Technology and Market Issues Driving Wood-Plastic Product Development

Over the last decade, composites produced from wood
and thermoplastic resins have seen rapid increases in commercial
production. Production of these products has increased
significantly from both the plastics and forest products
sectors’ building materials producers. As of 2005, the
value of wood-plastic composites (WPCs) produced in
North America was estimated to be in excess of $1 billion.
Over three-quarters of this production is concentrated in
the decking and railing market where WPCs have reached
an estimated 18 percent of the total market (Smith and
Wolcott 2006). This rapid growth in WPCs has been driven
by many technological and social factors.

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