PLYWOOD

GROUP 2
 Contents

• Process
• Composition
• Characteristics
• Sizes & Thickness
• Application & Installation
PROCESS LOG SELECTION
• The entire plywood-making
process begins with log
selection. At this stage, logs both
hardwood and softwood are
carefully identified and
segregated in terms of
hardwood species and quality.
The primary objective here is to
find logs that would produce
veneer with acceptable physical
and aesthetic characteristics.
PROCESS CONDITIONING
• The logs are conditioned in
water basins. Conditioning
involves softening the wood by
exposure of the blocks to both
heat and moisture by way of
soaking in hot water vats. after
which they are divided according
to its quality and length.
PROCESS CUTTING & DEBARKING
• Before the logs are cut and
peeled, the bark must be
removed. Mills use industrial
machines such to de-bark logs as
they continue along the
production line.De-barked logs
then move on to be cut to size.
The size that the logs are cut to
is usually dependent on the
production at the time of
cutting; finished panel size &
grain direction play a part in the
cutting of logs.
PROCESS PEELING
• Logs are peeled using a rotary
lathe. This peels the log in a
manner similar to that of a
pencil sharpener except the
blade is completely parallel to
the log at the time of cutting.
You can see this process in
action on the video (will be
shown later), and see them
coming out of the back of the
peeling machine straight onto a
conveyor
PROCESS CLIPPING
• Since the quality of the veneer is
one of the single most important
factors in determining plywood
grade, veneers with visible
defects are clipped off. As a
result, clipping leaves some
veneers end up with a smaller
surface area. This, however, isn’t
a problem, because these
smaller veneers can be joined
together to form standard 4×8
or 3×7 sheets
PROCESS VENEER DRYING
• Plywood manufacturing involves the drying
of veneer ribbon peeled from a log in
massive drying machines to enable the
gluing of the veneer into plywood. the
veneer is dried using a roller dryer, which
means that the veneer ribbon is cut into
sheets after peeling. Another option for
drying would be a mesh veneer dryer, in
which the veneer is fed into the drying
machine as a continuous ribbon directly
from the peeling line. The benefit of roller
drying is that flawed pieces can be removed
from the process even before drying, in
which case the veneer’s quality and drying
capacity remain good.
PROCESS COMPOSER
• Dry and properly trimmed
Veneers are composed into
final 4 feet by 8 feet sheets
and is segregated into
Face,Core or Back.
PROCESS GLUING
• The composed plies of Veers are
bonded, General type of plywood
uses “Urea Formaldehyde” It is a
non-transparent resin or polymer
used in adhesives. While water-
proof plywoods use Melamine or
Phenol based adhesives which are
fairly low in cost.
PROCESS COLD PRESS
• Cold pressing is carried out at
room temperature with either
mechanical (screw type) or
hydraulic presses. The glues
employed are low temperature
curing synthetic resin adhesives
such as urea-formaldehyde. Cold
presses are usually single opening
and a complete bundle of uncured
panels held together by clamps
between top and bottom retainer
boards and I-beams, is pressed at
one time.
PROCESS HOT PRESS
• Hot pressing is carried out in a
hydraulic press incorporating
multiple heated platens between
which each individual panel
assembly is subjected to heat and
pressure.Very accurate control of
pressing times, temperatures and
pressure are necessary to ensure
adequate adhesive bond
development.
PROCESS QUALITY CONTROL
• The panel is checked visually &
tested for mechanical strength
and formaldehyde emission
level.
PROCESS TRIMMING AND SANDING
After being unloaded from the press
and after cooling, panels are
trimmed to precise sizes usually by
passing through two sets of parallel
gauged circular saws.The wide belt
sander has been used to an
increasing extent.Their development
for plywood finishes allows the
manufacture to produce high quality
finishes at high production rates.
PROCESS PACKING AND STACKING
.
The Plywood is packed
and stacked for shipment
to both local and overseas
markets.
COMPOSITION
.
Plywood is a material manufactured
from thin layers or "plies" of wood
veneer that are glued together with
adjacent layers. It is an engineered
wood from the family of
manufactured boards which includes
medium-density fibreboard (MDF)
and particle board (chipboard). An
extremely versatile product, plywood
is used for a wide range of structural,
interior and exterior applications -
from formwork through to internal
paneling.
 STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS
A
. typical plywood panel has face veneers of a higher grade than the
core veneers. The principal function of the core layers is to increase
the separation between the outer layers where the bending stresses
are highest, thus increasing the panel's resistance to bending. As a
result, thicker panels can span greater distances under the same
loads. In bending, the maximum stress occurs in the outermost layers,
one in tension, the other in compression. Bending stress decreases
from the maximum at the face layers to nearly zero at the central
layer. Shear stress, by contrast, is higher in the center of the panel,
and at the outer fibres.
TYPES OF PLYWOOD
 Softwood Plywood
• Softwood plywood is usually made
either of cedar, Douglas fir or
spruce, pine, and fir (collectively
known as spruce-pine-fir or SPF) or
redwood and is typically used for
construction and industrial
purposes.The most common
dimension is 1.2 by 2.4 metres (3 ft
11 in × 7 ft 10 in) or the slightly
larger imperial dimension of 4 feet
× 8 feet. Plies vary in thickness from
1.4 mm to 4.3 mm.
 Hardwood plywood
• Hardwood plywood is made out of
wood from dicot trees (Oak, Beech and
Mahagony) and used for demanding
end uses. Hardwood plywood is
characterized by its excellent strength,
stiffness and resistance to creep. It has a
high planar shear strength and impact
resistance, which make it especially
suitable for heavy-duty floor and wall
structures. Oriented plywood
construction has a high wheel-carrying
capacity. Hardwood plywood has
excellent surface hardness, and
damage- and wear-resistance
 Tropical plywood
• Tropical plywood is made of mixed species of tropical timber. Originally from the
Asian region, it is now also manufactured in African and South American
countries. Tropical plywood is superior to softwood plywood due to its density,
strength, evenness of layers, and high quality. It is usually sold at a premium in
many markets if manufactured with high standards. Tropical plywood is widely
used in the UK, Japan, United States, Taiwan, Korea, Dubai, and other countries
worldwide. It is used for construction purposes in many regions due to its low
cost. However, many countries’ forests have been over-harvested, including the
Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia, largely due to the demand for plywood
production and export.
 Flexible plywood
• Flexible plywood is designed for making
curved parts, a practice which dates
back to the 1850s in furniture making.
• Aircraft grade plywood, often Baltic
birch, is made from three or more plies
of birch, as thin as 1⁄64 inch (0.40 mm)
thick in total, and is extremely strong
and light. At 3⁄8 inch (9.5 mm) thick,
mahogany three-ply "wiggle board" or
"bendy board" come in 4 by 8 feet (1.2
m × 2.4 m) sheets with a very thin cross-
grain central ply and two thicker
exterior plies, either long grain on the
sheet, or cross grain.
 Marine plywood

Marine plywood is manufactured from durable face and core

veneers, with few defects so it performs longer in both humid and
wet conditions and resists delaminating and fungal attack. Its
construction is such that it can be used in environments where it is
exposed to moisture for long periods. Each wood veneer will be
from tropical hardwoods, have negligible core gap, limiting the
chance of trapping water in the plywood and hence providing a
solid and stable glue bond. It uses an exterior Weather and Boil
Proof (WBP) glue similar to most exterior plywoods.
Sizes and Thickness
 Standard Widths and Lengths

• The widths and lengths of plywood sheets manufactured for use in the
U.S. are measured in English units, while those manufactured for use in
Europe, Canada, Japan and other countries that use the metric system
are measured in metric units. The most common plywood sheet
dimension, 4 feet by 8 feet, translates to the metric dimensions of 1,219
by 2,438 millimeters. Hardwood plywood comes also in abbreviated
sheets measuring 2 by 2, 2 by 4, and 4 by 4 feet, while utility-grade
plywood comes in longer 4-by-10-foot sheets. You can also buy
oversized 5-foot-wide utility-grade plywood with lengths of 6, 8 and 10
feet. All but the oversized sheets are available in metric equivalents.
 Actual Thicknesses

• The nominal thicknesses of plywood range from 1/8 inch, or 3.2 mm, to
1 1/4 inches, which is equivalent to 31.75 mm. These often aren't the
actual thicknesses, because sanding during manufacturing removes up
to 1/32 inch of material. Standard nominal thicknesses include 1/8, 1/4,
3/8, 1/2, 5/8, 3/4, 1 1/8 and 1 1/4 inches. These correspond to actual
thicknesses of 1/8, 1/4, 11/32, 15/32, 19/32, 23/32, 1 1/8 and 1 1/4
inches, respectively. In metric terms, the nominal thicknesses are 3, 6,
10, 13, 16, 19, 28 and 32 mm.
Application &
Installation
Cladding, External
No other cladding material can offer the design
freedom, ease of handling, range and natural
beauty of timber. Timber cladding can create a
building to suit almost any environment, taste or
style.
Timber cladding has an inbuilt flexibility that
provides natural advantages on sites subject to
high winds, extreme climate, highly reactive soils,
subsidence or earth tremors.
Doors
Whether manufactured from solid or engineered
timber, there are many stylish and practical options
that won't compromise on strength and structural
performance. A distinctive timber door can also create
visual impact, adding value to any commercial or
domestic building.
Timber makes an attractive choice for door design and
construction, offering a strength, flexibility and
versatility that other materials find hard to match.
Flooring
Whether for structural or finished flooring
applications, timber offers durability, versatility and
adaptability. The warmth, strength and natural
beauty of timber flooring has proved enduringly
popular in a wide variety of interior settings.

Timber flooring is a timeless product, offering a

warmth and natural beauty largely unmatched by
other flooring options.
Framing
Lightweight timber construction typically comprises
framed and braced structures to which one or more
types of cladding are applied. Framing configurations
can range from the closely spaced light timbers
commonly seen in stud frame construction to large,
more widely spaced timbers.
Used in houses or multi-residential dwellings,
lightweight timber construction offers the flexibility
of a wide range of cost effective design options.
Joinery
Timber joinery products offer a classic, unique and
stylish touch to any interior or exterior design. The
products are produced for a variety of internal
applications including door and window frames,
cabinetry, skirtings, mouldings and architraves.
When looking to the outdoors, joinery products
range from decorative eaves and posts to eye-
catching railings.
Rare and exotic species such as Teak and Rosewood
can generate pieces of outstanding beauty but
material cost and availability are also important
considerations.
Panelling, Interior
Internal panelling, also known as appearance boards
and linings, is not just a practical means of covering
one or more walls and ceilings in a building, its
inclusion in a room's interior design can generate
looks that are both dramatic and stylish. Internal
paneling comes as either solid natural timber
paneling or as sheets of engineered wood products
that provide a durable and hardwearing surface for
areas subject to high impact. As they typically
function as appearance products they generally have
no structural requirements.
Portal Frames
Timber portal frames are one of the most favoured
structural applications for commercial and industrial
buildings whose functions necessitate long spans
and open interiors.
Timber portal frames offer a strong, sound and
superior structure. Structural action is achieved
through rigid connections between column and
rafter at the knees. These rigid joints are generally
constructed using nailed plywood gussets and on
occasion, with steel gussets.
Rails and Balustrades, Interior
The versatility, beauty and strength of timber makes
it the ideal material choice for interior handrails and
balustrades. Treated softwood and durable
hardwoods are the most popular timber choices and
these can be turned to create a range of unique
styles and designs to suit a variety of tastes and
decors.
When used internally balustrades and handrails are
typically finished with a clear lacquer to showcase
the natural beauty of the timber and with
appropriate care and attention will last a lifetime.
 APPLICATIONS
Shear walls
Framed timber buildings, of post and beam or stud
and joist construction, resist lateral loads (wind,
earthquake or impact) by using rigid frames, braced
frames or structural sheathing elements
(diaphragms).
Diaphragms are an efficient structural solution to
resist lateral forces. The sheeting materials that are
generally used as lining or cladding can usually be
upgraded to resist shear loads, easily and
economically. The framing then performs dual
functions, resisting both horizontal and vertical
loads.
 APPLICATIONS
Shear walls
Framed timber buildings, of post and beam or stud
and joist construction, resist lateral loads (wind,
earthquake or impact) by using rigid frames, braced
frames or structural sheathing elements
(diaphragms).
Diaphragms are an efficient structural solution to
resist lateral forces. The sheeting materials that are
generally used as lining or cladding can usually be
upgraded to resist shear loads, easily and
economically. The framing then performs dual
functions, resisting both horizontal and vertical
loads.
 Plywood offers the following benefits:
. • Increased stability-Plywood offers all the inherent advantages of the parent wood plus
enhanced properties in its laminated structure.
• High impact resistance-Being a wood based material, plywood has the ability to accommodate
the occasional short-term overload; up to twice the design load. This is useful where seismic
activity or cyclonic winds can occur. This property is also effective when used as construction
flooring or as concrete formwork. Plywood's laminated structure distributes loads from impact
over a larger area on the opposite face, which effectively reduces the tensile stress.
• Surface dimensional stability-The cross laminated construction of plywood ensures that
plywood sheets remain relatively stable under changes of temperature and moisture. This is
especially important in flooring and formwork construction where moisture exposure is very
likely.
• High strength to weight ratio-With high strength and stiffness to weight ratios, plywood is very
cost effective to use in structural applications such as flooring, shearwalls, formwork and
webbed beams.
• Panel shear-The panel shear of plywood is nearly double that of solid timber due its cross
laminated structure. This makes plywood a highly effective material to use in gussets for portal
frames, webs of fabricated beams and as bracing panels.
• Chemical resistance-Plywood does not corrode and can be used in chemical works and cooling
towers as a cost-effective, durable material when preservative treated.