History of Plywood

Plywood is one of the most commonly used materials in woodworking today, and no wonder: not only is it strong, resistant to expansion and shrinkage, and extremely flexible, it is also inexpensive.
Plywood, in various forms, has been in use since the ancient Egyptians; however, its modern form was invented in the mid1800s.

History

The ancient Egyptians were the first people known to make use of plywood. Egypt lacks fine wood, and around 3500 BCE, the Egyptians began conserving the wood they did have by gluing thin sheets of high quality wood over lower quality, more readily available wood.
The ancient Chinese used a similar technique in furniture making, and the British and French of the 1600s and 1700s are known to have experimented with different types of plywood.

Significance

Initially, plywood was made from decorative hardwoods used primarily for furniture. In the mid 1800s, the Swedish architect Immanuel Nobel invented the rotary lathe, a lathe that uses an extremely sharp blade to cut a continuous roll of softwood logs. From the time of the invention of the rotary lathe, plywood made from softwoods, used primarily for construction purposes, has been the number one type of plywood produced.

Effects

The production of plywood became a major industry in the early 1900s when the wooden box factory, the Portland Manufacturing Company, was asked to contribute an exhibit to the 1905 World's Fair to be held in Portland. One of the owners of the company, Gustav Carlson decided to create a laminated wood panel from softwoods native to the Pacific Northwest as a display. The panels, called 3-ply veneer work, were so popular with door and cabinet manufacturers, the Portland Manufacturing Company was mass-producing them at an impressive rate by 1907.

Types

Today, plywood is manufactured by gluing plies or wood veneers (thin sheets of wood, normally softwood) together with the grain of the respective plies at right angles to one another. The plies are then bonded together by applying heat, pressure, and strong adhesives.

Features

Using plywood for construction or building purposes has many advantages. Plywood is not only extremely strong, it resists shrinking or warping. Plywood does not split, is inexpensive, and, unlike solid wood, can be manufactured in large sheets.

Resources

• This HPVA site provides historical and practical information about plywood