1. Manufactured Boards Resistant Materials
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2. 2440 x 1220 mm and from 3mm to 25mm thick
CHIPBOARD - This is made up of small chips of wood bonded together with resin and formed into sheets by compression. It is not as strong as plywood and block board but it is not expensive. Chipboard is often covered with a plastic laminate or wood veneer and used in furniture.
BLOCKBOARD - Used as a building material and for furniture manufacture including fitted kitchens / bedrooms.
HARDBOARD - This is made from wood fibres that have been pulped. The pulp is put under pressure until the fibres bond to produce a tough board that is smooth on one side and rough on the other. It is not as strong as the other boards
Screws and nails may be used to attach blockboard and laminboard but you have to ensure that you make contact with the strips of softwood and not the gaps between the softwood strips. The edges of both blockboard and laminboard are unattractive and cannot be cleaned up well. Place softwood strips, veneers or fill and paint the edges. Blockboard and laminboard may be bought with a variety of applied finishes such as wood veneers and plastic laminate surfaces. If both sides are treated in the same way blockboard and laminboard have a good resistance to warping.
MEDIUM DENSITY FIBRE BOARD (MDF) - A quality board, relatively cheap. This board is composed of fine wood dust and resin pressed into a board. This material can be worked, shaped and machined easily. Paint can be applied to it without the need for an undercoat or primer. Used in the building and furniture trades.
PLYWOOD - This is made from veneers (plies) of timber with each grain layer being at right angles to each other and bonded together by resin and pressure. A number of grades are available, designed to suit a variety of situations. 1. Marine plywood that is moisture resistant. 2. Weather and boil proof plywood. 3. Boil resistant plywood. 4. Interior plywood.
Sizes: -Blockboard is sold in sheets of 2440 x 1220mm and are normally 30mm thick.
Often used for the back of cupboards and door panels.
What does MDF stand for?
2440 x 1220 mm and from 3mm to 25mm thick
What size do manmade boards come in?
Medium Density Fibreboard

3. The grain on each layer is at 90˚ to the previous layer
Smooth, even surface. Easily machined and painted or stained. Also available in water and fire resistant forms. A manufactured board.
Used mainly for furniture and interior panelling due to its easy machining qualities. Often veneered or painted.
Used for strong structural panelling board used in building construction. Furniture making. Some grades used for boat building and exterior work.
The grain on each layer is at 90˚ to the previous layer
Used for kitchen and bedroom furniture usually veneered or covered with a plastic laminated. Shelving and general DIY work.
Used where heavier structures are needed. Common for shelving and worktops.
Used for furniture backs, covering curved structures, door panels.
Blockboard is made up of a core of softwood strips. These strips may be up to about 25mm wide. The strips are placed edge to edge and sandwiched between veneers of hardwood. The sandwich is then glued under high pressure.
The edge of blockboard is unattractive and will need to be refinished by edging with either hardwood or softwood timber edging.
If painted, the edges will need to be filled and sanded down before painting.

4. Laser MDF is low level formaldehyde which results in perfect cutting and engraving that you can't get from standard MDF.
Available in 2, 3 & 6mm thicknesses
Advantages of Laser MDF
Cuts well. The laser gives a neat, clean edge to it. This allows parts to be made to fit accurately together for easy assembly. Even working automata with levers and gearwheels can be made from it.
Paints well. Most paints work with it, from children's paints to household emulsion and car sprays. Just be careful with water-based paint.
Glues well. Woodworking PVA glue or, for small pieces, Superglue.
Cheap!
Disadvantages
Laser MDF doesn't cope well with water. It's certainly not an outdoor material.
There are moisture resistant grades of MDF that can be suitable for indoor use such as bathrooms. There's also a very waterproof outdoor grade that is useful for signs, but this is only in 9mm and is rather expensive.
Mechanical stiffness. MDF is effectively lots of thin sheets, bonded together. It's strong for loads edgewise, but will bend over time if used as shelving. With the laser, we can construct girder forms that are much stiffer.

5. Ecosheet has all the recognised quality standards and, since its inception, has won and been nominated for many awards in environmental and business excellence.
Ecosheet has been officially included in the library of advanced, innovative and sustainable materials created by the global materials consultancy, Material Connexion.
Ecosheet engineered panels are made from 100% recycled plastics. The natural characteristics of polymer are utilised to manufacture hard-wearing, smooth-faced, versatile boards suitable for a variety of applications in construction, agriculture and beyond. Ecosheet is engineered to perform as an alternative to imported plywood, or to virgin plastic panels, yet in turn are fully recyclable at end-of-life.
Ecosheet is completely weather proof making it the ideal material for site hoardings and temporary advertising. Due to the versatile nature of the moulding process, we also have the capabilities to tint boards or produce white boards ready for printing with corporate colours or graphics. Ecosheet has been used on numerous projects in the UK and is also used in the award winning "Green Hoard" System offered by Fast Fence Limited.
Ecosheet is manufactured using cutting-edge new technology. This process enables us to produce Ecosheet from low-grade, mixed, waste-plastics - materials which are notoriously hard to recycle and therefore invariably end up being land-filled or incinerated. The process also allows Ecosheet panels to be recycled at end-of-life, thereby offering a complete closed-loop solution for all customers.

6. Chipboard
MDF
What does MDF stand for?
Size:
Thicknesses available in:

7. Plywood Size: Thicknesses available in: Size:

8. Laser MDF Laser Plywood Laser grade MDF is recyclable
Laser grade MDF has been sourced from sustainable resources and is covered by the Forestry Stewardship Council Scheme
Size:
Thicknesses available in:

9. Blockboard
Description
Uses
Advantages
Disadvantages