Selecting the Right Wood Finish for your Platform Trailer

In order to be durable for the long-term, all platform trailer decks need to be properly installed and maintained as they are constantly exposed to severe weather conditions.

With wooden decks the exposure to severe weather naturally causes the boards to shrink and swell the wood and subjects the deck to high levels of stress.

Without proper maintenance, even well built trailers utilizing only the most durable and strongest of wood species can potentially develop problems such as checks and cracks, raised grain, and mildew, thus increasing the risk of decay and insect attack (and ultimately floor failure) as the natural process of weathering occurs.

Because of these risks, lumber used in most platform trailer decks is usually pressure treated with a preservative, or is a naturally durable wood such as Apitong, Parangelim, Purpleheart, Oak or Douglas Fir. 

Regularly applying an additional finish to wood decks has been proven to be the most cost-effective way to prolong the life of your deck and minimize the problems of cracking, raised grain, and mildew growth.

Apitong Oil by ExoShield is a MADE IN THE USA product which offers superior protection for wood applications on platform trailers. Our secret formula protects your trailer's deck while allowing the natural beauty of the wood to remain the focus.

Using a proprietary blend of Tung Oil, Fungicide, and Trans-oxide pigments, the exclusive Apitong Oil formula provides long-lasting penetrative protection for exterior wood applications while using only the finest components.

The use of Tung Oil originated thousands of years ago in China where it was used as a preservative on wooden ships. Today it is the woodworkers’ #1 choice to add protection and beauty to a finished project. Apitong Oil takes advantage of the penetrative and protective properties that Tung Oil serves to create a naturally durable and long-lasting deck finish. The Tung Oil used in our Apitong Oil formulation contributes to provide a naturally water-resistant, acid-resistant, and easy to use deck finish. Apitong Oil also greatly reduces the chances of boards either cracking or warping when correctly applied.

Fungicide is an key component to maintaining the timeless beauty of your exterior wood project. Apitong Oil not only offers protection from harmful UV rays and water damage, but it also includes a fungicide in the formula that will keep your decking in top shape, and free of fungus, mould and mildew. This is just another reason why Apitong Oil is the answer for all exterior wood applications on platform trailers.

To further protect your deck from the sun's harmful UV rays we use trans-oxide pigments in Apitong Oil, adding to the longevity of the structure and color. The pigments used in our Apitong Oil will bring out and protect the natural colors of the wood it’s used on, providing a long-lasting vivid result. Apitong Oil will lengthen the lifespan of the wood's original color, delaying the graying process. When applied every one to two years, your deck will maintain a nearly brand-new appearance, with very little maintenance.

To learn more about Apitong Oil by ExoShield please visit us at https://www.trailerdecking.com/ProductID4029 or call 1-855-APITONG

Protecting you Platform Trailer's Deck

Why does outdoor wood turn grey? As cherished as this natural look is, protecting it is necessary to maintain the natural physical properties like durability and strength.

The natural greying process observed when wood weathers is a complex amalgamation of natural chemical, mechanical, biological and light-induced changes which occur over time. The explanation is similar to how our skin is damaged from the sun. If we spend time outdoors without proper protection we get sunburnt and start to wrinkle. 

Similarly, because of the harmful UV rays from the sun, unprotected deck boards turn grey as time passes and start to degrade. This is why it is important to initially take measures to ensure your deck is protected and then to conduct regular on-going maintenance in order to optimize the performance of your deck.

Regular Cleaning of Your Deck

Decking can be pressure washed, but you must be careful not to damage the surface wood fibers by setting the pressure too high. Pressure washing may be necessary between oil treatments in order to remove surface discoloration.

Maximize Protection with Oil Based Deck Stains

Oil based deck stains help preserve the natural color in your deck while also offering superb UV protection. Blocking out harmful UV rays means it will keep your deck beautiful, fresh and looking new longer. These stains are easy to apply and best of all they can be cleaned and recoated as maintenance is needed. This is a huge advantage to having to strip the stain off every time it needs attention and it helps lessen the cost and hassle of deck maintenance.

Oil Based Finish on all sides

Many oil based deck stains also have select mildewcides that inhibit mold, mildew, and fungal growth. Preventing these contaminants from intruding the wood will help eradicate wood rot and costly structural repairs. Unwanted moisture and fungal growth can crack, warp, split, and decay wood in a few short years.

Conclusion

Following a regular maintenance schedule will ensure the wood gets maximum protection and you get years of enjoyment from the investment in your deck.

Making the effort to apply an oil-based weatherizing treatment at the time of initial install as well as regular wood cleaning, maintenance and stain re-applications will enhance the performance of your deck boards and prolong the life of your hardwood deck.

For best results, apply the weatherizing treatment according to the manufacturer’s directions. To maintain the natural color, a high quality penetrating oil finish with UV inhibitors should be used. 

Why Apitong?? Selecting the Right Species for your Trailer Deck

Trailer manufacturers have used a wide range of species over the years to deck flatbeds, lowboys and other platform trailers. Before making a choice on which species to use for a wood floor, the consumer needs to understand that wood varies significantly by species – the mechanical and physical properties of a particular specie will impact the performance. 

During the 1960s, North American hardwood lumber — primarily oak, ash, beech, hickory and hard maple — were utilized extensively throughout the trailer industry. However the concern arose that domestic lumber from temperate forests was not strong enough to withstand the rigors of a platform trailer due to the weakness associated with knots and other defects. To obtain adequate trailer-grade flooring planks from domestic lumber, thorough selection was required to eliminate the defects — usually trimming boards and/or ripping them into narrow planks — which usually resulted in narrow, short-length pieces of 5' to 9'. Domestic hardwoods also have limited durability in exterior applications, and chemical treatment is necessary.

Some of these shortcomings in North American hardwood lumber were addressed when trailer manufacturers began using tropical hardwoods such as Apitong starting in the early 1970s. Because tropical climates have relatively consistent temperatures, the seasonal nature with which trees grow is mitigated and thus allows tropical species to grow at a steadier rate than those in temperate climates. Growth rings for tropical species are usually far more subtle, and grain tends to be consistently tight throughout the tree. The result is that Tropical species offer a strong lumber with reduced frequency of defects. Lumber cut from these trees can average lengths of 12' to 14', which eliminates multiple short component pieces when assembling a trailer deck.

Stength and Durability Characteristics of Typical Trailer Flooring Woods

Below is a table comparing the various types of wood that may be used in the trailer flooring industry:

SPECIES	Approximate Weight per MBF at 10% MC	Modulus of Rupture (psi)	Modulus of Elasticity (1000 psi)	Maximum Crushing Strength (psi)	Side Hardness (lbs)	Compression Perpendicular (psi)	Shear (psi)
Purpleheart	4,800	21,300	2,420	11,380	2,060	1,910	1,830
Apitong	4,600	19,900	2,070	10,500	1,270	NA	2,070
Angelim Pedra	4,400	17,600	2,050	8,990	1,720	A	2,010
White Oak	4,200	15,200	1,780	7,440	1,360	1,070	1,360
Red Oak	3,900	14,300	1,820	6,760	1,070	1,010	1,780
Southern Yellow Pine	3,100	14,200	1,880	7,750	750	890	1,490
Douglas Fir	2,700	12,400	1,950	7,230	710	800	1,130

US Dept. of Agriculture Handbook No. 207
US Dept. of Agriculture Handbook No. 72, pp 4-24

Besides having the best strength-to-weight ratio of any species commercially used for trailer decks, Apitong (also known as Keruing) contains both a natural oleo-resin and has a silica content which is generally about 0.5%, thereby helping the wood endure outdoor elements. Other species which are also utilized due to their superior durability include Angelim Perdra / Parangelim and Purpleheart. 

With over 100 years of combined industry experience, TrailerDecking.com can help you make the right decision when it comes to selecting a specie for your trailer. We work closely with original equipment manufacturers, aftermarket repair shops, hardwood lumber distributors, fleet owners and independent owner-operators. All segments of the transportation industry rely on our knowledgeable staff for assistance in fulfilling their requirements for both original equipment and replacement parts.

US Department of Commerce Sets Duty at 63% for Chinese Plywood

The US Department of Commerce has made a preliminary determination in its anti-dumping investigation of plywood manufactured in China and imported into the United States. Just over 100 Chinese manufacturers responded to inquiries from the US Department of Commerce and received a "cooperative" rate of 22% duty; whereas, Chinese companies that did not respond to the inquiry received a penalty rate of 63%. No doubt that this announcement will add further uncertainty to the imported plywood market.

Here's an article from the IWPA with more details.
International Wood Products Association: PressRelease_ITC-IWPA

Tropical Forest Management - South East Asian Environmental Practices / TrailerDecking.com

Welcome back to trailerdecking.blogspot.com, the most in-depth trailer decking series on the web. Today's blog is about South East Asian environmental forestry practices.

On the supply side, in both Malaysia and Indonesia, buyers have found a suitable measure of reliability and responsibility in the areas of tropical forest management and resource-based economic development. Tropical forests in both countries are essentially public lands, managed and protected by their respective Federal and State Governments.


Southeast Asian Tropical Forest


Forest Certification programs have emerged in both Malaysia (through the FSC and the MTCC programs) and Indonesia (through the FSC, SVLK and LEI programs). Certification is very much market driven and is serving as a tool towards promoting legal, reliable and sustainable forest management. Certification is seen as a step toward ensuring the production of a continuous flow of desired forest products and services from the forest reserves. Further, certification is being actively pursued to ensure continued market access of Malaysian and Indonesian timber products, particularly in an increasingly environmentally sensitive market.

Logging in Rain Forest

The Malaysian and Indonesian government and policy makers decision to promote a more stable currency policy is great news. Additionally, with the impetus of emerging Forest Certification Schemes offering a legal, reliable and sustainable supply situation, we feel confident that a reliable supply of Apitong in the trailer market is ensured.

Rain Forest Logging

We at Nova USA Wood Products and TrailerDecking.com offer a wide variety of Apitong products for the trailer and truck body industry. We purchase only the best materials from reputable mills that place an emphasis on quality and delivery. We are also one of the few suppliers who have overseas inspectors in place to ensure that material is thoroughly checked before it departs the mill. This final inspection ensures that you get exactly what you ordered each and every time. We certify all of our trailer decking products and warranty them against defects in workmanship. Contact us for a quote today.

Tropical Forest Management - Southeast Asian Environmental Practices / TrailerDecking.com

Welcome back to trailerdecking.blogspot.com, the most in-depth trailer decking series on the web. Today's blog is about Southeast Asian environmental forestry practices.

On the supply side, in both Malaysia and Indonesia, buyers have found a suitable measure of reliability and responsibility in the areas of tropical forest management and resource-based economic development. Tropical forests in both countries are essentially public lands, managed and protected by their respective Federal and State Governments.


Southeast Asian Tropical Forest


Forest Certification programs have emerged in both Malaysia (through the FSC and the MTCC programs) and Indonesia (through the FSC, SVLK and LEI programs). Certification is very much market driven and is serving as a tool towards promoting legal, reliable and sustainable forest management. Certification is seen as a step toward ensuring the production of a continuous flow of desired forest products and services from the forest reserves. Further, certification is being actively pursued to ensure continued market access of Malaysian and Indonesian timber products, particularly in an increasingly environmentally sensitive market.

The Malaysian and Indonesian government and policy makers decision to promote a more stable currency policy is great news. Additionally, with the impetus of emerging Forest Certification Schemes offering a legal, reliable and sustainable supply situation, we feel confident that a reliable supply of Apitong in the trailer market is ensured.

We at Nova USA Wood Products and TrailerDecking.com offer a wide variety of Apitong products for the trailer and truck body industry. We purchase only the best materials from reputable mills that place an emphasis on quality and delivery. We are also one of the few suppliers who have overseas inspectors in place to ensure that material is thoroughly checked before it departs the mill. This final inspection ensures that you get exactly what you ordered each and every time. We certify all of our trailer decking products and warranty them against defects in workmanship. Contact us for a quote today.

Is Exotic Hardwood Trailer Flooring Better Than Domestic?

Trailer flooring takes a lot more abuse than regular hardwood flooring or decking. Even if you aren't a huge shipping company and only use your trailer bed for hauling every now and then, the flooring needs to be stronger, more durable, and more resistant to the elements than anything you might install in your home. At TrailerDecking.com, we sell Apitong, the tough-as-nails exotic trailer flooring material trusted by industry professionals for years. But does trailer flooring need to be exotic? Can domestic hardwood work just as well as trailer flooring? The answer, in our opinion, is no. Here's why:

Hardness
Janka hardness rating is probably the most important factor when considering trailer flooring material. A wood's hardness plays a big part in determining how much weight it can carry and how resistent it is to dents, scratches, and other common wear. The hardness rating of Aptiong trailer floorig is 1,270 pounds. Most common domestic hardwoods, such as Cherry, Pine, Fir, and Cedar, have hardness ratings upwards of 1,000 pounds and as low as 350 pounds. In short, exotic hardwoods almost always have a higher hardness rating than domestics, making them much more suitable for trailer flooring.

Durability
There are many factors that contribute to a hardwood species' durability; namely, strength, stiffness, and density.
Strength refers to how much weight the wood can carry before it will break. Stiffness refers to the bending strength of the wood; in other words, how much pressure the material can take before being deformed or warped. Combined, these two metrics can tell you a great deal about how much weight your trailer flooring will be able to hold. Apitong has strength and stiffness ratings of 19,900 PSI and 2,070 1000 PSI, respectively. Domestic hardwoods tend to have strength and stiffness ratings that are much lower; anywhere from 7,500 PSI - 12,600 PSI for strength and 800 1000 PSI - 1,700 1000 PSI for stiffness.
Density is another important factor when determining a wood's durability. The more dense the wood, the less susceptible it will be to changes in temperature and humidity. A high density also means the wood is less susceptible to wood-boring insects. Apitong has a density of 790 KG/m3, while domestic hardwoods usually fall into the range of 670 KG/m3 - 260 KG/m3. Clearly, exotic hardwood trailer flooring is more durable than its domestic counterpart.

Cost
While domestic hardwoods tend to have a smaller up-front cost, because they are less durable than exotics they tend to need replacing more often. Apitong, for example, can last in normal above-ground working conditions for up to 15 years. You'd be lucky to get a good 5 years out of some domestic hardwoods. The larger up-front cost of exotic trailer flooring may seem intimidating, but you'll save yourself a whole lot of time and money in the long run.

As you can see, exotic hardwood makes for a much stronger and more reliable trailer flooring material. Want to learn more? Contact TrailerDecking today to talk with one of our knowledgeable sales reps. We look forward to hearing from you soon!

Angelim Pedra VS Apitong: Which Flooring Material Is Right For You? [INFOGRAPHIC]

For years, Asian Apitong has been the standard hardwood choice for trailer flooring and truck bed applications. More recently, another hardwood species has made an impact on the trailer flooring world: Angelim Pedra. Both are great options for industrial uses such as trailer flooring, but which is the right choice for you?

The following infographic compares the two species by four important metrics; hardness, strength, stiffness, and density. We hope this helps shed some light on the issue and gives you the information you need to decide which is best for you. Enjoy!

As you can see, both varieties have their pros and cons. Angelim Pedra beats Apitong in both hardness and density, while Apitong is the clear choice in terms of strength and stiffness. Both are superior trailer flooring products, so the choice is often a matter of personal preference. Which do you prefer? Leave us a comment and let us know!

Top 3 Lumber Choices for Trailer Flooring

Not every hardwood species or variety of species is appropriate for trailer flooring applications. Some species are too soft. Others are too susceptible to inclement weather. Here at TrailerDecking, we get a lot of questions about what are the best lumber choices for trailer decks and beds, so we decided to compile a list of our favorite species and varieties. These choices represent the strongest and longest-lasting trailer flooring options on the market. Enjoy!

Apitong Truck Flooring
Apitong is our most popular truck flooring product, and for good reason. It is incredibly strong (10,500 psi) and has a hardness rating of 1,270 lbs. While it is not naturally very resistant to wood boring insects or inclement weather, it works great with an application of high-quality sealant. It is also a great trailer flooring choice for dry climates or covered beds.

Angelim Pedra Truck Flooring
Considered one of the most durable truck flooring options, Angelim Pedra has a hardness rating of 1,720 lbs and a strength of 8,990 psi. What it lacks in superior strength it more than makes up for in stability and durability. Angelim Pedra truck flooring is one of the most stable hardwood options you can pick, second only to Purpleheart, meaning it is much less likely to warp and buckle over time. It is also rated very resistant to both white-rot and brown-rot fungus, making it a great choice for more humid climates.

Laminated Truck Flooring
Laminated truck flooring isn't exactly a specific species, obviously, but it is still one of the most popular options on the market today. Laminated truck flooring, or LTF, is used strictly in dry van trailers as it can't withstand exterior exposure. This frees up manufacturers to use softer woods that wouldn't otherwise be appropriate for trailer flooring applications, such as Red Oak and mixed light hardwoods from Southeast Asia.

Have questions about which trailer flooring choice is right for you? Contact TrailerDecking.com today to speak with one of our knowledgeable representatives. We'd be happy to help!

Caring for Your Apitong Deck, Part 3: Regular Maintenance Tips

Welcome to the third and final installment of our ongoing blog series, Caring for Your Apitong Deck. As you'll recall, our first two installments covered environmental dangers to your deck and picking the right finish for your deck, respectively. This week we'll take a look at five regular maintenance tips you can follow to keep your trailer flooring functional and look good. Enjoy!

1. Clean!
This is an important but often overlooked step in regular trailer flooring maintenance. You may not think that cleaning your truck or trailer flooring is important - it's a work truck, after all! You're not trying to win any beauty contests! - but the reality is that dirt, dust, mold, and mildew can cause unnecessary wear and rot on even the toughest decks. Sweeping and washing on occasion can really help extend the life of your trailer flooring.

2. Fix popped nails.
They're not only bad for the boards, they're hazardous to you and your work crew as well. Look out for popped nails whenever you're loading, unloading, or cleaning, and replace them when you find them.

3. Replace busted boards.
The great thing about hardwood trailer flooring is that when a board warps, rots, or breaks, most of the time you can replace it without having to tear out and replace the entire bed. If you are a fairly competent DIYer, removing and replacing a board or two in your trailer flooring shouldn't be a problem.

4. Refinish.
If your trailer flooring is still structurally stable but is looking a little worse-for-wear, it might be time to refinish it. This may seem like a purely aesthetic maintenance step, and it mostly is. However, even the best hardwood finish loses its protective qualities over time. Refinishing regularly will help protect the wood from the elements and extend the life of your trailer flooring.

5. Replace.
Hardwood trailer flooring is a natural material, and despite your best maintenance attempts, it will degenerate over time. If the majority of your boards are warped, bent, and busted, it's probably a good idea to replace the entire deck. Call the professionals at TrailerDecking today to discuss your options when replacing your entire deck.

We hope you've enjoyed reading this blog series as much as we've enjoyed presenting it to you! Stay tuned to the TrailerDecking blog for more helpful trailer flooring tips and information!

Caring for Your Apitong Deck, Part 2: Picking the Right Finish

Welcome to part two in our three-part exclusive blog series, Caring for Your Apitong Deck. As you'll recall, the last installment discussed the environmental dangers your Apitong trailer decking can face in the course of its lifetime. This week we'll be taking a look at the different types of finishes you can apply that will help protect your trailer decking from those dangers. Enjoy!

Many trailer owners skip finish applications because they think the cost is too high. While the finish cost and the cost of labor to apply it to your flatbed deck may seem steep at first, it is modest when compared to the potential damage and degradation your deck can face from the elements. Efficient finish applications usually take no longer than an hour or so and require just a few gallons of deck treatment. Again, it may seem like an annoying add-on, but the benefits far outweigh the costs.

In order to avoid damage caused by the elements, there are two basic types of deck treatments to consider: 1.) a semi-transparent oil stain, or; 2.) a water-repellent preservative.

Oil stains are the treatment option most often preferred by hardwood industry professionals. The finish soaks deep into the wood surface and provides an attractive even color while still allowing the natural grain to show through. If you're looking for a protective finish that will feature your deck's natural beauty, oil stains are the right choice.

If you decide on an oil stain you will be faced with another decision - the type. There are two common types of oil stains: 1.) natural oils like linseed oil, and; 2.) more expensive synthetic oils. Both oils do an excellent job of sealing and preserving the wood and they both produce a beautiful deck.

Natural oil stains have a tendency to support mildew and discoloration, so if you live in an area with moderate to severe humidity and rain you may want to think twice about this choosing this type of finish. The better natural oil stains contain mildewcides (or they can be added), but black mildew can reappear in a year or so so regular applications may be necessary. Synthetic oil stains, on the other hand, are specially formulated and eliminate the problem of black mildew.

That brings us to the second option you have when choosing a deck finish: water-repellant preservatives. Clear water repellent preservatives are often made of a wax- or a silicon-base. This base seals the wood but doesn't soak as deeply into the wood. The water repellant preservatives are often less expensive (about half the cost of good quality oil stains) but they need to be reapplied every year. If you decide on a silicon- or wax-based preservative, check the label to make sure it contains not only water repellents but also mildewcides and UV blockers.

Still unsure what kind of finish to use? Contact the professionals at TrailerDecking.com today to discuss your options. And don't forget to tune in next week when we'll conclude the series with "Caring for Your Apitong Deck, Part 3: Regular Maintenance". Till then!

Caring for Your Apitong Deck, Part 1: Environmental Dangers

Unless you leave your truck in the garage 24/7, your flatbed trailer will naturally be exposed to the elements. This exposure can cause major damage to your hardwood trailer decking material. In this series, we'll take a look at the different environmental dangers facing your Apitong wood trailer, the best ways to prevent exposure-related problems, and what to do if damage occurs. Today we'll be focusing on the different ways changes in temperature, humidity, and air quality can harm your trailer boards.

Moisture and Humidity
Wood is a hygroscopic material, which means it naturally takes on and gives off water to adjust to its surrounding environment. Wood shrinks and swells when it lose or gains moisture below its fiber saturation point. This natural behavior is responsible for some of the problems encountered when wood dries. For example, cracks and checks can result from stresses induced in a piece of wood that is drying. As the piece dries, it develops a moisture gradient across its section (more dry on the outside, more wet on the inside). The dry outer shell wants to shrink as it dries below fiber saturation; however, the wetter core constrains the shell, which can cause small cracks called “surface checking” or “season checking” to form on the surface.

Temperature Changes
Moisture isn't the only enemy of Apitong trailer decking; high temperatures can also potentially damage your floors. Damage of this nature typically takes the form of shrinkage to the face of the decking. The result is abnormally large spacing between boards. This can also sometimes be accompanied by concave cupping of the deck boards.

Sunlight

Much like your own skin, excessive exposure to the sun can cause major damage to the cellular structure of Apitong trailer decking. UV rays break down the materials that hold the wood fibers together. You have seen how UV rays can destroy your deck chairs and cushions – the same holds true for your Apitong floors!

Keep in mind that wood is a product of nature and, as such, will acclimate to its surrounding environment. Even properly seasoned decking can change dimensions after installation given the right conditions. It is important to understand that excessive seasonal swings during summer and winter will take their toll on decking.

Tune in next week when we'll be taking a look at a few of the ways you can prevent exposure damage by applying the right finish. If you can't wait a week, give us a call at 1-855-APITONG; we'd be glad to answer your questions!

Welcome to the Official TrailerDecking.com Blog!

Welcome to the brand new TrailerDecking.com Blog, your source for news and information about the trailer and truck decking and flooring industry.

At TrailerDecking.com, we strive to keep our customer’s wheels turning and their businesses running strong. The vision of TrailerDecking.com is to be the customer's first choice for Apitong flooring and related trailer and truck products. We meet the needs of our customers by offering a value package that includes an assortment of innovative products and a high level of personal service.

At TrailerDecking.com, our goal is to be the toughest, strongest, and smartest Apitong flooring provider in the country. Here's how we do it:

Tough
We bring the unmatched and time-tested advantages of Apitong products to truck trailers, bodies and related equipment. By providing physical and mechanical properties not found in other wood species, Apitong provides the value, durability and reliability that so many of our customers demand.

Smart
We set up TrailerDecking.com on the premise that our customers didn't want to pay any unnecessary mark-ups to brokers and wholesalers who don't add value to the transaction. We buy all our material directly from the manufacturers overseas, we inspect it ourselves, and we don't use brokers or wholesalers to get the job done.

Strong
Led by our dedicated customer sales and service team, Trailerdecking.com is the only company that offers you a complete one-stop solution for all your Apitong wood product needs. With a diverse product offering, multiple locations throughout the country, and quick order turnaround times, we back our customers with our strong network of service and support to fill each customer’s specific needs.

Contact TrailerDecking.com now to discover all the benefits of Apitong products and see how Trailerdecking.com can work for your business.

Recent Market Price Trend in Apitong Trailer Decking

The Triumphant Return of Apitong

After a recent surge in the popularity of a variety of South American species such as Angelim Pedra / Para Angelim and Purpleheart as cheap and readily available material for use in a variety of applications for the the truck trailer market, it appears that Apitong is again poised to make its triumphant return to the dominant position in the trailer market!

With the commodity boom of the past five years, the Brazilian currency, the Real, has strengthened substantially against the US dollar. The dollar, compared to Brazilian currency, has almost halved in value since 2004. Meanwhile, the Euro's continued surge against the dollar has allowed European buyers to have increased purchasing power and has also coincided with the European market's fuller embrace of the use of South American tropical hardwoods. Today we are seeing more and more South American product going to Europe -and to Japan, China and elsewhere - and less being sold to North America.

The chart below clearly shows the the devaluation of the US Dollar vs. the Brazilian Real over the past 12 months.

At the same time as prices have been escalating on products from South America, we have also seen diminished available supply. Major producing nations such as Brazil, Peru and Bolivia have sharply reduced government approval for new timber extraction projects. Furthermore, a major national crackdown on forest management practices of privately held lands in Brazil (coincidentally the largest exporter of Tropical Hardwood Products in South America) has frozen a large portion of forested land that was previously approved for logging.

Faced with the above situation, many are beginning to again examine the value offered by the recent upstarts Parangelim and Purpleheart. Prices have increased dramatically and supply is now extremely tight and unreliable. In light of the circumstances, many experienced and globally savvy buyers are again returning to the value and reliability of Apitong.

Over the last decade, Apitong supply and pricing has remained extremely stable. This has much to do both with currency exchange issues and forest management practices in the main producer countries of Malaysia and Indonesia.

The Malaysian currency, the Ringgit has remained relatively stable over the last 10 years. Two economic downturns in the past six years have severely dented gross fixed investment. The reduction has been caused by lower foreign direct investment (FDI) and lower private domestic investment. Fearing that a sustained level of lower investment will eventually lead to slower economic growth, the Malaysian government introduced measures to stimulate private domestic investment in the 2003 budget.

Because the Ringgit had been strong in the past, ordinary market intervention by the Malaysian Central Bank was limited to smoothing fluctuations. Today however, the Malaysian Central Bank is much more concerned to hold the exchange rates down (and thus promote both exports and foreign direct investment) rather than to support the local currency.

Since the US Dollar vs. Malaysian Ringgit has remained extremely stable during the past several years, pricing for Apitong has also remained relatively unchanged and has reacted primarily in relation only to more basic seasonal supply and demand factors. See chart below:

On the supply side in both Malaysia and Indonesia, buyers have found a suitable measure of reliability and responsibility in the areas of tropical forest management and resource-based economic development. Tropical forests in both countries are essentially public lands, managed and protected by their respective Federal and State Governments.

Forest Certification programs have emerged in both Malaysia (through the FSC and the MTCC) and Indonesia (through the FSC and LEI). Certification is very much market driven and is serving as a tool towards promoting legal, reliable and sustainable forest management. Certification is seen as a step toward ensuring the production of a continuous flow of desired forest products and services from the forest reserves. Further, certification is being actively pursued to ensure continued market access of Malaysian and Indonesian timber products, particularly in an increasingly environmentally sensitive market.

With the governments and policy makers in Malaysia and Indonesia having made the decision to promote a more stable currency policy and with the added impetus of emerging Forest Certification Schemes offering a legal, reliable and sustainable supply situation, we feel that Apitong has again made its triumphant return to the dominant position in the trailer market!

We at Nova USA Wood Products and TrailerDecking.com offer a wide variety of Apitong products for the trailer and truck body industry. We purchase only the best materials from reputable mills that place an emphasis on quality and delivery. We are also one of the few suppliers who have overseas inspectors in place to ensure that material is thoroughly checked before it departs the mill. This final inspection ensures that you get exactly what you ordered each and every time. We certify all of our trailer decking products and warranty them against defects in workmanship. Contact us for a quote today.