Adhesion Matters - Adhesives for Engineered Wood (Henkel)

Episode Date: August 3, 2025

In this episode, we talk about sustainable construction practices, particularly through the adoption of bio-based adhesives in engineered wood products. Mass timber construction, utilizing engineered wood products like Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) and Glued Laminated Timber (Glulam), is rapidly gaining popularity as a sustainable alternative in the construction industry.  Henkel, a pioneer in structural adhesives for engineered wood for over two decades, is actively investing in new sustainable adhesives. Their biorenewable materials team is dedicated to replace all fossil-based raw materials by renewable carbon-based materials.  The transition to renewable carbon is a fundamental shift in the chemical industry, with implications beyond adhesives to all plastics and materials used in construction.

So, imagine this for a second. Buildings not just designed to last, you know, decades, but with an actual take-back guarantee, parts getting reused in just a few years. Or think about this, something as small, maybe overlooked, as glue. How could glue be a game changer in making construction really sustainable? It almost sounds, well, a bit out there right. But it's happening. Today on the deep dive, we're really digging into the world of mass timber construction. It's fascinating. And we're looking at this quiet revolution happening with the

adhesives, the glues that hold it all together. Now, you might be thinking glue, seriously. But honestly, this is incredibly important for the environment, yeah, but also for how we build cities, even for our wallets. Our mission today, it's to unpack how these new bio-based adhesives are paving the way for a more circular, more sustainable future for buildings. We've got insights from real leaders here, both in adhesive tech and mass timber production. We'll look at some surprising numbers, some cutting-edge chemistry, and business models that are genuinely trying to reshape things. And what's really striking, I think, is just how fast mass timber is taking off. We're talking engineered wood, like cross-laminated timber, CLT, and Glead-Laminated timber. The

growth is just phenomenal. It started strong in Europe, sure, but now it's expanding globally, really quickly. Okay, but why now? What's driving that acceleration? What are the big pressure is pushing this shift to timber? Well, the construction industry is facing, you know, two massive challenges. Costs are spiraling and environmental rules. They're getting much, much stricter. Mass timber hits both of those head on. Environmentally, timber buildings produce roughly 70% less CO2 compared to, say, concrete and steel. That's huge. 70% less CO2. Wow. Exactly. And then there's efficiency. Construction time can be cut by over 85% compared to a typical concrete project.

85% faster. So huge savings on time and emissions. Right. It impacts the carbon footprint and the budget, significantly. Okay, so timber's got these clear advantages. But you mentioned something. You said there's a critical piece enabling this on an industrial scale. What's that linchpin?

Yeah, you've hit on it. You simply can't produce mass timber industrially at the scale needed without certified adhesives. It's a small part, volume-wise, but absolutely vital. Glue again? Glue again, yes. Think about it like this. In one cubic meter of CLT, there's maybe four kilograms of adhesive.

It's less than 1% of the total weight. But switching that small amount to a bio-based product, that has a really significant impact. It helps cut CO2. It brings in more circular materials. It's like the invisible backbone holding it together. Okay. So if these adhesives are that critical, who's leading the charge on making them, well, greener? Any specific innovations we should know about?

Absolutely. Henkel is definitely a pioneer here, especially with their Loctite HBS eco-on. line. Their mission fundamentally is about replacing fossil raw materials. They want to use what we call renewable carbon. So stuff derived from biomass, maybe from waste, even from captured CO2 potentially. See, when you look at a product's carbon footprint, you have two main sources, the raw materials and the energy used to make it. Right. And renewable energy in manufacturing is becoming more common, isn't it? I think you mentioned Henkel's wood adhesive plant is already climate neutral. That's correct, it is. But changing the actual raw materials away from fossil sources to this

renewable carbon, that's a much tougher nut to crack. Currently, the chemical industry overall, well, it only gets about 12% of its carbon from renewable sources. Biomass is right now the most practical and scalable option for adhesives. 12%. That's pretty low. So finding viable bio alternatives is the big challenge. It really is. So sticking with this Loctite HBS Eco, what's the tangible impact?

You said it's significant, but can we put numbers on it? How much CO2 are we actually saving here? Yeah, the numbers are quite compelling. Using this bio-based adhesive saves about eight kilograms of CO2 for every cubic meter of CLT. Eight kilograms per cubic meter. Right. And that translates to roughly a 10% reduction in the CO2 footprint for the CLT element itself. 10% just from the glue.

It's from the glue. And to help you picture eight kilograms of CO2, it's roughly like driving, say, 60 kilometers, maybe 35, 40 miles, in an average small car. Okay. That visual helps. That's a noticeable difference from changing less than 1% of the material. Precisely. A huge gain from a seemingly minor tweak. But how does that work in practice?

If you're using biomass alongside traditional fossil fuels in a big chemical plant, how do you know this specific batch of glue is bio-based? It sounds complicated to track. Ah, that's where the mass balance approach comes in. It's really quite clever, and it's key for accelerating this whole transition. Think about green electricity for your house. You pay for renewable power, right? But the actual electrons coming into your socket are mixed on the grid.

You can't separate them. Mass balance works the same way for materials. You feed both certified biomass and traditional fossil resources into the start of the production process. The mass balance system then tracks how much bio-based stuff went in and allows you to allocate that bio portion to specific final products like our adhesive. It's certified, it's traceable. So it's an accounting method, essentially, but one that lets you claim the bio content credibly. Exactly. It's a robust, certified accounting method. And the beauty is it lets industries use existing infrastructure. No need to build entirely separate plants right away. It lets us start now using the systems we have, which speeds everything up enormously. Okay, I get it. It's a practical way to scale up bio-based materials faster. So applying that, what are the key stats for this Loctite HBS eco-adhesive? You mentioned CO2 reduction.

Right. So it uses 63% bicircular fed stock. That's material derived from biomass and recycled content. And that results in a CO2 reduction of 66% compared to the standard fossil-based version of the same glue. 66% reduction. That's impressive. It is. Plus, it has important certifications. It's ISS Plus certified that guarantees the sustainable and traceable supply chain we just talked about. It's also cradle to cradle material health gold certified. That's a really tough standard focused on material safety for humans. and the environment. Material health goal, what does that mean practically, like for air quality? Yes, exactly. It means zero VOCs, volatile organic compounds,

or no formaldehyde emissions, which is much better for indoor air quality and buildings, healthier for people living and working inside. Okay, those are some serious green credentials. But you know what manufacturers will ask, how easy is it to actually use this stuff? Does it mean new equipment, retraining, more testing? And this is probably the most crucial point for adoption.

The bio-based adhesive is chemically 100% identical to the fossil-based one it replaces. Identical. Chemically identical. Same performance, same properties. So for the engineered wood producers, this means zero changes to their existing production lines. No new equipment needed. And critically, no need for additional certification of their final engineered wood products. They can literally just swap it in.

Wow. So it's a completely seamless switch. That removes a huge barrier, doesn't it? It really does. It allows them to take a significant step towards sustainability immediately with absolutely no compromise on their process or the product quality. It's frictionless. That frictionless transition must be music to manufacturer's ears. Okay.

Let's talk about a company actually doing this. You mentioned the Derek's group, a leader in mass timber. Tell us about their approach. Yes, Derek's is a fantastic example. They're a major manufacturer and builder of mass timber elements. And about three years ago, they did something pretty radical. They introduced a general take-back guarantee for all their elements. A take-back guarantee on building parts.

How does that work? The idea is to add what they call a technical cycle onto Wood's natural biological cycle. Wood grows, gets used, decays. That's the biological cycle. Derricks wants to add a loop, use the timber elements, then take them back at the end of the building's life, and reuse them. Aiming for potentially unlimited reuse. So designing for deconstruction and reuse right from the start. Precisely. It fundamentally changes how you view a building's lifespan and materials.

And isn't there a specific project, kind of an early test case for this? Something in Amsterdam. Ah, yes, the Circle Building. That was actually the catalyst, about eight years ago now. The owner specifically asked Erics, can you guarantee you'll take these elements back later? Yeah. Back then, everyone assumed later meant, you know, 50 years, 80 years, maybe 100 years down the line. So Derek's agreed. But reality turned out differently. Exactly.

the surprise was how soon later arrived. We're seeing now that many modern buildings get repurposed or remounted much faster, sometimes after only 10 or 20 years. Urban needs change, properties get redeveloped, and the circle. It's actually being rebuilt now. And get this, 60% of the original timber elements from that building are being directly reused in a new location. 60% reused after just, what, eight years? That's circularity in action, not just theory.

It really is. It shows the model works. So how does the glue fit into this reuse scenario? Does using the bio-based adhesive make a difference when you're taking elements back? Oh, absolutely. The materials inside the element, the glue included, become really important if you want to reuse them effectively. Having a bio-based adhesive makes the whole element more valuable in that circular system. It aligns better with sustainability goals for the next life of the material.

Dirk saw this clearly. They didn't just use the Loctite-HBS EQO for specific projects. On January 1st of this year, 2025, they switch their entire production line over. The whole line. That's a serious commitment. It is. Driven purely by their high sustainability standards and their commitment to that circular model. What's the reaction been from architects, developers, the market in general? The feedback, they say, has been overwhelming, really positive. Architects, designers, building owners.

They're all looking for ways to meet their own circular economy goals. This fits perfectly. And Derek sees it bigger, too. They want this to push the whole supply chain to think more circularly, to improve things like EPDs. EPD's environmental product declarations, like eco-labels for building materials. Exactly. Making those better, more transparent, and driving down carbon emissions across the board. It's about systemic change. Okay, this all sounds incredibly positive.

But let's tackle the elephant in the room. Cost. Is this fancy bioglu more expensive? Yes. currently it is slightly more expensive. That's mainly down to the higher cost of the raw materials like bio-naftha. Bionatha. That's the bio-based alternative to a petroleum feedstock. Correct. And right now, producing that is just more costly than using traditional fossil napht. So there is a green premium, at least for now. How do companies justify that extra cost? Is it purely about the CO2 reduction? Well, the added value, like that 10% CO2 reduction per cubic meter of

CLT, is definitely part of the calculation. But it's also about looking ahead. The A strong belief, our belief certainly, is that this cost difference is temporary. Fossil-based materials are likely to get more expensive over time. Why is that? Think about rising fossil fuel prices, potential carbon taxes, becoming more widespread, stricter regulations. All these factors will likely push up the cost of traditional materials. We see this as part of a huge economic shift, similar to what's happened in energy or mobility. There's going to be essentially a gold rush for renewable carbon sources in the chemical.

industry. A gold rush for renewable carbon. Interesting. So companies adopt in bio-based now are positioning themselves for that future. Exactly. It's not just about being green. It's about future-proofing and gaining a competitive edge. Sustainability becomes a driver of value, not just a cost center. That's a compelling long-term for you. Okay, quick practical questions people might have. Shelf life. Is it the same? Yep. Same as conventional adhesives. Up to about 12 months, typically, no difference there. What about fire performance? Mass timber always raises fire questions. Good question.

While today we focused on the standard bio-based version, Henkel also makes fire-resistant structural adheses, like our HPXE line. And those can also be made biobase using the same mass balance approach, so you can get both benefits. Okay, good to know. And certifications. Does using bioglu help buildings get certified under schemes like Laid or Bream? Yes, it definitely helps.

Primarily through those environmental product declarations, the EPDs we mentioned. Having a lower carbon footprint documented in the EPD contributes positively to points in green building certification systems. Makes sense. So with all this progress, the tech, the circular models, the potential cost shifts, what are the main things still holding back even wider adoption of mass timber? There are still a few hurdles for sure. Regulations are a big one.

They vary wildly from country to country. Things like fire safety rules or limits on building heights for timber structures. Right. Like you might be able to build taller with timber in the Netherlands than in Germany, for example. Precisely. Those inconsistencies create challenges. Then there's infrastructure. Sometimes there's a gap in know-how among engineers or a shortage of skilled craft people familiar with mass timber construction. And, you know, there are cultural differences, too. Some regions just have a longer tradition and greater acceptance of building with wood than others. So regulation, skills gaps, and maybe just getting used to the idea in some places. Yeah. But despite those hurdles, the overall trend is incredibly positive. The momentum is there, and it's definitely accelerating. The future for mass timber looks very bright. So pulling this all together, what should you, our listener, take away from this deep dive?

Well, first, the sheer power of these new bio-based adhesives. They're not just holding buildings together. They're enabling genuine circularity in mass timber. We saw how Derek's's take-back guarantee isn't just a promise. It's actually happening. changing how we think about a building's entire life. And maybe the biggest picture. This hints at a massive shift in the chemical industry, moving towards renewable carbon. Sustainability isn't just niche anymore. It's becoming central to innovation and potentially future economics.

And maybe here's a final thought to chew on. If the very glues holding our buildings together can be redesigned for a circular future, driven by renewable resources. What other small stuff, what other everyday components around us might be next? What else is ripe for that kind of revolutionary sustainable transformation? That's a fantastic question to leave us with.

So next time you pass a construction site, maybe look a little closer. Think about the materials, the hidden components like adhesives, and their impact. Perhaps check out local timber projects or look into those material passports we touched on. The future of how we build is literally being glued together right now, one sustainable, circular step at a time.