A Dutch company, Bolefloor, has developed a new method of
producing floors from pieces of wood stock that allow for the
natural shape of wood to be used. The company uses wood
scanners, computer-aided technology, and optimization algorithms
to maximize wood cuts to create a unique floor with curving
joints between boards for a floor like none other on the market.
Bolefloors are manufactured by using “wood scanning systems,
tailor-made CAD/CAM developments and innovative optimization
algorithms for placement software developed by a Finnish
engineering automation company and three software companies in
cooperation with the Institute of Cybernetics at Tallinn
University of Technology.” The company claims more efficient use
of wood from this process, but saving a little bit of sawdust
isn’t the most interesting part. Wood floors can be made more
cheaply by mass producing them, and the sawdust saved is
relatively insignificant. But by using this method, it may be
possible to produce useful flooring from smaller pi