Solid Wood Products 



2651 



Readers interested in an econometric model of domestic hardwood plywood 

 and veneer markets are referred to a publication in preparation in 1982 by W. B. 

 Wallin of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern 

 Forest Experiment Station, Princeton, W. Va. 



PREFINISHED HARDWOOD PLYWOOD 



Prefinished panelling is the major component of the hardwood plywood 

 market. In 1972, 4.5 billion sq ft of prefinished hardwood plywood were 

 shipped from domestic plants; almost 60 percent of this prefinished material was 

 imported, however, and only about one-fourth of all prefinished hardwood 

 plywood was produced in the same establishment that did the prefinishing 

 (Quinney and Micklewright'')- Prefinished hardwood plywood includes panels 

 that are face finished on one or both surfaces by sanding (including scoring or 

 grooving) and the addition of fillers, sealers, waxes, oils, stains, varnishes, 

 paints, or enamels; this category also includes panels that have been overlaid 

 with non-wood materials. 



Mobile homes are a major market for prefinished hardwood plywood. In 

 1972, when 615,800 units were manufactured, each contained an average of 

 2,000 sq ft of hardwood wall panelling for a total consumption of 1 .2 billion sq ft 

 (Forest Industries 1974). Interior walls of recreational vehicles are another major 

 market for prefinished plywood. 



C. E. McDonald (1979) of the Hardwood Plywood Manufacturers Associ- 

 ation concluded that the prefinished panelling market may have passed its peak 

 and could enter a decline. Lauan and other tropical hardwoods are no longer 

 inexpensive or readily available. Other pressures come from potential regula- 

 tions limiting permissable combustibility of interior wall finish of mobile 

 homes, and from concern over formaldehyde emissions from urea-formalde- 

 hyde glue bonds. 



VENEER SPECIES CUT IN THE SOUTH 



Bertelson (1974) found that in the seven Mid-South States, sweetgum, oak 

 sp., yellow-poplar, and tupelo sp. accounted for most of the veneer log produc- 

 tion (fig. 22-46), and that Alabama led the Mid-South in production of hard- 

 wood veneer logs with 60.7 million board feet — 37 percent of the 162 million 

 board feet total. Mississippi was next with 31.2 million, followed by Texas, 

 Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Oklahoma. 



In the Southeast, Knight and Nichols (1964) found that North Carolina was 

 the leading producer of hardwood veneer logs, with 140 million board feet — 29 

 percent of the more than 484 million board feet total. Georgia ranked second, 

 with 129 million board feet, followed by Florida, South Carolina, and Virginia. 

 Southern bottomland hardwoods provided the bulk of veneer logs. Sweetgum 

 and tupelo sp. supplied 60 percent of total production; another 20 percent was 



