The species is considered unsuitable for large-scale
plantations due to slow growth and inadequate seed and seedling supply. Manual selection of trees in natural forests is common. The
standing timber volume of trees with a diameter of over may be as much as .
Properties The wood is dense, and texture is moderately fine to fine and even. Also attractive to users is the resistance to
insects,
bacteria,
fungi and
marine borers. The wood has anti-bacterial properties (for local medicinal use) The
heartwood when cut is coloured light brown to almost bright yellow. During the aging process the heartwood darkens to deep reddish brown, very dark brown or almost black. The
sapwood is bright yellow when cut, and darkens slightly. The wood texture is fine and even, with a straight
grain or only slightly interlocked. The timber retains a pleasant
lemon odour. This odour, along with the woods' natural high lustre, make it prized by
cabinet-makers and fine furniture craftsmen. Vessels are diffuse-porous, medium-sized and generally evenly distributed, arranged in short radial rows (2–3 vessels). Moderate abundance of
aliform paratracheal parenchyma. Growth rings boundaries are indistinct or absent.
Tyloses are often present. the wood is highly prized for many outdoor uses, especially as
decking. Additionally, the wood's high density and easy workability lend it particular desirability in maritime structures,
dock construction and
ship building, especially Indonesia's
pinisi sail-boat. Common local uses include house construction, door construction,
water butts and
troughs, boat building (such as for pinisi),
tools,
tool handles,
talisman,
jewellery, medicinal slivers (for wounds, cuts, abrasions, bites and tooth-ache/infection), bridges,
blowpipes and
spear shafts,
shingles, and
flooring. The tree is important to the
Dayak and
Berwan peoples, and is assigned by them mystical powers such as protection against large animals. Internationally, it is renowned for heavy construction such as a buffer between
transportation trailers and heavy steel fabrications (such as
boilers,
pressure vessels, reactors and many others). It is also frequently found in
dry docks as a timber to separate the
hull of
ships from the steel supporting stands. Other uses include use in boats and ships, industrial flooring, roofing (as shingles), fine indoor and outdoor furniture,
coffin wood (esteemed by Chinese due to ability to withstand rot and insect attack) and tool handles (especially those exposed to continual high impact (the wood does not
splinter and thus injure hands, eyes or endanger the operator on
catastrophic failure) such as
shovels,
axes,
block splitters,
sledge hammers, heavy
mallets,
demolition hammers,
mattocks,
picks,
hoes, and other types of
hammer). Some expert
cabinet-makers treasure an
ulin-headed
carpenter's mallet as an excellent intermediate density hammer face between the usual wood and a metal one and is able to quite easily tap or "whack" stubborn highly polished metal fixtures without damage to the face or the fixture. Other sources indicate that
ulin wood is often used for marine constructions such as
pilings,
wharfs,
docks,
sluices,
dams, ships, bridges, but also used for power line poles,
masts, roof shingles and house posts and to a minor extent as frame, board, heavy duty flooring, railway
sleepers, fencing material, furniture etc. Ironwood extract (
essential oils) may be a promising source of
antioxidants and termite control substances.
Flavonoids have also been extracted from this species.
Conservation The government of
Indonesia and the state government of
Sarawak have formally banned the export of this species.
Illegal logging and
smuggling continues to be a major problem. Population decline is estimated to be around 30% over the last 300 years. Conservation efforts are underway, with several countries banning imports. ==References==