Fagusnoir
New perspectives for the use of Swiss beech
Too many tree species, rare in our country, are used in large quantities for interior design and furniture. For aesthetic reasons, furniture design and interior architecture often rely on dark wood species that are expressive due to their grain, such as oak, walnut and cherry. The mentioned wood species make up only a very small proportion in the European forests. This leads to the fact that the population of these wood species decreases more and more due to the great demand so that the need must be covered with wood from abroad. Contrary to this, beech is becoming a problem due to lack of demand. The beech is the most widespread deciduous tree in Europe. Since it has too little sales at home, it is exported at rock-bottom prices to other countries. In the domestic market, the biggest sales are in the field of firewood.
For these reasons, we consider it necessary to create new perspectives for the use of Swiss beech. Our concern is to give beech wood a higher significance with the value-adding process.
In the fagusnoir project, we are developing a process that changes the wood's own color of beech wood. The aim is to color solid beech wood through the entire cross-section. The process is based on a natural phenomenon of the two substances tannin and iron. When these two substances react with each other in the wood, a dark, grayish tone is produced. The chemical reaction gives the beech the unique impression of having grown in this color. fagusnoir is completely coloured wood. Demanding surface treatments become unnecessary. Partially environmentally harmful treatments such as staining, or varnishing are replaced by sustainable modification. Renewed sanding, while maintaining the same color, significantly increases the lifetime of the product. This sets fagusnoir apart from conventional surface treatments.