EcoClad

Joel Klippert and his company, Klip Biotechnologies, LLC, have succeeded in developing, designing, and manufacturing a revolutionary exterior cladding product that is timeless in its design while providing adequate durability in an environmentally responsible manner.  The result is the company’s newest innovation – the EcoClad building exterior siding material. 

The product is composed of post-recycled paper and wood fibers combined with bamboo fibers.  These components are held together with a 100-percent water based co-polymer resin.  The presence of the bamboo allows the EcoClad to be a rapidly-renewable material for LEED certification purposes.  The LEED Green Building Rating system describes rapidly-renewable materials as those being derived from plants with a harvest cycle of ten years or less. 

In the late 1990s, when Klippert first conceived of such a product, most people doubted the feasibility of an exterior cladding product made from recycled paper.  However, among other features, the company claims that its durability rivals that of metal, brick, and stucco exteriors.

Aesthetically, EcoClad’s design is described as being ‘modern, yet timeless’.  It is available in ten stock wood grains and five stock matte colors.  For larger orders, two-hundred other wood grains are available as well.  In addition, the product can be custom-color matched.  Its pieces come in 4’ x 8’ panels that can be cut to suit any exterior cladding application, or 4’ x 12’ panels may be requested for sufficiently large orders.

The EcoClad is able to offer durability due in part to its bamboo fiber component that enables the product to be largely scratch or abrasion resistant while boasting water absorption of less than one-percent.  Furthermore, the EcoClad incorporates an overlay UV system that protects the siding from sun damage. 

The product is priced in a range of $9 and $19 per square foot.

For more information, visit www.kliptech.com