Wood Products

We assist wood products manufacturers and consumers in gaining the greatest benefit from the responsible use of wood by developing new knowledge to reduce raw material costs, improve processing technologies and encourage innovation in product development. Thus integrating industrial competitiveness with natural resource conservation through science and engineering.

Wood Research Laboratory

The wood products extension group is associated with the Wood Research Laboratory at Purdue FNR. The Wood Research Laboratory addresses timely research and technology transfer topics in the areas of product and process engineering of wood-based products/sustainable biomaterials; their use, reuse, and care.

The Wood Products Team is committed to education and aiding professionals around the globe.

Wood Products Extension Programs

The Wood Research Lab assists wood products manufacturers and consumers in gaining the greatest benefit from responsible use of wood by developing new knowledge to reduce raw material costs, improve processing technologies, and encourage innovation in product development, thus integrating industrial competitiveness with natural resource conservation through science and engineering. View the current list of Wood Products Extension Programs.

Indiana Wood Industry

The Wood Research Lab web site has interesting Indiana Wood Industry Facts including how many firms and the average annual wage.

Helpful Links:
View a map of Indiana Hardwood businesses, Purdue Center for Regional Development, Esri Map-Indiana Hardwoods.

The Indiana Forest Products Price Report and Trend Analysis is provided by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), Division of Forestry. This report lists prices paid for delivered logs, not trees. The forest products price report will give you an idea of the wide variation in prices by species and log quality. For timber marketing experts a list of Professional Foresters is available Find an Indiana Forester, or you can contact your IDNR District Forester.

The Gallery of Indiana Hardwoods:

Hardwoods of the Central Midwest

The Central Midwest is one of the most productive biological regions in the world. It’s a place where the eastern forest intermixes with the western prairies. The terrain is gentle, the soils are rich and highly productive, and moisture is normally abundant. This combination of factors makes the region noteworthy for its agricultural productivity. The same combination of factors also produces timberlands with the finest and highest quality temperate hardwoods in the world.

The Gallery of Hardwoods, located on the Purdue campus in the Pfendler Hall building, has 27 samples of Indiana hardwood species. You can also explore and learn more with the online tour, which is now available on The Purdue Arboretum Explorer – Hardwoods of the Central Midwest website.