Materials & Construction
A commercial artificial plant is a structural and a surface decision at the same time. This page sets out the materials Everflorae builds with — foliage, trunk and branch construction, outdoor durability and fire performance — so a specifier can match the build to the location instead of guessing.
Foliage materials
For a custom manufacturer the leaf is not one material — it is a grade chosen for where the plant will live. We build to the grade the project needs, not a single default.
| Material | Where it is used | Why it is chosen |
|---|---|---|
| Silk foliage | Fine interior botanicals, floral and detailed arrangements | Soft drape and fine vein detail that reads correctly up close |
| Polyester foliage | Interior plants, hedges and topiary in viewed-up-close settings | Stable shape, good colour hold, cost-efficient at volume |
| Polyethylene (PE), UV-stabilised | Outdoor trees, palms and green walls in direct sun | UV-stabilised at the material stage for fade resistance outdoors |
| Polyurethane (PU) | Premium outdoor and high-detail foliage | Denser, more realistic hand-feel; holds fine surface texture |
| ABS (moulded) | Rigid moulded elements — leaf veins, berries, small trunk cores | Dimensionally stable, takes fine moulded detail |
Colour is matched to a retained standard rather than mixed by eye, so a second order of the same item holds the same colour instead of drifting batch to batch. Tell us the exact plant and we will specify the foliage grade for the setting.
Trunk & branch construction
Steel armature, then GFRC skin
Every tree and palm starts as a welded steel armature — square branch sockets, brace rings and a base plate. A glass-fibre reinforced concrete (GFRC, commonly called fibreglass) skin is then applied and finished. This is what makes a 10 m palm structurally credible rather than a scaled-up ornament.
Hand-painted bark and realistic texture
Bark is moulded from real trunk references and finished by hand, so the realistic bark texture holds up when a visitor is standing next to the trunk, not only from across a lobby. Large trees use a steel-core trunk so a wind rating can be quoted from the actual construction.
Branch angle is set to the approved drawing, and oversized items get a pre-shipment assembly photograph record so a canopy that reads wrong is caught before it crosses an ocean.
Outdoor durability: UV & fade resistance
Outdoor performance is a material decision made at order stage, not an after-market spray. UV-resistant foliage and fade-resistant outdoor grades are stabilised in the polymer so colour holds under exposure.
| Exposure | Foliage grade | Expected colour fastness |
|---|---|---|
| Indoor, controlled light | Standard interior grade | Indefinite under normal interior conditions |
| Sheltered outdoor, temperate | UV-stabilised PE grade | 3 years |
| Direct sun, high UV, hot climate | Premium outdoor (PU/PE) grade | Up to 5 years |
| Poolside, coastal, salt spray | Premium outdoor grade plus corrosion-resistant fixings | Up to 5 years, fronds replaceable in place |
Accelerated weathering is run to ASTM G154 (fluorescent UV lamp exposure of non-metallic materials) and ISO 4892 methods, and the data supports the warranty ranges above. For coastal and Gulf-region projects specify the outdoor grade explicitly, and name the summer peak temperature and the wind load your structural engineer has given — both change the specification. Full exposure tables and documentation are on the Compliance page.
Fire safety
Fire performance is order-specific and is built and documented to the standard named in your specification. The three that come up most often are NFPA 701 (US), BS 5867 (UK/EU) and EN 13501-1 (EU fixed construction). A generic certificate for a different product is not evidence that your specification complies, so test documentation is issued against the actual materials used in your order.
“This standard establishes test methods to assess the propagation of flame of various textiles and films under specified fire test conditions.” — NFPA 701, Standard Methods of Fire Tests for Flame Propagation of Textiles and Films, National Fire Protection Association
“Specifies requirements for the flammability performance of curtains, drapes and similar hanging textile articles.” — BS 5867-2, Performance of furnishing fabrics, British Standards Institution
See the Compliance page for the full standards table, the verbatim EN 13501-1 scope, and the documentation we issue per order.
How to specify materials for your project
- The installation setting — indoor, sheltered outdoor, direct sun, or poolside/coastal
- The wind load and fixing detail if the item is roof-mounted or in an exposed location (drives steel-core vs standard trunk)
- The fire standard named in the specification (NFPA 701, BS 5867 or EN 13501-1)
- The UV exposure condition, so the right UV-stabilised grade is selected
- Any chemical declaration your procurement team requires (REACH, RoHS, Prop 65)
- Colour reference if an exact match to existing planting is needed
Frequently asked questions
What are artificial plant leaves made of?
What are the trunks and branches made of?
Are the materials UV resistant for outdoor use?
Are the materials fire rated?
Specify the right build for your project
Tell us the setting, the fire standard and the wind load, and we will confirm the materials and issue the documentation your consultant needs.