- 23 April 2008 -
WPCs extend service life of Venetian structures

Wood-plastic composites (WPC) from Austrian company Technoplast are being used for the Vaporetto water-bus stations of Venice, Italy. The first Vaporetto landing stages along the shores of the Venice Lagoon have already been converted and others are set to follow.

The project is in collaboration the Venetian Bizeta Group, which has already received Italian state awards for the development. The profiles are marketed under the product name Greenwood in Italy. In addition to the decking profiles with their pure wood appearance that are being produced for the Vaporetto stations, stakes for use in landing stages and the buildings of Venice are also being produced. According to the company, previously these stakes in the water have had to be replaced about once every five years. The introduction of the new WPC material has now given them a service life of over 20 years. The WPC offers a fine wood appearance, but uses sawdust and wood shaving wastes that were previously just waste products. The material is particularly robust and depending on the application - indoors or outdoors - a wood content of 50-70% can be used.

Technoplast Kunstofftechnik GmbH; www.technoplast.at