Expert opinion plywood

Building codes require that certain structures shall be made with fire-retardant or flame resistant plywood. The use of this material in walls and partitions prevents the spread of fire from one part of building to the next. Fire-retardant plywood successfully completes vertical through-roof firewalls, simplifying roofs construction and reducing building and reroofing costs.

Fire-Retardant (FR) plywood stands out from standard Exterior (WBP) and Interior (MR) plywood.

The difference becomes evident during the production process, when peeled veneer for FR plywood undergoes special treatment with fire retardants. Thus, the final product acquires its fire-resistant properties.

To obtain its fire-resistant properties, fire-retardant plywood is treated with special flame retardant during the production process.

FR grade plywood is widely used to reduce the risk of fire in public places such as theatres, cinemas, offices, kitchens of restaurants as well as for cladding in residential buildings. Another major application of fireproof plywood is rolling stock construction. Fire rated plywood is also used for furniture production. The structures made of fire-retardant plywood are more expensive but the choice is always evident for those for whom safety is a major concern.

Birch plywood is one of the materials used for the production of parquet and engineering boards. It is one of the most demanding areas of plywood application. Although all the companies have their individual requirements, there are some issues that are equally considered to be very important by all of them. Birch plywood for parquet shall have optimal moisture content and high load bearing capacity.

Exterior birch plywood overlaid with colored phenolic films is light-weight material with highly wear-resistant surface, which is unaffected by detergents and many other common chemical substances. It can be easily processed and combined with other materials. Colored film faced plywood can be used in demanding outdoor conditions as it withstands humidity and temperature drops. Unlike standard laminated plywood, it is UV resistant and can be exposed to sunlight for a continuous period of time.

Plyterra Antislip is birch plywood overlaid with durable phenolic film of high visual quality. Highly wear-resistant slip-proof plywood is an ideal solution for flooring. Thanks to such properties as resistance to slipperiness, rolling wear and abrasion, non-slip plywood for transportation industry is used for flooring of trailers, trucks, buses, vans and trains. Anti-slip plywood for construction is used for flooring of warehouses, loading platforms, pedestrian bridges, playgrounds and scaffolding. One of the latest applications for which anti-slip plywood manufacturers offer their product is decking of ships and flooring of factories. 

Nowadays it is very important that manufacturing companies implement their activities in an environmentally reasonable way. While Finnish birch plywood is mostly certified by PEFС, fireproof plywood produced from birch originating from Russia is FSC certified. Thus forestry operations and sustainability of the supply chain are ensured.

Plyterra Group produces a wide range of plywood for the transport industry, including shipbuilding, commercial vehicles and rolling stock production. Light and strong fire-retardant plywood from manufacturer Plyterra meets the requirement R10 of European standard EN 45545-2. Complying with HL3, the FR plywood is approved for application in all kinds of wagons, including passenger coaches.

For many years plywood has been a leader among the materials for decking of freight trailers. A series of researches have proved that plywood panels are the most sustainable material for this application. Alongside with good performance properties, anti-slip plywood is eco-friendly, recyclable and renewable material.

Fire-retardant plywood takes a special place in the construction code of the USA. First of all, the material is used for roof decking in multiple-dwelling structures. It is adjacent to the firewall, that extends from the foundation up to the roof, dividing building sections. The rules of modern construction require the use of fire rated plywood on both sides of the firewall as a part of roof sheathing. The remaining roof decking is not necessary shall be fireproof, that is why other materials of more competitive price are used for the rest of the structure, e.g. OSB. In some cases, to improve the fire safety of a building, two layers of flame retardant plywood for roof sheathing are used next to the firewall. How does fire-retardant plywood work?