Chapter 10: Manufactured Boards

Plywood
 Plywood is made with layers of wood called veneers, arranged with the grain going in
both directions which makes it a very strong board.
 The veneers are glued together like a sandwich to make the sheet of material.
 Veneers are sheets of wood cut from the surface of a plank or by rotary cutting from a
log.
 In plywood, each layer is positioned so that the grain is at right angles (90 0) to the
layer below.
 There are always an odd number of plies in plywood 3,5,7,etc, so that the 2 outside
plies are facing the same direction.

There are two categories interior and exterior.

Interior quality plywood
Interior plywood is not waterproof and less resistant to decay. If used outdoors the interior
grade plywood will come apart.
Exterior quality plywood
Are durable and are water resistant because of the glue used.
WBP= Water and Boil Proof.
Advantages of Plywood
 Good strength
 Large sheets of standard thickness
 Do not warp or shrink
 Have a smooth uniform finish and quality
 Thin sheets of plywood can be bent into shape

Disadvantages
 Edges need to be covered with a decorative strip
 The surface veneers are usually plain
 Cannot easily screw or nail into the edge of plywood as it would split.
How Plywood is made

OSB (OSB Orientated Strand Board)

 It is similar to chipboard but has much larger particles.
 Wooden strands or flakes are processed from the tree log and are bonded together
using adhesive under heat and pressure.
 The strands are aligned in two outer layers and an inner core positioned at right angles
to the other layer, creating a three ply effect.
 The board comes in standard sizes and is used for flooring, furniture and in timber
framed buildings.
Steps in manufacture of OSB
1. Debarking of logs
2. Stranding the logs
3. Strands are soaked and dried
4. Strands are blended
5. The strands are laid into layers and are pressed into sheets
6. The sheets are finished and cut to standard sizes.

Chipboard
 Chipboard is made by taking woodchips of different grades and gluing them together
with a synthetic resin.
 The mixture is pressed together or formed into sheets of regular thickness.
 They are then sanded down to give the finished product.
 They are often laminated with wooden veneers to improve their appearance.
Advantages
 Uniform thickness
 They can be veneered with decorative veneers and laminates
 Relatively cheap
 Use timber that might otherwise be wasted.

Disadvantages
 Surfaces and edges normally require veneer.
 Chipboards are weak
 They are not water resistant
 Generally they do not take screws well.
How Chipboard is made.

Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF)

This is another particle board. It is made from fine wood particles such as wood dust, it
combined with adhesives to form sheets of regular size. HDF (high density fibre board) LDF
(low density fibre board) are also available.

Advantages of Manufactured Boards

 Manufactured Boards are more stable they do not cup, twist or warp.
 Manufactured Boards come in wider boards of uniform thickness,
 Manufactured Boards are cheaper than hardwoods
 Manufactured Boards can be veneered with hardwood to give the effect of real wood
 Manufactured Boards conserve the use of expensive hardwood timbers.
 Manufactured Boards have fewer defects.
 Manufactured Boards reduce deforestation.
 Manufactured Boards are immune to insect attack.
How the use of Manufactured Boards can help reduce the rate of global deforestation.
 Manufactured Boards provide an alternative to solid wood
 By using wood from managed forests when making Manufactured Boards.
 Thinnings and waste/recycled timber can be used for Manufactured Boards.
 By using veneers on Manufactured Boards to give the effect of real wood
 Manufactured boards use mostly softwoods.
 Reduce the need for tropical hardwoods.

Reasons why tropical rainforests should be conserved …

 Protection of habitats, for indigenous tribes
 Reduction of CO2 levels, we rely on trees to keep the balance of CO2 and O2.
 Aesthetics, rainforests are a beautiful natural resource
 Rare flora/fauna rely on tropical rainforests
 Prevent silting of watercourses, if the trees are removed this disrupts natural
waterways
 Prevent soil erosion, the trees roots hold the soil together.
 Renewable supply of hardwoods.