FPL in the News - Recent
Publication year: 2013
Forest Products Laboratory and a Sustainable Studio Set
ncfp.wordpress.com - A New Century of Forest Planning (Wordpress Blog)
02/14/2013
Forest Service research led to the creation of Hollywood's first 100 percent sustainable studio set ... view »
U.S. Forest Service helps Hollywood build 'green' movie set for 'Raising Hope'
washingtonexaminer.com - The Examiner
02/13/2013
"The collaboration between the Forest Products Laboratory and ECOR Global is a perfect example of how government and industry can work together to meet society's needs," says laboratory engineer John Hunt. "By combining our unique capabilities, we were able to turn research results into tangible products" ... view »
Applied Science: "By-product Becomes Product" at Intersection for the Arts
www.7x7.com - 7x7SF
02/01/2013
Stop for a second, and think about the number of toxins you touch, breathe, even taste in one day. Then think about what that means for those whose jobs bring them in constant, enduring contact of those materials for a living. Intersection of the Art's latest cross-disciplinary project "By-product Becomes Product" examines the role and effect of hazardous materials specifically in the artist's studio ... view »
San Diego's leader of cellulose revolution
www.utsandiego.com - The San Diego Union-Tribune
01/25/2013
"To me, there have to be thousands of 'aha!' moments to build something this transformative," says Robert Noble, former CEO of Tucker Sadler Architects and now the founder and CEO of ECOR Global, his new sustainable materials company headquartered in Barrio Logan ... view »
Hollywood Goes Green - ECOR® Global creates FIRST 100 percent sustainable set for 20th Century Fox TV's "Raising Hope"
finance.yahoo.com - Yahoo! Finance
01/24/2013
ECOR® Global 866-417-5518, a subsidiary of Noble Environmental Technologies Corporation has created the first 100% sustainable set for 20th Century Fox's critically acclaimed comedy series "Raising Hope." ... view »
Hollywood Goes Green on FOX's RAISING HOPE
BroadwayWorld.com - Broadway World
01/24/2013
ECOR Global 866-417-5518, a subsidiary of Noble Environmental Technologies Corporation has created the first 100% sustainable set for 20th Century Fox's critically acclaimed comedy series RAISING HOPE. 45 of the company's patented ECOR panels were used to create a modern hotel suite for a two-part episode of the comedy ... view »
Publication year: 2012
Carving a new future from Minnesota's trees: Textiles
www.startribune.com - StarTribune
12/11/2012
An important part of Minnesota's economy depends on finding new uses for wood, and making rayon from trees could be one of those new uses ... view »
From the Editor of Forest Business Network
www.forestbusinessnetwork.com - Forest Business Network
12/05/2012
Both Susan LeVan and Robert Rummer will bring their long, prolific U.S. Forest Service careers to a close by the end of the month... view »
USDA Secretary Vilsack Tours the Forest Products Laboratory
blogs.usda.gov - USDA Blog
10/09/2012
The Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) recently guided USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack through its unique set of research facilities. Basic and applied research at FPL supports a number of objectives, including forest management and restoration, the wise use of forest resources, job creation, and expanding economic opportunities through public-private partnerships on a national scale.
Throughout his tour, Secretary Vilsack talked with lab leadership about FPL's diverse and innovative research efforts. Project leaders used the opportunity to field questions from the Secretary and explain work ranging from wood preservation and durability to advances in "green" building strategies and technology, use of beetle-killed trees, work on historic timber bridges, and advances in nanocellulose-related materials and applications...
view »
Tough timber on a tiny scale
www.abc.net.au - ABC Rural
09/18/2012
Nanocellulose is simply wood that's been carefully smashed to pieces then reformed into neatly-woven "nano-scale" fibers. This new wonder-material is very stiff, lightweight, and it has eight times the tensile strength of steel. Alan Rudie from the Forest Products Laboratory in Wisconsin explains ... view »
Note: Once the podcast has begun playing, scroll to 6 minute, 10 second mark.
Wood pulp extract stronger than carbon fiber or Kevlar
science.slashdot.org - Slashdot
09/04/2012
The Forest Products Laboratory of the US Forest Service has opened a US$1.7 million pilot plant for the production of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from wood by-products materials such as wood chips and sawdust. Prepared properly, CNCs are stronger and stiffer than Kevlar or carbon fibers, so that putting CNC into composite materials ... view »
Wood pulp extract stronger than carbon fiber or Kevlar
www.gizmag.com - Gizmag
09/03/2012
The Forest Products Laboratory of the US Forest Service has opened a US$1.7 million pilot plant for the production of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from wood by-products materials such as wood chips and sawdust. Prepared properly, CNCs are stronger and stiffer than Kevlar or carbon fibers, so that putting CNC into composite materials ... view »
Why wood pulp is world's new wonder material
www.newscientist.com - New Scientist
08/24/2012
THE hottest new material in town is light, strong and conducts electricity. What's more, it's been around a long, long time.To ramp up production, the US opened its first NCC factory in Madison, Wisconsin, on 26 July, marking the rise of what the US National Science Foundation predicts will become a $600 billion industry by 2020 ... view »
A new generation of wood products - unlocking the tiny secrets nature has held for centuries
http://www.bbc.com/ - BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)
08/23/2012
Podcast of BBC's News Hour program interviewing FPL Supervisory Research Chemist Alan Rudie about the opening of the first Nanocellulose Facility in the United States ...
Note: This podcast is no longer available from BBC.
Huge strides being made in reducing broken bats
mlb.mlb.com - Major League Baseball
08/03/2012
In 2008, when more than 30 companies began manufacturing maple bats and around 60 percent of Major Leaguers used them, according to Kretschmann, the number of multipiece failures skyrocketed. That's when MLB decided to bear down, examining trends, talking to players and creating stricter regulations, which immediately dropped the percentage of maple-bat users to about 50 percent in 2009 ... view »
USDA Under Secretary Sherman Unveils Nanocellulose Production Facility
blogs.usda.gov - USDA Blog
08/03/2012
The U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory recently opened a $1.7 million production facility for renewable, forest-based nanomaterials. This facility is the first of its kind in the United States and one that positions the laboratory as the country's leading producer of these materials, also called nanocellulose... view »
USDA Forest Products Laboratory Nanocellulose Facility Grand Opening
umaine.edu - The University of Maine
08/2012
The USDA's Forest Products Laboratory held a ribbon-cutting ceremony July 25th for a state-of-the-art nanocellulose pilot plant in Madison, Wisconsin. USDA Under Secretary Harris Sherman was the keynote speaker at the opening, and several industry leaders (including the PDC's Director, Michael Bilodeau) delivered presentations on the commercialization of nanomaterials... view »
Forest Products Laboratory opens pilot plant
ibmadison.com - In Business Magazine
07/26/2012
The Forest Products Laboratory opened a $1.7 million nanocellulose pilot plant at 1 Gifford Pinchot Drive in Madison. It will support a growing market for wood products by using nanotechnology to produce cost-effective products stronger than Kevlar but lighter in weight than carbon fiber or fiberglass... view »
Forest Service Announces $4 Million for Alternative-Energy Projects
blogs.usda.gov - USDA Blog
07/26/2012
The U.S. Forest Service recently announced the award of nearly $4 million in grants for wood energy projects around the country to help expand regional economies and create new jobs. The grants, totaling $3.9 million, will be distributed to 20 small businesses, tribes and community groups to develop renewable energy projects... view »
U.S. Forest Products Lab to open nanomaterials plant
www.wisconsintechnologycouncil.com - Wisconsin Technology Council
07/25/2012
The U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, in Madison, says it's opening a $1.7 million pilot plant that will support an emerging market for wood products derived from nanotechnology... view »
Nanocellulose Pilot Plant Grand Opening: "A Game-Changer."
www.nbc15.com - WMTV - NBC15
07/25/2012
Industry leaders, scientists, and political leaders discuss massive potential of wood-derived nanotechnology for rural jobs, wildfire prevention, and national defense ... view »
U.S. Forest Products Lab to open nanomaterials plant
investing.businessweek.com - Bloomberg Businessweek
07/24/2012
The U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, in Madison, says it's opening a $1.7 million pilot plant that will support an emerging market for wood products derived from nanotechnology. Through nanotechnology, wood products can be made that are stronger than Kevlar fiber and have high strength with low weight. The attributes have caught the attention of the military for use in lightweight armor and ballistic glass, as well as companies in the automotive, aerospace, electronics and other industries... view »
U.S. Forest Products Lab to open nanomaterials plant
www.jsonline.com - Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel
07/24/2012
The U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, in Madison, says it's opening a $1.7 million pilot plant that will support an emerging market for wood products derived from nanotechnology ... view »
Wood flooring from wine barrels shows promise
westernfarmpress.com - Western Farm Press
07/24/2012
Joe Triglia, owner of Jubilee Flooring in Long Island, N.Y., has spent years working out a way to turn discarded wine barrels into wood flooring. Now, with help from the U.S. Forest Service's Forest Products Laboratory , his vision is turning into a promising business venture ... view »
Forest Products Lab to open first-of-its-kind pilot plant
www.forestbusinessnetwork.com - Forest Business Network
07/22/2012
The Forest Products Laboratory in Madison next week will open a $1.7 million nanocellulose pilot plant that will help support the emerging market for wood-derived renewable materials. A grand-opening ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the laboratory at 1 Gifford Pinchot Drive, with presentations by officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Forest Service, as well as industry representatives from IBM and Lockheed Martin... view »
Forest Products Lab to open first-of-its-kind pilot plant
host.madison.com/wsj - Wisconsin State Journal
07/20/2012
The Forest Products Laboratory in Madison next week will open a $1.7 million nanocellulose pilot plant that will help support the emerging market for wood-derived renewable materials. A grand-opening ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the laboratory at 1 Gifford Pinchot Drive, with presentations by officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Forest Service, as well as industry representatives from IBM and Lockheed Martin... view »
USFS Forest Products Lab Opens NanoCellulose Pilot Plant
www.terutalk.com - Teru Talk
07/2012
The US Forest Service's (USFS) Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) in Madison, Wisconsin is celebrating the Grand Opening of its $1.7 million NanoCellulose Pilot Plant on July 25, 2012. The facility for production of renewable, forest-sourced nanomaterials will support an emerging market for wood-derived renewable materials that will create jobs and contribute an estimated $600 billion ... view »
Moisture Meters and Why You Use Them
blog.woodcraft.com - Woodworking Adventures
06/28/2012
Woodworkers know that moisture content is the single most important factor affecting the quality of their project. To ensure quality, from the mill and dry kiln to the finished project, moisture meters help minimize defects such as shrinkage, cracks, and splits... view »
Forest Products Lab Hosts Important Wood-to-Energy Roundtable with
Deputy Under Secretary Butch Blazer
blogs.usda.gov - USDA Blog
06/19/2012
Arthur "Butch" Blazer, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment, paid a visit to the U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) in Madison, Wis., recently to convene an important roundtable discussion on wood-to-energy concerns... view »
Batter up: Ash or maple?
benningtonbanner.com - Bennington Banner
06/15/2012
Faced with a major PR problem (sportswriter Jeff Passan began a piece in 2008 with the line: "Someone's going to die at a baseball stadium soon."), major league baseball enlisted the help of scientists from Harvard, the University of Massachusetts, and the U.S. Forest Service's Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin, to try to figure out why maple bats were breaking so explosively... view »
Nanocellulose Is No Small Thing
www.conservationmagazine.org - Conservation Magazine (University of Washington)
06/2012
For centuries, the forestry industry has produced paper and lumber. But what if trees could be transformed into an entirely new set of products, ranging from electronic sensors to biomedical implants to military protective gear? Researchers envision a huge array of applications for nanocellulose. It could partially replace fossil fuel-based products such as petroleum-derived plastics and might be cheaper than other high-performance ... view »
Tall Wood - Sustainable skyscrapers of the future may harken back to the log cabin era
www.conservationmagazine.org - Conservation (University of Washington)
05/2012
Just over a century ago, the architects and engineers who invented the skyscraper set us on the path to becoming an urban world. Tall buildings of concrete and steel helped make urban density-and the increased sustainability that comes with it-possible. Life-cycle analyses comparing the climate impacts of different building materials support Green's argument, says Ken Skog, a forestry researcher with the USDA Forest Service's Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin. "Generally the finding has been that if you use wood materials in buildings, you obtain a benefit" over concrete and steel, he says ... view »
Important Carbon Emission Study Co-Authored by
FPL Economist
www.nature.com - Nature Climate Change
05/13/2012
Carbon storage rates after forest clearing vary depending on the country and how the wood is used... view »
Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP)
and Reuse of Building Materials
www.forresidentialpros.com - For Residential Pros
05/09/2012
The December 2011 issue of Qualified Remodeler featured a story about deconstruction (page 18), which prompted a reader to ask whether the Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule impacts the reuse of building materials ... view »
NET Announces Exclusive License with USDA
www.sacbee.com - The Sacramento Bee
05/01/2012
SAN DIEGO, May 1, 2012 - Noble Environmental Technologies (NET, San Diego, CA), a leading sustainable materials manufacturer, announced its exclusive license to commercialize technology based on two patents filed jointly with the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL).... view »
NET Announces Exclusive License with USDA
http://www.marketwatch.com - The Wall Street Journal
05/01/2012
Noble Environmental Technologies (NET, San Diego, CA), a leading sustainable materials manufacturer, announced its exclusive license to commercialize technology based on two patents filed jointly with the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL)... view »
Pulp NonFiction: Fungal Analysis Reveals Clues
for Targeted Biomass Deconstruction
http://www.jgi.doe.gov - DOE Joint Genome Institute
03/22/2012
Without fungi and microbes to break down dead trees and leaf litter in nature, the forest floor might look like a scene from TV's "Hoarders."
Massive-scale genome sequencing projects supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and being carried out at the DOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI) highlight the importance of learning how the cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin that serve as a plant's infrastructure can be broken down by these forest organisms to extract needed nutrients. Among the fungi being studied are species that can selectively break down the cell wall components cellulose and lignin - the number one and two most abundant biopolymers on Earth...
view »
Giant science project comes to life
www.wkow.com - WKOW TV
03/13/2012
Researchers at the USDA Forest Products Laboratory broke a 72-long, 6,000-pound wood beam on Tuesday. This project shows the strength of the glulam beam. It broke around 80,000-pounds of applied force. These beams are the largest tested worldwide since 1990, and the second-largest ever tested... view »
NBC Affiliate Captures Big Bang
www.nbc15.com/ - NBC15 TV
03/13/2012
Madison's Channel 15 was on hand as area middle school students gathered at the Forest Products Laboratory's state-of-the-art Centennial Research Facility to watch a 6,000-pound beam reach its breaking point... view »
Strength Testing of Massive Glulam Beams
www.forestindustry.com - Forest Industry Network
03/13/2012
The largest wood beams ever tested are being studied at the US Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) in Madison, Wis. If you've ever wondered what upwards of 80,000 pounds of load looks or sounds like when applied to a 72-foot-long, 6,000 pound wood beam, now's your chance. Bam! View this short video... view »
Middle school science class gets
front-row seat
Wisconsin State Journal
03/13/2012
Some cupped their hands over their ears, while others planted fingers firmly inside. A few took it all in unencumbered. The 36 middle school students from St. Mary School in Janesville came to the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison on Tuesday to see the largest beam tested since 1990... view »
Forest Sector Reeling During Economic Downturn
www.palletenterprise.com - Pallet Enterprise
03/01/2012
Economic Downturn Impact: Industry researchers analyze the economic health and industry capacity of the forest products sector after the recent economic downturn. Changes have taken place that could have longstanding ramifications for sawmill capacity ... view »
FPL invention recently named one of the
Top Products of 2011
http://www.bluetoad.com - Fastener Technology International
February 2012
A FPL invention has recently been named one of the Top Products of 2011 by Fastener Technology International.
Titled "System for evaluation of the surface area of a threaded fastener", the system allows for more accurate determination
of corrosion rates for threaded fasteners that are in contact with treated wood...
view news article »
Note: Once the web page loads, double click in the lower right hand blue box to enlarge the article.
Forest Products and Bioenergy
www.wpr.org - Wisconsin Public Radio
01/25/2012
Listen to the Larry Meiller Show on Wisconsin Public Radio where FPL's Carl Houtman discusses forest products and bioenergy along with John Greenler from the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center...
listen »
Ring Profiler Gives Scientists
a Luminous Look at Tree Rings
blogs.usda.gov - USDA Blog
01/17/2012
The Ring Profiler may sound like the title of fantasy novel but in fact it's an innovative tool U.S. Forest Service scientists are using to better determine how much a tree grows annually. Developed by the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wis., the Ring Profiler may have significant implications in forest management and climate-change studies... view »
Don't Judge a Tree by Its Size
www.forestindustry.com - Forest Industry Network
01/16/2012
A new tool developed by the U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) provides a more accurate look at how trees grow, and may have significant implications in forest management and climate-change studies...
view news article »
Don't Judge a Tree by Its Size
www.forestbusinessnetwork.com - Forest Business Network
01/12/2012
A new tool developed by the U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) provides a more accurate look at how trees grow, and may have significant implications in forest management and climate-change studies... view news article »
