Mumbai’s first-of-its-kind wood manufacturing training centre showcases sustainable B.C. wood while educating India’s wood industry professionals
Canadian Wood (FII India) collaborated with Caple Industrial Solutions, a well-established woodworking machinery distributor in India, to create a first-of-its-kind Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Mumbai. Spanning 13,000 square feet, this state-of-the-art showroom and training facility serves as a hub for industry professionals, students, and enthusiasts seeking to learn about the latest technologies and gain expertise in working with wood. Throughout the CoE, wood products from British Columbia (B.C.) are used for a variety of interior applications, creating a unique and premium aesthetic.
Caple, founded in 1974, operates demonstration centres throughout India, offering modern machinery brands and servicing. When they envisioned the CoE, sustainability was a core principle. Coupled with an existing relationship with Canadian Wood, choosing wood from British Columbia for the project was a natural choice.
“We have been in touch with the Canadian Wood team and regularly get information about their species,” says Mr. Satyan Thukral, CEO of Caple Industrial Solutions. “We wanted to have sustainable and certified material for the facility, and the Canadian Wood team provided extensive guidance and advice on different wood species and their applications.”
The Centre of Excellence incorporates four commercially available wood species from British Columbia–western red cedar, spruce-pine-fir (S-P-F), western hemlock, and Douglas-fir–providing participants and visitors a chance to touch, feel, and see the wood.
Beyond being sourced from sustainably managed forests, these species were chosen for their aesthetic qualities and functional suitability. Western red cedar was used for the reception table due to its visually appealing characteristics. Tongue and groove S-P-F clads many walls throughout the Centre. Western hemlock is used in an array of application throughout the space, including wall panels, chairs, tables, workbenches, and conference tables. Finger-jointed edge-glued (FJEG) hemlock was used for conference tables and other tables within the training area, demonstrating this engineered wood product’s functionality. Ceiling rafters, chairs, the staircase, and landing areas were all made using Douglas-fir.
The CoE is a collaborative effort between Caple, FII India, and the Furniture Fitting Skills Council (FFSC). It provides a platform for training carpenters, machine operators, production managers, architecture and design students, and decision-makers on essential industry skills and best practices in handling, manufacturing, and machining. This focus on knowledge sharing empowers professionals, while promoting sustainable wood and production practices.
The project has garnered positive feedback from both Caple and industry professionals. The sheer size of the showroom, combined with the integration of B.C. wood throughout the design, creates a unique and inspiring learning environment.
The Centre of Excellence serves as a proof of concept for India’s wood manufacturing industry – creating a space to share knowledge on technologies, wood species and characteristics, innovative products, and set new standards for the industry. The use of sustainably sourced wood products from British Columbia highlights the standards of manufacturing the CoE aims to achieve and continues to promote the use of B.C. wood in manufacturing in India.
Photos: FII India
