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A BRIEF HISTORY OF TRIBOARD™ Before Triboard™ was conceived in the mid 1980's there were a number of panel products available on the world market. Three in particular were Particleboard, MDF (Medium Density Fibre board) and OSB (Orientated Strandboard). Particleboard originated out of post-war Europe and was used around the world for furniture, bench tops and other similar uses. MDF was first produced in the United States in the mid 1960's and became the material of choice where fine finish is important. OSB was developed in North America and by the 1980's was well established as a structural panel used to replace plywood in wall sheathing and roof sarking applications. At the time of Triboard's inception there was no OSB manufactured in Europe, however the Europeans were very familiar with particleboard. Part of the world wide search for a panel product suitable for panel construction included gathering advice from the German manufacturer G Siempelkamp & Co. They manufactured presses for the panel industry and were therefore very familiar with panel products made around the world. They had also been intimately involved with the development of particleboard. The Siempelkamp's experts directed the search towards OSB as being the type of product which would provide the structural properties required for wood based panel construction. The Kaitaia Mill integrates OSB and MDF technology, started production in 1987. Juken New Zealand purchased the Mill in 1991. Subsequent to 1991, most of the Triboard Mill's production was directed to Japan and targeted by the parent company Wood One, formly known as "Juken Sangyo Ltd" at the home interior market rather than the panel construction market. This still remains the case, except that since mid 1998 there has been a renewed focus on non-Japanese markets with a view to expanding panel constructions end uses in New Zealand and Australia as a long term strategic position for Juken New Zealand Ltd. Juken New Zealand Ltd manufactures four types of reconstituted board products at our Triboard Mill, namely Triboard^TM, Spaceboard^TM, Strandboard^TM, and Strandboard T&G. Juken New Zealand Ltd - Engineered Wood Products Phone: (+64) 9-309-1750 Fax: (+64) 9-309-0326 Site Navigation: Profile - Products - Specials - ISO Certification - Contacts - Top