Production Proces

WOODCUTTING

Cutting and grading at source is essential for making proper use of the wood. The most important aspects to consider are:

• The correct cutting and felling of the trees so that they do not split.
• The correct distribution of the trunks, according to requirements of thickness, sizes and quality.
• The classification of the different logs and their ordered dispatch to make the work of reception and re-grading in the factory easier.
• Taking care of the environment and leaving the poplar groves clean and tidy after felling.

PEELING

Bark-stripping is a process which improves the peeling process by eliminating the bark and all the unwanted elements from the logs.

Peeling is the transformation of the trunk into sheets. In this process you have to consider:

• The choice of the quality of the raw wood, previously graded, that will allow you to obtain the required quality of sheets depending on the production orders.
• Inspection and visual classification by the operator to group the sheets together according to quality.
• The thickness of the sheets which is always checked by measuring one sheet from every packet.

DRYING

The drying process is essential in any wood-related process and especially so with poplar due to its high moisture content.

The sheets are dried in long, rectangular chambers through which the plies are passed on rollers or other means of motion. Inside these areas there are special turbines which produce air currents with the appropriate temperature and humidity levels needed to remove the moisture from the wood.

In this section it is essential to make the right selection of sheets with respect to the established criteria so as to ensure that the plies can be manufactured to the required quality standards in the subsequent processes.

 SHAPING AND PRESSING

In this phase the plies are glued, positioned and hot pressed to make the rough plywood panel (a board in which the dimensions are not the final ones).

To apply the glue to the plies, the sheets which are known as the "sandwich, counter-veneer or glued plies" pass through glue-impregnated rubber rollers so that both surfaces are coated. The composition of the plies is studied for each thickness so as to allow for the compression of the wood in the press.

In the shaping section, special care must be taken in the arrangement and handling of the plies in order to avoid defects in the board.

In the pressing section, the thickness of the board has to be checked so as to prevent problems in the plane, as well as the cleanliness of the plates to avoid splinters or other materials producing marks on the board.

INSPECTION AND PUTTY

In this section defects on the front and back of the plywood boards are corrected and repaired.

There is also an inspection applies the criteria for accepting or rejecting each panel depending on the product line and the standards demanded.
 

SQUARING AND SANDING

The squaring process is for trimming the edges and corners of the board, giving the final dimensions of length and width, leaving the right-angles perfectly squared.

In the sanding process, the board is reduced to its final thickness, while at the same time the surface is polished. It is then ready either for direct use or for subsequent re-veneering (attaching melamine paper to the board).

In this section the sanded board is checked against the acceptance/rejection criteria for faults and type of board. In addition, dimensions such as thickness, length, width, right-angles and evenness of the edges are checked at regular intervals. Other properties such as moisture content are only checked for the type of board that has been established.
 

PACKAGING

Once the stack of boards has come out of the sanding machine they are packed and made ready for transport or dispatch. The type of packaging used depends on the type of product and is determined by the corresponding packaging information sheets.