Safety First

• Wood and rigid foam products are subject to spreading fires. Varnished wood and rigid foam can also emit toxic fumes, if ignited. Plaster is fire rated, non-combustible, and is used in many public venues, such as airports, hotels, and restaurants.
• Wood products are an obvious threat to our environment and the wilderness. Manufacturing of rigid foam products requires the use of harsh and deadly chemicals that have been proven to affect the Earth's Ozone layer.

Cost Effectiveness

• In large, multi-section, wood mouldings of a classic style, the cost for the various shapes and custom carving is cost-prohibitive for most applications.
• Rigid foam is comparable in price to plaster, but is largely considered an aspirant design solution. It is amazing just how quickly foam mouldings experience irreparable damage through routine inspection by curious quests (Is it real?).
• Foam mouldings were originally designed for the mobile home industry in the 1970’s. Plaster of the same configuration, is the only, truly authentic solution that has been used for centuries by classical designers and builders.
• Installation of the wood mouldings requires that each section be fitted and mitered at each turn in the room. Construction standards indicate that $20 per cut, per moulding, is used to estimate the job cost. For a five member crown moulding that would be $100 per corner! Plaster requires only one miter in a turn, thus significantly reducing the installation cost and improving job quality.

Authenticity, Longevity, and Style

• Multi-part wood mouldings commonly shrink and crack. Wood and rigid foam are also subject to insect infestation and bird damage. Plaster is practically inert and is not subject to shrinking or expansions and is very damage resistant.
• Wood moulding, as noted above, would have multiple nail holes approximately every 12 inches, which would need to be filled and sanded. Rigid foam applications are notorious for having visible seams that are very unsightly and greatly detract from the authenticity and quality standard. Installed plaster has no unsightly holes or seams and is truly the most flexible material that can be used to achieve a quality design goal.
• Carved-type configurations in wood are either wheel pressed or hand carved. In the wheel pressed pattern, the definition is very shallow and will be obliterated after being painted several times. Hand carved definition would be cost prohibitive in most applications. Plaster designs possess a clear, crisp definition that is inherent in the manufacturing process.

Summary

• Plaster does not spread fires. Plaster is safer than using wood or foam products.
  
• The cost of installing plaster should be consistently less than that of multi-part wood mouldings.
• The base cost of large plaster mouldings is considerably less for comparable wood mouldings
• The depth of design definition of plaster far surpasses wood for beauty and endurance.
• The overall cost of materials and labor is less when using plaster.
• Wood and Foam are difficult to repair. Plaster can be easily repaired with basic dry wall plaster.
• The installed elegance of plaster is unparalleled and the history of plaster in Europe’s most
  magnificent buildings is a tribute to its longevity and beauty.

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