SUSTAINABLOG: How to Build a House with Cardboard Boxes: ECOR
Kids love to build forts and houses out of cardboard boxes… and we pat them on the head, and say “That’s so cute!” New building material ECOR takes this notion beyond child’s play: this corrugated fiberboard is made from those boxes, newspapers, office paper, and even agricultural waste. From reading Derek’s post at Ecopreneruist (which you’ll find below), it’s clear that Noble Environmental has figured out how to take almost any kind of waste fiber and plug it into this strong, sturdy, lightweight material.
Got thoughts? Know of similar products in development, or on the market? Share them with us…
Green Building Material: High-Tech Fiberboard Made from Waste Fibers
There’s a new green building material on the market that is light, strong, and flexible, and can be made into just about any shape, including complex molded shapes, without the need for any glues, harmful chemicals, or toxic ingredients. This material, ECOR, is made using only water, heat, fiber, and pressure, and takes a low-value product (waste fiber) and turns it into a high-value green building material.
At its most basic, ECOR, from Noble Environmental, is a corrugated panel that can be used for everything from interior home design and furnishings to furniture to construction to consumer products, and can integrate a wide range of colors and textures. A panel of ECOR is similar to other panel products, including sheetrock, composites, particle board, and others, but is 75% lighter than conventional panels, making it a great choice for packaging, signage, and displays, as well as for applications such as stage sets and interior design elements.
“ECOR is a USDA certified 100% Bio-based, recycled product made from 100% cellulose fiber materials. Fiber sources include an unlimited variety of readily available, low-cost, underutilized, and waste raw material sources. Including old corrugated cardboard (OCC), old newspaper (ONP), office paper, discarded wood chips, residual agricultural fibers including Bovine Processed Fiber (BPF), kenaf, oat, coffee, coconut, and other waste fibers available worldwide.”
ECOR is said to contain no toxic adhesives, additives, formaldehyde, or other sources of off-gassing, and to produce virtually zero airborne VOCs (volatile organic compounds). In addition to being a ‘clean’ green building material, because ECOR is made from waste fiber, which is widely available, it’s also a great example of turning waste to value.
