Timber Design Contexts

The right wood for the job

A design context is the situation your product must suit: who will use it, where, and what it must do. Good designers read the context first, then choose materials to match. Timbers come in three families, and the family is decided by the TREE, not by how hard the wood is:

Hard or soft?

What actually decides whether a wood is a hardwood or a softwood?

• The type of tree it comes from, broadleaved or coniferous, not how hard it is
• How hard the wood is to cut
• The colour of the wood
• Whether it is manufactured

Know your species

A few to recognise, with typical uses: - Oak (hardwood): hard and durable, used for quality furniture. - Pine (softwood): cheap and easy to work, used for construction and simple furniture. - MDF (manufactured): smooth, no grain, cheap, used for flat-pack furniture. - Plywood (manufactured): glued veneers, strong in all directions.

Match each timber to its description

Spot the hardwoods

Select ALL THREE hardwoods.

• Oak
• Mahogany
• Beech
• Pine
• Cedar
• MDF

Sort the families

Oak and beech are hardwoods, which means they come from _____ trees. Pine and cedar are softwoods, which means they come from _____ trees. MDF, plywood and chipboard belong to neither group: they are _____ boards, made from wood fibres or veneers. And balsa is a _____, even though it is one of the softest timbers there is.

Working properties

To match a timber to a context, describe its working properties. The exam wants the right word, because each one answers a different question about the product: - Hardness: resists scratches and denting. Ask this about a worktop. - Toughness: absorbs impact without breaking. Ask this about a tool handle. - Durability: withstands wear, rot and weather over time. Ask this about anything outdoors. - Elasticity: bends and springs back to shape. Ask this about a chair seat or a bow. "Strong" is not one of these words, and on its own it earns nothing.

Match each property to its meaning

Where timber comes from

Species are linked to the forests they grow in: - Alpine forests: pine, cedar, larch (softwoods). - European forests: oak, beech, ash, birch. - Amazonian (tropical) forests: mahogany.

Where from?

Mahogany, a rich reddish hardwood, is traditionally sourced from which forests?

• Amazonian tropical forests
• Alpine forests
• European forests
• Arctic tundra

Justify the choice

The top-mark skill is justification: do not just name a timber, explain why it suits the context by linking a property to a need. The difference between the two columns below is the difference between one mark and three.

Choose the timber

You are designing an outdoor bench that must survive all weathers. Work through the choice.

• Which property matters most for this context?
• Which timber best suits an outdoor bench?
• To reach the top marks, your answer should...

Justify a choice

A primary school wants outdoor picnic benches that will stay outside all year and take heavy daily use. Choose a timber and justify it.

• Name the timber and its family
• Name the working property that matters here, using the exact term
• Link that property to something specific in the context, and say what would go wrong with a poorer choice

Timber summary

Hardwoods like oak come from _____ trees, while softwoods like pine come from coniferous trees. _____ boards such as MDF are made from wood fibres. For top marks, _____ your material choice by linking a property to the design _____.