Medite promotes 'low formaldehyde' innovation

Formaldehyde, a component in the raw material of the resins used to bind wood fibres by wood-based composites, has long been subject to debate.

With continued and growing interest in 'healthy buildings', product emissions and indoor air quality, this is now a major live issue for panel products in Europe, the US and Japan, all of which have developed their own standards in response.

Europe has led the way on formaldehyde reduction with the E1 standard but demands from the market, home product retailers and regulation coming from California have resulted in the call for stricter standards on MDF and chipboard producers than are currently being applied in Europe.

The Californian Air Resources Board (CARB) system (which measures airborne emissions rather than the amount of the formaldehyde in the board) is emerging as the standard in the marketplace.

In the US, the CARB 1 regulation came into effect in January 2009 and, while not yet a national regulation in the US, is already being adopted 'de-facto' by all US states, and several international home products retailers who are heavily dependent on composites are also developing formaldehyde reduction strategies.

When the final limits are fully in place by 2012, the regulation will establish the toughest production standard in the world for formaldehyde emissions from composite wood panels.

Medite, part of the panel products division of Coillte, has long been at the forefront of 'low formaldehyde' innovation in Europe.

In 1987 the company introduced Medite E1, and a few years later Medite Ecologique was launched, which is a specialist zero-added formaldehyde product that has been widely specified for environmentally sensitive interior applications such as museums, laboratories, art galleries and schools.

Following a recent EUR16m investment in new technology and equipment to improve production facilities and refine capabilities at its plant in Clonmel, Ireland, Medite continues to be able to respond quickly to constantly evolving regulations.

Now, Medite has the ability to manufacture MDF panels that have been certified in compliance with the emission standards of CARB 2; 18 months before the CARB 2 regulation becomes compulsory in the US.

This also means that Medite is able to produce MDF that meets the EPF-S guideline standards currently being developed in Europe.

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