Wood plastic composite materials have been utilised in the USA for many years, although major growth did not occur until more recently. The use of WPC materials in the manufacture of automotive interior panelling, using Italian extrusion technology, was one of the first major US applications of WPC technology . Much of the recent growth of the development and use of WPC materials was initially driven by initiatives funded by the Department of Agriculture and other groups associated with the Forestry and Lumber industries in the USA. The timber industry has come under pressure from environmentalists to halt its practice of chopping down large tracts of virgin forest. In addition, more stringent government regulations have reduced the availability of redwood and cedar, woods that have traditionally been used for high quality deck applications. As a result, many of the companies involved in the production of WPCs in the USA are lumber companies that have invested in product development and have added these alternative materials to their product portfolio. A key way of doing this was through a joint venture with a company that had the appropriate expertise in the manufacture of WPCs. For example, Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies (AERT) has entered into a joint venture with the Weyerhauser Corporation. In addition, US timber companies recognised that they do not own sufficient resources of forestlands to supply the future market needs. The production of new products such as WPC allow these firms to partly fill their market share with non-virgin fibre and thus meet a greater percentage of future market demands .
Since the early 1990s, the US market for WPC materials has grown significantly from a negligible figure, doubling annually particularly in markets wher the low maintenance, weather resistance properties are attractive. For example, firms such as Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies (AERT) and Trex began producing solid WPCs as an alternative to traditional soft and hardwoods for use as deck boards, landscape timbers, picnic tables and industrial flooring. Similarly, Andersen Corporation, a leading window and door manufacturer, has developed a process to manufacture its own proprietary WPC materials (Fibrex), which is used in its Renewal window profile lines . Several of these early developers have filed patents to protect their intellectual property.
The current WPC industry in the USA is still only a fraction of the total wood products industry but has made a significant impact on certain markets. Recent estimates indicate that the US market for WPCs in 2001 was in the region of 320,000 metric tonnes , with a market value of $375 million (£244 million) . This volume is predicted by some industry experts to increase by more than twice that figure in the next few years, although the market value is unlikely to grow as dramatically as WPC production costs and hence prices come down.
The European market for wood plastic composites is best described as embryonic10. Although interest is high, as shown by attendance at a number of conferences on the subject, actual usage is still very limited with very few companies in full production. Pockets of activity exist across mainland Europe in automotive applications and markets for window and door profiles are currently being assessed although there is hesitation exhibited among manufacturers to make a commitment to produce. It is understood that there are a number of major European plastic extrusion companies that have already analysed the market in detail, have assessed what they need to do to start production but few have made the transition from the development stage. Some of the reasons for this are discussed in later sections of this report.
Information relating to the size and value of the European WPC market is now starting to become available. Principia suggest that the total demand for natural and wood fibre composites is somewher in the region of 72,400 tonnes and is valued at €65 million (£40 million). Of this, just over 31,500 tonnes is wood plastic composite which is used in a small number of applications in automotive, building products and infrastructure11. Little of this is manufactured in Europe, rather it is product manufactured elsewher (e.g. USA) that is being sold through European distributors. Representatives of WPC producers in the US are also demonstrating significant interest in the European market, particularly Strandex, which is currently looking to set up a company in the UK to produce compounded wood plastic pellets. These companies are obviously keen to maximise license fees and royalty income from application of proprietary technologies.
It is understood from discussions with Strandex that their first European licensee, French company Silvadec, has recently started production of WPC building products using virgin polymer feedstock and that Strandex aim to introduce two lines in the UK under license within the next financial quarter of 2003. With other planned operations in Germany and Belgium, the company hopes to have three or four full production lines in operation by the end of 2003, concentrating primarily on the production of window and door profiles.
