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About Us
We are a Brazilian company specializing in the manufacture of MDF and plywood panels. We began our journey in 1984 and, throughout these years, we have expanded our operations and now have three plants strategically located in the country’s South: Caçador/SC, Santa Cecília/SC, and Palmas/PR. We are proud to play an important role in the industrial development of the area, as we supply top-quality products with international certifications that meet the needs of the most demanding markets. Our commitment to responsible and sustainable development is a crucial part of our DNA.
In 1986, in Palmas, we started our production of plywood panels. Our focus on exports and commitment to quality boosted our growth, which led to the opening of a new plant in Santa Cecília, in 2002. In 2009, we took another important step by opening a new MDF plant in Caçador to diversify our product mix in order to also serve the domestic market. With the new portfolio, added to the marketing and client service strategy, we grew quickly and in 2016 we expanded our production capacity from 200,000 cbm to 600,000 cbm with the opening of our second MDF production line.
Today, after over 40 years, we have become an internationally reputable company and export to more than 50 countries. In May 2023, we opened our third MDF production line, thus elevating our production capacity by 90% and reaching a mark of 1.140 million cbm/year. With this milestone, our manufacturing facility in Caçador stands out as the largest site of the Americas and one of the most competitive ones on a global level.
Moreover, we have three showrooms designed to provide a unique experience to our clients: Casa Guararapes in São Paulo/SP, Curitiba/PR, and Caçador/SC.
Our History
From the small veneer mill that in 1984 started its activities, Guararapes has diversified its markets in early 2009 and expanded its structure in 2016 to supply the growing demand of the internal and external market.
Operations started in the city of Quilombo, in Santa Catarina. At that time, we were a small sawmill with only 15 employees and a production of 150 cbm a month.
We received our first big investments and started plywood production in Palmas, Paraná.
We began our plywood exports.
We launched our first reforestation programs to make our operations sustainable to the industry and the world.
Our commitment to quality boosted our growth, which led to the opening of a new plywood plant in Santa Cecília, Santa Catarina.
We achieved important international certifications.
We upgraded the plywood plant in Palmas, Paraná.
We took another important step by opening a new MDF plant in Caçador, Santa Catarina, to diversify our product mix while at the same time serve the domestic market.
We started a MDF production line at the Caçador plant, reaching a prominent position in the market and expanding our production capacity from 200,000 cbm to 600,000 cbm.
We opened our first sales office outside Brazil in Orlando, United States.
We opened Casa Guararapes in Curitiba as our first product experience showroom and a space to receive specifiers and woodworkers.
We opened Casa Guararapes São Paulo, the brand’s second showroom, focused on client experience. The space includes coworking, an auditorium, event spaces, and a material library.
We won our first iF Design Award, regarded as the world’s top design award, as a first time in this industry, with the MDF patterns Floresta and São Paulo from our Perspectivas line.
We were two-time champions of the iF Design award, this time with Casa Guararapes São Paulo, in the Architecture and Interiors category.
We opened our third MDF production line, thus elevating our production capacity by 90%, totaling 1.140 million cbm/year. We then had the largest MDF manufacturing site in the whole American continent.
We opened our third Casa Guararapes showroom, this time in Caçador, Santa Catarina, where visitors will have an immersive experience of the MDF manufacturing process.
Business Locations
In its strategic planning, Guararapes works with a concept that provides an operational advantage: synergy. The MDF facility was strategically positioned in the center of two plywood facilities– Palmas and Santa Cecilia. These units produce a “residue” called clean chips, that is an important raw material in the production of MDF.
Guararapes also carries out, at its facilities, an optimization of raw materials, in which the thick logs which are used in the production of plywood and the thin logs are used in the production of MDF. In addition to this, it seeks environmental responsibility, increasing and taking advantage of the industrial residue and maintains a policy of sustainable development.
Head office
Palmas, PR, Brazil
Plywood Mill
Palmas, PR, Brazil
Plywood Mill
Santa Cecília, SC, Brazil
MDF Mill
Caçador, SC, Brazil
Sales & Marketing Office
Curitiba, PR, Brazil
Casa Guararapes - MDF Showroom
São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Casa Guararapes - MDF Showroom
Curitiba, PR, Brazil
Casa Guararapes - MDF Showroom
Caçador, SC - Brazil
Sales Office
Orlando, FL - USA
Ipojuca, PE - BR
Port Manatee, FL - USA
Port Arthur, TX - USA
Port Elizabeth, NJ - USA
Port Baltimore, MD - USA
ESG Journey
The acronym ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance, which are the foundations on which we review all of our processes in order to create business strategies that are more and more sustainable.
From our raw material sourcing, through the making of our products, to their delivery to our clients, the whole value chain of Guararapes is managed based on eco-efficiency and compliance with the requirements of the environmental protection authorities.
The ESG actions conducted within the company include waste management based on a circular economy model. At Guararapes, every tree that is harvested is used in its entirety. Thin logs are sorted for MDF production and the thick ones are sent for plywood production. Moreover, the waste generated during plywood manufacturing is transformed into raw materials for MDF, which leads to better product quality and an optimized use of natural resources.
Environmental Responsibility
For Guararapes, growth and innovation only have value when, at the same time, they promote sustainable development, concern for the environment, and social responsibility. All of our facilities work together to respect and preserve nature.
In this way, we are committed to renew the raw materials that we use. Since 1992, Guararapes has utilized reforested pine in its production process. The company even performs treatment of all water used in its production processes. Water is returned to nature in a better condition than at intake, and it is in total compliance with what is required by the environmental protection agencies. The residue from the wood used in the process of manufacturing the plywood becomes a raw material in the production of MDF. This results in quality and sustainability which correlates to cost savings and respect to the environment.
In addition to this, Guararapes holds FSC® certification- Forest Stewardship Council®, a seal that attests that the wood used in the manufacturing of its products comes from forests that are managed in an environmentally adequate way, economically viable, socially benefical and from other controlled sources.
Ensuring the well-being of its workers and of society, Guararapes performs diverse campaigns and programs, and, investing resources in a powerful tool of transformation and social sustainability: Education. Guararapes, as the sponsor of the institution of higher learning FADEP- Faculdade de Pato Branco- offers diverse undergraduate, graduate, and MBA courses. Our objective is to invest in a quality education to guarantee a better future for the community and all generations.
Social Responsibility
Guararapes believes that looking after the future is thinking about the now. Our social responsibility is based on guidelines and strategies that benefit the local community from various actions and programs in the areas of education, sports, culture, social and economic development. The aim is to ensure integration and well-being, put people first, and provide a better future for society and for all generations.
Get to know some actions of the institutional support and social projects:
Education
Resources are invested in a powerful tool of transformation and social sustainability: education. Guararapes o enables all its employees to access scholarships for technical, undergraduate and postgraduate courses in institutions in the region.
Charitable Donations
Last year, we invested over R$ 5 million in social projects focused on education, sports, and health care in the cities that host our operations, in the Brazilian states of Paraná and Santa Catarina.
Support for Tax Incentive Laws
Through the Rouanet Guararapes Law directed funds for the development of projects aligned with social responsibility guidelines, and sponsored cultural projects that include theater presentations in pediatric hospitals, and encouraging music to the local community.
Sports Support
Guararapes values the sport and sponsors the Palmas / PR Futsal team, which is currently in contention for the Gold series. The aim is to support a local team and encourage sports in society.
Integration Actions
Guararapes Family Day is an action that welcomes the families of employees and provides the experience of experiencing the day to day life of those who work here.
We also hold the Pink October and Blue November campaigns. During that period, local partnerships are entered into so that all employees can undergo preventive examinations for women’s and men’s health.
Every year, in December, we organize a party called “Children’s Christmas” in the three cities where we have manufacturing plants. Candies and gifts are distributed during the event to transform Christmas time for around one thousand children aged 0 to 14, who are the children of our employees.
Annual Report
Following our culture of ethical and transparent operations, we publish our annual report. The document shows our economic, social, and environmental performance and, from 2021 on, uses the sustainability reporting guidelines from GRI (Global Report Initiative).
. Download the 2021 Sustainability Report
. Download the 2020 Social Responsibility Report