PLYWOOD: THE MIRACLE IN WOOD

[Music] [Applause] [Music] in the great Douglas fur region snowcap PE like mon reneer Tower above a piik setting of lakes fors and rushing streams this is the Evergreen Country of Washington Oregon and Northern California lying between the Coastal Range and the Pacific Ocean here Forest Supply the oldest and largest industry of the area the Gathering and processing of the Timber crop the Douglas fur Chief species of the region is distinguished by its tremendous size strength and durability these are the fallers first they make the undercut skill in this operation directs the fall with maximum protection to other [Music] growth out comes the wedge once the tree is sawed through the forest giant will fall to the ground [Music] opposite the undercut the powerful saw cuts through the trunk in less than 10 minutes this 200t Douglas fur which weighs over 200 tons will soon have been conquered by the men of the forest as the mammoth Tree starts to Creek the fallers sink out their warning Timber and hurry to safety [Music] for the most part more efficient and faster Power Machinery has replaced hand methods in the woods however hand falling is still used on certain types of terrain the fallers take their places on opposite sides of the tree their sharp ax blades biped into the wood recalling all the color of Years Gone by [Music] the back cut complete the tree starts to topple over the notch which the woodsmen have cut so accurately here again is the spectacle of a 200 ton Forest Giant dropping to the ground after the limbs are loed off the bucking crew cuts the tree into the correct lengths the choker men then wrap a cable around around the log and Powerful tractors equipped with a traveling Arch drag them to a central loading area modern logging is a combination of sturdy men and Mighty Machines moving tons of raw wood over rugged [Music] Countryside the Big Sticks begin their journey to Mills where they'll be made into fur plywood Assuming New Dimensions and new [Music] properties the mammoth logs are piled onto huge specially built logging trucks by these shovel loaders since the center of the logging operation is usually some distance from a railroad or Waterway these logging trucks carry their cargo down steep grades and over some mighty Rough [Music] Country the first leg of the journey is usually over private logging roads which provide access to remote logging areas one of the most exciting operations in the woods is the topping of a spar tree the agile High climber makes his way up the tree with help of Steel Spurs and a rope looped around the tree trunk he chops off limbs as he climbs if the axe should hit his climbing rope a steel cord in the Rope would prevent him from falling at the point where the highest guy wires will be rigged he notches one side then saws through the tree off comes the top the slow motion camera follows It To The [Music] Ground as the top falls the trunk whips the climber about lashing his tools out dangerously skill and strong muscles help the expert Woodsman right off the storm his tricky job finished the high climber loses no time in returning to the ground The Spar tree is then rigged with a system of guy wires engineered to assure support under the strain of tremendous [Music] loads powered by Donkey engines cables reach out in all directions to gather in newly cut timber from All Points [Music] pivoted Against The Spar tree is a heel boom used in loading the logs onto the logging trucks junying these KingSize logs is certainly no job for a beginner before we leave the woods let's have a look at one more big stick this single log will provide plywood for use in many many [Music] [Music] homes at the reload station overhead slings quickly transfer the logs from trucks two special Railroad Flat [Music] cars the log trains lose no time in hauling the raw material to mil ponds logs will vary in size and quality so the industry must be Geared for maximum [Music] utilization along the way we see evidence of Good Forest management assuring timber for the future reforestation and protection against fire insects and disease with a mighty splash the huge logs roll from the railroad cars into the log Pond which provides storage and easy movement of the heavy bulky raw material [Music] meet the water Cowboys better known as boom men whose job it is to sort and herd the floating logs first stop at the plywood Mill is the dragsaw where the logs are cut into desired lengths it's here that they get a new name they become peeler blocks [Music] the blocks are hoisted into the mill where they'll be transformed into fur [Music] plywood once inside they're lowered into the Barker ready to begin the unique process of changing cylinders of wood into versatile [Music] panels these highspeed blades chew away the bark in many operations bark is now conserved to make important byproducts a blast of water washes away any foreign matter which might later the lath KN the bark removed chunks are released and the huge block drops to the floor a crane then lifts it into the nearby lathe [Music] the heart of plywood manufacturer is the peeling operation where huge 50ton Precision lathes unwind the block Into Thin sheets called [Music] veneer leaving the lathe the veneer is conveyed to storage tables ready for the clipper [Music] the Clipper man is a highly skilled operator who Clips out serious defects and cuts the veneer into the desired widths the machine is push button controlled but the Judgment of the clipperman is still highly [Music] important immediately of the Clipper the first sorting of veneers takes place more exact grading comes later in its natural state wood contains considerable water most of which must be removed and a low uniform moisture content established this is achieved in huge dryers through which the green sheets slowly move at several levels out of the dryer the lir drops onto a conveyor where it's very carefully graded and sorted there's a correct place in the finished product for every grade of vire an important part of plywood manufacturer is the repair of minor defects and the utilization of narrow widths of theer a specially developed machine cuts off the imperfections repair patches selected to maintain the natural grain of the wood are coated on the edges with waterproof adhesive these patches are placed in the veneer openings and heat welded into place narrow strips of veneer which developed in the manufacturing process are EDG glued placed in contact and the adhesive set the vaner sheet is then cut to desired [Music] widths at the glue spreader the actual sandwich assembly of plywood begins plywood is built up of odd numbers of PES or layers of veneer bonded together the grain of each ply runs at right angles to the adjacent ply this construction accounts for plywood's remarkable strength and resistance to splitting in both directions from the glue spreader the assembly goes into a huge hydraulic press this is a cold press in which case the adhesive cures at room temperature it use is limited to Interior type plywood [Music] Only The Versatile hot press also cures interior glues but is essential to exterior type which must have a combination of high heat and pressure to permanently set the completely waterproof and weatherproof Bond one or two panels depending upon thickness is slipped onto each tray of the automatic press [Music] loader loaded the entire rack of panels slips into the accordion-like [Music] press now comes the big squeeze as powerful cylinders apply hydraulic pressure through Steam heated [Music] plates Precision Instruments control the whole [Music] operation the curing cycle completed the panels are automatically unloaded as the next batch is fed in from the other [Music] side here is the ultimate in plywood a strong waterproof product made to exact scientific standards ready for exposure to all the elements as soon as it leaves the hot press this is truly the modern miracle in Wood real wood with New Dimensions new size and New Uses panels bonded together with modern adhesives unaffected by weather or water adhesives actually stronger than the wood itself [Music] now the panels are trimmed to proper Dimensions with a minimum of [Music] waste as the last step the fur plywood panels are sanded smooth to precise thickness at the same time they are carefully inspected and stamped for customer identification ply panel is just one grade of interior type plywood these registered trademarks identify panels made in compliance with rigid industry standards this industry trademark EXT dfpa granted on the panel Edge positively identifies exterior type fur plywood bonded with 100% waterproof glue ply form is a special grade designed for concrete forms where repeated uses and super smooth concrete are outstanding advantages it's Mill oiled to facilitate stripping the forms from the concrete and the edges are sealed for added protection as well as easy identification today new fur plywood products are used in construction and industry these are extra smooth hard- surfaced overlaid panels designed for numerous rugged industrial applications there are also special decorative surfaces which bring out the true beauty and warmth of Wood standard panels are 8 ft long but these are much longer than that actually length is limited only by shipping facilities and an ever increasing volume of these long panels now goes into boats and others special uses now fur plywood goes everywhere billions of feet each year do more jobs better than ever Douglas fur plywood is America's busiest building material with New Uses constantly being developed supplying the growing needs of a growing Vision it's truly the mical in wood for