Research collaboration and innovations

The UNITE Flagship (2020-2024), (2024-2028) is a cross-disciplinary community that combines the topmost competencies within the forest sciences with geospatial technologies, sensor innovations, and gamification. We will digitalise forests and their value networks which will include the various uses, their services, and their opportunities, and how these features are reconciled.

UNITE merges science and practice. We conduct scientific research, collaborative RDI, and case studies with our industry collaborators. We target revolutionary business and scientific leaps.

Our collaborators include companies from the forest sector and the games industry, Finnish domestic and international organisations, and leading scientists from different parts of the world.

About – UNITE Flagship

The Towards Strong Sustainability Forest Services (VaKe) project (2024-2027) aims to develop a new, research-based business model for forest services built on strong sustainability principles. This includes the creation of  forest service products, exploring the educational needs required for the sustainability transition, and enhancing forestry education to address these needs. The project is funded by the Kone Foundation through its “For the Woods“ initiative and is being carried out in collaboration with the School of Forest Sciences and the Business School at the University of Eastern Finland, Häme University of Applied Sciences, and Lapland University of Applied Sciences.

The strong sustainability forest planning process developed in the project will be tested in real-world forest planning service encounter with forest owners, in collaboration with the forest service providers participating in the project: MHY Kaakko, MHY Päijät-Häme, Lapin Metsäpalvelut Oy, LUSTO Metsävarainhoito, and Metsäpalvelu Arvometsä. After the research project, the forest service providers will have the opportunity to continue offering strong sustainability forest services using the business model developed and tested during the project.

About -VaKe (in Finnish)

TurvaHiili (2022-2024) is a forestry project under Finland’s Sustainable Growth Program (RRF), aimed at training current and future professionals in the restoration of drained peatlands. The goal was to equip them with the skills to select appropriate sites for restoration and successfully implement restoration measures.

Company and Forestry Organisation collaboration within the TurvaHiili Project 

TurvaHiili project involved close collaboration with companies and forestry organisations. For example, the project partner Tornator Plc provided one of its peatland restoration sites as a research and demonstration area. The project team held a restoration demonstration at the site, showcasing the planning and practical implementation of restoration activities. Researchers gathered materials for doctoral studies and created visual materials for educational videos during the demonstration.

The project also produced a series of instructional videos and podcasts, where experts from companies and forestry organisations shared their insights and expertise. The series explores the restoration of drained peat lands, the selection of suitable sites for restoration, and key considerations for planning and implementing restoration measures.

The target audience for the series includes peatland restoration planners, machine operators, and students in environmental, forestry, and forestry machinery fields at various educational levels. It also provides valuable information for landowners interested in restoration and the public.

About – TurvaHiili (in Finnish)

The SMALLWOOD project (2019-2022) aimed to develop and evaluate new technologies and new business and operational models that can support a sustainable management and utilisation of different types of small diameter wood.

Team conducted field studies in Finland, Sweden, Slovenia, and Spain, using the Bracke C16c accumulating felling head developed by the project’s industry partner, Bracke Forest AB.

Researchers studied three different types of technologies:

• Multi-tree harvesting technique combined with the working method “Boom corridor Thinning.”
• Combined harvesting and chipping technique
• Combined harvesting and bundling technique

The project also included a multi-criteria assessment of the economic, social, and ecological sustainability and value creation dimensions of small tree thinning, along with an environmental assessment of small-diameter tree thinning operations.

About – Smallwood