[Assam] Engineered Bamboo Furniture

[Rajib Das]

For a workshop in Delhi, why is bamboo costlier to buy
from Assam today than importing from the south east
asian countries?



--- Dilip/Dil Deka <dilipdeka at yahoo.com> wrote:

> O'Mahanta,
>   I think I read your mind. That is exactly what I
> was thinking. Can the lumber stock be made in Assam
> from the bamboos widely available in Assam - for
> example zati or Bholuka banh in kamrup? What
> preservatives are needed and are they readily
> available? The bamboo has to be cut at the right
> time, it has to be stored at a certain temperature,
> need the right preservatives, need the right
> shrinkage, need the right machines to process the
> stock and what else?
>   Would we need know-how from China, Taiwan or
> Japan? If so, who and what prevents us from getting
> it?
>    
>   Bamboo is becoming expensive in Assam also, a sign
> of globalization I guess. Still if there is a margin
> in the end product, cost of raw material should not
> be a problem. 
>    
>   See there is a prospect for the unemployed in
> Namti. :-)
>   O'Deka
>    
>   
> Chan Mahanta <cmahanta at charter.net> wrote:
>         Thanks Ram.
>   
> 
>   Actually I was not thinking of importing to USA at
> all. Nor was I considering the finished goods. Those
> could be made by skilled carpenters and builders. It
> is the engineered lumber stock, made and sold to end
> users for whatever
>   purpose they can imagine.  It could be a fine
> product for use locally, considering that good
> quality timber, if available, is like gold.
>   
> 
>   But I am looking into it. Will see where it might
> lead.
>   
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>   c-da
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>   At 12:54 PM -0600 3/4/07, Ram Sarangapani wrote:
>   C'da,     These are just fantastic. Love the
> coffee tables. It must have been a lot of hard work.
>     With reference to marjeting of bamboo products,
> years ago (I think around 1995 or so), a friend of
> mine from Guwahati wanted to market plywood (with
> compressed bamboo filling: ie two plywood sheets and
> inside would be this bamboo compressed pulp - the
> best I can describe).     I took the samples (he had
> sent) to some of the local Houston people in the
> construction business. Several of them were very
> interested.  There were several problems:  (1) the
> price was way too high.  (2) the resin that was used
> was a substance the would not pass US import
> regulations (Not a fire retardant)  
> It didn't go thru, of course, but for those
> interested in exporting bamboo products, these are
> some things I experienced first hand, and may come
> in handy.     Further, for finished products, some
> of the places to try would be like Pier 1 Imports
> (stores like that). As most people already know
> supplies must be consistent and uniform, and often
> such stores may want varying quanties, sometimes in
> a hurry.     One big problem for a many products
> from India in the finish. Compare products from
> China or Taiwan, Indian products may be functional,
> but definitely lack the finish.     Your table on
> the other hand loked fabulous.     --Ram  On 3/4/07,
> Chan Mahanta <cmahanta at charter.net> wrote:
>   http://flickr.com/photos/cmahanta-stl/
> 
> 3 Images of Mboo ( copyrighted name) Cofee Table
> from the workshop of
> yours truly.
> 
> 
> I just completed a coffee table that I made from
> left over bamboo
> floor boards, which are engineered from strips of
> glued and laminated
> bamboo. I machined off the grooved bottom surface of
> the 5/8" thick
> floor boards with a recently acquired 13" power
> planer to a thickness
> of 1/2", glued the two together to make an one inch
> thick board,
> ripped off the tongues and grooves on a radial arm
> saw, planed the
> thin edges off by clamping together several boards
> and voila: I had
> 1" thick X 3.5" wide engineered bamboo lumber to
> build furniture with.
> 
> The bottom shelf is made from 3/4" thick medium
> density fiber-board (
> MDF) finished with bamboo veneered wall covering (
> expensive @ $
> 45/square yard) manufactured by MDC Wall Covering.
> 
> I finished everything after sanding with water-based
> clear
> polyurethane paint applied with a sponge brush.
> 
> This was a project I have been planning for a number
> of years: To
> verify if glued/laminated bamboo sections could be
> used as a
> replacement for  quality timber for furniture and
> interior
> construction. I was hampered by not having a power
> planer to
> undertake the task and prove it to myself. Finally I
> got it done. And
> it WORKS!
> 
> There HAS to be a market for engineered bamboo
> sections of many many
> shapes, manufactured in Assam. One way to generate
> employment and
> cash in rural Assam from a widely available
> raw-material thru value
> added engineering and manufacturing.
> 
> cm
> 
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