When the pandemic created unprecedented demand for preservative-treated wood products, it also increased customer’s need for specific information to properly specify and use these products. Fortunately, the top treated wood associations were ready and delivered the key information to thousands in the market.
Western Wood Preservers Institute (WWPI) and Southern Forest Products Assn. (SFPA) together represent the wood treating industry throughout the country, offering technical and product support for preserved wood products sold in the U.S. With people homebound due to the pandemic, many decided it was time to build or refurbish their outdoor spaces, from decks and fencing to garden structures. Treated wood sales skyrocketed and many headed to the internet to find out how to properly select and use the wood.
Thousands turned to WWPI’s website PreservedWood.org for help. Visits to the site in the second half of 2020 more than doubled, setting a new record for access to the site. Downloads of WWPI literature titles also increased by double digits.
The most popular publication was PreserveSpec: Specifying with AWPA Use Categories, which offers guidance on how to select the right preserved wood product for the conditions where it will be used. The guide includes an infographic showing the typical uses of preserved wood in residential construction.
Other popular downloads included the Best Management Practices – Specifiers Guide, detailing how to safely use preserved wood in aquatic and sensitive areas.
Professional users also tapped the web to add to their preserved wood product knowledge. The online Wood That Lasts eUniversity features online courses that provide Continuing Education Units, or CEUs, from organizations such as American Institute of Architects. The courses, offered through the AEC Daily and Architectural Record online education platforms, drew nearly 1,000 professionals who took the courses and received CEUs. This included a course on preserved wood as well as a separate course on fire-retardant treated wood.
For those who wanted information at their fingertips, many discovered the Treated Wood Guide app. The free app, available for both Apple iOS and Google Android smartphones and tablets, provides critical product information in an easy-to-use format. More than 2,200 have downloaded the app since it debuted some five years ago.
While demand for preserved wood has slowed from the lofty heights, even more customers are finding the information they need online. Visits to the PreservedWood.org site are up more than 50 percent in first six months of this year.
