Roofing Will Remain the Largest Residential Wood Panel Market Through 2024

Roofing accounted for nearly a third of residential wood panel demand in 2019 and is expected to remain the leading application through 2024, according to a new Freedonia Group analysis:

• An increase in roofing renovation projects both to fix damaged roofs and to strengthen existing roofs will support demand gains.
• The majority of wood panel use in roofing applications is generated by roof sheathing and decking requirements, although some demand is also created through use in roof framing and roofing trim products.

OSB is the dominant residential roofing wood panel product and is expected to increase its market share through 2024 at the expense of softwood plywood because of its superior durability and lower cost.

Rising OSB Use to Boost Residential Wood Panel Demand

Oriented strand board (OSB)  is the leading residential wood panel product, as it is used in a number of structurally essential applications, including subflooring, roofing, wall sheathing, and siding. OSB is expected to see increased use in many of these applications because of its:

• high strength
• durability
• limited board imperfections
• resistance to impact and fire
• good thermal and acoustic properties

Want to Learn More?

Residential Wood Panels is now available from the Freedonia Group. This study examines the US market for wood panels in residential buildings. This includes structural boards (oriented strand board (OSB) and softwood plywood) as well as nonstructural boards:

• hardboard
• hardwood plywood
• insulation board
• medium density fiberboard (MDF)
• particleboard
• low density fiberboard

The residential market includes new and improvement and repair applications for:

• roofing (e.g., sheathing, decking, framing, trim)
• flooring (subflooring and finish flooring)
• wall sheathing
• cabinets (e.g., cabinet boxes, drawers, drawer fronts, doors)
• siding
• doors (and, though a negligible portion of the market, windows – primarily hurricane-proof storm types)
• interior paneling
• other construction applications, including moulding and trim, stairways, concrete formwork, temporary shelters, decks, and porches

Historical data for 2009, 2014, and 2019 and forecasts to the years 2024 and 2029 are provided for wood panel shipments and demand in square feet and current dollars.