Brookridge Timber Ltd and M&M Timber Ltd arethe first UK companies using a new copper preservative technology developed by specialist Osmose.
The MicroPro system, which is popular in the US, uses patent-pending technology to grind copper particles down to a size small enough to penetrate into wood as a solid suspended in a water-based solution, known as micronisation.
This, said Osmose, produces wood that offers a consistent and more natural colour, better paint and stain adhesion and improved corrosion protection for fixtures and fittings.
Osmose has also developed a range of pigment-based colour tints for micronised timber known as MicroShades.
Brookridge is offering the straight micronised copper and MicroShades Brown treatments, alongside its existing treatment options.
From the autumn, M&M is to use the treatment across a range of its products, including landscaping timber, playground equipment and garden equipment, as well as offering a 15-year warranty based on the preservative’s credentials.
“This must rank as one of the most important developments ever undertaken by our company,” said managing director Nigel Poyner. “There’s no doubt that micronised timber is the way forward.”
Osmose said micronised timber will be manufactured to ISO 14001 following on from its accreditation in the US as a Environmentally Preferred Product by Scientific Certification Systems body.
