Product Code Database
Masonite, also called Quartboard or pressboard, Masonite: insulation, presdwood, quartboard, lath, tempered presdwood, tempritile, cushioned flooring. (1935) is a type of engineered wood made of steam-cooked and pressure-molded wood or paper fibers. The fibers form a stiff, dense material in a range of weights.
The process was formulated and patented by American inventor William H. Mason.
Masonite has been widely used in traditional school and office products such as Coil binding notebooks and three-ring binders, but its unique physical characteristics lend themselves readily to a variety of end-uses, including (but not limited to) document storage, filing supplies (classification and file folders), report covers, folding cartons, tags, labels, and industrial applications.
In 1924, Masonite was patented in Laurel, Mississippi, by William H. Mason, who was a friend and protégé of Thomas Edison.
In 1929, the company initiated mass production of its product.
In the 1930s and 1940s, Masonite was used for applications including doors, Roofing material, , Desk, guitars (e.g., Danelectro), and canoes. It was sometimes used for house siding. Similar "tempered hardboard" is now a generic product made by many forest product companies.
In 1972, the Masonite Corporation entered the door business as a supplier of facings.
In 1982, the Masonite Corporation spun off its timber property. In 1984, USG Corporation acquired Masonite. In 1988, USG sold Masonite to International Paper.
In 2001, the Masonite Corporation was purchased by Premdor Corporation, a door maker, from its former parent International Paper. It no longer supplies generic hardboard.
Masonite has also been made from Maize.
Masonite is used by moving companies. Among other things, they use it to protect the walls of buildings where they work, and lay on floors to enable smooth rolling of dollies loaded with goods.
Masonite was used as rear cover in many consumer electronics, from the 1930s up until the early 1980s. It was more heat resistant than contemporary plastic materials which was especially important for vacuum tube TVs and radios which generated high levels of heat in extended use, and also had a lower weight. It also has some electrical insulation properties which were considered particularly useful for safety. It was durable in home electronics, easy to shape and print, various inscriptions regarding to the connections or warnings were easily legible. Later, it was displaced in these applications, as more suitable plastics were developed and new designs evolved, making masonite obsolete in this application. However, some retro style radios developed recently, also have a masonite back cover, though not containing tubes or even built in power supply .
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