A quarter of the way into the turn of the century, Americans brought new ideas and industry growth, and engineered hardwood flooring. The invention of the engineered hardwood flooring idea can't really be attributed to one individual, since plywood flooring wasn't anything new. But the nearest guess would be Mr Anderson, founder of what is now called Anderson Tuftex. Mr Anderson was already in the hardwood flooring business, building parquet floors for the military to be used in higher moisture areas. Its wasn't until after World War II, that Mr Anderson went public with the most innovative flooring idea since the rug, engineered hardwood flooring. An engineered floor is made by taking a veneer of hardwood, and adhering it to a piece of plywood, giving it a maximum amount of stability over traditional solid hardwoods. The product is manufactured in several widths, from 2 1/4", up to sometimes 11". Engineered hardwood flooring can be installed in basements, below grade, unlike its big brother, solid hardwood flooring. The science behind it......the plywood substrate. As many in the flooring industry know, plywood is just what its name say, plus of cheap hardwood that are glued together to form a single core. These plus are glued in a fashion called cross plying, or being cross-plied, which prohibit each layer from pulling from the other. Its like a basket being weaved, one strand running vertical and one 90 degrees horizontal. In this effect, engineered hardwood flooring can withstand more strain from higher moisture areas. This opens up a new array of inexpensive flooring ideas for a residential or commercial setting, because durable engineered floors can be glued over concrete. Typically engineered hardwood is less expensive than solid, which gives way to more design capabilities, like hand-scraped hardwood flooring. Like any product, the less money spent on resources, the cheaper the flooring. Hand-scraped engineered hardwood flooring came by way of none other than Mr Anderson, who opened up a new design technique, spawning a quarter century of growth. Shaw Floors later purchased Anderson for their ability to design and manufacturer hardwood flooring efficiently. Though not waterproof, engineered floors maintain stability over solid hardwood flooring. Don't discount it wearability though. Engineered floors have the same finish applied as any other floors construct, and can be re-sanded down the road if needed, depending on the veneer thickness. Most engineered floor are manufactured in 3/8" thickness, but some 1/2" thicknesses are available. LM Flooring and Mannington had, at one time, a 3/4" engineered flooring product that were installer over just about any surface. Georgia Carpet industries carries a full line of quality engineered flooring options.