PIABC Level 2 Award in Timber and Panel Products and their Uses

The PIABC Level 2 Award in Timber and Panel Products is best suited to those who are new to the industry, or wish to broaden their knowledge.  This course provides product knowledge and a wide understanding of the timber industry. 

Our PIABC Level 2 Award in Timber and Panel Products course is studied via distance learning to allow you to fit your learning around a busy professional and personal life.  We will provide you with all the necessary course materials which you should work through with the support or your mentor.  Once you have completed the workbooks and self-assessment tasks you should register to take the final assessment, in the form of a 90 minute exam, which takes place in June and November each year.  The whole course represents a study time of 100 hours, of which 12 should be guided learning with others and we anticipate that you should be able to complete the course is approximately six months.

Using the workbooks provided, learners must work their way through a number of units, which include tasks to check your understanding.

Part 1 - Timber and panel products
The first part of the course is comprised of two sections:

• Timber:
   Softwoods and hardwoods and where they come from
   Examples of the main species traded and their characteristics
   Sizes, prices and grades
   Preservation and environmental considerations
• Panel Products:
  Plywood, particleboard fibreboard and OSB: characteristics manufacture and grades
  Adhesives, properties and exposure classes
  Storage and handling

 

Part 2 - Timber use: carcassing and joinery
The second part of the course is also made up of two sections.

• Carcassing
  Types and applications
  Timbers and grades used
  Sizes, strength grading, classes and marks
• Joinery
  Applications and reasons for use
  Timbers and grades
  Mouldings, wood trim, flooring, profiled sections
  Components, windows, doors and stairs
  Fire doors and FR boards
  Product care

The course is assessed through a formal written examination lasting one and a half hours.  You should take this exam as part of PIABC's main examination series in either June or November and you should sit the exam once you have completed your workbook.  The exam is based on the learning outcomes and assessment criteria set out in the course specification by the awarding body. The whole course represents a study time of 100 hours, of which 12 should be guided learning with others. This is a Award with a credit value of 10.