Patent for MDF Panel Licensed for Commercial Use

SAN DIEGO, CA - Wood products developer Noble Environmental Technologies (NET) says it now has exclusive license to commercialize composite and other wood panel technology based on two patents it filed jointly with the U.S. Forest Service's Forest Products Laboratory.

In January Noble Environmental opened a panel development laboratory in San Diego. During last year's AWFS wood show, Noble announced an agreement with SierraPine to manufacture ECOR wood panel products using ECOR technology, which molds wood fibers into panels and wood components.

• view slideshow

Noble Environmental Technologies, or NET, was founded to commercialize ECOR branded products, and other  sustainable materials by design architect, inventor and entrepreneur, Robert Noble, AIA LEED AP. Product brands include ECOR technology, used to make component parts, the first of which is a flat sheet known as FlatCOR, a corrugated panel known as WavCOR, and HoneyCOR, a honeycomb core created by using WavCOR sheets cut at horizontal points and glued together. A three-dimensional product, 3D ESP, combines HoneyCOR and WaveCOR.

The U.S. Forest Service's research at its Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, WI develops commercially viable products to drive demand for forest products. It works in partnerships with private companies to move newly developed products out of the laboratory and into production.

"The collaboration between the FPL and NET is a perfect example of how government and industry can work together to meet society's needs," says John Hunt, research general engineer at FPL, has worked closely with NET and is pleased with the outcome.Hunt. "By combining our unique capabilities, we were able to turn research results into tangible products.products that bring improved options to consumers and promote the sustainable use of resources, all while creating jobs and contributing to the economy."

NET and FPL previously partnered under a cooperative agreement that resulted in the development of three-dimensional engineered molded fiber (3dEMF). NET named the new manufacturing technology and resulting products "ECOR Advanced Environmental Composites."

NET founder and ECOR inventor Robert Noble first introduced ECOR-Advanced Environmental Composite at the 2008 International Conference on Advanced Engineered Wood & Hybrid Composites sponsored by the University of Maine.

ECOR products  characteristics include distinctive shaping, compound curves, and significant strength-to-weight ratios make. It can be used in furniture, interior architecture and decor, signage and displays, automotive, aviation, marine, rail, industrial and manufacturing, military/logistics and consumer products, says NET.

"Fiber resources and underutilized raw material sources are ubiquitous worldwide. NET's work with FPL provides the platform for utilizing the widest array of raw materials to provide significant economic and environmentally sustainable opportunities within farm, forest, and urban redevelopment locations," says Dr. James Torti, NET's president.