Plywood (Film-Faced, Structural, Commercial & Marine)
Film-faced shuttering, structural, commercial and marine plywood by bond class and emissions class
Plywood is bought on the panel specification the buyer's use demands. Standard sheet sizes are 1220 x 2440 mm and 1250 x 2500 mm, with 18 mm the common formwork thickness, and thickness tolerances are set by EN 315. Bond quality is the first question: EN 314-2 bond class 1 is for dry interior use, class 2 for covered exterior use and class 3 for exterior use, and EN 636 matches them to use classes EN 636-1 (dry), 636-2 (humid) and 636-3 (exterior), with structural plywood CE or UKCA marked under EN 13986. Face and back grades follow EN 635 (for birch, B, BB, CP and C; for many Asian mills a BB/CC description), and film-faced panels are specified by film weight and colour, edge sealing and glue (WBP phenolic for repeated pours). Formaldehyde emission is the second question: E1 under EN 13986 and EN 717-1 for Europe, CARB ATCM Phase 2 and US TSCA Title VI for hardwood plywood sold in the USA, and E0 or lower classes where the buyer's market sets them. Marine plywood is ordered to BS 1088. UN Comtrade 2024 export declarations under HS 4412 total USD 13.65 billion and 14.63 million MT; China declared USD 5.27 billion and 6.77 million MT, including 9.38 million m³ of plywood faced with non-coniferous temperate species (HS 4412.33) at an average USD 396/m³; Indonesia declared 1.87 million m³ of tropical-faced plywood (HS 4412.31) at USD 603/m³ and Malaysia 0.93 million m³ at USD 471/m³; Brazil declared USD 793 million of coniferous (pine) plywood (HS 4412.39); and Finland and Latvia declared birch-type plywood at USD 1,369/m³ and USD 1,167/m³.
The buyers are formwork and concrete contractors who cycle film-faced panels through slab and wall pours, builders' merchants and panel distributors, furniture and kitchen cabinet plants, packaging and crate makers, truck-body and container-floor builders, and boat builders for marine grades. CBIL is a commodity brokerage company and brokers plywood between mills and their export traders on one side and importers and distributors on the other, against the buyer's size, thickness, bond class, face grade and emissions class, with third-party inspection of glue bond and thickness at loading where the buyer asks for it. Plywood moves in strapped crates on pallets with corner protection, loaded into 40-ft containers, on FOB, CFR and CIF terms. Legality is a condition of shipment: FSC or PEFC chain-of-custody certificates where the buyer requires them; the EU Deforestation Regulation data, including geolocation of the veneer's harvest plots, for EU destinations; UK Timber Regulation due diligence for Great Britain; a Lacey Act declaration naming each species in the panel for the USA; a FLEGT licence on Indonesian plywood into the EU; and a phytosanitary certificate or ISPM-15 marked packaging where required. Species listed under CITES and excluded origins are never offered. Plywood carries anti-dumping and countervailing duties in several markets, including EU duties on Chinese hardwood plywood and US duties on hardwood and decorative plywood from several Asian origins, and checking the duty on the origin and product is the buyer's step before contract.
Excluded origins are not offered, including product re-exported, blended or re-processed through a third country. Every lot moves with a certificate of origin naming the producing plant, mine or grower country, and nothing is quoted before the seller and loading point are known.
Indicative reference
$350-1,400 USD / m³
as at September 2026
Reference level only — not an offer, and reviewed quarterly. Levels shown are as at September 2026. Firm pricing is quoted per RFQ, subject to volume, terms and inspection.
Typical Specification
Specifications are indicative and adjusted to the agreed contract and destination requirements. Final spec confirmed on COA / SGS.
Available Grades
Applications
- Concrete formwork and shuttering
- Structural sheathing, roofing and flooring
- Furniture and kitchen cabinets
- Packaging, crates and truck bodies
- Boat building and marine interiors
Category
Industrial Minerals & Construction
Incoterms
FOB · CFR · CIF
Pricing basis
USD / m³
Inspection
SGS / Intertek at load port
Plywood (Film-Faced, Structural, Commercial & Marine) — buyer questions
What bond class do I need for formwork?
Formwork is wet, reused and exposed, so it wants an exterior bond: EN 314-2 bond class 3 with a phenolic (WBP) glue line, which corresponds to use class EN 636-3. Interior-bond panels with a film on the face will delaminate at the edges after a few pours. Ask for the mill's bond test report and, on a first order, a boil test on panels drawn from the loaded container.
What is the difference between E0, E1 and CARB Phase 2?
They are formaldehyde emission classes from different markets. E1 is the European class under EN 13986, tested by the chamber method of EN 717-1. CARB ATCM Phase 2, and the matching US federal TSCA Title VI rule, sets limits for hardwood plywood sold in the USA and requires third-party certification and panel labelling. E0 is used in several Asian standards for a lower emission than E1, and its test and limit depend on the standard named. Order the class your destination market enforces and ask for the certificate from the certifying body, not a mill declaration.
Are there anti-dumping duties on plywood?
Yes, in several markets. The EU applies anti-dumping duties to hardwood plywood from China, and the USA has anti-dumping and countervailing duty cases on hardwood and decorative plywood from several Asian origins. Duties depend on the origin, the product scope and sometimes the named exporter, and a panel described one way can be classified another at customs. Check the duty with your customs broker on the exact origin and specification before contract; that check is the buyer's.
What legality documents come with plywood?
Every species in the panel matters, not just the face. For the USA, the Lacey Act declaration names the genus, species and country of harvest of each. For the EU, the importer needs EU Deforestation Regulation data including geolocation, and Indonesian plywood carries a FLEGT licence. For Great Britain, UK Timber Regulation due diligence applies. FSC or PEFC chain-of-custody certificates are supplied where the buyer asks for them. These are conditions of shipment on every lot CBIL brokers.
Ready to source Plywood?
Send your quantity, specification, preferred Incoterms and destination port. We'll verify supply and respond with a workable offer — usually within one business day.
Have Plywood to sell? Submit an offer — we'll match it against live buyer demand.
More in Sawn Timber & Plywood