Finnforest (UK) Ltd has increased the amount of certified products it can offer following Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes (PEFC) chain of custody certification for the majority of its softwood mouldings range.
The company also says its Finnjoist (FJI) flooring system has been successfully tested for building regulations Part E (sound) compliance using a depth of 220mm with 400mm centres without an acoustic quilt.
Certification of the company’s softwood mouldings follows a six-month monitoring period. Heat-treated Thermowood has also been certified, while MDF mouldings have achieved Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification.
Casing, lining products and the Impressions range are expected to be certified by the end of 2004, while decking should be PEFC labelled by early next year.
OSB, MDF and chipboard products were FSC certified earlier this year, while temperate plywood, Kerto, glulam and I-beams have received PEFC certification.
Environmental manager Rachel Butler said: “We are constantly addressing sourcing issues to maximise the amount of timber and wood-based products that we can label as certified. The recent addition of our PEFC softwood and FSC MDF mouldings was a major development and we will continue to add to this.”
Meanwhile, on the flooring systems front, Finnforest says the successful Part E testing of its FJI joists at Sound Research Laboratories Ltd will be welcomed by housebuilders who until now have used 220mm solid wood.
The company says the 220mm FJI joist removes the need for additional brick courses and means builders do not have to change their house designs to comply with Part E.
Testing was carried out using 22mm chipboard and 15mm standard plasterboard.
