Where ideas grow together
SEEDForest is the first business-driven open collaboration platform that marries the whole value chain of Finnish forest and chemical industry, process technology, automation, engineering and services companies together and with IT industries.
We aim to develop industry capability towards twin transformation: a more sustainable future through smart digitalisation.
Value beyond tracing
The mere act of tracing or monitoring sustainable development is simply no longer enough. Learning how to plan and optimise sustainable value chains is more crucial than ever.
Our vision is to develop industry capabilities towards twin transformation – creating a more sustainable future through smart digitalisation.
To achieve this, we need to form new marriages between different operators, the digital field, and research. Together, they create unique opportunities to spur understanding and business growth in the field of sustainable development.

At Spotlight
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Cognitive Mimetics and Human Digital Twins featured in ERCIM news
Antero Karvonen (VTT) and Pertti Saariluoma (JyU) contributed an article to the special issue on “Cognitive AI & Cobots”
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Raportti: Data kestävän kehityksen mukaisessa tuotantoketjun ohjauksessa
The goal of this ’Data kestävän kehityksen mukaisessa tuotantoketjun ohjauksessa’ (Data in the management of the production chain according to sustainable development) report was to outline the capabilities and goals of the actors in the production chain to promote sustainable development through the exchange and utilization of data. Report in Finnish available here https://publications.vtt.fi/pdf/technology/2022/T411.pdf
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Fundamental business values and opportunities for (more) digitalized engineering
Report ties together different aspects… The fundamental business values and opportunities for (more) digitalized engineering report ties together different aspects related to doing business with digital twins in the pulp and paper industrial engineering and processing contexts. These practical aspects have been identified, and the understanding in them has been developed during the SEED project especially in […]

Themes driven by sustainable change
Systemic sustainable development requires the engagement of industrial operations through assets, processes, products, and human perspectives. From these, we’ve chosen three centric themes for SEEDForest to advance the development of sustainability:
1. Production chain optimisation
2. Adaptive asset lifecycle management
3. Future operations and work
Each theme evolves dynamically in close partner cooperation led by KeKe Nyrkki, SEEDForest Sustainability Think Tank.

Ongoing projects
Our first projects have already started in 2022, with more to follow.

COACH Human-tech co-agency
COACH creates steps towards human-focused, technologically enabled intelligent industrial work of the future.
Theme
• Future Operations & Work
Target areas
• Future operational concepts, design processes, methods, and training approaches, tech prototypes and demos, anticipated future problems and solutions
Funding and project model
• BF co-research
Participants
• Metsä Board, Valmet Automation, Kemira, Siili Solutions, Lingsoft, VTT, JYU, Turku UAS
Contact for organisations
• Hanna Koskinen, Project Manager, VTT (hanna.koskinen@vtt.fi)

OPTIMI pre-study
The OPTIMI pre-study project identifies and analyses the maturity level and development needs of the production value chain towards sustainable operations to meet the requirements of future markets.
Theme
• Production chain optimisation
Target areas
• Forest and Chemical industries
Funding and project model
• Funded by Sitra & VTT
Participants
• VTT, Sitra, several company representatives
Contact for organisations
• Päivi Kivikytö-Reponen, Project Manager, VTT (paivi.kivikyto-reponen@vtt.fi)

REFOLUTION Biorefinery of the future

KILPAILUKYKYÄ DATASTA
Kilpailukykyä datasta (Competitiveness through data) is a project led by Sitra that works in close cooperation with SEEDForest. The project aims to identify data-based operating models as a competitive advantage for Finnish companies.
Theme
• Production chain optimisation
• Adaptive asset lifecycle management
• Future Operations & Work
Target areas
• Finnish industry
Funding and project model
• Sitra
Participants
• Finnish industry ecosystems
Contact for organisations
• Jutta Nyblom / VTT, jutta.nyblom@vtt.fi
More information: https://www.sitra.fi/aiheet/kilpailukykya-datasta/
Projects in preparation
The roadmaps for each theme are further developed by utilising smart project portfolio design with our partners.
Projects currently in design phase are:

COLIFE
COLIFE offers collaborative business and operational models for exploring solid and fair cooperation between asset owners, operators, and required service providers.
Theme
• Adaptive asset lifecycle management
Target areas
• Sawmill environment
Funding and project model
• Co-research, funded by BF
Preliminary participants
• SAP, Metsä, VTT, LUT
Contact for organisations
• Pasi Valkokari, VTT (pasi.valkokari@vtt.fi)

OPTIMI Optimisation for extended sustainability requirements
OPTIMI tackles a huge challenge to create common parametrisation for sustainability KPIs in the food packaging industry production chain, integrate sustainabity KPIs with business, production and other operation KPIs – and build capabilities to start optimize the chain online.
Theme
• Production chain optimisation
Target areas
• Food packaging industry and related value chain
Funding and project model
• Co-research or co-innovation, funded by BF
Preliminary participants
• Metsä, Ponsse, Valmet, Paptic, Solita
Contact for organisations
• Jutta Nyblom / VTT, jutta.nyblom@vtt.fi
How we act
At SEEDForest, we believe that the best solutions and innovations are created together.
We match our members’ resources and business interests with each other and top-tier research. Our joint innovation takes place in real industrial environments – connected to the tangible realities of businesses.
In the very core of our platform is to solve industry challenges. We have two roles for our partners: A challenge owner and a solver. Challenge owners are companies who want to take a significant sustainability leap. Solvers are companies who help customers in their sustainable development.
In every project we have both roles to conceptualise ideas towards reality.
