Complete Landscape Solutions for the Urban Environment

Metamorphosis

Urban Woods into mainstream uses?

about Tournesol Siteworks

• Manufacturing products

for urban landscapes

since 1979

• Exclusively focused on

products for

commercial and high-

end residential on-

structure landscapes

• Based in Hayward, CA,

near San Francisco

with manufacturing

facilities in: California,

Texas and Minnesota.

materials we work in

• FRP fiberglass

• GFRC concrete

• Metal

• Plastics

• Wood—building out

opportunity now

Commercial Opportunity

• Current commercial

landscape construction—

South American tropical

hardwoods

• Ipe, Jatoba, Massaranduba,

Cumaru, Iroko and Teak

• Why are South American

tropical hardwoods used?

• Thermally-modified wood

(TMW) as an alternate to

tropical hardwoods

What is thermally-modified wood?

• Domestic hardwoods treated

in a special high temperature

kiln.

• AWPA Use-Class UC3B &

Class A flame spread (ASTM

E-84)

• Dimensionally stable

• Easy to work with

• Attractive color

Urban wood as potential starting stock for TMW

• Ash is an excellent hardwood

for TMW—Green is very

good, black ash not so much

• Oak—common urban tree

and excellent hardwood too

• Irresistible marketing pitch to

our specifiers and owners

• Similar color as ipe

• FSC or Urban Forest Product

Certification

• “Upcycle”

Urban wood—why it fits for Tournesol

• Still have somewhat limited

needs

• Ash is available

• Somewhat flexible on lengths

coming in

• “But” there are challenges

Challenge #1: Local Sawyers

• Quantities required

• Pricing / Efficiency

• Consistent sourcing and

availability

• Reliability

Challenge #2: Intermediate Steps – Availability

• Drying availability

(outsourced) very

limited

• Transportation /

Quarantine issues

• Processing—flexibility

in working to specific

sizes

Challenge #3: Scrap

• Need high-quality

material—Select or

better

• What do we do with the

rest of the tree?

Central Issues

• Tournesol Siteworks is not a

dedicated wood company

• At some point, cost of wood

and efficiencies have to

come into line

• Thermal modification is not

an inexpensive process

Bridging the gap

• Determined that it’s

more important to build

demand for TMW than

incorporate urban wood

into the supply chain

• Depending on wood

type and sources, we

hope to apply greater

resources into

developing urban supply

Long-term Outlook

• Very compelling product

for Tournesol’s customer

base

• Perhaps once TMW is

more established, urban

wood will be able to sell

at a higher price point

• Offsetting the higher

development cost.

Thank You!