By Pepper Fisher

PORT ANGELES – Composite Recycle Technology Center (CRTC) recently got approval from the Port of Port Angeles for a major expansion, which will nearly double the size of their operation near the airport.

CRTC recycles carbon fiber that has long been disposed of by the aerospace industry. They’ve come up with a way to integrate carbon fiber with wood fiber. Specifically, Western Hemlock, a tree that is also often disposed of by the timber industry. Hemlock grows quickly in our wet conditions, but when it dries, it twists and cracks, making it poor wood for lumber. CRTC has found a way to change that with a process called thermal modification.

CRTC heats up the wood in a chamber to 400 degrees, but there’s no oxygen present, so it doesn’t burn in the usual way. It comes out very rigid, and very much like treated wood, but without the use of chemicals.

Here’s CRTC’s Chief Executive Officer David Walter.

“Now we can use it as a building material. And so, we just finished building a sawmill for the Makah Tribe out in Neah Bay. So, they are going to be cutting coastal western hemlock for us, making the boards for us, that we then take and put in our thermal modification unit that we now have in our building in the new facility. And we are going to be making cross laminated timber quick-erect wall panels with Makah coastal western hemlock.”

Walter says the wood will then be used to create cross-laminated timber panels for use in the construction, at least on the outset, of tiny homes that will be less expensive than a typical manufactured home and extremely durable.

“And the beauty here is that we can then add the joinery after we’ve pressed it, cut out the windows and the doors, and this becomes your wall. So, you no longer have two by sixes, you don’t have a wall cavity, you don’t have drywall. You’ve got a CLT. That is your wall. You can insulate it from the outside. You can put your siding on it. So, from outside the house, it looks like a normal structure. Inside the house, you’re going to have the beauty of wood because you’re looking right at that wall. Super strong, super stiff, super sturdy, but a 240 square foot tiny home can go up in three days. I mean, you’re talking about a step-change in terms of the speed.”

Walter says they are still getting the facility ready for mass production, so they haven’t sold any product yet. But he has a prediction for the near future, and he believes his new venture will be leading the way.

“I think there’s a transformation that’s going to take place over time here, Todd. I think people are going to be able to buy houses very cleanly online. I don’t think you have to have a lot to it if people recognize that you’ve built something solidly, it goes up well, we’ll have good testimonials, that kind of thing. But, I think you’re picking all your options online. You’ve got have a good website to be able to do that. I mean, we’re thinking that through right now. But, I’m excited about it. We’re going to hire a lot of people. This is going to be big.”

Walter says the official grand opening for the new Makah lumber mill is set for May 30, and CRTC’s new facility, which they call the Building Innovation Center, will open in June. He projects that in 5-6 years they’ll be employing around 100 people.

(Photo: David Walter of CRTC and Matthew Rainwater, formerly of Pennies For Quarters, present a cross-laminated panel)