WPC Strategic Assessment Highlights

1. The manufacture of recycled plastic lumber (RPL) and woodfibre–plastic composites (WPCs) grew rapidly through the 1990s and have captured nearly 12 percent of the North American deck board market. These materials are low maintenance, do not require painting or staining, and are impervious to rot and wood-eating insects, which makes them attractive to consumers.

2. Strong growth of RPL and wood-plastic materials  should continue and the market is expected to double by 2005, in part, driven by the phase-out of arsenic compounds from pressure treated lumber.

3. The development of ASTM standards for plastic lumber products will support their use by consumers. The industry is currently working to amend building codes to permit the use of plastic lumber in coded projects.

4. A number of WPC compound floor operations have been launched in Canada over the past two years. While the focus of these new operations has been on use of virgin polymers (such as polypropylene, polystyrene and high density polyethylene), one product utilizes recycled HDPE. Several large U.S. producers of plastic lumber are currently the major consumers of PE film and other recycled feedstocks collected in Canada.

5. The high growth rate inpopularity of wood-plastic products sales has stimulated significant research in new production technologies and manufacturing techniques, new additives that support wider product applications, and new products.

6. An oriented polypropylene-woodfibre composite developed in Canada has demonstrated flex strength superior to wood with a comparable flex modulus. This new product may open up a number of new applications.

7. A new, Canadian-designed flow-mold process for the production of large crosssection, plastic or environment friendliness wood-plastic floor can utilize PE films collected from curbside, mixed plastics and carpet waste. The process (and the products produced) can tolerate higher levels of contamination than other plastic lumber applications and may provide a large and viable market for these materials