BALTIMORE, Md., Oct. 28, 2008 (VNS) – At the recent National Recreation & Parks Association Trade Show, which transformed the Baltimore Convention Center into a huge indoor playground, many exhibitors demonstrated united support for the many benefits of their playground products made of or coated with polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Benefits of PVC products cited in the booths included slip resistance, excellent thermal insulation properties, resistance to salt spray, compliance with all safety regulations, and conformance with ASTM guidelines for abrasion and impact resistance.
Some companies also defended PVC as environmentally friendly. Both Play & Park Structures and GameTime are brands of Playcore, based in Chattanooga, Tenn., and publicized their PVC deck coatings. Their flyers feature half-page sections titled "The Truth Behind PVC," reporting PVC products save countless lives through their use in medical tubing and blood bags and other patient care products for over 50 years. They noted PVC is an insignificant source of dioxin, PVC production is energy efficient with little unwanted by-product, additives in flexible PVC are not leached from landfill PVC products, and PVC products make up less than 1 percent of landfills. Both companies also state their PVC decks contain 68 percent of post-consumer recycled content.
Ultra Play Systems of Red Bud, Ill., promotes a thick PVC coating on the chains of its swings.
Xccent, based in Osceola, Wis., stated in its catalog that their products are in complete compliance with newly passed state and federal legislation regarding phthalate content in PVC. Xccent states its spinning pogo pod decks, spring pods, rock ramp decks, banister slide steps, pipe steps, and glider stair systems are coated with durable non-skid PVC for positive footing.
The company also noted many of its classic series of steel benches, tables and matching trash cans are coated in PVC for low maintenance, comfort, and durability, providing "a skin-like coating that bonds to rather than surrounds steel" and protects the steel from ultraviolet rays, mildew, and harsh weather.
For its spinners, Playmotion rides, X-Wave 2 rider, and tipping Rock 'n' Rider, Xccent promotes soft durable PVC surfaces for non-skid safety and durability.
On recycling, Xccent notes it repurposes more than 26 tons of PVC from items like retired highway construction cones, which is reprocessed and "...given new life on playgrounds across America." Whether its PVC scrap material or its steel used in playground equipment which has a minimum of 35 percent recycled content, "Xccent's position has been and continues to be one of re-use where possible and recycle where not."
The National Recreation and Park Association is made up of 22,000 park professionals, urban planners, and citizens united "to advance parks, recreation and environmental conservation efforts that enhance the quality of life for all people."
The Vinyl Institute represents the leading manufacturers involved in the production of PVC vinyl in the United States, and promotes the value of PVC and vinyl products to society.
For more information, contact:
Jeffrey B. Palmer
Director of Marketing & Communications
The Vinyl Institute
(703) 741-5669
jeff_palmer@plastics.org
Also go to: www.vinylindesign.com and www.vinylinfo.org.