Biometria, a member-owned Swedish company, plays a vital role in the country’s forestry sector. To better serve its members and the wider industry, the organisation set out to digitise its operations. By partnering with Columbus and implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365, Biometria has modernised core business areas such as logistics, quality assurance, and supply chain visibility.
Bridging tradition with innovation
The forestry sector is changing, with new technologies helping businesses operate more efficiently. The scale of Biometria’s operations is significant. Every tree sold in Sweden passes through its system, a volume equal to around 10% of the country’s GDP. Each transaction is tracked and verified along the way, creating a digital foundation that support transparency and trust across the nation’s forestry sector.
Against this backdrop, Biometria’s ageing legacy system was getting harder to maintain and increasingly prone to errors. The company also needed a solution capable of meeting the diverse needs of multiple stakeholders. Each stakeholder had its own way of working, with no clear industry standard to follow and requirements that evolved over the years. To connect its traditional forestry roots with innovation, Biometria recognised it needed external support and a more structured approach.
“We’re experiencing a big transformation in the forestry industry,” said Lena Kjellberg, Communication Specialist at Biometria. “We want to streamline and digitise – and that’s a huge transition for everyone.”
- Manufacturing
- Sweden
- Case
Summary
Biometria partnered with Columbus to modernise its technology, replacing its legacy platform with VIOL 3, a next-generation system. With Microsoft Dynamics 365 at its core, VIOL 3 manages critical data and transactions across the forestry value chain.
About Biometria
Biometria is a Swedish member-owned organisation that plays a crucial role in promoting trust, transparency, and efficiency in the forestry industry. The company acts as the digital backbone of Sweden’s timber supply chain, connecting forest owners, sawmills, and industries, thereby enabling fair transactions and sustainable resource management.
Building a future-ready platform
Biometria partnered with Columbus to modernise its technology, replacing its legacy platform with VIOL 3, a next-generation system. With Microsoft Dynamics 365 at its core, VIOL 3 manages critical data and transactions across the forestry value chain. The system is not only used in Sweden but also in Norway, Finland, and Estonia, which is particularly important when deliveries move between these countries. Dynamics now handles the majority of transactions and data flows and is integrated with several complementary systems, including:
- Business Intelligence solutions
- Production systems for managing field equipment
- The MPS (measurement place system), which records log and timber measurements
To meet Biometria’s unique requirements, parts of the solution have been customised. The project has followed a trial-and-error approach, with initial ideas tested, refined, and reworked along the way. This approach was necessary for several reasons:
- Biometria has a wide range of stakeholders, each with different demands
- Business conditions and stakeholder requirements have evolved over time
- A balance was needed between flexibility and long-term stability
Columbus worked closely with Biometria to design and implement structured business objects, creating a more reliable platform that can adapt to change without disrupting operations.
Our partnership with Columbus has worked really well. The combination of human and digital know how has made a huge difference for us. Being a forest owner myself, it feels really special to keep maintaining the
trust in the industry
Several improvements across the board
The project has delivered a number of positive outcomes for Biometria:
- Business objects are now structured so that updates can be applied to individual components without affecting the whole system
- Integration with Microsoft Azure and BI tools provides scalability and flexibility for future growth
- Large member companies like Södra are aligning their systems with Biometria’s new platform, strengthening collaboration across the forestry value chain.
- Data is more transparent and reliable, helping to build greater trust in Biometria’s role as an impartial provider of precise measurements in the forestry industry
- By modernising its systems, Biometria is supporting a more sustainable forestry sector that balances efficiency with responsible resource management
“We're improving everything from logistics, quality assurance and supply chain visibility,” said Robin Grelz, CIO of Biometria.
Driving impactful change together
Biometria’s digital transformation story is about more than technology. It’s about people. Biometria and Columbus have worked side by side to create real impact. From IT specialists and data analysts to forestry professionals and decision-makers, it’s the people behind the project who’ve driven change.
“Our partnership with Columbus has worked really well. The combination of human and digital know how has made a huge difference for us. Being a forest owner myself, it feels really special to keep maintaining the trust in the industry,” said Robin Grelz, CIO of Biometria.
“We’re very proud to be part of Biometria's digital journey,” said Beatrice Silow, Managing Director at Columbus Sweden. “Forestry has always been essential for Scandinavia, both environmentally and the economically. That's why this project is so important for us. It's about backing smarter, more responsible ways of working and making the whole industry more future proof.”
As more customers come on board the platform and it continues to mature, Biometria expects to see even more benefits. For now, the company has taken a major step forward in modernising operations, tackling complexity, and building a platform that can grow with the industry.
