Many manufacturers of decorative wall panels allow their customers to choose the design of the panel, the shape, and sometimes even the material. Apart from that, customers can further cut and reshape the panels once they receive them, according to their needs and the requirements of their project.

Size and Shape
Some standard decorative wall panel sizes are 2400×1200mm , 2700mmx1200mm and 1800mmx600mm. Companies selling them can cut them for you in the required size and shape. A rectangular panel can be made into a square one, or a round one, or even in a triangular one. Whatever the shape you want your panel to be, either the manufacturer or you will be usually able to cut it as needed.

Material
Bagasse, a 100% recyclable material made from sugarcane stalks, is increasingly used for wall panels. Many companies also use medium density fibreboard, and some even use recycled glass. For the fibreboard, the original material is usually around 18mm thick, but after machining, it can become only 6mm thick. All the materials used tend to be light, safe to transport even over long distances, and easy to install.

Design
Decorative wall panels are available in thousands of designs, depending on the company selling them. Most of these designs can be arranged in an either vertical or horizontal pattern. 3D designs are achieved through machining, and can replicate geometrical shapes such as spheres, cubes, waves, splashes, sand, and many more. The colours vary with the material used and with whether or not paint is applied. Customers can often paint wall panels that are not originally painted themselves to change or improve their look over the years.

Finishes
Many finishes are available for decorative wall panels. Depending on the base material the appropriate paint should be used. Special finishes may include gilding, wax, glass beads, mica and glitter. Other finishes available are vinyl finish for a great visual appeal, polyurethane paint for a lustrous finish, metal finishes, wood finishes, and stone finishes. The last three finishes come in thousands of colours and varieties, and they can mimic the metal, wood, or stone perfectly, making them ideal not only for internal, but also external use.

In conclusion, handmade decorative wall panels come in many sizes, shapes, materials, and designs, and they can have a finish that perfectly matches the setting where you want to place them.

Many wall panels are green products manufactured entirely from 100% recyclable raw materials. When it comes to handmade wall panels, many are made from recycled materials such as glass, cloth, plastic, which would have been otherwise thrown away.

3D Wall Panels and Bagasse
The latest 3D wall panels are manufactured from bagasse, a green material made out of crushed sugarcane stalks that remain after the sugar is extracted. Sugarcane is a top renewable resource which can be harvested several times a year, and which has an excellent yield. Its waste, crushed stalks, can be made into bagasse instead of being burned, thus helping conserve energy and create green products. Bagasse is 100% recycled and 100% biodegradable, making it an ideal material for wall panels.

Handmade Wall Panels
Handmade wall panels are usually the creation of creative artists who have set up their own studio, and who employ teams of workers. While the panels they make are not necessarily recyclable, they are often made from recycled materials that would have otherwise gone to waste. Some materials that handmade wall panel makers frequently use are bamboo, glass, plastic, wood, felt, and ceramic.

9 Environmental Benefits of Decorative Wall Panels
• Often made from 100% recyclable materials coming from renewable sources like sugarcane stalks.
• In case of handmade products, sometimes made from recycled materials that would have otherwise been thrown away.
• Easy fixing on any surface reduces the need for building work, which in its turn eliminates use of non-green products.

•  Easy fixing also eliminates the need for drilling, cutting electricity costs.
•  Eliminate the need for engineering reports which often require much paperwork, thus reducing paper usage.

• In the case of outdoor decorative wall panels, high resistance to weather ensures extensive product lifetime, thus reducing the need for building work, which is not only costly, but can also have a negative impact on the local environment.
• The strength and durability of high-quality decorative wall panels reduces the need for frequent internal decoration, which normally requires materials that are not green.
• The fire-resistance and damp- and weather-proofness of many decorative wall panels makes them extremely hard wearing, thus reducing the need for constant replacement and conserving resources.
• Many products are reusable, and can be removed, painted, and reinstalled in other settings, again minimising resource usage.

In conclusion, decorative wall panels have many environmental benefits, for residential as well as corporate use. To get the maximum benefit when buying decorative wall panels, choose high-quality products and look for the green product emblem on the manufacturer’s website.

Whether it’s done indoors or outdoors, for a home or for a corporation, a decorative wall panel installation is best left to professionals. It’s also important to ensure that the professionals installing your panels have actually installed the exact product you have purchased previously, because wall panel manufacturers can use different installation methods for their newer products.

Basic installation

The installation of many 3D Texture panels available in Australia requires no special equipment. They can be installed indoors using adhesive and screws. However, their installation needs to be tight because in time these panels may expand and contract when the room temperature changes (depending on the material used).

Temperature is one of the key factors that needs to be considered when installing decorative wall panels. Both heat and cold could make the adhesive used less effective. It’s critical that when installing panels on a large scale, that is in a corporate environment, the adhesive used is of the best quality possible.

Premium adhesive is often recommended by panel manufacturers. Additional fixing using interior or exterior screws is recommended to ensure the panels stick to the walls.

Tools necessary to install a decorative wall panel include high-quality construction adhesive or glue, screws and drill, and sandpaper. If the panels will need minor cutting, a circular saw may be neccesary.

Essential things you need to know when installing decorative wall panels

Panels must be installed on a level, solid backing. Walls that are not level should be levelled before any panels are installed, to avoid any future problems.

•  Wall panels require beads of adhesive at each end.
•  Joints usually need adhesive as well as screws.
• Some trimming is sometimes necessary to ensure that the panels used fit perfectly.
• Plaster wall screws are best used for screwing an interior panel. Galvanised screws are best used for exterior panels.

• Longer screws should be used for wall panel molded corners, to ensure the corner is attached to the corner fake panels and the wall.

• Once the installation of the wall panel is complete, colour-matching caulk can be used to fill the spaces between the joints and the screw holes.

• Cut edges of the panels can be concealed using aluminium/timber borders or any other materials that can additionally enhance  look of the wall.

Conclusion
Although decorative wall panels can be installed by customers themselves, if they have the necessary tools and follow the instructions in the product manual, installation will be smoother and better if a professional service is used, especially in the corporate environment.

Decorative wall panels are an accessible way for making commercial buildings more beautiful, and enhancing their value. A well-chosen wall panel can make a commercial structure stand out, and with only a minimal expense.

Benefits of wall panels for commercial applications
Decorative wall panels such as those that mimic stone can be used for accent, but also for the entire structure, to change its look dramatically. What’s more, wall panels can be used to give a modern structure the appearance of an old building, thus increasing the chances of local authorities allowing constructions in town centres or other areas where they wish to preserve a heritage look.

Wall panels are lightweight. Their installation is easy when professionals handle it. Although they can look like stone, they weigh much less, and therefore don’t require any structural reinforcement. Sometimes they can even be installed by your own team.

Types of wall panels for commercial applications
Wall panels come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and they can also be customised by the purchaser. Here are some popular products sold by Australian manufacturers:

• 3D wall panel textures including brown and black leather, grey leather tiles, wave, cubes, circles, triangles, squares, arabesque, driftwood, elephant, erosion, rhythm, sand. 3D textures comes in hundreds of striking colours, from milky white to pitch black.
• 3D wall panels that mimic brick are extremely varied. They can faithfully reproduce historic brick, contemporary brick, rustic brick, ledge brick, riverstone, stonewall, coral wall, granite, field stone, castle stone, and garden stone. All are available in several colours, so you can always find what you need.
• 3D wall panels with creative textures can come as ellipses, vaults, gaps, sweeps, pitches, splashes, kites, craters, tetris, flows, pebbles, sands, and many others.

In addition to these, some decorative wall panel makers allow customers to place custom orders, choosing their own desired texture, based on a photo for example. Using latest generation processes, companies can replicate many patters and effects into 100% recyclable wall panels made from bagasse.

Conclusion
In the end, decorative wall panels, whether used indoors or outdoors, can prove to be an excellent investment for companies that want to make their structures stand out or blend in without doing major renovation, and without spending too much. Their lightness, quick installation, durability and resistance, easy removal, affordability compared to traditional construction materials, all make decorative wall panels a worthwhile investment.

Wood panels enhance the look of interior spaces, adding elegance, warmth and natural beauty to homes and offices. The demand for construction timber, however, has led to indiscriminate logging activities that contribute to global warming, cause the extinction of wood species and wreak irreparable damage to the environment. Innovative solutions such as composite panels are ideal ways of incorporating the aesthetics of timber without the harmful consequences on the environment.

About composite wood panels

Composite panels containing wood, also known as engineered wood composites, are typically made of wood fibres or sawdust obtained from real hardwood which may be shredded or ground to a fine pulp. The extracted fibres are then dried and mixed with epoxy or other binding agent and formed into sheets under high levels of heat and pressure. The resulting products may be known in the market as particle board or hardboard.

Advantages over timber

Less timber used: The engineering process behind composite wood panels uses smaller dimensions of timber as raw material, yet it can be manufactured to create larger dimension composite decorative wall panels.

Lighter than timber: The dried wood fibres that are found in the composite material carry less moisture and weigh less than ordinary wood materials. With their lighter weight, shipping and installation costs are lower, and many homeowners are able to work with composites using ordinary tools at home.

Stronger than timber: Its lighter weight, however, does not make it a weak material. Without the breaks in the natural fibre of ordinary timber, composite wood panels tend to be stronger and are suitable for standing walls, furniture frames and other heavy duty interior purposes.

Eco friendly: Composites use only smaller dimensions of ordinary wood, allowing manufacturers to obtain raw materials from smaller trees which are easily replanted for sustainability.

Resistant to warping: The manufacturing process involves heat and pressure which leave the composite products with low moisture content, making them resistant to warping, twisting and distortion. The finished product ordinarily retains its shape and size.

Depending on the manufacturing process used, composite wood panels may possess high density core resin material with proprietary acrylic coverings for a wide range of durability, strength and design options. High quality composite wood panel systems are ideal for indoor use although more high quality panel systems may be engineered for exterior use as well. Composite panels are readily available in the market and may be sourced online.

Decorative wall panels can be made from many different materials, including wood, stone, fibreboard, polymers, and last but not least, bagasse, which is made from crushed sugarcane stalks.

Fibreboard
Usually moisture resistant, fibreboard has a raw face and a white melamine back. The raw face can be finished in many different patterns, depending on the 3D finishing technology the provider offers, and on the needs of the customer. This material is durable and resistant. The fibre sources come from Australian forests, mostly softwood. Fibreboard is one of the greenest materials used for decorative wall panels, meeting GECA standards.

Polymers
18mm polymer is often used for outdoor decorative wall panels because of its durability and remarkable properties. Besides being light, strong, and flexible, it is also self- extinguishing, pest-resistant, non-corrosive, and waterproof. Moreover, it can be installed in multiple ways, including through drilling and screwing.

Stone
Granite, slate, onyx, and sometimes even marble are all used for decorative wall panels. These are usually mounted on a support base, to make them easier to handle and install. The base is always concealed though, so in terms of appearance, these panels look just like the authentic stone. Decorative wall panels can have a face that mimics castle stone, field stone, garden stone, cut granite, stone wall, and even coral block.

Woods
There are many varieties of decorative wall panels made of wood. Both softwoods and hardwoods are used. Many companies have developed their own technologies for copying realistically the appearance of wood, without actually using wood but recyclable materials, thus minimising the negative impact of their products on the environment.

Bamboo
Some Australian manufacturers offer bamboo decorative panels, often 100% handmade. Bamboo wall panels can be used both inside and outside, as bamboo is durable and long lasting, and if subjected to the right treatment, weather resistant even in bad weather. Bamboo wall panels typically maintain the original appearance of bamboo.

Bagasse
3D decorative wall panels made from bagasse are increasingly popular in Australia. They are green products, made from a 100% biodegradable material obtained from sugarcane stalks. Bagasse panels are also pleasing visually, being typically milky white, decorated with 3D patterns.

These are the basic materials used by Australian manufacturers for decorative wall panels. But you have to keep in mind that many companies constantly develop new wall panel manufacturing technologies and improving existing processes, often by using new raw materials. Things are constantly changing in this field.