Selected From a field of over 90 entries, Unilin Panels Master Oak now holds the IWF Challengers Distinguished Achievement Award.

The International Woodworking Fair (IWF) is North America’s largest woodworking event and home to the IWF Challengers Distinguished Achievement Award, an internationally recognised and hotly contested award that acknowledges innovative technology advancing the wood industry.

Entries into this year’s award were diverse and represented innovation in every part of the woodworking industry. From over 90 entries, Unilin’s Master Oak has been selected by the judging panel for its excellence and now holds a prestigious IWF Challengers Distinguished Achievement Award.

Adding to a growing list of titles, including the DNA Paris Design Award, Muuuz International Awards and Interzum; the IWF Challenger award recognises Master Oak for its approach to design, function and responsible production.

Brent Tanimoto, Business Development Manager USA and Canada, Unilin Panels, says: “The IWF Challengers award is internationally recognised and has been bestowed upon the industry’s best technologies, developments and products. So, we’re delighted that Master Oak has been judged to be one of the best in the current generation. The innovation behind it has created a class-leading product that advances the industry. Through design, function and responsible production, Master Oak is one of the industry’s most outstanding innovations and now an IWF Challengers Distinguished Achievement Award winner!”

This latest generation of decorative panels captures the natural look and feel of oak with the unbeatable quality of HPL and TFL (melamine). In fact, such is the realism of Master Oak’s natural look that it has managed to persuade many industry professionals that it is real oak or oak veneer.

Master Oak’s impressive realism is achieved through Unilin Timber Touch Technology, which gives 20 times the depth and texture of regular textures and a uniquely matt finish that appears more natural. Along with more colour-play and depth, better sharpness and contrast from its printed layers and an extra-large pattern, Master Oak looks exactly like real oak.

Three times more scratch-resistant than real oak, UV-resistant and effortless to maintain; Master Oak comes in four natural wood colours and two plain colours that all stay beautiful. Suitable for furniture with TFL faced panels, HPL, and matching edging tape, doors with door size HPL and wall cladding with Clicwall, Master Oak is a truly versatile alternative to oak and oak veneer.

Importantly, Unilin Panels has adopted a sustainable approach for the production of chipboard Master Oak panels. Through the use of 100% recovered wood, of which 95% is recycled wood, such as old furniture from local sources, Master Oak chipboard panels step towards product circularity. Using recovered wood in this way gives continued life to 900,000 tons of recycled wood every year. And for Master Oak MDF boards, Unilin’s world-first recycling technology will see it to replace 25% of the wood mix with recycled fibres by 2030, locking in around 380,000 tons of CO2 per year.

Winners of the IWF Challengers Distinguished Achievement Award were revealed at the Challengers Award Gallery throughout IWF Atlanta, 6-9 August.

Complimentary samples of the Master Oak collection can be requested here