Joubert Plywood panels Low carbon footprint, high environmental quality
Being close to nature intrinsically links humans to the future. Firm in this belief, Joubert Plywood made a long-term commitment over 20 years ago that is rooted in the heart of the forest.
The family-run Group is now the European leader in certified plywoods. It is proactively pursuing its environmental initiative by working towards decarbonised construction and by making progress in terms of resource management and promoting human well-being.
Of high technical and environmental quality, its panels are known to be sourced from sustainably managed Okoume and Poplar forests. Its reduced-impact manufacturing processes reconcile reclamation of timber, recycling and energy savings.
Located in the heart of poplar plantations in the Charente and Charente-Maritime regions of France, the Group is pursuing and improving its continuous innovative research, applying a process that promotes not only technical quality and product safety, but also sustainable practices and new uses.
Ecological timber certified renewable and legal
Okoume: preserved resources with legally sourced timber
The Joubert Group has, for a long time, been committed to biodiversity conservation and the timber of the future. Its partnership with CGB in Gabon, a forestry concession under sustainable land management, involves 568,000 hectares of FSC®-certified forests being sustainably managed. This rigorous approach goes hand in hand with the criteria of the EUDR (European Regulation against deforestation and forest degradation) concerning the conformity of supplies: legal harvesting of timber without contributing to deforestation, geolocation of plots of land, respect for local populations, etc.
Protecting the primary forest, soils and water
Sustainable forest management involves maintaining the biological diversity and ecological functions that ensure the integrity of our forests. More than 400,000 trees and 300 species have been georeferenced. Large areas of the forestry concession have been set aside or dedicated to scientific studies conducted with NGOs.
Preserving natural growth
To allow the forest to live, the amount of timber harvested does not exceed forest potential and its capacity for re-growth and natural regeneration. Reduced-impact logging rules limit pressure on the environment and promote natural regeneration. Prior marking of trees ensures the strictest traceability of 100% legal timber, as well as preservation of future trees and the traditional living environment of local populations.
Contributing to local life and the local economy
FSC® certification guarantees that particular attention is paid to improving the living conditions of forestry workers and their families: housing, drinking water, electricity, health, education and food. It provides for permanent dialogue with local communities.
From the forest to the peeled veneer factory in Port Gentil, the Joubert Group supports the work and training of about 1000 people, thereby helping to create value in the producer country.
Social impacts of the Forest Stewardship Council certification: an assessment in the Congo Basin
CIFOR publication: Download the executive summary
Poplar: supporting certified local supply
Sourced from PEFC-certified forests in France, Joubert Plywood's poplar supply is sourced from trees grown locally, for the most part less than 150 km from its established manufacturing sites. The supply chain for its Poplar panels is thereby as short as possible, from procurement to manufacture.
Supporting local industry: "Merci le Peuplier" (Thank you Poplar) Charter
A signatory of the "Merci le Peuplier" Charter, Joubert Plywood provides financial support to poplar farmers in South-West France to ensure the continued existence of the entire Poplar supply chain. In 10 years, more than 900 hectares of poplar trees in South-West France have been supported.
Reforesting and tackling climate change
To conserve Poplar resources and sustain local ecosystems, Joubert Plywood has created a major partnership to promote reforestation in its region. The Joubert Valter Peupliers plan, backed by the forestry, property and financial expertise of the forestry company Société Forestière de la Caisse des Dépôts, offers owners security of their lands, production of quality Poplar timber and guaranteed income. Each plot is managed in line with PEFC commitments and promotes conservation of the natural environment and carbon sequestration. Twenty thousand poplar trees have already been planted in the pilot phase, with a target to plant 60,000 more over the next 4 years.
Supporting the sustainable management of French forests
Joubert Plywood supports reforestation projects along with awareness-raising and innovation actions supported by the "Plantons pour l'avenir" endowment fund.
Joubert Valter Peupliers
Within the framework of its raw materials procurement management policy, Joubert Plywood, together with the Banque des territoires bank and the Société Forestière company, established the company Joubert Valter Peupliers in 2017. At the end of last year, this company, which provides land owners with solutions to plant trees on or to reforest their plots, announced the launch of an initiative to plant around 60,000 trees by 2028.
Its goal is to enhance the area through the planting of poplar trees to sustain this species.
Through contracts, it offers land owners simple and profitable solutions to grow trees on or to reforest their plots by taking charge of the financing, management and insurance of their poplar groves during the production cycle.
Income is guaranteed in particular by the sale of the Poplar plywood panel manufactured by Joubert Plywood. In addition, this responsible and sustainable initiative promotes conservation of the natural environment and carbon sequestration. It also represents support for the local economy and employment in the heart of the region.
Implementing greater sustainability
Optimising timber
Timber is an ecological resource that we treat with care, from sustainable forest management to the produced panel. Joubert Plywood uses 100% of the raw material either to manufacture its plywood panels, or to produce wood-related products or energy for its production plant.
Producing with green energy
Joubert Plywood invested heavily in energy transformation in order to reduce its consumption of fossil fuels and to keep its carbon emissions as low as possible. The company's production plants are now mainly powered by a high energy-efficient biomass boiler fueled by recycled wood-related products. This is supplemented by a supply of clean and renewable electricity produced by its photovoltaic park covering more than 9750 m2.
Reducing our carbon footprint
A number of actions have been initiated to optimise all aspects of our manufacturing processes down to logistical solutions, such as the packaging of its plywood panels in 100% recyclable packaging. These actions are part of the sustainable development initiative and low carbon innovations of the Group and its customers to tackle climate change.
Finding solutions to the environmental challenges of the construction industry
Joubert Plywood panels: sustainable development material
Joubert Plywood's Okoume and Poplar plywood panels meet the most stringent health requirements, in particular in terms of indoor environment.
They bear the A+ label and are US EPA TSCA TITLE VI CARB ULEF-certified guaranteeing that the panels have very low formaldehyde (less than 0.04 ppm US) and VOC content, close to those of natural wood. They have also obtained the NAUF (No Added Urea Formaldehyde) label because they use a phenolic resin instead of a Urea Formol resin for interior gluing. They are recognised by the HQE and exemplary level BREEAM certifications and by LEED® , an international mark of excellence for high performance sustainable buildings which is recognised in 132 countries.
A low carbon footprint over the life cycle
The Joubert Plywood panel has the dual advantage of producing fewer emissions during its manufacturing phase and of storing carbon throughout its life cycle.
It thereby helps to tackle climate warming. In the forest, trees absorb carbon due to the natural phenomenon of photosynthesis. In terms of transformation, they constitute one of the most energy-efficient materials. In buildings and indoor areas, the timber continues to store this sequestered carbon: 1 m3 of plywood sequesters 1 ton of CO2. Timber can also be easily recycled.