WOOD PLASTIC COMPOSITES | MATERIALS IMAGE: BAUSANO


WPCs: building and beyond


With carbon footprint and sustainability concerns on the rise, the appeal of wood plastic composites is now extending far beyond construction. Jennifer Markarian learns more


Wood plastic composite (WPC) materials have been known as sustainable building materials — for their use of both recycled plastic and wood waste — since their inception around two decades ago. That remains the case today, with use of plastics containing waste wood fibre or particles now expanding beyond lumber and building materials to meet demands for carbon footprint reduction and use renewable materials. WPC decking and part manufacturers continue


to promote the sustainability aspect of their materials through consumer education. For example, Azek in the US, which manufactures TimberTech WPC decking and other products, organises community recycling. One of its latest partnerships involves collection of polyethylene “Clean Out Bags” from clothing reseller ThredUp. The post-consumer recycled bags, along with ThredUp’s post-industrial film waste, will be


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processed at Azek’s vertically integrated polyethyl- ene recycling facility in Wilmington, Ohio. “It is collaborations with innovative and like- minded companies such as ThredUp that will help us meet our goal of recycling 1bn pounds [around 450,000 tonnes] of material annually by the end of 2026,” said Jesse Singh, CEO of Azek. With its claimed annual consumption of more than 400m pounds (180,000 tonnes) of plastic film waste, composite decking producer Trex is considered one of the largest recyclers of plastics film in North America. In addition to its large commercial recycling partners, the company has established the NexTrex Grassroots Movement to collect plastic waste from smaller organisations that are willing to serve as drop-off locations. Each Grassroots partner is equipped with a baler for bundling and weighing recycled plastic material. “After 20-40 bales are compiled — 20,000-


Main image: Interest in WPCs is moving beyond


construction to markets such as household, automotive and cosmetics


November/December 2023 | PIPE & PROFILE EXTRUSION 11


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