What builders need to know about the Brazilian plywood ‘ban’
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That’s the question contractors need to consider as a dispute between the U.S. Structural Plywood Integrity Coalition and third-party certification firms continues to play out in federal court.
In May, a federal judge in the Southern District of Florida barred PFS-TECO, a Wisconsin building products ratings firm, from giving U.S. PS1 standards certification to plywood mills in southern Brazil. The injunction also required the firm to revoke any existing PS1 certificates and grade stamps already issued.But just weeks after the injunction was issued in late May, another firm, Forestwood Industries Inc. of Wading River, New York, started giving its own PS1 certificates to the same mills in Brazil. The U.S. plywood coalition then filed a request for another injunction against Forestwood, too.
“It does seem to be kind of curious that just days after the permanent injunction was issued, you suddenly have this new company that popped up for certifications, and everything was in line and ready to go,” said attorney Jeff Thomen, a partner at McCarter & English in Hartford, Connecticut, who specializes in construction defect claims. “It’s kind of almost a whack-a-mole situation.”
At the phone number listed for Forestwood Industries Inc., a person answered Construction Dive’s call with the greeting, “Evergreen Forest Products.” After confirming the number was also used for Forestwood Industries, the person said the firm had no comment on the Brazilian case. After declining to give her name, she hung up.
In a filing Monday responding to the request for the new injunction, Forestwood’s lawyers disputed the plywood coalition’s characterization of it as a “fly-by-night” organization. “Forestwood is a company with deep roots in the lumber production industry, extensive experience in evaluating and assessing the quality of plywood, and is fully compliant with the duly-issued accreditations by its co-defendant,” the firm’s filing read.
The PS1 standard applies to structural plywood, and is required in most U.S. building codes for panels to be used in walls, roofs and flooring. Contractors must install PS1 sheets with their stamps facing down on roofs and up on floors so building inspectors can confirm materials meet code.
