How Plywood Is Made

Plywood consists of the veneer face, core and back . Thin layers of wood veneers are glued together with a strong adhesive, there are mainly a phenolic or melamine glue. Each layer is oriented with its grain perpendicular to the adjacent layer. Plywood as a building material is generally formed into large sheets. It may also be curved for use in ceilings , aircraft or ship building.

Plywood as a building material is very widely used due to its many useful properties. It is an economical, factory-produced sheet of wood with precise dimensions that does not warp or crack with changes in atmospheric moisture.

Ply is an engineered wood product made from three or more 'plies' or thin sheets of wood. These are glued together to form a thicker, flat sheet. The logs used to make plywood as a building material are prepared by steaming or dipping in hot water. They are then fed into a lathe machine, which peels the log into thin plies of wood. each ply is usually between 1 and 4mm thick.

USES OF PLYWOOD AS A BUILDING MATERIAL

Plywood has a huge range of used within the construction industry. Some of its most common uses are:

To make light partition or external walls

To make formwork, or a mould for wet concrete

To make furniture, especially cupboards, kitchen cabinets, and office tables

As part of flooring systems