Fledgling Castle Industrial Technologies Inc. has created a complete, innovative vinyl siding system that emulates natural stone's appearance.
The initial product line simulates rock known as chisel stone, limestone or Jerusalem stone, but Castle siding designers are considering other stone looks for future panels. ``We have 15 different rocks in the pipeline,'' Alex Golberg, chief executive officer, said in a phone interview. ``It took a long time to design and develop the products.''
The panels are replaceable and connectable. Castle Armor is waterproof, weighs about 1 pound per square foot and is five to seven times stronger than regular vinyl siding at a comparable cost, according to Golberg. The product can boost thermal insulating R-value properties, Golberg said, adding that often there is no insulation in vinyl siding or stone siding.
Installation may take five to seven days for an average house. Panels can form a random ashlar stone pattern.
Bell Canyon, Calif.-based Castle Industrial, which employs seven, is targeting East Coast and Midwest markets. ``We will also go after the market with stone veneer,'' Golberg said. ``We are working with the largest home builders and improvement companies.''
Golberg and William Lincoln, who is chief financial officer, formed Castle Industrial in 2005. Golberg has experience in construction engineering and the software business, and Lincoln was affiliated with the Pasadena, Calif.-based Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which does work for the National Aeronautical and Space Administration.
Other firms involved in the production of Castle Armor are:
* Universal Plastic Mold Inc. of Baldwin Park, Calif., which assisted in the development and is injection molding the Castle Armor-brand face panels and clips. Each 3.2-square-foot panel is 3-5 millimeters thick and has imitation grout lines.
* Pope Plastics Inc. of Canoga Park, Calif., which is injection molding interior and exterior corner stones.
* J&L Custom Plastic Extrusions Inc. of South El Monte, Calif., is extruding snap-together window and door trim moldings.
* Georgia Gulf Corp. of Atlanta modified a PVC compound and supplies a customized resin without plasticizers, making the panel strong enough at the length required for traditional rigid vinyl.
* Sherwin-Williams Co. of Cleveland supplies customized coatings that JS Royal Design applies to texture, differentiate and customize panels and other Castle Armor components at a North Hollywood, Calif., facility.
Products conform to ASTM Specification D3679 and Uniform Building Code 14-2.
The firm plans to introduce a simulated ledge-stone product at the Building Industry Association of Southern California's trade show Nov. 15-16 in Long Beach, Calif. A separate business, Castle Stone Enterprises LLC of Los Angeles, will distribute the product.
