Are we running out of wood in Normandy? The industry took stock of this issue this Thursday, March 17 in Canteleu (Seine-Maritime). Recent shortages have caused delays in construction sites but things are improving, although the sector remains under pressure
The director of Fibois Normandie Anne-Sarah Moalic outlines: “Rather than shortage, we can speak of tensions because prices have increased for international factors, and for questions of mobilization of wood in the forest, which is complicated when the weather does not lend itself to it and the workforce is not enough to get the wood out of the forest and that has had repercussions on construction sites, because when you plan construction sites with a price, inevitably when the raw material that arrives has a higher cost, that raises questions and people bought less wood for their projects.”
“The carpenter is someone respected on the site, who can earn a good living!”
These tensions concern several types of woodexplains Anne-Sarah Moalic: “There are two types of wood, hardwoods like the oak that grows in Normandy and softwoods that we mainly import.” These tensions are explained “because we don’t have enough employees to meet business needs and also because of the pandemic, because of the borders! But today, the order books are full!”
The timber industry is a major employer in Normandyrecalls the director of Fibois Normandie: “The sector represents 3,000 companies in Normandy and 20,000 jobs, it’s as much as the automotive sector in Normandy except that these are a lot of small companies and they have trouble making themselves known and recruiting.”
It is a sector that is hiring, insists Anne-Sarah Moalic: “We need carpenters, it’s not just someone who climbs on a roof! It’s someone who will master geometry in space, who will do calculations and who will also work from his hands, who is highly respected on construction sites and who can earn a good living, it’s not the restrictive image we have of it!”
The sector also needs loggers.