Weyerhaeuser to export OSB to Japan

Weyerhaeuser will soon produce oriented strand board (OSB) for export to Japan, the company has announced. The OSB panels are used in both residential and commercial construction in Japan, as wall and roof sheathing and as structural flooring panels. 

The Weyerhaeuser OSB mill in Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan, Canada will produce the material under a JAS certification received from the APA in February. The mill will use a proprietary formulation specifically engineered to meet JAS strength and stiffness criteria, as well as the stringent F4 requirements for formaldehyde emission levels. Production to this standard will begin in April with the first material arriving in Japan in May. 

"We are very excited to be entering the Japan market," said Chad Kelly, Hudson Bay mill manager. "This is a great fit for us in terms of our wood supply and our production strengths. We have a nine-foot-wide press so we can produce three-foot-wide material very efficiently."

The Hudson Bay mill will produce JAS-certified panels in standard sizes-such as 910mm x1820mm (approximately three feet by six feet) and 910mm x2730mm (three feet by  nine feet) to align with Japanese building practices, as well as custom sizes. Thicknesses from 9.0mm to 28mm will meet the appropriate JAS classifications. 

With over 50 years of experience in the Japanese housing market, Weyerhaeuser has representatives for engineered wood products, lumber, and pulp in the Weyerhaeuser Tokyo office.