Another possible use for plywood trimmings is the gluing of such trimmings 
to-.ether flatwise so that the saved surfaces are exposed and furnish a sur- 
face that may be well-adapted for a use such as flooring. One v est Coast 
plant is exploring the possibility of using high- frequency equipment in a 
machine designed for continuous production of flooring frcm plywood trim- 
mings. The trimmings are to be set on edge, one behind the other, and fed 
through the gluing machine continuously to cure the resin glue. 
Panels rejected because of pressing difficulties or other serious defects 
are often sold for uses whose requirements are less exacting, sucn as crat- 
ing. Reject .jortions of cut-back panels can be made to serve a similar use. 
5, nail segments of panels remaining after cutting out circles or irregular 
snapes find their most acceptable outlet among manufacturers of novelties, 
toys, and small articles. They can also be glued together to furnish blocks 
for turning into pulleys or other articles. 
Limitations on the Use of Vaste 
Once the decision has been made to undertake a program of waste reduction, 
elimination, and utilization in a plant, the next consideration is the 
economic factor. In many cases waste wood is used as fuel, and as such it 
has a real economic value in the plant. The return to be obtained from 
diverting waste wood to other uses must, therefore, be sufficient to cover 
at least the added cost of its rehandling and tne cost of fuel tnat must be 
bought to replace it. 
The various examples cited show what can be done to reduce or utilize wood 
waste. Certain limitations should, however, be pointed out. Veneer cores 
represent the least problem. They are easy to handle in the form of cord- 
wood, and handling and shipping them to considerable distances, as is now 
done with pulpwood, is justified. 
Veneer scraps, however, are not easy to handle. The majority of all waste 
veneer is green, so that a large part of its weight is water, and it is 
generally not in standard shapes and sizes that lend themselves to stacking 
and handling. Because of its high moisture content, it is subject to rapid 
deterioration because of stain and mold. The most practical place for Hand- 
ling it is in the parent olant , or perhaps at an adjoining plant so located 
that mechanical conveying is possible. 
Plywood scraps may be of various shapes and sizes, or they may be somewhat 
uniform in pattern and size. In the first case, they can re used economically 
only by the operator who can afford tc spend time in sorting, handling, and 
devising uses for small pieces. In the second case, the scraps can be 
bundled, shipped some distance, and handled on a production basis provided a 
customer is found who has a quantity use for the particular shapes and sizes 
Report No. R1566-4 -8- 
