Success factors of wood veneer as an overlay material for panel-based furniture manufacturing in Malaysia

Abstract

In the first part of this study, the Kelly repertory grid technique was used to determine the most preferred attributes of overlay materials used in wood-based panel furniture in Malaysia. This was followed by a questionnaire survey of 20 large wood-based panel furniture manufacturers to establish the trends in the use of overlay materials and the success factors of their utilization. The results showed that natural wood veneer was the most preferred overlay material, and the common local veneer species used included kembang semangkok, rubberwood, and bintangor. Meanwhile, the predominant imported veneer species were white oak, white ash, and walnut. The factor analysis showed that the properties of the overlay materials and market preferences were the driving factors for their successful utilization. The results clearly showed that natural wood veneer was preferred due to its wood-like, natural, and living attributes, and customers were prepared to pay a price premium for furniture with wood veneers compared to the other types of overlay materials.