WOOD SUBSTITUTES - INDUSTRIAL

PRODUCTS AS SUBSTITUTES FOR NATURAL

HARD WOOD.
Wood substitutes are building products that are not graded as lumber.

 Composite substitutes contain wood fibers and a mixture of plastic

or cement, glue and assorted other materials.

 Structural substitutes, also known as engineered wood, consist of

thin, overlapping strips of lumber laminated together under
hydraulic pressure.

 Although the majority of wood substitutes contain wood byproducts,

other substitutes contain no wood whatsoever.
BENEFITS OF USING WOOD SUBSTITUTES

 Resistant to Termites
 Durable in all Weather Conditions
 Cost-saving
 Versatile for building requirements
 Ease of construction.
VENEERS
Properties:

• Thinner than 3mm

• Available in standard sizes same as laminates
• Gives wood finish using much lesser solid wood
• Due to its flexibility wooden finished furniture can be made in
such shapes and sizes which were not possible using solid wood

Types:
• Rotatory cut veneers
• Logs are horizontally rotated and peeled
• Sliced veneers
• logs are sliced instead of being rotated and
peeled
• Comparatively Costlier
PLY WOODS
Manufacturing Process:
• Manufactured from sheets of cross-laminated veneer
• Panel strength and stiffness in both directions are maximized
• Bonded under heat and pressure with durable, moisture resistant
adhesives

Types of plywood
(Based on wood)
Hardwood Plywood
• made from teak wood, or gurjan wood or birch wood

Softwood Plywood
• made from woods like cedar, SPF (Spruce-Pine Fir) or Mango wood.
Types of plywood (Based on use) Special types of plywood
Regular grade plywood Flexible Plywood
Used for temporary use Also called as flexi ply
Commercial plywood Can easily be rolled up
Also known as Interior grade or MR (Moisture Used for creating round and curved shaped
resistant) grade plywood furniture
Used for making furniture that is unlikely FR grade: Fire Retardant
to get wet Used in places where fire risks have to be
Water proof plywood reduced
Also know as Exterior grade or BWR (Boiling water Surface is treated with fire resisting chemicals
resistant) grade Termite-Resistant and Borer-proof
plywood. Offers protection from external pests that can
Used for making furniture that is likely to get wet
destroy the wood.
e.g. Kitchen furniture
Marine Plywood Structural Plywood
Superior quality and also costs a lot more Suitable for construction applications where
Used for making furniture or products that are structural stability is required
subjected to prolonged water exposure Concrete Shuttering Plywood
Used mainly for industrial purposes and boat It has a shiny phenolic film over the surface
building. Used to create wooden moulds for concrete
casing
FIBERBOARD
Fiberboard is an engineered wood wallboard made of wood chips, plant
fibers, softwood flakes, sawdust and other recycled materials such as
cardboard or paper, all bonded with a synthetic resin under high pressure
and heat and then compacted into rigid sheets.

• After the raw materials have been collected and chopped into small
pieces, all the metallic impurities are removed with the use of a magnet.
• Next, fibers are blended with wax and synthetic resin and then
compressed into a defibrator machine under heat, in order to become
usable.
• Finally, they are pressed into rigid sheets to produce fiberboard.

Types of fibreboard:

Low-density fibreboard is also known as particle board and is mostly used

as underlay in various rooms. The density of a particle board is 160-450
kg/m³.
Medium-density fibreboard has a density of 600-800 kg/m³ and is the most
commonly used.
High density fibreboard, also famous as hardboard has a density of 600-
1450 kg/m³,used for furniture production as well as for flooring manufacture
PARTICLE BOARD
Make
• made from very small particles of wood (sawdust and small wood flakes)
• wood particles are mixed with glue (Urea formaldehyde resin) mixture is firmly pressed together
using a hot-press machine
Uses
• Used to make ready-made furniture, kitchen cabinets, false ceiling, wall panels, and partitions
Classification:
OSL: One sided lamination.
• Only one side of the (the top surface or show surface) is
laminated,
BSL: Both sided lamination.
• Both the top and bottom surfaces are laminated .
• BSL is costlier than OSL.
Properties
• Age usually not more than 5yrs
• Very sensitive to water and even moisture
• Very light weight
• Eco-friendly as it is made up to waste wood particles
• The Indian Standards quality specification: IS:3087 and IS:12823
MEDIUM DENSITY FIBERBOARD
MDF is a type of hardboard, which is made from wood fibres glued under heat and pressure.
Advantages: -
 It is dense, flat, stiff, has no knots and is easily machined. Because it is made up of fine particles it does
not have an easily recognizable surface grain.
 MDF can be painted to produce a smooth quality surface. Because MDF has no grain it can be cut,
drilled, machined and filed without damaging the surface.
 MDF may be dowelled together and traditional woodwork joints may even be cut. MDF may be glued
together with PVA wood glue. Oil, water-based paints and varnishes may be used on MDF. Veneers and
laminates may also be used to finish MDF
Disadvantages: -
 MDF can be dangerous to use if the correct safety precautions are not taken. MDF contains a substance
called urea formaldehyde, which may be released from the material through cutting and sanding
 Due to the fact that MDF contains a great deal of glue the cutting edges of your tools will blunt very
quickly.
 MDF can be fixed together with screws and nails but the material may split if care is not taken. If you are
screwing, the screws should not be any further than 25mm in from the edge. When using screws always
use pilot holes.

Uses: -It may be used to make display cabinets, wall-panels and storage units.
HARD BOARD
BENEFITS OF FIBREBOARD:
 Impact and thermal insulation in one product.
 Excellent thermal and acoustic improvement.
 Reduces ridges and uneven surfaces in subfloor.
 Robust and stable support for final floor finish.
 Helps increase serviceable life of final floor.
 High loadbearing and weight resistance.
 Light weight and easy to handle.
 Quick and simple to install.
 Environmentally friendly composition.
 Inexpensive product.
 Holds paint well.

Disadvantages:
 Weak compare to wood.
 Not as durable as real wood.
 Requires more nails when installing it.
 Might take more time to install compare to real wood.
BLOCK BOARD A block board is a compound wood board made of uniform strips of wood, placed end
to end in adjacent columns. They are then sandwiched between two thick veneers of
hardwood (usually) and finally glued under a tremendous amount of heat and pressure.

Advantages/Pros:
Blockboards are lighter in weight as compared to plywood.
Blockboards are cheaper as compared to plywood.
As the blockboards are stiffer and resist the bending in middle, they are majorly used
for making long pieces (i.e. > 5 feet) of furniture.
It is advisable to use blockboards for furniture, where thickness is required to be
displayed as per custom design requirements.
Blockboards have good dimensional stability when exposed to humidity and thus resists
wrapping and cracking.
Blockboards have more strength and durability as compared to MDF and particle
boards.
From carpenter’s point of view, it is easier to work as compared to MDF or Particle
board.
Blockboards can also hold screws and nails very well as compared to particle board and
MDF.

Disadvantages/Cons:
It is not as strong and durable as the actual plywood or good quality solid wood.
If small gaps are left inside the core, then blockboards may be difficult to work with!
LAMINA-BOARDS
GLULAM
LAMINATES
• Based on maintenance:
• Laminates are easier to maintain.They
are scratch proof,water-proof, long
age.
• Veneers need to be polished from time
to time and can be scratched
• Based on Cost:
• High quality veneers are generally
costlier than laminates.
• The market rates of veneer ranges
from Rs.30 – Rs.550/per sq.ft.
• Based on look:
• Veneers give natural look and feel of
wood
• Laminates provide both natural and
well as artificial patters
CEMENT PARTICLE BOARD
E-BOARD
BAMBOO PLY