PERSPECTIVE NOV 2006 -
Building on Excellence (AHEC)

TITLE: Wooden Wonder

STANDFIRST: Even now, nothing surpasses the versatility and aesthetic appeal of hardwood – or the quality and amazing variety of American hardwood products.

New technology has brought a host of advanced building and decor materials to the market over the past decade, allowing architects and designers to explore daring new horizons in aesthetic appeal and structural innovation. And yet there is one time-proven material that still stands out as perhaps the most versatile, beautiful and cost-effective of them all. Even amidst the stunning advances of the 21st century, that most ancient of materials – hardwood – appeals as much for its functional advantages as for its visual flair.

For years, the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) has worked to foster a deeper understanding of hardwood, in the process revealing the sometimes astonishing range of purposes to which it can be applied. “We represent over 100 hardwood companies that collectively provide the entire spectrum of American hardwood products and applications,” explains John Chan, AHEC's regional director for Southeast Asia & Greater China. “Through various programmes and events like seminars, we provide information and technical assistance to everyone from furniture producers to architects, designers and end-users.” This close cooperation, needless to say, pays off in the increasing use, and ever-increasing list of new uses, of American hardwood in the Greater China market.

As Chan points out, the sheer variety of American hardwood species alone offers designers an outstanding tool with which to add distinction to their projects. In Greater China, no less than 30 species are available with walnut, cherry, maple (hard and soft), red alder, poplar, red oak, white oak and ash being among the most popular. Each is naturally distinctive in its grain, color and texture, and is highly adaptable to an almost infinite number of treatments to further bring out its beauty or optimise its suitability for different uses, whether architectural or decorative.

The number of projects large and small that have taken advantage of American hardwood's qualities attests to the amazing usefulness of this material. Whether used as flooring, furniture or a major architectural feature, hardwood has the uncanny ability to add a welcome note of warmth and textural depth to virtually any design. “It is through the ideas of designers and architects that hardwood really becomes something special. What begins as nothing more than a piece of wood is transformed into a chair, or a wall panel or a floor – something with the ability to completely change the character of a room,” Chan notes. When correctly treated and installed, hardwood is highly resistant even to the extremes of temperature and humidity that characterise the Hong Kong climate.

AHEC takes great pride in another facet of the American hardwood industry: its care for the environment. “Hardwood is harvested very selectively in America – only fully grown trees are chosen for harvest, with younger ones left alone to mature,” says Chan. “This means that the industry is very sustainable. In fact, there are more hardwood trees in America now than there were 50 years ago”. As a further measure to use resources wisely, the industry is careful to use as much of each hardwood log as possible, grading their various lumber products accordingly. AHEC has played a major role in pointing out the usefulness and unusual beauty of some grades of lumber with natural character marks, traditionally seen as ‘lower grade'.

Invaluable products deserve an invaluable service, and since 1992 that is precisely what the Hong Kong office of AHEC has provided. As long as architects and designers continue to find new uses for hardwood, and as long as the appeal of the material persists, it is a role that looks set to expand.