MALAYSIA’S furniture industry, which is facing rubber wood shortage, may in the next five years use oil palm trunks as Forest Research Institute ofMalaysia (Frim) works on the specifications and testings of thematerial. Frim is one of the government agencies tasked toresearch into using natural resources more efficiently and turn what waspreviously considered waste like rubber wood into commercial timber.Before rubber wood was introduced as a suitable raw material tofurniture makers, felled rubber trees were mainly used for firewood.In the 1980s and 1990s, Frim managed to make rubber wood – initially a difficult wood to treat – a sought-after sawn timber for furniture.

Rubber wood is hard enough to be machine-friendly and soft enough to be moulded. Its pale colour and tight grain also gives good finishingquality. Now, Frim is once again looking to turn waste into suitable raw material for furniture-making.Yesterday, Frim’s representatives Datuk Dr Marzalina Mansor and Dr WanTarmeze Wan Ariffin presented their idea at a seminar hosted by theMalaysian Timber Council. They were, however, met with considerablescepticism from industry executives present at the event.The general consensus was that oil palm trunks are susceptible to fungal andinsect attacks due to their high sugar and starch content. In addition,their “soggy” characteristics mean they are not machine-friendly.But an enterprise, My Wood Resources Sdn Bhd, is willing to partner Frim.At a press conference held in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, My Wood financedirector Vincent Yong said his company plans to set up a RM50 millionpilot plant with Frim to make trial lumber out of oil palm tree trunks.Marzalina said the pilot plant will use US-patented technologycalled steam-pressed scrim lumber and diluted but tight-bonding glue.My Wood and Frim are due to formalise their collaboration by the end of the year.