The Belian tree has been the focus of some illegal loggers. These trees are local to Malaysia and Borneo that is why Dayaks are the ones that can avail these species of wood. These can be seen in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. The Belian tree or “Borneo Ironwood” is the official tree of Sarawak.

More commonly known as Ironwood (Ulin, in the Indonesian language), the Belian tree is classified as an indigenous rainforest tree that comprises the 4,100 trees added to the Taman Tugu Site, chosen in collaboration with the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia.

The belian hardwood tree is being classified as “vulnerable in the International Union for Conversation of Nature (IUCN), and is regarded as threatened species because of overexploitation as well as shifting agriculture. 

Indeed, these types of trees are heavily harvested for timber manufacturing and woodworks.  The timber is considered to be the most durable and hardest timber in Southeast Asia.  These trees are prevalent in low land areas of primary forests from around the sea level up to an elevation of around four hundred (400) meters. It can grow in sloping or flat terrain. It can also be prevalent in secondary forests or along the riverbanks. 

The Belian tree is an evergreen tree that is slow-growing. It can grow up to 40-50m in height. In order for the tree to reach 30cm in diameter, it would take you 120 years. That is why at Kaltimber, we only use reclaimed ironwood for our decking, flooring, and associated products for our homeware brand I-Rewood. 100% FSC Recycled certified on top of that.

Belian wood is categorized as heavy hardwood classification and is of extremely high market value. This is an upscale hardwood used in furniture making and sophisticated wooden items. The wood is very hard and strong and does not easily rot. It is quite resistant because of its extraordinary anatomical characteristics. It is more commonly known as the “Borneo Ironwood”. The stumps of the wood Belian Tree are prevalent for decades after they were felled. And because of its density, the Belian tree is regarded as one of the few wood species that does not float in water. 

Belian Wood is not only used in furniture making but also broadly used in heavy construction and big scale production for houses, flooring, decking, pillars foundations, posts and walls. This hardwood is also made into roofing tiles and shingles. Dayak Longhouse structure is basically constructed with the use of Belian wood because of its high resistance from insects, water infiltration. For some, it is also valued dramatically by the ancient Chinese as coffin wood.