Flexi Ply & Its Uses
Wood is a wonder material in the interior world. It is widely used for everything from building super-strong structures to creating warm and cosy environments. Its stiff and rigid nature with a beautiful appearance is what makes this universal material so useful and versatile. Today, this wonder material in engineered form has another interesting property too i.e. flexibility – which is pretty much the complete opposite of its stiff nature. Well, wondering how? It has been made possible with the emergence of Flexi Ply – a bendable form of plywood! In this post, let’s take a closer look at what Flexi ply is and what its uses are!
What Is Flexi Ply?
Flexi ply is a form of plywood which is extremely flexible. It doesn’t show any resistance to bending or rolling and can be twisted or curved into any shape without chipping, cracking, or peeling, which is not possible with regular forms of plywood as they tend to break upon bending or twisting. Flexi ply with maximum flexibility can be easily flexed or bent by hand and the bending radius will vary according to the thickness of the sheet. Flexi ply’s unique trait is it lends itself to almost any curved contour without losing out on its strength and stability.
How Does A Flexi-Ply Manage To Be So Flexible?
It is because of its specialised construction.
To understand it better, let’s get a bit technical. In regular plywood, the grains of each layer are pressed in a perpendicular direction in order to promote its rigidity. Whereas in Flexi ply all the grains run in the same direction giving the plywood is the bendy property and unmatched flexibility – all without losing its structural integrity.
What Are Its Advantages Of Flexi-Ply?
- With Flexi ply, the furniture can get a smooth and seamless edge and also a single sheet look and feel.
- It allows one to give shape to new furniture concepts without intensive efforts, thus resulting in a wide range of creations in the furniture world.
- Because of its flexibility and easy working properties, the work of the carpenter gets easy and quick, which is otherwise difficult, and time-consuming. Hence this plywood is very carpenter friendly as well.
- It can stand well against everyday wears and tears and moderate scratches. Hence this form of plywood lasts long and offers a high degree of durability.
- The most interesting thing about flexi ply is it can be waxed, painted, stained, oiled or lacquered to match your décor or simply left untreated to showcase its woody look.
- With good bonding properties, these forms of plywood are easy to bond with other materials.
- It takes no special equipment for bending, fabricating or laminating.
- Once it is glued, veneered or laminated, this form of plywood will remain in its shape without asking for any additional or supplemental support or structure. This, in turn, turns out to be cost-effective and less laborious.
- This plywood is waterproof and termite or borer proof as well. The resistance it exhibits to water makes it the most favoured ply for kitchen, bathroom and laundry room where exposure to water is high.
- Flexi ply can also be treated for antibacterial properties.
- It is also moisture-resistant to a great extent.
- It does not lend itself to corrugation, undulation or thickness variation and therefore it carries with it a good dimensional stability which means your furniture can retain its shape for years.
- Flexi Ply is also a perfect fit for projects that are tight on budget as it avoids the need for additional purchases and extra time spends.
What Are Uses & Applications Flexi-Ply?
Due to its flexibility, it is widely used in the construction of
- House-hold furniture where curved shapes are required. For eg: Rocking chair, curved sofa, round coffee table, etc.
- Interior elements like lamp stands, ornamental and decorative woodwork, etc. where more flexibility is needed to create a more attractive end product.
- Staircases
- Office furniture
- Any commercial furniture
- Rounded or curved columns and arches
- Any complex and difficult structures
As it can be applied easily at the edges, Flexi Ply is best suited for modular kitchen cabinets and wardrobe where those visible edgy joints are always a concern.
Since it does not compromise on its strength, it can also be a go to option for structural and architectural works.
So, in general, flexi ply is ideal for any range of applications that require bends and curves or unusual shapes.
Over To You
We hope this comprehensive guide has helped you understand about Flexi Ply and its uses.
Now, tell us what furniture or architectural elements you would like to create with flexi ply. And of course, if you have any questions, please feel free to drop us a mail as well. We’d love to answer them for you!
