Smoothing out knots in wood inspection

Wood production is a labour-intensive, multi-step process, where the product is measured and inspected several times during the production cycle. The production of plywood is just one branch of the wood industry, where the wood starts as a raw log and ends as a finished plywood panel.

When the trees are harvested, the raw stems are cut into segments, approximately 100 inches in length, which will be peeled by a lathe to produce long veneer ribbons. The peeling process is simpler when the wood is conditioned, so the segments are first placed in a pond or steam chamber to increase the moisture content.

The veneer ribbon is then inspected for defects, clipped into 4' x 8' sheets, and then passed through a dryer. After the drying stage, the sheets are inspected again and sorted according to their grades.

Several sheets, usually between 3 and 7, are then inserted into a press, layered together and combined with glue, pressure, and steam heat to make a plywood panel.