Melamine plywood is a thermally fused, resin saturated paper finish over a particle board core. It is highly stain and abrasion resistant. Melamine is not the name of the paper finish; it’s the name of the resin used to impregnate the paper liner (chemically C3H6N6). This material comes in a wide variety of solid colors and simulated wood grains. Melamine panels are highly stain and mar resistant, and commonly used in the cabinet industry for interior cabinet construction. Depending on the grade of melamine, it can be brittle or soft, coarse or smooth. Typically, the higher grades of melamine are more brittle and will chip during machining but have a thicker surface and greater resistance to abrasion. Typically melamine has a particle board core, however it is also available with a MDF core.