders
-La salle university. (www.salleurl.edu/es) has been key to researching and teaching the application of local wood in architectural projects
European stakeholders
-Aarhus School of Architecture (www.aarch.dk). Amarar with this school is developing research on how to apply local materials that take care of nature and do not generate externalities elsewhere
proceso. *
The following fields of knowledge have been developed:
- Knowledge of the reality of Mallorca's forests has been the most complex part of the process. The business chains with local wood are broken, and we have had to re-weave the production chain with local wood, from the owners, the foresters, the sawmills, and the carpenters. Seeing this difficulty, we decided to start a company and associate with a carpentry to be able to develop the proposal.
- Knowledge of the characteristics of Pinus Halepensis. This pine, which is the main tree in our forests, has been discarded by carpenters and sawmills due to the amount of resin it has and the difficulty in working with it. Together with the carpenters we have had to know its qualities to adapt the manufacturing process to this type of wood.
- Thanks to the network of people, associations, and companies that we have collaborated with, we have learned how forest management was carried out in the past, how to cut pine trees and traditional techniques for treating wood.
- Collaboration with the Esment Foundation has allowed us to learn about the qualities and strengths of people who need support to carry out furniture assembly and manufacturing tasks. We have carried out different workshops to find out what their qualities are and adapt the design so that these people can work in the manufacturing process.
The results of the main actions are:
-Forest management: So far, they have supplied us with 100 pine logs. These 100 quality logs to make wood mean about 100 hectares of managed forest.
-Wood submerged in water: Knowledge of the characteristics of Pinus Halepensis has been the main handicap. It is one of the least stable woods on the market.
To work with better quality wood, we are going to compare the characteristics of wood soaked in water and only dried. The procedure by water immersion according to the investigations has given positive results in other species in the quality of the wood. We currently have 10 tons of wood in a water tank.
- Wood cutting procedure: The main investment we have made has been to buy a sawmill and thus be able to have the autonomy to cut the wood according to the characteristics of the tree and the design requirements. The knowledge of these characteristics has allowed us to establish a protocol for wood cutting and drying. From 100 tons we have produced 45 m3 of wood.
- Tri-layer, single-layer and laminated board production procedure: We are currently manufacturing trilayer boards and laminated wood. We have been the first company in Mallorca and Spain to manufacture trilayers and laminates with Pinus Halepensis. From 45 m3 we have manufactured 40 m3 of processed wood.
-Construction technique: We have developed a way of assembling the furniture without depending on fittings, all the furniture is assembled using pieces of wood. Using this technique we have manufactured about 12 prototypes and manufactured about 200 pieces of furniture.
-Social collaboration. Together with the Esment Foundation, we have carried out workshops to learn about the strengths of people who need support to assemble furniture. Three workshops held together with the Esment Foundation.
-Teaching: Together with the La Salle School of Architecture we have carried out a course with 40 students to develop architecture projects with Pinus Halepensis wood.
Currently, the origin of the wood with the FSC seal that is used in Mallorca and in the West comes from temperate forests. These forests have constant annual rainfall, this has favored the development in the last two centuries of a silviculture based on the monoculture of a species of tree adapted to each climate.
On the other hand, there are the Mediterranean forests that, compared to temperate forests, are characterized by a long drought in summer (currently between 3-4 months). This characterization has a negative and a positive component. The negative is that in the Mediterranean climate it is not viable to plant a monoculture-based silviculture, since the long summer drought paralyzes the growth of the tree in this period. On the other hand, these forests are currently ecosystems that have great biodiversity, something that the land exploited through silviculture lacks.
Currently these forests due to the introduction of new materials in the 50’s, together with the importation of wood, has led to the abandonment of forest management up to 95% today. On the other hand, the characteristics of Pinus Halepensis, has meant that the use given to the extraction of this wood (5% of the forest mass) is to manufacture pallets and chips for biomass.
The actions that have been carried out in Mallorca to recover forest management involve the use of biomass in the households in the Serra de Tramuntana to increase the use of Mallorcan wood. This action has been well received, but this use shortens the life of the pine wood, since the wood is extracted to burn it.
Amarar's proposes to use the trunks of the pine trees to manufacture quality furniture and give added value to the wood that is extracted. This would make it possible to increase an offer by the owners and to be able to increase the managed forest area in the coming years.
The methodology that we have applied to develop the project has been, in the first place, to carry out a diagnosis based on two points:
1-Learn about the reality of the forest in Mallorca. To do this, we searched for information on the forests of Mallorca, the tree species, the number of trees, the increase in forest area in recent decades and the rate of forest abandonment. On the other hand, we did field work in the mountains together with forest guards, ecologists and the public company Ibanat to obtain first-hand information on the current state of the forests. The main conclusion was that the forest is 95% abandoned and the forest mass has grown by 40% in 70 years.
2- Know the business system that goes from the forest to the furniture. They took us to visit forest guards, sawmills and carpenters. The conclusion was that the productive fabric of the wood was broken 20 years ago and today no one uses Pinus Halepensis wood for furniture, carpentry or structure.
After learning first-hand about the problem and the entire industrial network, we propose that a company from each link participate in a project to re-weave an industry that recovers the use of Mallorcan pine wood.
In this second phase there are three very important processes:
1.- Found the company Amarar (founded in September 2021) to carry out this project.
2.- Associate with the Galmes carpentry to develop together with this company to produce wood and manufacture furniture prototypes.
3.- Carry out a project together with the Esment Foundation to design a procedure that allows people in need of support to assemble the furniture.
Beneficiaries and context.
According to the WWF report, more than 80% of the total area burned every year on the European continent belongs to Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and Greece. Its mountains burn year after year an average of 375,000 HC in more than 56,000 accidents. These forests belong to the Mediterranean forest biome, which is characterized by the long dry season in the summer. In addition, the anthropization of these forests has decreased until it disappears at present given the low productivity they have compared to the forestry of temperate forests.
In short, Today we have more forests and more abandoned ones. On the other hand, the ecosystem they house makes them reserves of biodiversity. So, we are faced with a great opportunity to take care of these ecosystems and at the same time produce material for the construction of furniture, carpentry and structure.
Therefore, the beneficiary group and the context are all the countries of the Mediterranean basin.
Replicable and transferable elements
-Applied methodology. The first action is to know the forestry and industrial reality that exists in the territory where the project is to be implemented. It's necessary to know the state of the forests and the industrial network. The second action is to create a strategic working group between professionals, entities linked to the forest and local carpentry companies. Third, to set up a legal entity, that manages the process from forest to furniture. Fourth, incorporate into the team foundations that work with people in need of support and vulnerable people.
-Technology. Transfer of the characteristics, uses and performance of the machinery necessary to carry out the process of cutting logs, making slats, producing tri-layer and laminated wood and furniture.
-Products. Transfer design knowledge to reduce the use of other materials.
-Social inclusion. Explain experiences of jobs that people with support needs and vulnerable people can do.
Currently we have two realities that nature is being destroyed and people are being exploited.
Our economy is based on the use of materials that produce externalities in other places (elsewhere). These externalities, hidden from the consumer society, are based on the destruction of nature and the exploitation of people. The greater the destruction of nature and the exploitation of people, the greater the benefit companies and investment funds obtain.
On the other hand, the area of Mediterranean forests has increased by 40% in the last 70 years and 95% of the area of the forest mass is abandoned. This means that there are places like Catalonia and the Balearic Islands where 50% of their surface is abandoned, which exposes them to suffering wildfires in summer. Also the people who work in these forests are poorly paid.
The Amarar project proposes a local solution to be able to respond to these two great challenges. Arguing that the extraction of construction material is based on caring for ecosystems and paying a fair price to the entire value chain.
Take care of our forests. The main objective is to take care of the forests and reduce the area of abandonment. For this we have to make them productive again and that the owners receive a benefit from their forests. The final product cannot be biomass or pallets, it has to be a value-added product such as furniture, carpentry or structures.
Pay a fair price. The second objective is to recreate the value chain and each of the actors in this value chain has to charge a fair price for the work done.
Social insertion. The third objective is to collaborate with people who need support to be able to assemble the furniture and produce it.
Make a design based on showing the quality of the wood, the construction process and the operation with which it has been built.
