The international competition “Sustainability in Architecture, Construction, Design in the Baltic States 2024”, organised by the Building Design and Construction Council, has come to a close, and its laureates were announced on 5 September. In the “Most Sustainable Project” nomination, in the “New Build” category, third place was awarded to AS “Latvijas Finieris” for the project of its new veneer mill, the “Kuldīga factory”. The international jury praised the use of timber structures, as well as the technological processes and the equipment installed.
Member of the Management Board of AS “Latvijas Finieris” Aigars Veitmans:
“Sustainable thinking has been an integral part of the operations and culture of “Latvijas Finieris” for decades, and it is something we continually strive to develop. We are gratified that an international jury has recognised what the group has achieved at the Kuldīga mill, where, working together with AS “UPB”, we have put a sustainable approach into practice and demonstrated it in deeds rather than merely in words.”
The “Kuldīga factory” production building, opened in June 2024, was built on a property that the company acquired more than 10 years ago, when it was a derelict, unmanaged site with an unfinished paving stone plant building that had been erected at one time but never commissioned and had stood abandoned for many years.
The “Kuldīga factory” is equipped with technology that is unique on a global scale, making it possible to obtain the maximum possible veneer yield from every birch log. The mill and its one-of-a-kind equipment therefore mark a significant turning point in wood processing, ensuring that small-diameter timber, which previously was mainly exported to Scandinavia for pulp production or processed in other ways, is used to the fullest in higher value-added birch wood products.
The mill has also been fitted with a compact hydrothermal treatment chamber for veneer blocks, the only one of its kind in Latvia, in which logs are thermally prepared for peeling using the steam method. Thanks to recirculation, it ensures considerably lower water consumption, meaning that only a very small share of the water used in the treatment process will reach the pre-treatment facilities and the centralised wastewater collection system. The chamber runs on water from an artesian borehole located on the production site. Wastewater from the production process is cleaned in a suspended solids filter and reused in the sprinkler system in order to improve the quality of the wood.
A sustainable approach was also applied in the construction of the mill building itself, using glued laminated timber structures that store CO₂. The building meets nearly zero-energy building requirements. Solar panels have been installed on the roof to improve energy efficiency. There is an electric vehicle charging point and a bicycle stand beside the building’s amenity block.
The “Kuldīga factory” project paid particular attention to the well-being of employees, creating a pleasant and safe working environment. The rest and changing room area has likewise been built using timber structures, and the finishes feature wooden interior details and furniture systems made in Latvia, which create a homely atmosphere and consistently uphold the working environment quality standards set by “Latvijas Finieris”.
The aim of the “Sustainability in Architecture, Construction, Design in the Baltic States 2024” competition is to promote ideas of sustainable construction, architecture and design and to educate the public, to highlight best practice, to share information about the success factors behind such projects, to draw attention to the resources available for creating sustainable buildings or for the wood processing and other technologies used in manufacturing plants, and to gather experience and ideas on sustainable buildings, production technologies and urban development and the conditions for these in the Baltics.