The Icelandic entrepreneur Högni Stéfan from Arctic Plank wants to reuse wood waste and create new products from used wood on Bornholm. Photo: Arctic Plank
Discarding wood has to stop, according to the Icelander Högni Stéfan, who with his company Arctic Plank has proved that the possibilities are numerous when it comes to recycling wood waste. Now he wants to repeat his sustainable success on Bornholm.
In just one year, much of the wood that we throw away at BOFA and can see lying in piles around the island's building sites will no longer go up in smoke. At least, that is if it is up to the Icelander Högni Stéfan, owner and founder of the company Arctic Plank in Iceland.
– Since 2010, I have worked purposefully with reclaimed wood as a business concept, and today I have built up the expertise needed to renovate and give new life to used materials, says entrepreneur and businessman Högni Stéfan.
– From recycled wood, I have created everything from furniture and wall panelling to interior solutions for hotels and restaurants – as well as parquet floors and materials for terraces and patios.
Without knowing it, Högni Stéfan laid the foundation for his sustainable timber adventure when he worked as a carpenter in Copenhagen back in the late 90s.
– Along with my former colleagues, I removed flooring and skirting boards in several flats in Vesterbro that were actually just meant to be destroyed, he says, adding:
– But when one day I saw a huge pile of wood being thrown out, I thought: »Is that really our only idea?"
– just burn it?« And I couldn't bring myself to throw it away. So my colleagues and I sold some of the floorboards, and the rest – about 400 square metres – I took with me when I moved back to Iceland in 2000.
Want to save wood – one piece at a time
That floor is now in a very nice shop in Iceland, he says.
– Because when I returned home, I started researching and talking to machinery manufacturers and realised that we can do a great deal with this type of used wood that we have got used to discarding as waste. I have always loved wood, and I don't like seeing it thrown away, says Högni Stéfan, who has had mountains of old wood to play with.
– In Iceland, we throw away around 94,000 cubic metres of wood every year. On Bornholm, the figure is probably between 10,000 and 16,000. My goal is to save one piece of wood at a time. Every time we reuse wood that would otherwise have been thrown away, we do something good – both for ourselves and for the planet.
Why do you see Bornholm as an attractive location?
– Bornholm reminds me a bit of Iceland – it is an island, after all. I really like the place, and people are friendly. The island is a good size and well located, and it's a super place to start something up. I think we can get some exciting projects going here – and maybe even show the rest of Denmark how to work with sustainability and the circular economy – especially when it comes to our consumption of timber, says the Icelandic entrepreneur, who was put in touch with BOFA by a friend in London.
And that was the start of his new entrepreneurial adventure on Bornholm.
– When BOFA heard about my company Arctic Plank, they were interested in a meeting. We hit it off, and I was invited to participate in Folkemødet in June together with BOFA.
Photo: Arctic Plank
Photo: Arctic Plank
During his visit, he also received good support from Business Center Bornholm (BCB).
– Through Jørn Pedersen from BCB, I met several of the companies that form part of the value chain. That strengthened my belief that I should do something about my idea of recycling wood on Bornholm, says Högni Stéfan, who wants to collect discarded and surplus wood just as has hitherto been done in Iceland.
However, on Bornholm it will primarily be from construction sites and BOFA, says the entrepreneur, who has already taken the first important steps towards establishing himself on the island.
– We are compiling a list of interesting partners who can help realise the opening of a factory on Bornholm. Everything must happen locally, and it must be a Bornholm product.
Which products will you produce on Bornholm?
– We are going to produce CLT (cross-laminated timber), glued laminated timber beams, prefabricated wall elements as well as raw materials for window manufacturers, just as we will also produce materials for pallets. During my visit to Bornholm this summer, it became clear to me that there are already some pallet manufacturers on Bornholm. Rather than competing with them, I would rather collaborate with them so that they can further develop their product by using recycled wood, says Högni Stéfan, who believes that Bornholm is an obvious place to work both circularly and with value chains.
Recycling can solve many problems
Høgni Stéfan has already chosen spots on the island for his sustainable Bornholm timber factory.
– I have visited 3-4 different locations and have now narrowed it down to two. The next step is to find investors and get people on board, says the Icelander, who expects to be ready for production next year.
"If I get an idea, I like to act on it quickly and don't want to overthink it for years," says the Icelandic entrepreneur, who sees a bright future for the type of products he wants to develop and sell.
– Wood reuse is becoming an important part of future construction. In every project, we try to contribute to a better world, because we believe it is necessary to protect our ecosystem in an era characterised by disposable design and mass production.
By renovating and reusing timber that would otherwise have been burned, we can, according to Högni Stéfan, help to solve many of the challenges we are facing.
– The construction industry is obviously a big ship to turn around, but we have a good long-term solution. I believe that our vision can benefit the entire industry. We can open eyes to alternative solutions and help companies think more circularly – also economically.
BY JOAN ØHRSTRØM