Plywood

Product description

Plywood is a structural wood-based panel composed of multiple layers of thin veneers. Plywood panels are manufactured for structural applications, used primarily as wall and floor sheathing in platform-frame constructed buildings such as single or multi-family housing. It can also be found in mid-rise residential and non-residential construction.

Plywood has been used in Canadian construction projects for decades and is suitable for a variety of end uses in both wet and dry service conditions.

End uses include:

• Flooring applications
• single-layer flooring
• wall and roof sheathing
• structural insulated panels
• marine applications
• webs of wood I-joists
• concrete formwork
• pallets and industrial containers
• furniture

Technical information

Thin veneers, typically 1/8 or 1/10-inch in thickness, are produced by a wide knife cutting through a rotating log on a spindle. The veneers are glued together so that the grain direction of each layer of veneer is perpendicular to that of the adjacent layers. These cross-laminated sheets of wood veneer are bonded together with a waterproof adhesive and cured under heat and pressure. This arrangement of the veneers results in superior dimensional stability, two-way strength and stiffness properties and an excellent strength-to-weight ratio.

Plywood is produced in various thicknesses and in more than 20 different appearance grades. The most commonly used thickness is 1/2-inch and the panels are typically manufactured in 4x8-foot sheets.

Plywood is highly resistant to impact damage, chemicals, and changes in temperature and relative humidity. It can be chemically treated to improve resistance to decay or to fire.