12mm Premier/WISA Spruce Structural Ply (EN314-2 Class 3, EN636-2, CE2+) (PEFC Certified), 2440 x 1220mm

Premier Quality Spruce Ply

Finnish quality Spruce Ply is graded for strength rather than for appearance. For many construction applications a ply is required that is structurally graded, will deal with variations in moisture and also cuts into smaller sections. At Southern Timber we purchase this quality Spruce Ply which is manufactured in Finland using high-quality Nordic wood as raw material.

These spruce plys are bonded with weather resistant glue according to EN 314-2/class 2. It is important to remember that the panels can have dimensional changes due to changes in the air humidity. Consequently the manufacturer recommends leaving 1mm per metre expansion gaps between panels in the installation.

Premier spruce ply is normally stocked in the following thicknesses:

•      9mm thick, sheet size 2440mm x 1220mm (8′ x 4′)
•     12mm thick, sheet size 2440mm x 1220mm (8′ x 4′)
•     18mm thick, sheet size 2440mm x 1220mm (8′ x 4′)
•     25mm thick, sheet size 2440mm x 1220mm (8′ x 4′)

Whole packs of other sizes and thicknesses can be obtained to special order, depending on ply thickness you will be looking at a minimum quantity of 50 sheets.

Ply Quality and Grading

The Premier spruce plywood products are CE-marked and classified as structural panels, graded CE2+. Grade markings are printed on the ply packaging and/or on the other side of a panel. External plywood quality control is conducted according to standard EN 13986 and its CE-marking rules in cooperation with VTT, which is the Notified Body for the CE-marking system. Our Spruce plywood meets the requirements of the plywood specification standard EN 636.

Surface veneers are graded as follows:

II Sound surface, might be repaired with filler. Unrepaired defects with a diameter of max. 5 mm are permitted.
III+ Open defects repaired with filler
III Standard quality, with open defects such as knotholes and veneer checks

Finishing the Ply

Firstly, painting visible parts is mostly recommended, because paint makes the wood perform better. A single topcoat is adequate over the primer, but a second topcoat will extend the life of the panel. If a good visual and durable surface is required then apply two topcoats.

For a transparent finish the plywood surface has to be treated with a colourless acrylic primer and the final finishing needs to be done twice with tinted transparent paint.

Opaque finishes require the plywood must be primed with an acrylic or oil-base primer. For primers, use acrylic latex or alkyd oil and follow the recommendations of paint manufacturers. Acrylic paints and alkyd paints intended for outside use are recommended as topcoats. Finally, always check paint, primer and plywood suitability with the paint manufacturer.

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