The story
Perumbavoor grew as a timber town on the Periyar river, with sawmills processing wood from the Western Ghats. When rubber plantations were replanted, the old rubberwood became a cheap raw material for plywood and veneer. Hundreds of plywood and veneer mills came up around Perumbavoor and Aluva. The cluster now depends heavily on migrant workers from eastern India.
In numbers
Plywood units in Perumbavoor, Aluva and Kannur have 90 per cent of their workers from West Bengal and Assam; when workers left in 2021, production dropped by 60–65 per cent.
Shortage of migrant workers badly hits plywood manufacturing in Kerala, production drops to 65% — Ply Reporter · 2021A Plywood Manufacturing Cluster, Perumbavoor common facility centre is listed as completed under MSE-CDP.
Completed Common Facility Centres under MSE-CDP (as on 22 Mar 2024), Office of DC-MSME · 2024
Ways in for a newcomer
- Veneer peeling and drying job-work
- Plywood trading and distribution in other states
- Modular furniture and door manufacturing from local panels
- Resin, adhesive and chemical supply to mills
Problems the cluster faces
- Dependence on migrant labour
- Pollution complaints from mills
- Timber supply and price swings
- Competition from MDF and particle board
Businesses to start here
Block Board and Flush Door Manufacturing →Rice Husk Particle Board →Aluminium Furniture →