nZEB goes Passive - the event organized in Cluj by his team Marius Șoflete - is over, but I'm still under the impression of what I experienced there. It was three full, intense and dynamic days that filled me with positive energy and brought me many joys. I met people I wanted to meet, interacted, passed on information, made new acquaintances. Although I really wanted to, last year I didn't make it. The disappointment was great, especially after detailed feedback Dan's. But the planets have been in much better shape this year. Not only did I make it to the event, I was part of it. Wood Magazine was not only a media partner but also organised workshops and hands-on demonstrations at its own stand and on the craftsmen's stage. The event dedicated to construction was, in my opinion, a success, the more than 120 exhibitors, the workshops, the theoretical and practical presentations, the conferences, the debates succeeded in bringing more than 8,000 visitors, according to the organizer. Last year there were more than 4,000, and this year more than 5,000 are expected, a figure reached on Saturday, the second day of the fair.
It was also a success for us, with visitors continuously coming to the Wood Magazine stand to work, interact or meet the team members. But let's take them one by one.
Why a group of carpenters at a building fair
A house is not just a brick, concrete, metal or wooden structure, but also doors, windows, staircases, flooring, cladding, trim or other partitions. When they are made of wood, much of this work is done and/or fitted by master carpenters.
The activities aimed to pass on as much information and knowledge as possible, as well as the idea of building correctly, sustainably and sustainably. The craftsmen present at the event, carpenters and joiners, took a step back in time and showed visitors how work was done in the past using hand tools. They demonstrated that both methods are good as long as they are done correctly, with professionalism and passion.
team
The foundations of the team were laid back in September at B2Bife event at the exhibition in Bucharest. Radu Vădan and Radu Călian had discussions at the event, and Fane Pănăzan and Mihai Ursu came to meet us, meet colleagues they knew from profile groups and visit the fair. The friendly chats, the jokes, the beer bonded us, turning us into a team. In Cluj we were joined by Costel Pop, the group's carpenter.
They were all generous, not only with their time and knowledge, but also with everything that was in the booth. Workbenches, tools, workhorses, wood, furniture were all brought by them. Fane came with his entire Stanley ruler collection on display in his special cabinet. In addition, he also offered the ruler that was the subject of the raffle held on Saturday at the booth. Radu Vădan "decorated" the stand with some impressively sized wooden slices, dried in his own dryer and with Radu Vădan's creations, a table, a bar cabinet and a bowl. Radu Călian made a small workbench especially for this event. He also brought the Ghiocelul chandelier, made only with traditional hand tools, which the current owner was kind enough to lend during the event. Mihai brought various demountable joints for the curious to see, and Costel came with all the tools he goes to work with.
How it was at the Wood Magazine stand
Maximum excitement and joy. The guys worked together and helped each other as if they had known each other all their lives. They set out to make throughout the event, mainly with hand tools, a ladder handrail, a window and a piece of traditional porch. So many people showed up that only the window and porch could carry them to near the end. Luckily Michael sensed that much of the time would be devoted to discussion, so he brought a handrail made with Fane. It was the attraction of the fair because it was a sort of ball game. Few could resist the temptation of watching the metal balls slide down Fane's perfectly finished spiral grooves.
There were many visitors from the profile groups. Daniel Szekely (Dani's Apprentice) and Lucian Todor, being from Cluj, were in the booth every day, working with the guys. Daniel was a great help from the beginning, when Fane had a problem with his car. He brought me a piece of sorb wood for which I thank him once again. For bringing me a piece of wood, this time of liliacMr Miron Rancea also came. We chatted with great pleasure, then he stayed to talk and tell stories with Fane and the rest of the gang.
There were many people who came especially to the fair for the Wood Magazine team. And not only from Cluj but also from Alba, Bistrita, Maramureș, Timiș, Arad, Sibiu, Bihor, Dolj, even from Prahova (thanks to Paul Cristian for crossed the mountains for us).
On Saturday we had a raffle. Participants had to remove a very fine sheet of wood using a ruler set by Fane. The numbered sheets were drawn from the bowl brought by Radu Vădan. We promoted the event with the help of the guys from Epic Show who also tested Fane's kidney.
Events on the small stage dedicated to workshops and practical presentations
We were present not only at the stand but also on the craftsmen's stage next to us. Radu Vădan had daily presentations related to wood selection, drying and cutting, as well as the execution of multi-material elements by layering, laminating and veneering. Fane and Mihai showed how to make a finger knot, and Costel showed how to make a beam, post and bracing joint on a traditional porch (thank you Techniques for laminated wood).
I talked about professional wood window finishing, materials and ways to protect wood on the outside and treatments for insect infested and decayed or blackened wood. Thanks to Naturalpaint (Kreidezeit) and Deposib (Bochemit) for the materials that helped me during the presentations. On Sunday, at the end, the whole team was on stage to present the objects made during the fair, but also to talk about the experience.
Wood Magazine managed all the activity at the Craftsmen's Stage where other workshops and presentations were held. Cristina Tarțău (Creative Engineering) and Sergiu Borșa (Meesenburg) showed how to correctly fit windows in nZEB or Passive houses. Gabi Căpușan (Guild of Tinsmiths) talked about the problems that can occur with tin roofs and showed what the solutions are. Ion Chirilov (Kirman Waterproofing) presented various solutions and materials for waterproofing the terrace roof.
Pierre Bortnowski (Team Built) showed how to build with clay and straw, and Ion Florența (Framingcom) talked about the behaviour of lightweight timber wall and frame structures under horizontal actions. Cristian Florea (Alternativen Fassaden) gave a workshop on ventilated facades, and Ion Costan (Doxar) presented the construction of a prefabricated roof. Emil Baciu presented the Cadwork BIM 3D CAD/CAM software, from planning to production, for all timber constructions.
In the craftsmen's area, right next to our booth, Christian Rummel had a workshop that ran throughout the fair. The theme was making a wooden roof frame using traditional carpentry methods. Here, anyone who wanted to could make together with Christian and calfele its one of the elements of the model. Christian also had a presentation on stage about detailed design on existing buildings made using laser scanning.
Fair, overall
As I said, there were over 100 exhibitors presenting materials and solutions to build better and more energy efficient buildings. There were many builders of timber frame houses - Litarh, Dimmer, Dorna EcoHouse, Doxar, Wood Structure, but also manufacturers of industrialised timber for construction such as Tehnicas or KLH (CLT). Windows and installations had dedicated areas so it was easy to find what you were interested in and find out as much useful information as possible. LignaDumiTeh presented industrial processing solutions for CLT beams and panels (EssetreThey were suppliers of insulation materials, tools (Festool or dulghershop.ro), scaffolding and other equipment.
A special mention to our neighbours at Meriallo (construction scaffolding and protective equipment) who kept us going with the help of the coffees they provided. Admittedly, they also had a good prosecco that took you in the exact opposite direction, but we tried to avoid it until the end of the program :).
The house builders, installations and windows were on the ground floor, practically on the arena's sports field, where the main stage of the event was. There was a lot of debate here about energy efficiency, how to build for a sustainable and durable future, and how to involve developers in the process. A touching presence was that of Mihai Neșu who told about his experience in implementing the passive house standard in the Sfântul Nectarie therapy building complex in Cihei, Bihor.
The party didn't miss it either
Such an event could not be without good humour. It was helped by the beer at the end of each day - the same as last year (nZEBerea), because what is good and confirmed should not be changed - and the party with all the participants, which was on Saturday evening at Zazen. Despite the nasty rain, we decided to go by public transport so we arrived very rainy but in good spirits. We danced and sang to 70s, 80s and 90s music, interacted with lots of people and cemented friendships. It was really good.
See you next year
I don't know if I've managed to capture the image of this event, but take my word for it, it was a very successful one in every way. The Wood Magazine team coped brilliantly, mobilized to contribute to the success of the event, worked, interacted, told stories, but also had fun. And what is most important in my opinion, it showed that in this country there are very skilled people, craftsmen who work well and are proud of what they know and do, people who choose to find solutions to move forward. Guys, I'm so glad to have met you!
See you in 2024!
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