What is Wood-Based Panel?

Wood-based panel, also known as engineered wood or industrial wood, is called Wood-Based Panel in English. It is a type of wood board made by combining wood particles with adhesives or chemicals to form panels. The advantages of this type of board include a flat surface without warping, resistance to termites, lower cost, easy installation, and faster processing time.

On June 30, 2023, Deputy Minister Nguyễn Văn Sinh signed Circular No. 04/2023/TT-BXD promulgating QCVN 16:2023/BXD. This regulation officially came into effect on January 1, 2024 and replaced QCVN 16:2019/BXD. According to the 2023 version, wood-based panels belong to the group of decorative and finishing building materials that must be certified and declared in conformity before being circulated on the market.

Technical Requirements

The regulation specifies technical requirements for three wood-based panel products, including:

• Fibreboard (MDF Board) made from lignocellulosic fibers, with or without adhesives and additives, compressed under specified pressure and/or temperature conditions.
• Particleboard is a type of wood-core material made from plantation timber such as eucalyptus, rubber wood (80%), and adhesives. The manufacturing process starts by grinding wood into particles, then mixing the particles with adhesive and compressing them under heat to create wood panels with different standard thicknesses. These particleboards can be surface-finished with Melamine, Veneer, or Acrylic to create interior and exterior products.

According to QCVN 16:2023/BXD, the above two types of boards must meet the following four technical indicators:

• Thickness swelling after water immersion
• Static bending strength
• Tensile strength perpendicular to the board surface
• Formaldehyde emission content
• Thick finger-jointed boards and medium finger-jointed boards: the formaldehyde emission limit is 0.124 mg/m³.

Benefits of Conformity Certification for Wood-Based Panels According to QCVN 16

The benefits for enterprises obtaining conformity certification for wood-based panels in accordance with QCVN 16:2023/BXD include:

• Compliance with legal regulations and quality management requirements of the Ministry of Construction and the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality. Products are allowed to bear the conformity mark (CR mark) and goods labels before being circulated on the market, meeting conformity requirements and reducing risks during inspections. At the same time, it facilitates state authorities in managing conforming products.
• Improvement of product quality, attraction of customers, increase in revenue and international competitiveness, and expansion of business activities with foreign partners and customers.
• Assurance of safety during use, limitation of low-quality products, and satisfaction of increasingly higher customer demands for convenience and safety.
• Fulfillment of contractor requirements for construction projects.

Process of Conformity Certification for Wood-Based Panels According to QCVN 16

As one of the first three organizations designated by the Ministry of Construction with certification capability, and with a team of experienced experts, ISSQ Quality Institute has certified many organizations and companies across all three regions of Vietnam. The conformity certification process for wood-based panels in particular and other standard and conformity-certified products in general includes the following basic steps:

Step 1: Receive certification registration documents

Step 2: Sign a science and technology service contract

Step 3: Conduct on-site surveys and assessments at the enterprise

Step 4: Complete documents after assessment

Step 5: Review documents and issue certification (if qualified)

Step 6: Conduct surveillance assessment no more than once every 12 months

Step 7: Conduct recertification assessment (certificate expires after 3 years)

After the enterprise completes the dossier and receives the Certificate of Conformity for Wood-Based Panels in accordance with QCVN 16:2023/BXD, the organization must declare conformity at the Department of Construction or the competent state authority where the business is registered in accordance with Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN and Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BKHCN.

The basic dossier includes: (during the appraisal process, additional documents may be required by the competent authority)

• Declaration of conformity according to Form 2. CBHC/HQ Appendix III of Circular 28/2012/TT-BKHCN
• Certified copy of the Product Certificate of Conformity to the Regulation, together with the sample conformity mark issued by the certification body.
• Certified copy of documents proving the organization’s production and business activities (Enterprise Registration Certificate/Business Registration Certificate/Investment Certificate/Decision on Establishment or other equivalent documents).

ISSQ Quality Institute is always ready to accompany companies during the period of integration and development.

Please contact hotline: +84 981851111 or email vienchatluong@issq.org.vn | tcvn@issq.org.vn. We are honored to serve our valued customers!

Publication Date: February 5, 2024