What are the WUR Centers? Wood Utilization Research (WUR) Centers are located at 12 state universities across the US. These centers conduct vital research on wood use to support the competitiveness of small and medium wood product manufacturers and the needs of the public.  The WUR research program is an investment that benefits all Americans and that keeps our nation competitive through the innovative use of our wood resources.

More Wood is used each year in the USA than ALL cement, steel and plastics COMBINED!

VISION

 Through diverse, regionally-based efforts, the WUR Program will create and disseminate the knowledge and innovations that strengthen America’s competitiveness and extend our natural resources.

Biofuels

Bioplastics
 

WUR funding has led to:

  • Advanced home and building construction materials

  • Research on the production of ethanol and other fuels, and plastics from wood

  • Advanced engineered wood composites 

  • Environmentally friendly wood products

Wood provides many of our nation's needs and, with continued research, will continue to provide new products ranging from modern engineered structural beams and panels to new clean heating for our homes and fuel for our vehicles. The essential research conducted at WUR Centers across the US directly contributes to reducing our dependence on foreign resources and provides jobs for Americans.

  
 

Continued educational efforts are needed to maintain the efficient use of wood and, through innovation, convert wood into high value-added products. WUR research and education is critical to enable innovation and the creation of new technology. Only 75 years ago, half of the wood from every tree harvested was wasted. Now, through education of the workforce and better technology developed by trained wood scientists and engineers, we can recover 95% of wood from our forests.

WUR Centers are training the next generation of Wood Scientists and Engineers at Universities across the US from Alaska to Mississippi and from Maine to Washington.

Click HERE for rolling images of some of the WUR Centers' research and education efforts.

Click HERE for the locations of WUR Centers across the US.

Although wood has been used for centuries as a traditional material it is also one of the most environmentally friendly, least expensive, renewable, and easily recyclable materials available. It is because of these characteristics that manufacturers are using wood as the basic building block for new advanced materials and chemicals. WUR researchers are currently at the forefront in using wood to develop:

  • Bio-based liquid fuels.

  • Lightweight high performance wood hybrid composites.

  • Low cost, high strength carbon nanotubes and nanocomposites.

WUR research has moved far beyond traditional wood products and the WUR centers are working with non traditional wood-using industries such as high performance engineering companies, fuel cell developers and biotechnology firms as they innovate with wood to produce new advanced products. We also continue to work with traditional wood manufacturers from home builders to small wood products plants. WUR centers serve as the technical support base for traditional wood product manufacturers, since they rely on us to remain competitive. As just one example, WUR research on kiln drying of wood has enabled small to medium sized mill owners to comply with federal air pollution standards. This research has saved these companies an estimated $50 - $100 million in monitoring fees and helped to keep mills open, protected jobs, and reduced air pollution.

LOSS OF CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE: As a nation, we cannot afford to lose the capacity for educating our students in wood utilization. Nor can we afford to lose the equipment and physical infrastructure that has been created through WUR funding and leveraging, which allows universities to support wood consumers and producers to provide employment and remain competitive. Our future depends on our ability to remain independent and to lead in the competitive world of natural resource use and development.

  

The US is currently underinvested in this research area. The only funding mechanism that exists to support university-based wood utilization research is WUR. There are no competitive grant programs focused on utilizing wood as a material, and no other special grants to support the types of  wood research that are vital to the country. A recent United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) report has highlighted the importance of research at Universities on wood utilization, pointing out that this research addresses a National Need.  The funds that are currently received have been used to leverage state and private funds to grow the capacity of US small and medium wood industries as commercialization efforts expand.  The research dollars spent directly benefit US producers and consumers of products made in the USA.