Composite Flooring

The HAVCO Composite Floor™ is a patented product made by Havco Wood Products LLC. It is a high-strength, fatigue resistant, and high-performance floor providing improved water-proofing and weight savings.
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Through 2004, HAVCO™ Composite Flooring has been installed in more than 12,000 dry van trailers. The first dry van trailer with HAVCO Composite Flooring (a field test kit) has successfully completed 10 years of trouble-free service. This flooring continues to perform well with little or no maintenance.
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HAVCO Composite Flooring is based on conventional laminated oak flooring. Each floorboard is reinforced on the underside by adhesively bonding a continuous panel of Glass/Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy. The Glass/reinforced epoxy panel is several times stronger and stiffer than wood. Therefore, it allows for the use of a thinner layer of wood in the flooring. This provides weight savings. The continuous panel protects wood and prevents water from road spray entering the trailer through the floorboards. The glass/fiber reinforcement improves strength and fatigue resistance of the flooring. In service, the composite floor system generates significantly less noise or squeaking under the rolling load of lift truck compared to the conventional wood floor system.
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There are two types of plastics: non-reinforced plastics and high-strength fiber reinforced plastics. Non-reinforced plastics are very weak compared to fiber reinforced plastics. Therefore, bonding a plastic sheet (non-reinforced) to wood floorboards does not make strong composite flooring similar to HAVCO™ Composite Flooring.

Additionally, consider that plastics by themselves are generally weaker than wood alone. Therefore, a weak non-reinforced plastic cannot reinforce wood floorboards.
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It is possible to use other hardwoods like beech, ash, yellow poplar, etc. to make strong composite flooring. However, only oak has long-term resistance to decay. Even though the reinforcement panel prevents water wicking from road spray, it does not change a non-resistant wood specie to a most-resistant wood specie. The best composite flooring is made with decay-resistant oak and high strength Glass/Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy panel.
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– It is the strongest flooring on the market.
– It offers weight savings, improved waterproofing and longer life.
– The HAVCO Composite Floor™, due to its weight savings and longer life, can provide more revenue, lower life cycle costs, and higher trade-in value for trailers.
– The HAVCO Composite Floor™ uses oak, which is categorized by scientists as "most-resistant" to decay. – The HAVCO Composite Floor™ is available through all OEMs. – The HAVCO Composite Floor™ is best suited for cargo, which is heavy and/or extremely sensitive to road spray (e.g. paper rolls). It is also advantageous for applications needing weight savings and more frequent loading/unloading of cargo with lift trucks.
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It is available in the following thicknesses: 1 1/16", 1 1/8", and 1 3/16" up to 1 3/8". The 1 1/8" and 1 3/16" HAVCO Composite Floor™ are most commonly specified by fleets.
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– Typically, 1 1/16" is used to replace 1 5/16" conventional laminated hardwood flooring.
– Typically, 1 1/8" is used to replace 1 3/8" conventional laminated hardwood flooring.
– 1 3/16" is suitable for long life at 20,000 lbs. and higher load capacities.
– 1 5/16" and 1 3/8" can be used with fewer cross members, thus saving weight and cost.
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A 1 1/16", HAVCO Composite Floor™ saves about 228 lbs. in a trailer compared to 1 5/16" conventional laminated hardwood flooring. A 1 3/16" HAVCO Composite Floor™ can save about 323 lbs. in a trailer compared to 1 1/2" conventional laminated oak flooring. There can also be additional weight savings from the exclusion of moisture from road spray.
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Fleets interested in hauling water-sensitive payloads and heavy loads continue to spec and use HAVCO™ Composite Flooring. It is usually specified by fleets that transport paper rolls, beverages, architectural glass plates, automotive parts, etc., or a flexible mix of various types of cargo. Some applications target weight savings and reduced maintenance, and therefore they use The HAVCO Composite Floor™ instead of aluminum flooring. Others use it for 20,000 lbs. and higher load ratings at increased number of load cycles.
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What is the payback on HAVCO™ Composite Flooring? HAVCO™ Composite Flooring is a premium product due to the added cost of the glass-reinforced panel and the adhesive bonding process.

As a benefit of its higher strength, the cost/strength ratio of The HAVCO Composite Floor™ is lower compared to conventional hardwood flooring. Further, fleets are gaining a quantifiable payback in terms of reduced maintenance (no need to re-undercoat), ability to haul a wide variety of loads (including heavy loads and water-sensitive loads) and the value derived from weight savings and lower life cycle operating costs. Due to these advantages, several customers have placed repeat orders for The HAVCO Composite Floor™ for their trailers.

Visit www.oakisbetter.com to calculate your Return on Investment.
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All major OEMs in the U.S. and Canada have installed The HAVCO Composite Floor™. This installation is identical to the installation of conventional laminated oak flooring.
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The considerations listed for dry van trailer (laminated) flooring are believed to be partly or fully applicable to composite flooring. (Please see question #20 under FAQ-LAMINATED OAK). Ten years of field testing and five years of road service of HAVCO™ Composite Flooring (since the start of our production) have shown positive results.
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No. HAVCO™ Composite Flooring can be used in dry van trailers, containers and truck bodies only.
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