Lipping and Veneering a Flat Panel
Scroll down to discover the process of finishing a flat panel for use in a bespoke piece of furniture.
Stage One
An mdf or plywood blank is pre-lipped with solid wood strips and calibrated to a uniform thickness ready for veneering.
Stage Two
Leaves of veneer are selected and cut to width on the guillotine, prior to being joined with glue thread by the veneer splicing machine.
Stage Three
A resin adhesive is evenly applied to each side of the panel, which is hot-pressed, curing the glue in under 5 minutes.
Stage Four
The pressed panel is allowed to cool, and veneer edges are trimmed off, producing an accurately sized component for integration into a piece of furniture.
Glossary
MDF: Medium Density Fibreboard is a versatile material used in flat and curved panel work, as a stable core or substrate for veneering and paint finishes.
Hot Pressing: Upper and lower ʻplattensʼ of a veneer press are heated to 80C and pressed together hydraulically, sandwiching face veneers onto a pre-glued substrate, forming a high strength bond and balanced panel.
Pre-Lipping: 5mm thick lengths of wood selected to match the face veneer which are applied to the panel edges prior to the veneering process.
Veneer: 0.6-3mm thick ʻslicesʼ of wood used to face flat and curved panels where consistency in grain pattern, colour and most importantly stability are required.
