2 Why a database?

The database of the Institute of Wood Technology and Renewable Materials should serve as a central repository to store data about

• solid wood
• wood based materials
• coating materials and adhesives

for extensive use in research projects as well as teaching.

Main advantages over other data formats are:

• formalized data structures
• persistence
• centralization of data storage
• avoiding redundancy
• input validation
• limited rights for different user groups
• simultaneous access

This leads to optimized workflows as well as an enhanced data integrity and accessibility.