| Formulation |
 |
Tech-Wood
contains 70% pinewood fibres. This material is specially selected
to the Tech-Wood specification for size and quality. Scrap wood,
timber damaged by storm and logs rejected for regular timber are
used to produce the fibres. |
 |
Tech-Wood also contains 30% additive enhanced polypropylene. Polypropylene is one of the most environmentally friendly plastics. It does not release any toxic gases when burned. |
 |
Tech-Wood can also be recycled. Used Tech-Wood products are granulated and reprocessed into new Tech-Wood products. The material properties of recycled granulate are the same as those of virgin materials. |
| Phase 1: Drying |
 |
The wood
fibres are intensively dried in a continuous steam-drying process.
The drying process employs the flue gases from the plant's electricity
generator. Thanks to the use of this residual heat energy a high
efficiency rate is achieved and the energy consumption of the entire
production process is very low. |
| Phase 2: Mixing |
 |
After the
drying process, the wood fibres are mixed with the polypropylene
at the correct dosage levels. This is done at high temperatures
so that the polypropylene plastifies and completely encapsulates
the wood fibres, resulting in a high-quality, pre-mixed granulate
for the pushtrusion process. |
| After the drying process, the material is temporarily stored in a silo in order to have a continuous supply of pre-mixed compound. |
| Phase 3: Pushtrusion |
 |
The most
important aspect of the Tech-Wood process is pushtrusion. This process
is based on the extrusion technology that is well known in the plastics
industry. |
| The granulate is plastified and pushed through a die under high pressure, after which the die forms the heated material into the desired profile shape. |
 |
From the
die the profile is fed directly into a water-cooling bath. The resulting
product is dimensionally stable and can be handled for further treatment. |
| The cooling water is reused in a 'closed circuit' process. No water is disposed of into surface water. |
| Phase 4: Post-treatments |
| After cooling, the following post-treatments are possible: |
 |
The product
surface can be brushed using an automated wire brush device in order
to give the surface a wood-like appearance. The brushing process
also prepares the surface for the application of paints or stains. |
The surface can also be laminated with a foil or wood veneer. The product can be treated with paints or stains of any desired colour. |