Making Lumber Better: US-based TechWood is Delivering Disruptive Innovation to Protective Lumber
Treatments.
Approaching their fifth year in the wood treatment industry, TechWood, a product of Chemical Technologies Holding, Inc., headquartered in Fort Pierce, FL, is continuing to redefine the way lumber and engineered wood components alike, are protected from threats like mold, rot, decay, and fire that cause damage to these products during construction and in regular service.
With game-changing and innovative processes centered around “pressureless” treatment, the company offers four flagship products: TechWood 2200, 2200EX, 3300, and 4400 for various levels of protection for both residential and commercial construction. Each treatment solution offers builders, engineers, contractors, and wood component manufacturers complete protection solutions, including warrantied defense against mold, rot, termites and decay, while additionally providing Class A fire protection ratings across its 3300 and 4400 product lines. As a greater benefit, the pressureless treatments deliver a solution that eliminates the use of toxic chemicals (making it 100% eco-friendly and non-hazardous), and results in lumber that is proven to be significantly lighter and almost 70 percent more stable than regular wood and even greater stability than standard pressure-treated materials. Applicable to multi-use applications, TechWood treated lumber can be utilized for entire framing packages, wall assemblies, I-Joists, Trusses and Glulams, as well as for panels, corral boards, and outdoor structures such as sheds and prefabricated home components.
According to TechWood CEO Irv Minnaker, it’s the disruptive technology and innovation that has been steadily gaining ground in the market. “We are seeing about 20 percent revenue growth per year within our industry, but it is our innovation of creating better lumber that is resonating with builders because of long-term cost reductions in loss, waste, damage and mitigation. There is no product out there that delivers the benefits TechWood does to both builder and owners long-term.”
Even though the company is relatively new, Minnaker is very ambitious, stating that they are continuing to grow throughout the United States by expanding an already-established network of licensed applicators across the country. “We currently have a network of national applicators that specialize in providing our treatments in multiple regions, and we are continually looking for, and adding to, that network to make TechWood accessible to every builder and contractor who looks to build better and safer homes.”
Andrew Dingman, Executive Vice President for TechWood and a 40-year lumber industry veteran, is focused on the specifics of what makes TechWood stand out in the marketplace, and more importantly why the company is so passionate about changing the standard of lumber protection. “I have been saying it for decades now, wood is good! It’s good for construction and good for the world, but TechWood makes it better. We are trying to help make healthy homes. By adding our chemistry to a home, it will last hundreds of years, whether that be through the protection of our 2200 and 2200 EX solutions for mold, rot, and termite protection, or the added benefit of our fire-resistant 3300 and 4400 which are an approved alternative material to traditional pressure treated Fire Retardant Treated (FRT).”
These claims are not just talk. The value of TechWood is supported by a wealth of third-party testing and accreditations, as well as through TechWood’s internal science and development lab onsite in Ft. Pierce. Headed up by Dr. Jinxue Jiang, Chief Science Officer, TechWood has tested “everything” such as Southern Yellow Pine and OSB since the inception of the pressureless process. The result? The treatments worked on every species and every building material it was applied to and provided levels of protection without the pitfalls of toxicity, corrosivity, strength degradation, or instability of the lumber. All evaluations, data and safety information are available on their website for anyone looking to learn more.
Further strengthening the value and claims of TechWood’s performance is the company’s commitment to providing warrantied protection. “The warranty for our products is unmatched and works for mold, rot and termites for four months horizontally on a jobsite and six months vertically before they enclose the project. Then, we have a five-year warranty for mold and a ten-year warranty for termites and rot.” Dingman jumped in to note how their transferable warranty works for both builders and homeowners “Once the house is complete and it meets building codes, which means no leaks or mold, from that moment on, it could be transferable.”
This full-scope approach to making lumber has also become the battle cry for TechWood’s brand communications over the past year, with targeted messaging, newly developed brand materials and a messaging strategy that captures and delivers the core benefits of the TechWood products.
Paul Schmidt, Chief Marketing Officer, explained their desire to clearly communicate the benefits of TechWood to help a variety of builders, homeowners and industry professionals understand that cost-effective, recyclable solutions, increased performance and longevity, are essentially “no-brainers” for better building. “From a marketing aspect, this is the perfect product to communicate. For builders, our treatments provide protection of lumber during the construction phase with reduction in transportation costs, construction costs, material loss or need for costly mitigation. From the homeowner side, we deliver piece of mind, long-lasting performance, protection for your greatest asset, and a reduction of long-term homeownership costs.” Schmidt goes on to sum up the result: “We are protecting homes, while protecting families. We’re building cleaner while saving both builders and homeowners money. I’m not sure there is a better value proposition out there to communicate.” Minnaker strengthened that point with one addition: “Why would you build anything that’s not protected.”
Schmidt then launched into the company’s goal to align themselves with the right business partners, creating an international network of people to make their brand more recognizable. With the help of these partners, Schmidt hopes that their objectives, which include “bringing benefits to consumers and giving them a better category to make lumber better,” are clearly understood.
That partnership alignment circles back to the continued expansion of the applicator network and ensuring that TechWood be presented by the right industry partners. Minnaker explained who those partners are and who they are looking for in the future, getting more specific about their goals. “The applicators are our partners, so we want to develop new relationships in industries that we are already in and in other verticals that we are not in such as shed manufacturers or prefab home manufacturers. We are dealing with truss component manufacturers right now and lumber dealers that sell finished products to other lumber dealers, but our sights are on multiple industry developers and innovators.”
TechWood is currently aligned with multiple organizations within the industry including the North American Wholesale Lumber Association (NAWLA), the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB), the Treasure Coast Builders Association (TCBA), and offer continuing education courses through the American Institute of Architects (AIA). They are currently participating in global industry events such as the NAWLA Traders Market, SEBC, the Montreal Wood Expo and BCMC, with expansion this year into the Shed Builders Expo.
“As I mentioned before, wood is good.” reiterates Dingman. “Our expansion into the industry is not simply to make a name for ourselves. It’s to help our industry and industry partners build better, builder safer and build cleaner for the future.”
