The issue of palm core plywood was described as a mine “waiting to be stepped on” during a packed debate for plywood traders in London.
Representatives from most of the major importers attended the Plywood Club of London event, where the potential of future prosecutions arising from the sale of the product for structural end uses was also mooted.
MLM marketing executive Stephen Cope said the problem of little knowledge about the product, combined with a “dishonest” section of the trade, raised the spectre of serious problems.
“This is a mine waiting to be stepped on and we will all pay the price if we do not learn our lesson,” he said.
Trader John Wright said he was worried about palm’s strength characteristics and warned that a performance failure in palm-cored plywood could destroy the public’s faith in plywood generally.
The Malaysian Timber Council’s London office director Sheam Satkuru-Granzella said the majority of problems relating to mis-selling the product rested with UK importers. She raised the possibility of prosecutions and asked traders to name companies selling it for structural use.
“The key issue is getting the product tested,” she said.
Nick Boulton, Timber Trade Federation head of technical and trade policy, said palm-core plywood should be clearly marked as such, while importers should ask manufacturers to provide product test information.
“You have to have some evidence to back up its properties,” he said.
“The bottom line is buyer beware,” said Mike Cater, of UCM Timber (Specialties) Ltd. “We have so many people buying plywood, but so few understanding what they’re buying.”
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