Wood Purchasing News

 
 
 

Feature Story

 

Dongguan Dalang Chenyang operates an expansive factory in Dongguan City, which employs 100 workers.
Furniture Mills Benefit From Dongguan City Product

By Lucas Ngu

Dongguan City, China—During the early years, Dongguan Dalang Chenyang Wood Materials Co. was involved in the trading of edgebanding materials. Eventually, the firm moved on to become a manufacturer of the product itself.
 
As one of the pioneers in the manufacture of the product in Dongguan City, the company set up a factory with just 40 workers that started producing edgebanding material. As the years went by, the production facility doubled in size. Today, the workforce totals 100.
 

Edgebanding veneer is used mainly for the production of coffee tables and cabinets.

“We have been making edgebanding material for five years now,” said Lin Quan, the company’s general manager. “Very soon, we shall be moving to a larger plant which is under construction.”
 

 

An hour-and-a-half drive from Hong Kong, the plant manufactures edgebanding materials mainly for local furniture mills that are largely Taiwanese investments. About 30 percent of the products are exported to Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.
 
The product is marketed under the “Shenyang” or “Morning Sun” brand, which are used mainly for the production of coffee tables and cabinets for homes, offices and hotels.
 
Operating with the motto “Quality first; just-in-time delivery,” the company marches forward as it strives to achieve its goal of providing customers with good edgebanding materials at a reasonably good price, backed by an efficient aftersales service.
 
It’s a five-and-a-half-day week for the employees who carry out tasks assigned to them with the daily routine stretching from 8

Wood is sourced from various parts of the world for the production of edgebanding veneer.

a.m. to 6 p.m. Occasionally, overtime work is required and this means an additional two hours of work before they call it a day.
 
Each day, the mill churns out an acre of edgebanding material.  
 

 

As far as raw materials are concerned, they are obtained from Russia, the United States, Europe, South Africa and New Zealand. Local timber in the form of China Ash, is sourced from Heilongjiang and Yunnan provinces.
 
According to Lin, imported material accounts for half of the raw material used for making edgebanding veneer. From the U.S. comes the species of Cherry, Red Oak, Walnut, Ash and Maple. The choice of raw material is customer dictated as Lin explained: “It is the customer who makes the choice. Because furniture buyers in the U.S. prefer home-grown timber, furniture manufacturers will have to source for raw materials from that country and this, in turn, means we also have to use American timber for making our products.”
 
However, as Lin further explained, American timber is not imported directly from suppliers in the U.S. Instead, the veneer strips, which are supplied in widths of 20-30 cm and 0.6 mm in thickness, are purchased from raw material markets in China.
 
 Lin recalled that the company did contact suppliers in the U.S. at one time to place orders for raw materials. “But the problem arose when we were not given what we had asked for. Because of this, company officials now make it a point to go to the local timber yard, choose what they want and pay for what they get.

Lin Quan is the company’s general manager.
And we are happy with the present way of getting supplies of wood.”
 
Quality is heavily emphasised in the production process and thus, only A and B grades of veneer strips are selected and delivered to the doorsteps of the factory. On arrival at the factory, they are ripped into smaller strips and joined to become longer pieces of up to 150 metres in length before they are packed in coils.

Some of the advanced machines used for making edgebanding material are imported from Germany. Others are locally manufactured and there are also self-made machines.
 
 Lin went on to say that unlike other mills, the company has its own way of making edgebanding. “While the conventional method is to paste fabric to the veneer before lengthening it, we make it a point to join the veneer first before adding fabric to it. This way, we can make the product faster than others.” 
 
In the production of edgebanding veneer, the company has the medium-to-high segment of the market in mind. Its forte lies in its ability to churn out high quality products at a much faster pace than its competitors. “For example, orders that we received in the morning can be delivered to customers in the afternoon,” said Lin. 
 
For the future, the company intends to remain steadfast in what it is doing and strive to further expand its U.S. and European markets. Lin added: “We want to specialize in the production of edgebanding material. If we diversify, things will become complicated and we won’t be able to focus on what we are doing. In the end, we cannot be professional in this trade.”
 

From the USA comes the species of Oak, Walnut, Ash and Maple.

For now, the situation is that the market is getting so competitive and to compound the problem, large furniture manufacturers, especially Taiwanese mills, are moving out of China into Vietnam, according to Lin. 

The company claims it can outpace competitors by adopting its own way of making edgebanding veneer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
More info for Wood Purchasing News
 
 
     
 
 

Home | Contact Us | Publications | Company Search | Advertising

© Copyright Miller Wood Trade Publications
No part may be reproduced without special permission

Site Designed and Managed by Pinpoint Web