Solid Wood Products 



2649 



22-9 DECORATIVE VENEER AND PLYWOOD 



Hardaway (1978) of the Hardwood Plywood Manufacturers Association, 

 described the American hardwood plywood industry as relatively stable in the 

 1960's and 1970's (fig. 22-45). He found that domestic production peaked in 

 1972 at about 2 billion square feet (surface measure), but dropped to about 1 .3 

 billion in 1975; by 1978 it was up to 1.5 billion. Slow growth in domestic 

 production is forecast to the year 2030. For use volume by category see figures 

 29-36 ABC. 



Imports of hardwood plywood considerably exceed domestic production. 

 From 1.6 billion square feet (Ys-inch basis) in 1963, imports grew to a high of 

 6.4 billion sq ft in 1972; by 1979 imports were 3.8 billion sq ft. During the peak 

 import year of 1972, 97 percent came from Asia, more than three-fourths from 

 Korea and Taiwan; over four-fifths of all imported hardwood plywood was lauan 

 (Quinney and Micklewright 1974^0- In 1978, about 84 percent of the imports 

 came from Korea and Taiwan (USD A Forest Service 1980). 



Quinney and Micklewright'' found that in 1972 about 86 percent (surface 

 measure) of the hardwood plywood produced domestically had a veneer core. It 

 seems likely, however, that fiberboard, and flakeboard cores will be increasing- 

 ly used for inner plys of hardwood plywood. (See sec. 28-23 and 28-24 for 

 economic feasibility analyses of reconstituted cores in decorative plywood pan- 



1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 



Figure 22-45. — United States consumption of domestically produced and imported 

 hardwood plywood from 1966 through 1977. (Data from U.S. Department of Com- 

 merce, Bureau of the Census, Current Industrial Reports, Hardwood Plywood.) 



"Quinney, D. N., and J. T. Micklewright. 1974. Markets and marketing of wood-based panel 

 products in North America. Doc. No. 7, 19 p. Paper presented at the world consultation on wood 

 based panels. Food and Agric. Org. of the United Nations. 



