Question 1

What is saveBOARD made of?

Accepted Answer

saveBOARD is made from up to 100% recycled packaging waste – beverage cartons (like Tetra Pak), soft plastics and composite packaging – shredded and pressed with heat. No glues, chemicals, adhesives or water are added; the plastic already in the packaging acts as the binder.

Question 2

Is saveBOARD certified for use under the NZ Building Code?

Accepted Answer

Yes. saveBOARD Exposed and Paperfaced internal linings received CodeMark certification in August 2024, and betterBRACE rigid air barrier in November 2024. CodeMark certification means building consent authorities must accept the product when used as certified.

Question 3

Can saveBOARD replace plasterboard (GIB®)?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Paperfaced internal lining is a direct plasterboard alternative that can be painted or wallpapered, with about 75% less embodied CO2. It installs with standard tools and is inherently moisture and mould resistant. Boards come in 1200mm widths, 10 or 12 mm thick, in 2.4, 2.7 and 3.0 m lengths. See how saveBOARD compares against plasterboard.

Question 4

Is saveBOARD really carbon negative?

Accepted Answer

Yes, per independently verified EPDs: embodied carbon (A1-A3) ranges from -4.3 to -10.1 kg CO2e/m2 depending on the product, because the boards store carbon that would otherwise be released from landfilled or incinerated packaging.

Question 5

Where can I buy saveBOARD?

Accepted Answer

All board products are available at saveboard.nz/shop with shipping across New Zealand, and through retail partners including Bunnings. Interior boards come in 2.4/2.7/3.0 m lengths; exterior products in 2.45/2.75/3.05 m.

Question 6

What happens to offcuts and old boards?

Accepted Answer

saveBOARD takes back all offcuts and end-of-life boards at zero gate fee and remanufactures them into new boards – a fully circular product. Builders can also send construction soft plastics and Thermakraft wraps for recycling.

Question 7

Will saveBOARD look like plasterboard?

Accepted Answer

Not exactly – and that is deliberate. Exposed boards show lines, press marks and flecks from the packaging they were made from. These are part of the material's character, not defects. If you want a conventional painted finish, choose the Paperfaced board.

Question 8

Is a board made from used packaging clean and safe indoors?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The packaging is shredded and fused with heat (up to 200degC) and pressure, no glues, no added chemicals, no water. Every product carries a Declare label with full ingredient disclosure, is Red List free, and tests at under 5% of the green building limit for VOCs and formaldehyde. It doesn't smell, it doesn't off-gas, and it's approved for Living Building Challenge projects.

MADE IN NEW ZEALAND

Carbon negative building boards, engineered from recycled packaging.

Nobody has to grow or dig up our raw material. We press beverage cartons, soft plastics and composite packaging into CodeMark-certified wall linings, ceiling boards, rigid air barriers and hoardings, with heat, pressure and time. No glues, no chemicals, no adhesives.

Goes where plasterboard, plywood and fibre cement go and a few places they can't. Made at 30 Sunshine Ave, Te Rapa, Hamilton, NZ.

4,000,000kg

of used packaging each plant can turn into board, every year

-4.3 to -13.1

kg CO2e/m2 embodied carbon across the range; carbon negative, per published EPDs

75% less CO2

than plasterboard (interior wall & ceiling board)

25kg

of used packaging in every board; about 400x 1L beverage cartons

HOMEOWNERS & DIY

Line a garage, ceiling or feature wall in a finish nobody else on your street has. Buy online, cut with standard tools, skip the plastering.

BUILDERS & DEVELOPERS

CodeMark certified linings and bracing that go up like other products; same dimensions, same fixing patterns, same construction process.

ARCHITECTS & SPECIFIERS

EPDs, Declare labels, Masterspec listings and Green Star/Homestar credit pathways, ready to drop into your spec, and a product your client will want photographed.

DISTRIBUTORS & RETAIL

Stock a NZ-made, carbon negative range already carried by Bunnings, available at leading merchants and used by Woolworths store refits.

Finished the moment it's fixed: a flecked, terrazzo-like face with the recycled packaging on show. No plaster, no paints. Moisture and mould resistant.

Replaces: plasterboard, plywood

Paperfaced lining for homes and commercial interiors, engineered from 99% recycled packaging. Paints like plasterboard and stands up to knocks that dent it. Carbon negative. See how it performs against plasterboard.

Replaces: plasterboard (GIB)

Two jobs, one sheet: external bracing and rigid air barrier, fibreglass-faced and CodeMark certified. Rated for extreme wind lift and fire resistance.

Replaces: fibre cement RAB

Rigid air barrier with a 10mm EPS thermal break built in, engineered for steel framing in one sheet. Extra High wind zone rated, with excellent seismic bracing capacity.

Replaces: building wrap + steel thermal break

An impact-resistant panel engineered from 99% upcycled building packaging, for supermarkets, warehouses, hoardings and signage. Ask us about building your hoarding from your own packaging.

Replaces: ply hoarding, MDF

Ceiling tiles, betterJOINERY panels, 2Faced and Renasci™ circular flooring (with Milliken) round out the range.

Replaces: mineral fibre tiles

Heat, pressure and time. No water, no glues, no chemicals, no adhesives; The plastic in the packaging is the binder. Proven with over 20 years of in-service history in the US and now 5 years in NZ.

01

Collect

Beverage cartons, soft plastics, composite packaging and construction wrap arrive from schemes like the NZ Soft Plastics Recycling Scheme, businesses and the public.

02

Shred

Mixed packaging is shredded into a consistent feedstock. Nothing is separated, washed with chemicals, or sent onward as residue.

03

Press

Heat, pressure and time fuse the shredded material. The plastic already in the packaging melts and becomes the binder – no added glue.

04

Return

saveBOARD Returns where offcuts and end-of-life boards come back at zero gate fee and are remanufactured into new boards. The loop closes.

INGREDIENTS - LIKE A NUTRITION LABEL

Recycled composite packaging up to

99% of content

Added glues/adhesvies

ZERO

Added chemicals

ZERO

Added water

ZERO

VOCs & formaldehyde

<5% of green building limit

All products carry a Declare ecolabel – full ingredient disclosure, VOC-free, Red List free. Offcuts and end-of-life boards return to us at zero gate fee and become new boards.

Watch our YouTube video for more information.

CM

CodeMark

NZ Building Code compliance certification. Exposed & Paperfaced internal linings certified August 2024; betterBRACE rigid air barrier certified November 2024. Councils must accept CodeMark products.

Environmental Product Declarations

Independently verified life-cycle carbon data published on EPD Australasia. Embodied carbon ranges from -4.3 to -13.1 kg CO2e/m2 across the range.

DEC

Declare Label

Full ingredient disclosure – a "nutrition label" for building products. All products qualify for Living Building Challenge projects. Red List free.

Eco Choice Aotearoa

New Zealand's official Type I ecolabel – independent, third-party proof of environmental best practice across the product range.

Masterspec

Listed in Masterspec, New Zealand's national specification system, so architects can specify saveBOARD directly in project documentation.

NZ Made

Licensed country-of-origin certification for boards manufactured in Te Rapa, Hamilton (NZ) and Warragamba, NSW (AU).

What is saveBOARD made of?

Is saveBOARD certified for use under the NZ Building Code?

Can saveBOARD replace plasterboard (GIB®)?

Is saveBOARD really carbon negative?

Where can I buy saveBOARD?

What happens to offcuts and old boards?

Will saveBOARD look like plasterboard?

Is a board made from used packaging clean and safe indoors?

Recycled composite packaging
up to

<5% of green
building limit