FROM CRADTETO

What begins as a seedling in our nursery grows strong in our forests and reaches its full potential in our lumber manufacturing facility.

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Moundville, Alabama westerveltlumber.com pine not only provides protection from decay and insect attack, it's manufactured from the South's renewable, sustainable forests using much less energy than non-wood alternative products.

Certified chain of custody Southern Yellow Pine wood productsdimension lumber, timbers, boards, and pattern stock - produced by Westervelt Lumber bring superior quality to the customer, and i ntegrity to our organization's long-standing environmental commitment.

WATERFRONT structures represent more opportunities for dealers to increase sales of treated southem oine lumber.

On a regular basis, dealers must face customers when treated lumber does not perform as advertised. In recent years, there's been an ongoing issue regarding the misapplication of treated materials-using lumber intended to be above ground in ground-contact situations. Poor performance of treated lumber often requires an educational effort on the part of the dealer, and SFPA is available to help.

SFPA's 2014 edition of its popular booklet Pressure-Treated Southern Pine provides information to assist dealers and distributors with the proper specification and use of pressuretreated products. "This edition presents a fresh look from the user's perspective," notes SFPA's Eric Gee, director of lumber products.

Following an introduction to wood preservatives, tables list common preservatives and retentions by product and end use. Specification guidelines are included, along with sections covering fasteners and connectors, design values and proper storage, among other topics. Two pages are devoted to eight primary applications for treated SP, with references to helpful SFPA websites and related publications. A free PDF can be downloaded from the publications page of www.SouthernPine.com.

This comprehensive pressure treated guide is just one volume in SFPA's Lumber Library. Other recently updated booklets include Southern Pine Decks & Porches, which now includes changes made to American Wood Council's prescriptive residential deck construction guide.

Whether building a deck or the foundation for a new home, dealers can rely on other SFPA websites for more detailed information. For orofessional deck builders and advanced do-it-yourselfers, www.SouthernPineDecks.com is a comprehensive resource for construction guidelines to build decks and porches using treated southern pine lumber. For a cost- effective foundation option, especially on sloping or floodprone properties, dealers can visit www.RaisedFloorliving.com and learn about the features and benefits of building a home on a raised wood floor foundation system. Instructive video segments are linked to this site, offering expert guidance for issues including insulation techniques and moisture management in closed crawlspaces.

Treated Wood for Marine Uses

Here's an interesting fact for lumber dealers to ponder: The majority of America's population lives within 100 miles of a coastline. There's widespread, ongoing demand for materials to build docks, piers, retaining walls and other waterfront structures. The durability and versatility of treated southem pine fills the bill.

Most recently, SFPA released a new edition of its Marine Construction Guide. This comprehensive 4O-page booklet provides information to assist with the proper specification and use of pressure-treated southern pine materials for docks, piers, bulkheads, pedestrian walkways, and light vehicular bridges. Separate design recommendations are made for fresh water, brackish and salt water environments. A free PDF can be downloaded from the publications page of SouthernPine.com.

"This edition focuses on the needs of design professionals and marine contractors," notes Gee. "It represents a complete reorganization and revision of the previous edition, formerly titled Aquatic & Wetland Structures."

Following an introduction to southern pine lumber and timber sizes and properties, tables list preservative specifications for typical end-use applications, along with minimum retentions in pounds per cubic ft. Decking specifications and installation guidelines are provided, with details on proper fasteners and connectors. Sixteen pages are devoted to construction details, illustrating the use of both round and square piles for bulkheads, construction of fixed and floating piers, plus details for handrails. Framing details for walkways and light vehicular bridges includes information about using southern pine glued laminated timbers for docks, piers and bridges.

Also new to this edition is a glossary of marine con- struction terminology, plus an updated listing of additional sources of treated wood product information, with references to helpful SFPA websites and publications. As common uses and preservatives change over time, SFPA will update this PDF and keep the latest information available online.

Promising Offshore Markets

For more than 30 years, SFPA has cooperated with other wood product organizations, working in concert with the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) to promote export sales and marketing opportunities for America's softwood lumber products.

This year, SFPA will manage funding from FAS to promote southern pine lumber use overseas. Target markets include Europe, Japan, China, Korea and Southeast Asia, Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, the Middle East, India and South Africa. SFPA's participation in the FAS programs has resulted in the development of product promotion materials translated in a dozen languages, avail- able for free PDF download from SFPA's international website, www.SouthernPineGlobal.com.

Certainly, the benchmark of the southern pine industry is domestic sales. However, emerging world markets for exports-such as China, India, South America, and the Middle Easthave recorded dramatic increases in southern pine import volumes, and will continue to be a focus of SFPA activities for years to come.

This year, SFPA'; internarional website features an expanded Export Product Locator, now including listings of 35 member companies of the Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association. Customers worldwide can now search more sources ofquality southern pine materials. Like the domestic site, interested customers who visit www.SouthernPineGlobal.com can submit a lumber ourchase inquiry that SFPA relays to member exporting companies.

On a regular basis, SFPA hosts foreign trade delegations to introduce influential importers to the availability and sustainability of American softwood products. Recently, SFPA hosted delegations from Turkey, Pakistan and Thailand, touring sawmills, export agents, treating plants, and managed forests.

9nllne SFPA.orgGateway:

Everything SFPA offers to dealers can be accessed from a single online portal: www.SFPA.org. Here is your master index, delivering links to SFPA's collection of websites covering the gamut of information for specifying and using southern pine in virtually any application.

SFPA's communications plan includes a social media presence. Dealers and distributors can follow SFPA on Twitter, @Southern_Pine to receive the latest news and other important updates of new materials available to help them sell more lumber. A collection of more than 30 informative video segments are posted on SFPA's YouTube channel: southernpinelumber.

Founded as the Southern Pine Association in 1915, the name was changed to the Southern Forest Products Association in 1970. This year, SFPA celebrates 100 years of service to the southern pine lumber industry, its customers, and building professionals around the world.