Slide2:
It starts with the wood, Okoume African Hardwood comes to SM from a plywood plant next door on a transfer conveyor. This wood is naturally moisture resistant, and stable. It is typically used as the interior support wood in plywood.
Slide3:
The Okoume is stored inside before being re-ground and sifted to obtain the “rice-sized” particles ideal for manufacturing our tops.
Slide4:
Once sized, these wooden pellets are dried to remove all moisture and then infused with resins up to 21% of their weight.
Slide5:
The pellets are molded in a press to create a top “blank” These blanks are ready to be fused with the melamine sheets in a “hot” press which is the critical operation!
Slide6:
On the left you see the stacked blanks ready for the hot press, and in the center you see the blanks inserted in the press. On the right are the décor and protective sheets ready to be added in the next operation.
Slide7:
On the left we see the décor sheets being added to the press. In the center we see the finished tops being removed from the press. On the right we see the still plastic tops being placed in a “forming” die which will assure that they remain flat in use.
Slide8:
The tops are now almost complete and are having the excess being trimmed off the edges… …before they are stacked vertically for “curing” for several days prior to packaging.
Slide9:
Tops by SM France at home in any décor, distributed exclusively by…..