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 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 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.
c-da
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 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 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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