The Beginning of the MgO Industry
A story of innovation, persistence, and how Magnum Board® became the industry standard.
A Chance Meeting That Changed an Industry
In the early 2000s, the paths of two businessmen crossed in a meeting that would reshape the construction industry. Dan Armstrong, Director of Supply Chain for a global industrial engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) company, and Ed Gilbert, General Manager of a U.S. manufacturing firm, had both spent years in China building industrial complexes and procuring equipment and materials.
Little did anyone realize that this chance meeting between Dan and Ed would lead to a newfound friendship and a shared curiosity for "problem solving" that would result in a simple solution to an age-old construction problem, one that would have a profound impact on the global construction industry for decades to come.
The Discovery of MgO Potential
During a particular visit to China, Dan and Ed learned that the Chinese Government had instituted a program to support the massive construction industry. The Chinese government was very interested in finding as many possible uses for the mineral magnesium oxide (MgO) because it was indigenous to the country, easily mined from large deposits, possessed an unlimited number of possible uses, and was environmentally friendly.
One of the many ideas considered was to use MgO as a base material to manufacture a type of sheathing material that could overcome well-known problems associated with traditional building materials such as gypsum board, Portland cement board, and wood-based products.
Innovation Through Partnership
When Dan and Ed eventually got involved, the Chinese program had produced several versions of a sheathing product that had promise but very limited applications. So, using their personal resources, ingenuity, and time, Dan and Ed started tinkering and making improvements to the product, tweaking it here and there until they were able to manufacture a stable prototype.
What Dan and Ed created was, quite literally, beyond anyone's wildest expectation. This was the beginning of Magnum Board®! (circa 2004)
A Revolutionary Product
Magnum Board® was so innovative that it would address and resolve many of the problems associated with the use of traditional types of sheathing materials typically in contact with fire, water, wind, seismic events, insects, mold and mildew.
This product was so ahead of its time that production of the product is essentially carbon neutral, resulting in an environmentally friendly product long before global warming became the issue that it is today.
Setting the Industry Standard
2004
Once Dan and Ed realized the potential Magnum Board® would have on the global construction market, they knew they would need to get the product certified before it would be considered applicable for the global construction industry.
Magnum Board® Products approached the International Code Council (ICC) to get approvals and certifications for ICC Building Codes, Product Application, and Fire Application. What they learned was that no standards existed to test and certify any MgO-based products, much less Magnum Board® Products.
Creating the Standards
Magnum Board® Products took on the task of working with the ICC and co-developed the standards that are known today as:
ICC-ES Acceptance Criteria for Fiber-reinforced Magnesium-Oxide-Based Sheets AC386
Initially, preliminary testing of the first Magnum Board® prototype failed one of the many important tests required by the ICC certification process. Undeterred, Dan and Ed would refine the product formulation, which resulted in a significantly improved and more robust prototype that not only passed ICC-ES AC386 but remains the "gold standard" in today's MgO industry.
"Remember, Magnum Board® Products are often copied but never duplicated."
Global Recognition & Certifications
Soon thereafter, Magnum Board® Products would obtain additional certifications from industry organizations:
Underwriters Laboratory (UL) – Non-combustible, non-flammable, and zero smoke spread performance
Canadian Construction Materials Center (CCMC) – Canadian market certification
Conformité Européenne (CE) – European standards for safety and environmental compatibility
Oceania Standards – Fire-resistance, durability, and environmental compatibility
Seismic Ratings – Product use in seismic zones A-D (ratings E-F pending)
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A Quater Century of Innovation
Looking back almost a quarter of a century, it is amazing to see how Dan and Ed's newfound friendship and shared curiosity for problem-solving resulted in 23 years of introducing the global construction industry to a new, exciting, and innovative product.
The Magnum Board® Product Line was the passport that would take Dan, Ed, and the company around the world to faraway places as a new innovative solution to age-old construction problems.
The Magnum Board® Fiber Reinforced MgO Product Line is now complete, providing material for almost every application, and is available in North, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Pacific.
The Wonderful World of Magnum Board® Products
