Georgia-Pacific Promotes Innovation

New products combat mold, create healthier homes.

Just a few years ago, the term innovative home probably would have conjured the idea of whiz-bang technology that could help homeowners monitor a home security system from afar or warm a Jacuzzi as they pulled into their driveway. At Show Village 2004, Georgia-Pacific Corp. will give new meaning to the term. "We're calling our house the i-Home, with the 'i' standing for innovation," says Chris Beyer, director of marketing services for Georgia-Pacific Building Products.

The i-Home, which will be donated to HomeAid America's new Las Vegas chapter after the show, will emphasize innovative products that address hot-button issues in home building, including energy efficiency, controlling moisture and combating mold. Beyer predicts that some of the products on display will change the industry.

This is the second year GP has been involved with a HomeAid project at Show Village. "We're pleased that a marketing opportunity at the largest and most significant builders' show in the world will, in turn, benefit a charity organization that provides services to the needy," says Beyer.

The company also has a longstanding commitment to Habitat for Humanity. "We believe in the cause," Beyer says. "It provides a helping hand where it means the most, which is providing protective, nice and livable shelter to people who have had difficulties in their lives." He says the Show Village activities, as well as GP's involvement with HomeAid and Habitat, "demonstrate how companies can do more than sell products and strive for profitability, but, in fact, can improve the quality of neighborhoods.

"Our charitable work involves employees at all levels and in all business units," Beyer says. "Employees need to be good citizens, and part of being a good GP employee is caring about our communities and helping others who have greater needs than we do."

Involvement in Show Village also helps the corporate mission. Rather than just showing a product at a booth and handing out brochures, GP demonstrates at Show Village where and how its products are used. "It's more effective for us, and it gives builders a better idea of our structural and decorative products and how they impact the construction of a home," Beyer says.

One of the innovative GP products that the i-Home will feature is DensArmorE Plus Interior Guard, an interior wall panel that "removes the food source for mold," Beyer says. "It's a huge technological advancement. We're offering an all-new wallboard that is paperless but finishes like regular wallboard." He points out that such products typically cover more than 70% of a home's interior surfaces. When mold resistance is provided on such a vast portion of a home, occupants get a healthier environment.

GP also will showcase PlytaniumE Radiant Barrier Roof Sheathing, which repels heat and boosts a home's energy efficiency by up to 20%.

"Show Village is a wonderful way to promote products and to do what's right," Beyer says. "It's a win-win for us. It both helps us provide an environment to best market our products, and at the end of the day, the good-news story is that it will help people."