Unlocking opportunities for engineered wood materials in green construction

Today, the trend of green building and emission reduction is becoming an essential global requirement. In this context, engineered wood is emerging as a strategic material for the global construction industry.

A production stage of high-quality export plywood at Long Viet Plywood Technology Joint Stock Company in Tam Phuoc Industrial Park. Photo: Vuong The

The development of engineered wood materials not only opens up opportunities to increase product value but also helps Vietnam's wood industry participate more deeply in the global value chain.

Significant potential

Experts believe that, given Vietnam's existing strengths in the wood industry, the engineered wood segment holds considerable potential to increase product value. According to Nguyen Phuong, Chairman of the Dong Nai Wood and Handicraft Association, Vietnam’s wood industry has experienced more than two decades of strong growth. Export turnover rose from less than USD1 billion in 2003 to USD16.7 billion in 2025. However, despite this growth trajectory, profit margins for wood-processing enterprises have gradually narrowed under mounting competitive pressure and increasingly stringent sustainability requirements worldwide. “In the context of global priorities shifting toward green construction and carbon emissions reduction, engineered wood is emerging as a strategic material for modern construction,” he said.

Similarly, Pham Duc Thieng, a forestry research expert at the international organization Forest Trends and the author of the draft research report, Assessment of the potential and opportunities for developing the market for engineered wood materials in construction, said the global construction industry is rapidly shifting toward low-emission development models. In this context, engineered wood materials are increasingly seen as a potential alternative to concrete and steel in many types of construction projects.

Thieng pointed out that many countries in Europe, North America, and Asia have strongly promoted the use of engineered wood in residential buildings, hotels, schools, office buildings, and even high-rise structures. Unlike traditional timber, engineered wood materials are produced using advanced technologies, offering high load-bearing capacity, dimensional stability, and compliance with strict technical standards.

In Vietnam, the wood industry is large-scale but primarily focuses on furniture and custom processing, while engineered wood materials for construction are still in their nascent stage. In the construction sector, the "green consumption" factor is gradually taking shape. Consumers are concerned about health, the environment, and product origin, and their ability to pay is also increasing. Therefore, future wood material products, especially engineered wood from Vietnam, have even more opportunities to increase their market share domestically and globally.

Removing barriers to develop the engineered wood sector

Vietnam’s major advantage lies in its abundant plantation forest resources. By 2025, the country had nearly 4.9 million hectares of planted forests, with common species including acacia, rubberwood, pine, and eucalyptus.

Vo Quang Ha, Chairman of the HCM City Structure Architecture Wood Association  (SAWA) and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tan Vinh Cuu Joint Stock Company in Long Binh Ward, Dong Nai City, said that as global carbon-emission regulations become increasingly stringent, low-emission materials such as wood are gaining opportunities to become competitive choices in the construction industry, particularly in markets with high environmental standards. “Promoting the use of domestically sourced plantation timber not only increases economic value but also contributes to forest protection and sustainable development,” he said.

According to experts, in the future, Vietnam should develop demonstration projects or pioneering structures using engineered wood to build market confidence and create iconic showcases for the industry.

However, most plantation forests in Vietnam are still harvested on short cycles for woodchip production. As a result, timber materials tend to have small diameters, numerous knots, and a tendency to warp, making them less suitable for manufacturing high-quality structural products. Domestic engineers and architects also still lack experience in modern timber structures, multi-material connections, sound insulation, and moisture control for wooden buildings. In education and research, universities have yet to fully integrate subjects related to timber structural design or modern engineered wood technologies into their curricula.

The biggest obstacle at present lies in standards and legal frameworks. Although Vietnam already has some standards for finger-jointed timber and laminated wood products, it still lacks a comprehensive set of standards for the design, construction, installation, and acceptance of structural mass timber buildings. Vietnam has also not established a timber strength classification system equivalent to international standards, such as Europe’s EN standards or the United States’ ASTM standards. These gaps in standards and certification not only increase investment and testing costs but also force enterprises to rely heavily on foreign certification systems, thereby limiting competitiveness and deeper participation in the global value chain.

Pham Duc Thieng emphasized that for engineered wood materials to become a promising new industry, Vietnam needs a comprehensive development strategy that includes improving legal frameworks and technical standards. At the same time, it is necessary to invest in research and training, and to strengthen linkages between the forestry, wood processing, and construction sectors to form a complete value chain for the engineered wood industry in the future.

By Vuong The – Translated by Mai Nga, Minho