Low Impact Material Technical Data Sheet / Fiche technique matériau
LOW IMPACT MATERIAL TECHNICAL DATA SHEET - FICHE TECHNIQUE
MATÉRIAUX
Material
Matériau
Wood Fibre Boards
Description
Description
Rigid wood fibre boards can be used to improve
thermal and acoustic insulation for external and
internal walls, roofs and floors. Externally, wood fibre
wall insulation boards can be applied to timber frame,
steel frame and masonry substrates. Medium density
wood fibre insulation slabs can be used to infill
between timber studs and between or below rafters
and joists.
Composition
Composition
Wood fibre boards are made from 95% waste wood.
Spruce / pine chippings, water with natural tree resin
binder (Thermowall 040/045)
Relevant Standards
Critères pertinents
BS-EN-13171-T3-T2.5-AF5*
Who manufactures ?
Qui produit ?
Woodfibre building systems, sold under the name
Pavatex, are available through Natural Building
Technologies Ltd. (www.natural-building.co.uk).
The Unger-Diffutherm range of wood fibre insulation
products are available from Back to Earth
(www.backtoearth.co.uk).
How is it manufactured
?
Comment est-il produit ?
The softwood chippings are pulped and soaked in
water, then mechanically pressed into boards, dried,
and cut to shape. Boards thicker than 20mm are made
up of 20mm thick laminations*
Where is-it
manufactured ?
Où est-il produit ?
Pavatex is manufactured in Switzerland and
transported by road to UK.
Homatherm and the Udi range of boards are
manufactured in Germany.
Embodied Energy**/^
Energie grise
There are as yet no conclusive figures on the
embodied energy of natural fibre insulation. However,
as a natural plant- or animal-based material it benefits
from a very low environmental impact in reuse and/or
disposal.
Carbon Footprint
Empreinte carbone
Timber buildings have an extremely low carbon
footprint. For every cubic metre of wood used instead
of an alternative, 0.8 tonnes of CO2 are locked away.

Low Impact Material Technical Data Sheet / Fiche technique matériau
Social intensity
(manpower needed for
production and creating
job locally)
Intensité sociale (besoin
en main d’oeuvre
nécessaire à la
production et créatrice
d’emploi local)
Industrial manufacturing processes create
employment. Transport and distribution jobs
throughout supply chain add to carbon footprint.
1 or 2 installers required for on site construction and
insulation/retrofit projects locally. Surfaces are
usually rendered or plastered.
Pollutants
Polluants
No toxins or toxic emissions during manufacture, no
chemical additives, no VOC emissions, low toxic fumes
if burned
Water use during
manufacture
Quantité d’eau
nécéssaire pour
produire le produit
Unknown
Rare Earth metals
Métaux rares contenus
dans le produit
None
Life Expectancy
Esperance de vie
Durability 70 + years
Replacement for which
common material
(Benefits)
Fonction du matériau
(qu’est-ce qu’il
remplace) et quel est le
benefice de ce
remplacement ?
Rigid wood fibre insulation board can be used
externally as a render substrate to improve thermal
and acoustic performance. Semi-rigid wood fibre
insulation slabs replace mineral wool or polystyrene.
Natural wood fibre board is produced as a by product
of the timber industry. The European construction
industry uses European softwoods from managed
forest. For every cubic meter of wood used instead of
an alternative, 0.8 tons of CO2 are locked away.
Wood fibre board can be recycled and is bio
degradable.
Degradation
Degradabilité
European Waste Code (EWC): 030105 ; sawdust,
shavings, cuttings, wood, particle board and veneer ;
not containing dangerous substances.
Maintenance required
Entretien
Durable low maintenance product.
U Value
Valeur thermique (U)
0.5 - 2.5m2
(installed values depend on thickness and
substrate) Pavatex manufacturer U-value:
U-Value (W/m2.K) for 89mm timber stud with
insulation:
60mm Diffutherm: 0.28; 80mm: 0.25; 100mm: 0.22
U-Value (W/m2.K) for 140mm timber stud with
insulation:
60mm Diffutherm: 0.22; 80mm: 0.20; 100mm: 0.18
Properties under load
Propriétés mécaniques
Compression
Compression
Tension
Tension
Shear
Cisaillement
0.10 (?)* 6kN/m2
* 3kN/m2*

Low Impact Material Technical Data Sheet / Fiche technique matériau
Fire Retardation
Resistance au feu
Class E* (Ammonium polyphosphate used as fire
retardant*)
Density
Densité
40 - 250 kg/m3
Traditional size of
material
(sheet / block)
Taille traditionnelle du
matériau ( laine / bloc /
vrac..)
Board Dimensions – 1880mm * 600mm
(STEICO Special Board Specifications)^^
Thickness Weight Pcs per Pallet weight
(mm) (kg/m2) pallet (kg)
60 14.01 36 ca. 620
80 18.44 28 ca. 620
100 22.81 22 ca. 620
120 27.21 18 ca. 620
Handling
Manutention
Easy to handle, cut and install
*HOMATHERM woodFlex® Protect
** EMBODIED ENERGY (CARBON) ; “The embodied energy (carbon) of a
building material can be taken as the total primary energy consumed (carbon
released) over its life cycle. This would normally include (at least) extraction,
manufacturing and transportation. Ideally the boundaries would be set from
the extraction of raw materials (inc fuels) until the end of the products lifetime
(including energy from manufacturing, transport, energy to manufacture
capital equipment, heating & lighting of factory, maintenance, disposal...etc),
known as ‘Cradle‐to‐Grave’. It has become common practice to specify the
embodied energy as ‘Cradle‐to‐ Gate’, which includes all energy (in primary
form) until the product leaves the factory gate. The final boundary condition is
‘Cradle‐to‐Site’, which includes all of the energy consumed until the product has
reached the point of use (i.e. building site).” ; Source; INVENTORY OF CARBON
& ENERGY (ICE) ; Version 1.6a ; Prof. Geoff Hammond & Craig Jones ;
Sustainable Energy Research Team (SERT) Department of Mechanical
Engineering University of Bath, UK (www.bath.ac.uk/mech‐
eng/sert/embodied/).
^ NATURAL FIBRE INSULATION; An introduction to low-impact
building materials; Andy Sutton and Daniel Black, BRE Pete Walker,
University of Bath
^^ STEICO Board (www.steico.com)
Other references: ISO 10456 : Building materials and products — Hygrothermal
properties — Tabulated design values and procedures for determining declared
and design thermal values. Matériaux et produits pour le bâtiment —
Propriétés hygrothermiques — Valeurs utiles tabulées et procédures pour la
détermination des valeurs thermiques déclarées et utiles.