Lumber Products
Lumber is a general term, which includes boards, dimension lumber, and
timber. The product is manufactured by sawing logs into rough size lumber
or cants (square timbers), which are edged, re-sawn to final dimension
and cut to length. In smaller sizes, it is commonly referred to as “dimension
lumber” and in larger sizes, as “timbers”. Canadian wood products have
an excellent resource base thanks to over a hundred varieties of tree
species and a cold northern climate that allows for slow growing timber.
Because of this wide selection of species and ideal growing conditions,
Canada produces some of the highest quality lumber products in the world
with small tight knots and fine straight wood grain. There are many lumber
products manufactured from 2 types of wood species: softwood and hardwood.
For more information on Canadian tree species characteristics, please
refer to the following web sites:
Tree species characteristics
Canadian Wood Council
Forestry Innovation
Investment
Softwood
Softwood species are used in both structural and non-structural lumber
products. To simplify the supply and use of structural softwood lumber,
species in major lumber producing areas having similar strength characteristics
are combined (for example, SPF refers to the Spruce-Pine-Fir grouping).
Because non-structural products are graded solely on the basis of appearance
quality, non-structural products are usually sold as individual species
(for example, Eastern White Pine, Western Red Cedar, Douglas fir). Common
species included in the softwood category include: Douglas Fir, Larch,
Pacific Coast Hemlock, Amabilis Fir, Yellow Cedar, White Spruce, Englemann
Spruce, Red Spruce, Black Spruce, Jack Pine, Lodgepole Pine, Balsam Fir,
Alpine Fir, Western Red Cedar, Red Pine, Ponderosa Pine, Western White
Pine, Eastern White Pine, Trembling Aspen, Largetooth Aspen and Balsam
Poplar. The Spruce-Pine-Fir species group makes up by far the largest
proportion of dimension lumber since the species in this group grow throughout
most of Canada. The other major species groups for dimension lumber are
Douglas Fir-Larch (N) and Hem-Fir (N). Northern Species include the other
commercial species for Canadian lumber. For information on specific structural
and non-structural lumber products, please refer to the following web
sites.
SPF/Fir/Cedar COFI, SPF Group, QWEB
Hemlock/Coastal Fir/Red & Yellow Cedar/Sitka Spruce CFLA
Cedar CFLA, WRCEA
Hardwood
Hardwood species are known for their high density and appearance quality
and are most often used in non-structural lumber products. Tree species
within the hardwood category include: Hard Maple, Soft Maple, Yellow Birch,
White Birch, Red Oak, White Oak, White Ash, Beech, Basswood, Cherry, Walnut,
Red Alder and Aspen.
Common uses for hardwood lumber include a variety of specialty applications such as: cabinetry, sporting goods, cadres, caskets, components, dowels, toys, millwork, furniture, moldings, panels, tool handles, flooring, sculptures, venetian blinds, turnings.
More information on Hardwood products can be found under the “Value Added Products” section.
For more information of hardwood lumber products, please refer to one
of the following web sites:
BC Wood, QWEB , CFLA
Panel Products
This section includes structural and non-structural panel boards, ie. softwood plywood, hardwood plywood, oriented strand board (OSB) and other composite panel products.
Canadian wood products have an excellent resource base thanks to over
a hundred varieties of tree species and a cold northern climate that allows
for slow growing timber. Because of this wide selection of species and
ideal growing conditions, Canada produces some of the highest quality
panel products in the world with small tight knots and fine wood grain.
There are many panel products manufactured from 2 types of wood species:
softwoods and hardwoods.
Softwood Plywood
Plywood is a panel product consisting of thin wood veneers (plies)
glued together so that the grain direction of each layer of veneer is
perpendicular to that of the adjacent layers. This cross-lamination provides
excellent two-way strength and stiffness properties, resistance to impact
damage, and dimensional stability when wet. During the manufacture of
Canadian softwood plywood, veneers are united under high temperature and
pressure with a phenol-formaldehyde resin glue that is completely waterproof,
making the plywood suitable for use under conditions of extreme exposure
to moisture.
There are 2 main types of softwood plywood manufactured in Canada: Douglas
Fir Plywood (DFP) and Canadian Softwood Plywood (CSP). Softwood plywood
can also be manufactured from Poplar and/or Aspen (POP). Most of the softwood
plywood produced in Canada is used in structural applications, thanks
to its high strength, light weight, ease of workability and durability,
especially in wet weather conditions.
Common grades of DFP and CSP include: unsanded DFP and CSP which are most
often used in structural roof, wall and floor applications; sanded grades
which are used primarily in Concrete Formwork or non-structural applications;
and Cleaned and Sized grades which are mainly utilized in floor underlayment
or other specialty applications where a smooth and solid surface is required.
Plywood manufactured from POP can also be manufactured in unsanded and
clean and sized grades. For a more in depth description of specific softwood
plywood products, grades and manufacturers, please visit the CANPLY
web site.
Oriented Strand Board (OSB)
Oriented Strand Board (OSB) is an engineered, mat-formed panel
product made of strands, sliced from small diameter, round wood logs (including
Aspen and Poplar) and bonded with an exterior-type binder under heat and
pressure. OSB consists of layered mats, with exterior or surface layers
composed of strands normally aligned in the long panel direction; while
inner-layers consist of cross- or randomly-aligned strands. These large
mats are then subjected to intense heat and pressure to become a "master"
panel and are cut to size. Strand dimensions are predetermined and have
a uniform thickness.
OSB's strength comes mainly from the uninterrupted wood fiber, interweaving of the long strands or wafers, and degree of orientation of strands in the surface layers. Thermosetting resin binders and a small amount of wax are combined with the strands to provide internal strength, rigidity and improved moisture tolerance.
OSB is graded in accordance with performance based standards that evaluate panels installed on framing for their ability to carry loads and to resist deflection under loads and conditions similar to or exceeding those experienced in construction or service. OSB is most often used in construction mainly as roof, wall, floor sheathing, and is accepted for structural purposes in diaphragm and shearwall applications. OSB is also used as the web material for most types of prefabricated wood I-joists and some specialty products are made for siding and for concrete formwork. For more information on OSB products and manufacturers, please visit the SBA web site.