For Immediate Release
16 September 2016
NZBIO award for new ‘green’ glue for wood products
Scion’s environmentally-friendly bioadhesives technology was awarded Biotechnology of the Year at NZBIO’s annual
conference yesterday.
Dr Will Barker, Chief Executive of NZBIO, said “the technology is a game changer for wood panel manufacturers”.
The Scion bioadhesives team, led by Warren Grigsby, has developed a world first 100 per cent biobased adhesive and
resins for engineered wood products. Made from natural sources, such as forestry and agricultural waste, these adhesives
and resins are petrochemical-free, have very low formaldehyde emissions and can be made and used in existing
manufacturing operations.
“We are thrilled to receive this award. It’s a great acknowledgement. We’ve spent years mixing and matching assorted
ingredients to come up with right recipe. This is the icing on the cake,” says Warren.
The technology, which has been over seven years in the making, has been trademarked and patented as ‘Ligate’.
“The ‘green’ credentials of Ligate products will provide manufacturers with a competitive advantage over wood processors
using conventional petrochemical-based adhesives and resins.
“Adhesives and resins made from natural sources have a lower environmental footprint and are considered more socially
acceptable than their traditional formaldehyde-based counterparts,” says Warren.
The technology has already attracted international interest, and next week Warren travels to Europe to further profile
the technology at two international conferences.
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More information about this technology:
http://pureadvantage.org/news/2016/07/28/new-glue-new-zealand-solution-sticky-problem/
Scion (a New Zealand Crown research institute) undertakes research, science and technology development for the forestry, wood
product, wood-derived materials and other biomaterial sectors. Formerly the NZ Forest Research Institute, Scion employs
approximately 300 people and has its head office in Rotorua. For more information, please visit www.scionresearch.com