Cocowood processing manual: from coconut wood to quality flooring.

Abstract

This manual describes best practice for producing high-value flooring products from coconut ‘wood’—or cocowood. It meets international standards for flooring products and accounts for the recognised, specific, local conditions of the Pacific Islands. The information is intended for operators skilled in timber processing, who need to work with the unusual properties of cocowood, and specifies where cocowood processes differ from standard practice for timber. For other processes, refer to the relevant standards set by the importing country. These technical guidelines are based on the research outcomes of the ACIAR project, 'Improving value and marketability of coconut wood'.

The manual is divided into three chapters. Each chapter adds to different aspects of primary and secondary processing.

Chapter 1 provides an overview of the best practice steps for harvesting and processing cocowood. There is also a glossary of terms specifically associated with processing cocowood and a section on managing processing risks.

Chapter 2 covers cocowood’s unique properties and how they relate to critical processing techniques. This is followed by sections that set out the processing methods in more detail, explaining why these practices are essential when working with cocowood.

Chapter 3 provides more information, including contacts, current timber standards and some useful publications.