It’s one of the most important companies in the timber supply chain you’ve (probably) never heard of, but Kop-Coat is doubling down on its commitment to durability – proving once and for all that water-borne technology “has the chops” to treat timber.
“Wood is good, but it can be made better. We take an amazing resource (wood) and make it just a bit better by improving durability in multiple ways.”
Bo Hammond, Kop-Coat’s Pittsburgh-based Global Director of Wood Preservation who spoke exclusively to Wood Central about the benefits of water-borne treatment.
Speaking to Wood Central from the Innovation Coatings for Excellence (ICE) labs in Greensboro, North Carolina, after touring the “flash labs” with Scott Porter – Kop-Coat’s Asia Pacific Business Manager, Mr Hammond said Kop-Coat – part of the US $8 billion RPM Coatings conglomerate, is highly diverse and customisable: “We run the gambit in wood protection from treatments for pressure vacuum, engineered wood and solid lumber.”
“We are manufacturing products from a dedicated production line at RPM Coating’s (178,000 square foot) chemical facility in Corsicana, Texas,” Mr Hammond said. “This means we now have more flexibility and capacity to keep up with the growing demand for preservation products.”
This includes Tru-Core – the Trans-Tasman invention that drives the chemicals into the core of the wood: “It all started in Australia when building codes were regulated, and everything that went into building construction needed to be treated.”
“The pressure vacuum capacity was not there to support treated lumber demand,” Mr Hammond explained. “Tru-Core’s technology shrinks the cycle time and improves the drying time by imparting less water into the wood.”
And it’s not just in Australia and New Zealand, with a growing take-up of US sites using non-pressurised versions of the Tru-Core system for windows, doors and external cladding: “This saves clients time and money; it allows them to treat against mould, fungus and insects all without putting a pressure vacuum system in place.”
“In Australia, we primarily use the pressure system due to our hardwood and softwood species,” according to Mr Porter. Porter was in North Carolina to build stronger alignment between the US, Australian and NZ businesses. On the relationship, “We are the same business, doing the same things – (just with) different species and different styles of treatment. It just makes sense to think about this as a global business,” Mr Hammond said.
And that driver could be Kop-Coat’s water-borne technology: “Whether it’s low VOCs, the environmental impact of water versus solvents or mitigating the volatility in the cost of petroleum (the primary product in solvent-based treatments), we are pulling together to push Tru-Core technology to the industry,” Mr Hammond said.
“When you try something new, you are always going to have naysayers,” according to Mr Hammond:
“There have been naysayers in Australia and NZ; there have been naysayers here in the United States, questioning whether water-borne technology has the capability and the chops to be successful. We are proving, through field testing and a growing list of customers, the value and benefits of the water-borne technology over solvents.”
Bo Hammond on why Kop-Coat’s water-borne technology offers incredible value and benefits over solvents.
To learn more about Kop-Coat’s water-borne treatment, click here for Wood Central’s interview with one of Australia’s largest timber treaters – Fisher’s Timber Treatment. Click here to learn more about Kop-Coat’s breakthrough dual-mode technology for termites.
Please note this is an extract from an interview Wood Central conducted with Bo Hammond and Scott Porter from Kop-Coat’s Innovation Coatings of Excellence (ICE) lab in Greensboro, North Carolina.
