Smith and Fong Plyboo Co.

Smith & Fong was founded by two friends in the Spring of 1989. Since then we have dedicated our efforts to developing new uses and applications for bamboo. With imagination and technology bamboo is being manufactured into flooring, paneling, and plywood. The base material for all our products is "Plyboo". Plyboo is our term for laminated bamboo and is a registered trademark of Smith & Fong Company.

Timber Bamboo - Growing and Harvesting: Fast growing and long lived, our timber bamboo grows to a height of 40 feet with a diameter exceeding 6 inches and matures in 4 years. Bamboo is a grass and from an environmental standpoint, this is important. Unlike traditional hardwoods, bamboo when harvested does not require replanting. Mature bamboo has an extensive root system that continues to send up new shoots for decades. Our bamboo is grown in managed forests in China. Harvesting is done by hand, minimizing the impact on the local environment. By working with bamboo and understanding its growth patterns, bamboo farmers are are able to maximize timber production, maintain healthy forests.

Manufacture of PLYBOO: All our products are made from Bamboo strips. Bamboo is hollow in the center and we are working withthe wall thickness of the stalk. The wall at the base can be more than an inch thick and will taper over the length of the stalk. We are milling a flat strip from the core of this wall.

These strips are then boiled in a bath of boric acid and lime solution. The purpose of this bath is to extract the starch that attracts termites or powder post beetles. Boric acid and lime are a natural non-toxic repellent and is used to insure that our products will come to you pest free and will continue to be so throughout the duration of their product life.

The strips are kiln dried and sanded to a smooth surface for laminating. The strips are then laminated edge to edge to create a single-ply panel. These panels are then laminated again to each other to create a multi-ply bamboo plywood.

Our products come in two colors, natural and amber. The natural color is the color of the bamboo untreated. The amber color is derived from a steam treatment process that heats the bamboo and gives it a warm, tea-stained color. The coloration is permanent and will not fade or sand out.

Membership: Smith & Fong Company is both a member of the National Wood Flooring Association, Co-op America Business Network, an organization concerned with environmental issues, and the American Bamboo Society. We also support the Omega Boys Club of San Francisco in their efforts to aid at-risk youth.