Osmose to Produce ACQ Preservative

Osmose, Inc. and Chemical Specialties, Inc. (CSI) announced an agreement allowing Osmose to produce and sell ACQ, a copper-based alternative to CCA wood preservatives developed by CSI. This agreement should lead to a significant expansion in the availability of ACQ-treated wood products in North America and elsewhere. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Osmose plans to market ACQ-treated wood under the name NatureWood, according to Al Heberer, National Accounts Manager. The move came about after Osmose acquired a New Zealand-based company, Fernz Timber Protection Group, that already had the rights to ACQ for New Zealand and Australia. “It was ridiculous for us to be promoting it in one division of our company and fighting it with another,” notes Heberer. He adds that they “were somewhat convinced by the product’s satisfactory performance in New Zealand.” In particular, Osmose had concerns about the potential for corrosion of metal fasteners in contact with ACQ, but the company is now satisfied that this problem has been addressed.

There are two formulations of ACQ, which stands for alkaline copper quaternary.