During manufacturing, the team at Phantom Hands collected data on the volumes of the three species used to make the five pieces. In total (and including wastage), 0.77 cubic metres of American cherry, maple and red oak were used and through AHEC's Life Cycle Assessment tool, it was calculated that all of this wood would take just 1.72 seconds to be replaced in the American hardwood forest through natural regeneration.

Furthermore, we know that, on arrival in Chennai port, the American hardwood lumber that was donated by the Rossi Group, would have been carbon negative.

American red oak (Quercus species, mainly Quercus rubra)

Warm, grainy, tough and bendy. Reaching a height of 21m, with a trunk diameter of 1m, red oak is the most abundant species in America’s hardwood forests. Named for the color of its leaves in the fall, this classic oak wood has a light brown sapwood, and a heartwood characterized by attractive warm reddish-pink tones. Red oak is strong, straight grained, coarse textured and distinctive. Its porosity makes it a premium wood for bending and staining.

Red Oak

American maple (Acer saccharum, Acer nigrum, Acer rubrum)

Light, fine, hard and incandescent. A close cousin of European maple and sycamore, American maple can reach heights of 23–27m, with a trunk diameter of 75cm. This project uses two botanical subspecies, hard and soft maple, which share similar characteristics and are both relatively abundant. Hard maple is a cold-climate species favoring the northern states, whereas soft maples grow more widely across the mixed hardwood forests of the eastern United States. Both hard and soft maple produce syrup.

hard maple

American cherry (Prunus serotina)

Rich, smooth, vibrant and flexible. A medium-size tree, reaching a height of around 20m, cherry has a relatively short rotation, taking less time to mature than other hardwoods. The narrow sapwood is a light pinkish color, while the heartwood varies from rich red to reddish brown, and darkens on exposure to light. American cherry had a long period of popularity in furniture making; it became less popular but is on the verge of a revival.

teaser