GREENSBORO, N.C. – Columbia Forest Products has announced it has acquired a hardwood veneer processing operation from 3A Composites in Ecuador.
 
The purchase is tied to a long-term sourcing agreement for FSC-Certified wood from fast-growth hardwood plantations in the region that will be used to make Columbia’s MPX hardwood plywood panels, featuring PureBond formaldehyde-free technology.
 
MPX panels feature smooth cross-bands of hardwood veneer that have been peeled with Meinan lathe technology, which suppress the thickness variation and core telegraphing that’s common with core veneer made of domestic fir and pine.
 
Columbia Forest Product’s new sourcing arrangement involves the acquisition of a veneer processing facility in Ecuador and an agreement with 3A Composites, which will supply the mill with FSC-Certified wood.

The plantation-grown hardwood core veneer produced at the facility has been tested for over two years at various Columbia Forest Products mills, and has been incorporated into thousands of panels of PureBond hardwood plywood in the marketplace today.
 
According to Steve Pung, Columbia’s vice president for technology, this core veneer is essentially indistinguishable from conventionally-sourced hardwood core material from North America. When pressed into a panel, it features the same fabrication qualities as domestic wood, including the smooth-finishing characteristics our MPX panels are known for.
  
As an ongoing aspect of this transaction, Columbia will continue to increase its presence in high-yield/ fast-growing plantation forests. See  http://www.cfpwood.com.