Our involvement in wood composites began while building a boat in 1993. I owned a replica of a sea-going, fishing, sailing boat built in the late 19th century, a so-called lugger, which was traditionally made out of oak. My aim was to replicate this ship according to its original specifications but would require a minimum amount of maintenance, combining traditional craftsmanship with modern technology. Although many ships have been built in reliable wood/epoxy-systems since the late sixties, this technology proved to be insufficient when it comes to fulfilling the current requirements of renewable resources, recycling of materials and its environmental impact, which are aspects of increasing importance for products in the building trade. My connection to the building trade was the plastic pipe business, in which I was active for most of my life. At that point, the idea of using the advantages of wood composites was born.
The challenge was to make use of a fast growing, non-durable wood species (either virgin or from scrap) and transform it into a durable wood composite by the use of a recyclable thermoplastic. This new technology should be suitable to manufacture products for outdoor/indoor use, with minimum or no maintenance, a high bending stiffness comparable to wood, a minimum of creep deformation and a long life span of at least 50 years. Furthermore, the products ought to be paintable, recyclable, environmentally friendly by product as well as by production and competitive to hardwood in price.
During the first three years of the development, numerous tests were performed to investigate formulations, extrusion techniques, design of screws, dies, and methods for fibre drying and fibre orientation. The latter aspect proved to be of a great importance as it became clear that only orientated fibres could fulfill the objective of a high bending stiffness and strength.
The development took far longer than expected. Although within a short period of time common wood composites (WPC) could be made, the set goal in strength and durability proved more difficult to achieve. By the end 1996, after three years of development, the potential possibilities became clear and a pilot plant started. It would take another 3 years in technology improvements and a further two years of field tests before starting production on a commercial scale in 2002.
