CertainTeed rolls out polyurethane composite siding

Building products maker CertainTeed Corp. launched a national rollout for a polyurethane composite siding that it calls "revolutionary" and claims can offer unmatched moisture resistance in a wide plank that resembles cedar.

Named Icon, the siding is manufactured in Jackson, Mich., with a proprietary formula of glass fibers and a fly ash mix of quartz and iron mineral dusts. The result is a premium product, according to Kelly Warren, marketing manager for CertainTeed Siding.

"Our engineers created a revolutionary, unique premium cladding," Warren said in a phone interview. "Homeowners like the rich texture, wide flat face and shadow lines. Builders like that its lightweight and easy to install."

Icon siding comes in extended 16-foot-long panels but is light enough that one person can carry up to five panels at a time and install them in a few steps.

CertainTeed began a slow roll-out of Icon in the Midwest in 2016 but it is now available nationwide and will be featured at the 2018 International Builders Show in January.

Founded in 1904 and based in Malvern, Pa., CertainTeed also produces roofing, fences, decking, railing, trim, insulation, dry wall and ceilings. The company and its affiliates saw sales of about $3.4 billion in 2016.

In the most recent Plastics News' ranking, CertainTeed was No. 5 among pipe, profile and tubing extruders in North America with estimated related annual sales of $640 million.

While Icon production has an extrusion component, Warren said the siding is manufactured with a "belt process."

Icon siding comes with a 30-year warranty and is being positioned as a high-performing alternative to fiber cement and composite wood. Warren said it is typically higher priced than both.

"This is our first true composite siding. This is something completely different," Warren said. "Because it's a polyurethane thermoset product, you don't get moisture absorption like you do with a wood composite or fiber cement. That performance feature is unique to a plastic composite product and it lends itself to a host of benefits."

Among those benefits, Warren said Icon won't delaminate or contract and expand on the wall, which means it doesn't need flashing to prevent water from getting behind the siding and compromising the house wrap or exterior wall structure. Icon can also be installed without caulking.

"If you look at the way fiber cement and wood composites have been positioned, they've always been mid- or upper-tier products," Warren said. "But, you've got moisture absorption and expansion and contraction on the wall."

Polymer composites are next-generation products, Warren added. She said CertainTeed expects strong sales for Icon at the expense of wood composites and fiber cement.

Builder confidence in the market for new single-family houses rose two points in November to a level of 70 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for November, which was the second highest on record since July 2005.

"November's builder confidence reading is close to a post-recession high – a strong indicator that the housing market continues to grow steadily," NAHB Chairman Granger McDonald said in a Nov. 16 news release. "However, our members still face supply-side constraints, such as lot and labor shortages and ongoing building material price increases."

The increased demand for housing is being driven by job and economic growth as well as a limited housing inventory, according to NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz.

The NAHB index gauges builder perceptions of current home sales and sales expectations for the next six months. Scores over 50 indicate more builders view conditions as good.

Regional scores increased five points in the Northeast to 54 and one point in the South to 69. The West and Midwest remained unchanged at 77 and 63, respectively.

CertainTeed arranged for third-party testing of Icon installations vs. fiber cement and wood composite siding at Home Innovation Research Labs in Washington D.C., which is an independent subsidiary of NAHB.

Icon siding can be butted together tightly to prevent unsightly joints and seams, then quickly fastened to the structure, which reduces man hours for the job, Warren said. The product also is easy to handle. She said one square (100 square feet) of Icon weighs about 100 pounds compared to fiber cement, which is over 250 pounds per square, and wood composites, which average about 170 pounds per square.

Installation tests were conducted on the various sidings with the same work crew over a four-day period. The findings show Icon installs 25 percent faster than fiber cement and 22 percent faster than wood composite siding, Warren said.

"Icon is easier and faster to install and we have the data to support that claim," she added.

Icon also has a patented stud-finder system and self-aligning planks for speedy and precise placement.

In addition, Icon siding is flexible despite the wood look, and can fit into tight places or bow around various shaped openings, Warren said.

Icon comes in a cedar-like wood grain that is primed, and can be painted on the job site with a latex-based paint.

"At the end of the day, everyone is chasing that real look of wood without all the installation and maintenance issues," she added. "You're starting to see more composites come into the market and you'll start to see that atrophy where people are moving away from traditional fiber cement and wood composites to something that's a higher performing, longer lasting material."

CertainTeed is a subsidiary of Cie de Saint-Gobain SA, which is based in France and is one of the oldest and largest building products companies in the world.