The forest industry has been a cornerstone of the Finnish economy since the 19th century. Today, the history of industrialisation, technological development, and professional expertise in the forest sector is more comprehensively available and accessible for research in digital form than ever before, as the Finnish Forest Products Engineers’ Association has digitised magazines, textbooks, and other publications originally published by the Association since 1919. As a result of the digitisation project, more than 130,000 pages of historical material have been added to the ForestBioFacts learning environment and are now searchable with artificial intelligence.
The Finnish Forest Products Engineers’ Association (PI), founded in 1915, is a network for forest industry companies and professionals. Since its establishment, its core mission has been to support competence development within the industry, communicate technological and professional advancements, and increase awareness of the sector. Throughout its history, the association has published almost 3,000 magazines, over 30 textbooks, and other publications, all of which are now available digitally for the first time.
“This project is exceptional both from the perspective of the forest industry and Finnish industrial history more broadly. To the best of our knowledge, forest industry historical material of this scale has never before been digitised and made available through AI-powered search. The project is also culturally significant, as it helps ensure that valuable professional and industrial heritage will be preserved for future generations,” says Antti Lindqvist, CEO of the Finnish Forest Products Engineers’ Association.
The material has been incorporated into the already extensive knowledge base of ForestBioFacts, one of the key digital learning environments used globally within the forest industry. ForestBioFacts is currently utilised by more than 50 companies, universities, and other organisations and has over 7,500 registered users. At the same time, the functionality of the AI Assistant, originally launched in April 2026, has been expanded beyond contemporary industry knowledge to also include the newly added historical archive.
AI Makes More Than a Century of Forest Industry History Easily Accessible
The digital archive offers researchers, historians, and other users a unique opportunity to explore the history of the forest industry and its technological development over more than one hundred years. On a personal level, the archive also provides an opportunity to discover family connections to the sector, as many people working in the forest industry today are part of multi-generational professional traditions.
Exploring the archive and finding information is made easy with the ForestBioFacts AI Assistant. The AI searches the entire collection of more than 130,000 pages based on questions submitted by the user, compiles the findings into a single response, and provides direct references to the original publications. For example, users can ask how a particular technology, production method, or industry phenomenon has evolved over the decades and receive an answer based on original historical publications.
The archive contains information on topics including the history of the forest industry, the development of production facilities, influential individuals and industry professionals, historical research and educational materials. The material is particularly valuable for understanding how technologies, processes, and industrial practices have evolved and changed over the long term.
The digitised archive includes the following publications:
- The Finnish Paper and Timber Journal, 1930–1980
- Paperi ja Puu, 1919–2022
- Puunvuoro, 2023–
- Suomen Puu, 1926–1949
- Suomen Puutalous, 1952–1986
- 11 industry textbooks published between 1930 and 1983
- Puusta Paperiin educational material, 1980–1995
All publications are also available to users as digital replicas that can be browsed and read in their original format.
INVITATION TO A WEBINAR
Welcome to learn more about the digital archives and the utilisation of the AI Assistant in searching and using the information. The webinar is open to all but requires pre-registration.
Time: 15 October 2026 at 3-4 pm EEST
Location: Webinar, link will be shared closer to the event
Register by 14 October at https://en.puunjalostusinsinoorit.fi/ajankohtaista/tapahtumat/forestbiofacts-webinar-discover-100-years-of-forest-industry-knowledge-with-ai/