As seen in the Tried & True Winter 2020 issue
As concerns regarding environmental well-being continue to rise, industry standards are changing and consumers are demanding that adjustments be made to the products they buy and the investments they make. To fulfill customer desires and project requirements, many companies have sought ways to provide the same products and services they are known for but with a lower carbon footprint. With R Series, Fratco customers now have this option, too.
R Series is a family of recycled resin blends utilized to manufacture certain lines of their corrugated pipe, providing a recycled option for TruFlo, SingleCorr and SmoothCorr.
Made by melting a blend of high-quality recycled HDPE plastics, R Series pipe is comprised of at least 50% recycled materials.
Additionally, R Series spent ten years in development to ensure customers would ultimately receive a product of the highest quality.
While always top of mind, Fratco’s customers were not the only motive for entering into the green game. In fact, changes in the industry further spurred them to prioritize developing recycled pipe options. These changing standards have allowed for recycled pipe to be used in municipal projects, and this is only the beginning. Some experts suggest there could come a time where the government mandates the use of recycled pipe only.
Before recycled pipe can gain more traction in the industry, though, negative opinions that exist regarding the performance of recycled pipe must be overcome. Prevailing notions assume that pipe manufactured with recycled materials is inferior to virgin pipe in regard to its durability and strength. While not all recycled pipe is made the same, rigorous testing has proven that R Series is just as dependable as its V Series counterparts—Fratco’s virgin pipe series. Furthermore, unlike some recycled pipe options, R Series is not made of post-consumer plastic, so your water bottles and laundry detergent containers will not end up as Fratco pipe. Instead, excess post-industrial plastic is repurposed into R Series, keeping plastic out of landfills.
Additional research and testing of recycled pipe have corroborated Fratco’s findings. Researchers at Villanova University in Philadelphia completed a controlled, three-year study to examine the performance of recycled-content corrugated HDPE resin in commuter rail installations.
The verdict? The recycled pipe’s performance was indistinguishable from pipe made of virgin materials.
Durability and dependability are not the only attributes you will find in R Series. It also tends to be a more economical choice for customers when compared to virgin pipe, although prices do vary based on raw material market fluctuations. It should also be noted, however, that R Series is not meant to replace V Series. Truthfully, there are many projects which require the use of virgin pipe.
R Series simply serves to provide customers with the power to choose the product that best suits their individual project needs and constraints. Plus, as industry standards continue to shift, R Series allows Fratco to evolve with them.
At the end of the day, choosing Fratco for your drainage needs means receiving high-quality, dependable and long-lasting solutions—and that does not change just because of recycled symbol. R Series is a suitable choice for drainage projects that permit the use of recycled pipe because it is backed by the same Fratco promise customers have grown to trust.
