Kebony wins for product innovation

A modified wood created using a by-product of sugar cane farming has won a product innovation award.

Kebony, the provider of sustainable wood, won the award at the Architectural products Awards, which honour innovation in the development and refinement of building products, from cladding systems to interior finishes.

The company won in the woods, plastics and composites category.

Kebony is created using furfuryl alcohol, a by-product of farming of sugar cane, to transform sustainable soft woods into durable woods with the performance and aesthetics of the best tropical hardwoods.

With the addition of heat stable polymers permanently grafted into the wood cell wall, the result is a greatly improved hardness, durability and dimensional stability. The wood is made strong and resistant to microbiological decay and harsh weather conditions without the need for expensive and environmentally-damaging chemical treatments.

The awards are judged by a group of 50 independent industry professionals, and the awards programme provides a mechanism to impartially review products and award those which pose a creative and rational solution to the everyday problems faced by workers in the industry.

“We have observed an increasing demand for an environmentally friendly high-performance wood with the attributes of the best tropical hardwoods. Innovation is at the very core of Kebony’s functionality and what sets it apart from other treated timber products,” said Adrian Pye, Kebony’s international sales director.