Plywood vs. OSB3/Smartply

[Akiko Kobayashi]

I'm currently arranging for CNCing with a workshop who's manager is absolutely advising against using OSB3. I have pointed him to the Wikihouse video on the Smartply website, but still he insists that he would not recommend using it as he believes it to be 'not structural and not up to the compression joints used in the design'. So my question is, where verification is stated as 'structurally tested and built', is this for a specific sheet material/grade i.e. plywood, or is OSB3 technology now at a point where it is comparable.

The design that we are using is the Basic Studio (so a bolted design) and I appreciate that the latest videos that show use of OSB3 are of a different, bolt-free design. Although on our calibration test piece the OSB3 took longer to machine, the per sheet cost is well worth the substitution at under £15 a sheet as opposed to £40 for WBP ply.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Akiko