1 – Tree selection from African forests and felling with sustainable resource management.

2 – Peeling the wood blocks in order to obtain 6/10 millimetre thick veneers, then classification by quality standard.

These initial operations are carried out immediately in the country of origin, the dried sheets are then sent to Italy to finish processing.

3 – The veneers cut up into sheets are plunged into a bath to obtain a clear, uniform colour.

4 – The same sheets are then immersed in a second bath to obtain the desired colour; this treatment also allows the pigments to be fixed for optimal UV resistance. A fungicide treatment completes this stage of the process.

5 – After heat treatment, the sheets are glued and stacked according to a finish texture corresponding to the chosen pattern.

6 – Moulded under pressure the shape of this produces the structure of the finish. A flat die allows a “grain” finish to be produced, undulating dies allow a “slab” effect.

7 – An oblique slicing of the block produced is then carried out. The more or less open angle of the slice allows the production of a grain that is more or less fine. The result is a sheet of veneer that is stained in bulk with the chosen finish and is very resistant to impact thanks to the glue and compaction.

8 – The resistance to impact, as well as the appearance, can be appreciably improved by taking the sheets sliced in this way and reconsituting another block, which will then be resliced by starting operation 5 again (this is the double-slicing technique).

The veneer used by Beneteau benefits from this treatment

9 – Unitary quality control of each sheet is then carried out (stain, geometry, grain, thickness etc)

10 – The sheets of veneer are then despatched to the panel manufacturers for re-veneering onto the plywood backing developed for the marine environment (panel size 3.10m x 1.53m).

These very high quality panels are used for top of the range furnishings