Abstract
The role of research in the development of wood preservation over the last 150 years is reviewed with particular emphasis on the last two decades. The authors present a personal view of historical developments which have been particularly influential and highlight current trends such as fixed waterborne preservatives, vapour phase treatments, definition of decay hazard classes and environmental impact assessments. These are considered with reference to the structure of the International Research Group on Wood Preservation (IRG) which was founded in 1969 and has now grown into an international research community of over 300 members from 52 countries. The authors highlight three factors, 'environmental' influences, harmonisation of standards (particularly in the EU) and economic factors, which have exerted an intense pressure on both research and on product development in recent years.