Wood Finishing

The secondary wood products industry is an important industrial sector in Minnesota both economically and environmentally. Over 1,000 furniture, cabinet and millwork shops operate in Minnesota. These shops are a significant emission source of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs).

The secondary wood products industry is one which is receiving more regulatory scrutiny through the Wood Furniture Manufacturing National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) and in locations that do not meet the national ambient air quality standard for ozone.

Andersen Corporation, 1997 Governor's Award Winner Based on the company's mission statement, "to engage in responsible stewardship of the environment," Andersen established an Environmental Management System (EMS) in 1993 that covers all aspects of the company's environmental operations.

Artistic Finishes Inc., Roseville, MN, Case study on waterborne and UV-cured coatings.

Automated Building Components, 1997 Governor's Award Winner The use of solvent-based coatings is standard practice in the majority of wood finishing operations. In 1994, Automated Building Components in Chanhassen began to explore non-hazardous alternatives to standard coatings that ultimately led to successful conversion to waterbased finishes.

Crystal Cabinet Works Eliminates Methylene Chloride Based Adhesives Switching to a waterbased adhesive reduced Crystal Cabinet Works' reportable toxic chemical emissions, helped the company avoid OSHA's methylene chloride standard and stay in compliance with EPA's NESHAP for the wood furniture industry.

Marvin Windows and Doors, 2005 Governor’s Award Winner

Suppliers of Low-VOC, Low-HAP and Waterborne Wood Finishes The companies in this reference list supply low volatile organic compound, low hazardous air pollutant and waterborne wood finishes.

Pollution Prevention for Wood Finishers: Pine-Tique Case Study video Produced by Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, 19 minutes, 1998. E-mail Paul to get a copy.

Pollution Prevention for Wood Finishers video Produced by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, 34 minutes, 1997. E-mail Paul to get a copy.

UV Curing for Wood Applications This RadTech Report article (May/June 1999) describes the main chemical classes used in UV wood-coatings, and has an at-a-glance table showing how they compare. Another table shows a physical property comparison of UV cured epoxy acrylate and two non-UV waterborne coatings.

Waste Reduction and Cost Saving ideas for Wood Finishers Through the use of alternative coatings, such as waterborne finishes, and by switching to higher transfer efficiency spray equipment, some companies are seeing significant reductions in air emissions and seeing savings on disposal and raw material costs.

Waterbased Substitutes for Wood Finishing Lacquers A MnTAP intern at Aaron Carlson Company assembled a list of waterbased lacquer suppliers and established criteria for judging the quality of finish to compare lacquers.

Working with Vendors to Change Wood Finishes How to work with a vendor to make appropriate changes in finishing processes.