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Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc.

Street Address: 225 Hanrick Street

Montgomery, AL 36104-3317

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 2268

Montgomery, AL 36102-2268

Telephone: 334-834-1170

Fax 334-834-4525

Publisher David H. Ramsey

Chief Operating Officer Dianne C. Sullivan

Editor-In-Chief Rich Donnell

Senior Editor Dan Shell

Senior Editor David Abbott

Senior Editor Jessica Johnson

Contributing Editor Fred Kurpiel

Publisher/Editor Emeritus David (DK) Knight

Production Manager/Art Director

Cindy Segrest

Ad Production Coordinator

Patti Campbell

Circulation Director

Rhonda Thomas

Online Content & Marketing Manager

Jacqlyn Kirkland

Advertising Sales Manager

David H. Ramsey

(334) 834-1170

ADVERTISING SALES REPRESENTATIVES

SOUTHERN U.S.

Kathy Sternenberg • (251) 928-4962 ksternenberg@bellsouth.net

Classified Advertising

Bridget DeVane • (334) 669-7837 • 1-800-669-5613 bdevane7@hotmail.com

MIDWEST USA, EASTERN CANADA

John Simmons

Mar-Tech Communications

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E-mail: jsimmons@idirect.com

WESTERN USA, WESTERN CANADA

Tim Shaddick

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604-910-1826

Fax: (604) 264-1397

E-mail: twshaddick@gmail.com

Kevin Cook (604) 619-1777

E-mail: lordkevincook@gmail.com

INTERNATIONAL

Murray Brett

58 Aldea de las Cuevas

Buzon 60

03759 Benidoleig (Alicante), Spain

Tel: +34 96 640 4165

+34 96 640 4048

E-mail: murray.brett@abasol.net

HECK OF A COMMERCIAL DISPUTE T

he temporary closure of Structurlam’s Conway, Ark. cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glulam plant and the apparent severing of the plant’s relationship as a major supplier for Walmart’s new low carbon footprint and energy efficient corporate campus in nearby Bentonville marks yet another growing pain for an industry that’s just getting started realizing its amazing potential.

In 2019 Structurlam announced that the new campus project was to be fed by Structurlam’s new CLT facility that included a $90 million investment to upgrade a former steel mill and convert it to a CLT plant. Structurlam would become the “exclusive supplier of mass timber products” to the new Walmart home office campus, covering 350 acres, two million square feet of floor space and multiple office buildings.

The project moved along, and many were surprised in January this year when Structurlam officials announced the plant would be closing due to a customer contract cancellation, and we can only assume it means Walmart, though Structurlam refers now only to the “customer,” and says there are no plans to enter into a new commercial agreement. Walmart has announced it is still committed to its new HQ project and would be looking at other suppliers.

As to what happened, Structurlam CEO Matthew Karmel refers to it as a “commercial dispute, but we cannot discuss the specifics.” More specifically, according to sources in the CLT industry, the plant may have “overcommitted” to Walmart while dealing with startup issues, and there may have been dispute over product quality or composition. Then again, Structurlam started up and began delivering product in the teeth of the pandemic, experiencing supply chain issues and lumber price increases that weren’t planned for.

Following the 2021 bankruptcy of Katerra and its CLT plant in Spokane, Wash.—which set out to revolutionize the construction industry using pre-fab

building and mass timber construction principles but couldn’t get out of its own way—the mass timber industry had re-gained the momentum, and is definitely expanding as designers, engineers and architects learn more about it. A couple of recent developments:

● Officials with Freres Lumber in Lyons, Ore. report their mass plywood p lant is booked out several months of production and is supplying a large 18story mass timber office building project in California, working with a major commercial builder that recently started a new mass timber building division.

● CLT producer Smartlam in Dothan, Ala. recently announced an expansion to add a new glulam beam line.

Back to Structurlam, CEO Karmel says the state-of-the-art Conway plant has met the vigorous startup challenges “with flying colors—its cross-laminated timber and glulam production capabilities already exceed its plan objectives and its processes have been validated repeatedly by the APA to exceed U.S. regulatory standards.” And, Karmel adds, Structurlam is in a strong position to resume Conway operations as the rapid growth of mass timber across North America continues to drive demand for manufacturing capacity.

That is, with Walmart out of the way, the Conway facility now has the ability to support new customers with more than 1 million cubic feet annually of mass timber products.

and hold Plywood & Panel World, Inc. harmless from and against any loss, expenses, or other liability resulting from any claims or lawsuits for libel violations or right of privacy or publicity, plagiarism, copyright or trademark infringement and any other claims or lawsuits that may arise out of publication of such advertisement. Plywood & Panel World, Inc. neither endorses nor makes any representation or guarantee as to the quality of goods and services advertised in Panel World. Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. reserves the right to reject any advertisement which it deems inappropriate. Copyright ® 2023. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Printed in USA.

BRETT PAVED WAY ABROAD FOR PW

Alan Douglas Brett, who in the latter half of his career led the international advertising sales growth of Panel World magazine, and whose vigorous life included professional motor cycle speedway racing as a young man and a long stint as sales manager with the Daily Telegraph in London, died January 16 following health issues at his villa at Aldea de las Cuevas, Benidoleig, Alicante, Spain. He was 86.

Brett sold magazine advertising space for Montgomery, Alabama, U.S.-based Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. and affiliate Panel World from 1984 to 2006 and also sold for other trade publications. He worked from his office and home residence in Box Hill, Surrey, just southwest of London, until in 1993 he and his wife, Rita, purchased their dream home in Spain, where he continued to work until his retirement, when he turned over his international sales role for Hatton-Brown and his overall business to his son, Murray Brett.

“Alan was the most detailed person I had ever met—after years of dealing with sales people who were the complete opposite,” recalls David Ramsey, publisher of Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. who hired Brett. “He was a happy man and lived his life as such. He came from a tough childhood but lived his life his way. I shall miss him.”

Hatton-Brown and Panel World Editor-in-Chief Rich Donnell remembers,

coming. Alan became close friends for life with many of the marketing people of the exhibitor companies.”

Brett was born in Kingston Hospital on December 23, 1936. His last name was Kingham at birth but he never knew his father, and his mother Kathleen remarried to Earnest Brett and Alan adopted the Brett name. Brett was raised by his mother and in his late teen years by an aunt and cousins in New Malden South London. A sister, Jill, was born after the war.

Brett was a “war baby” and due to the heavy bombing of South London he went to stay with a mining family in Nottingham, but experienced bombing in the industrial Midland as well. The war experience contributed to Brett’s lifelong passion as an amateur historian of World

springing up everywhere due to the wasteland available after the war. In his teen years Brett raced cycle speedway and attended high school at Wimbledon Technical College.

In 1954 he started to race competitively as a professional motor cycle speedway rider and in 1955 he represented Eastbourne and Wimbledon before big crowds throughout Europe. He mixed with many of his childhood heroes and champions—Ronnie Moore, Barry Briggs, Ivan Mauger, Ove Fundin and Peter Cravan.

But in 1956 Brett’s highly promising speedway career was cut short due to a terrible leg injury. He suffered it during a practice session when the bike in front of him crashed, sending Brett from behind over the top of his bike before a third rider rode over Brett’s leg. However, while in the hospital Brett met Rita Hammerton, who was a professional dancer working at The Windmill Theatre in Soho and they were ultimately married in 1960.

His dream of racing motorcycles shattered, Brett entered the newspaper industry and sons Neil and Murray were born. Brett’s career progressed to Classified Sales Manager at the Daily Telegraph were he would stay for 20 years, meanwhile moving the family to their ideal home in Box Hill, Surrey with a huge garden backing on to heathland.

Brett left the Daily Telegraph and set up his own company, selling advertising for various trade publications, eventually landing with Hatton-Brown Publishers. Brett was a pioneer of “remote working,” running his British business from Spain after moving there with Rita.

Brett enjoyed his life immensely in Spain, especially helping out the elderly and was a big supporter of the local Careline Theatre, holding the position of Front of House.

Brett’s wife Rita died in 2021 and Brett chose to continue his life in their villa until his peaceful passing, surrounded with love by his family and caregivers. He is survived by his sons and their spouses, Neil (Simone) and Murray (Liz), five granddaughters, and his sister, Jill. PW

TRIBAL FOCUS ON SEVERAL ACRES OF PUBLIC WETLANDS DOOMS HUBER OSB PROJECT IN MINNESOTA

“Once again, the state of Minnesota is giving the finger to good companies trying to create jobs here. Huber has been a phenomenal community partner everywhere they have operated, with a sterling environmental record. Huber was bringing hope to a community that needed some good news. It is disappointing the

Leech Lake Band—and now the court of appeals—would stand in the way of that.”

That’s how Minnesota State Senator Justin Eichorn (R-Grand Rapids) responded to a Minnesota Court of Appeals decision in early February that would have caused further delay in the construction of a $440 million OSB plant by Huber Engineered Woods in Cohasset, but instead immediately prompted Huber to pull out of the project and begin looking to another state for the development of its sixth OSB plant.

HEW President Brian Carlson states, “Due to delays that jeopardize our ability to meet product demand deadlines, we will pursue development of our sixth mill in another state.” Carlson says the company appreciates the strong support provided by a range of Minnesota constituents, including “state, county, city and local officials, government and private sector community development groups, and the residents of Itasca County, and that the Huber team looks forward to maintaining a constructive relationship in the state.”

HEW announced in June 2021 its plan

additional job and growth opportunities for area logging and trucking operations. But in a ruling on an appeal from the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe (its reservation is a mile west of the proposed plant) and the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, the court of appeals said the Cohasset city planners’ earlier decision to only require an Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) of the project, and not require a more detailed

Huber OSB packaging line in Spring City.

UPDATE

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) needed to be re-addressed by the city because of issues involving a few acres of two “public waters wetlands” that state law would require an EIS for.

The state of Minnesota requires a “responsible governmental unit,” such as a city planning body, to determine if a project requires an EAW or EIS, or both.

The appeal from Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy also asked the court to weigh the environmental effects potentially caused by air emissions from the new OSB plant and from the volume of timber harvesting that the plant would require. The city had determined there would be no significant environmental effects from either, given the permitting and planning requirements the project would require going in. The appeals court ruled in favor of the city as to “no significant environmental effects” and against the Band and the Minnesota environmental group.

But the court took to task the city’s determination that an EAW was enough for

the project with regard to public wetlands. Huber initially submitted an EAW and then, at the city’s request—following additional consultation and review from local citizens, state agencies, and other interested parties, and providing more information about the health of Minnesota’s forests and their ability to sustainably supply the facility, and providing more detail on the project’s carbon footprint, especially regarding the effects of generating much of the facility’s energy needs through wood fuels, and the carbon sequestration effects of the finished wood products—re-submitted the EAW, which the city accepted while deciding an EIS wasn’t necessary.

The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe appealed, and the appeals court agreed, that the facility “falls into categories” for which an EIS is mandatory under Minnesota law, specifically as to the elimination of public waters wetland.

The city had determined that the project would not eliminate public water wetlands. But the court focused on two small public waters wetlands, which the

court said are “accorded greater protection under state law” and should require an EIS beyond an EAW.

The court noted that the state’s definition of public waters wetlands is 10 or more acres in size in unincorporated areas and at least two and a half or more acres in incorporated areas. Huber’s EAW explained that its project would involve filling portions of two public waters wetlands, both in incorporated areas: 8.73 of 14.27 acres in one and 1.65 of 5.67 in another, and that while there would be a reduction in the size of each, it wouldn’t “eliminate” the public waters in question and only reduce the size, and thus not require an EIS. The city agreed that the partially filled public water wetlands would not fall below the 2.5 acre threshold after the partial filling.

The appeals court, however, said the state law did not explain what it means to “eliminate” a public waters wetland, and took the liberty to base its ruling that “eliminate” can also mean to “modify” the public waters wetlands, and ruled that because the project would alter the char-

acteristics of the public wetlands the city should apply this legal standard and re-assess whether an EIS is necessary.

The Leech Lake Band also said the public waters wetlands fillings would have significant environmental effects that should require an EIS and that the city failed to consider these. The Band said the wetlands Huber planned to fill are a filter for water quality that nearby wild-rice beds depend upon, and removing the wetland filters would be harmful to the water quality that the rice requires. The court agreed, noting the city did not investigate or explain how wetlands replacement (as the project would entail) or stormwater controls would protect the wild-rice bed and other resources downstream.

The court said the city should reconsider given these stipulations and then issue a revised decision on the need for an EIS. Huber’s withdrawal from the project apparently now renders such an exercise as unnecessary.

“The court decision issued today is a major victory for the Leech Lake Band of

Ojibwe and serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of respecting the sovereignty and treaty rights of indigenous nations,” comments Band Chairman Faron Jackson, Sr. “The proposed OSB mill project posed a clear threat to our sacred resources, including wild rice and wildlife, while bypassing an important step in the environmental review process.”

Upon the announcement of Huber’s departure, Tamara Lowney, president of Itasca Economic Development Corp., told the Duluth News Tribune, “Today really feels like a funeral in my office, saying goodbye to the biggest opportunity that our region and our northern part of the state has seen in decades.”

The project would have replaced lost jobs and tax base as the adjacent Boswell coal-fired energy plant shuts down its coal burning units and possibly reconfigures to renewable energy sources.

The Cohasset OSB mill would have been Huber’s sixth, following facilities in Maine, Georgia, Virginia, Tennessee and Oklahoma. Had the timeline not been delayed from the outset, Huber’s construc-

tion of the plant would have occurred during the current OSB market softening, possibly putting it in prime position upon startup to take advantage of the next market strengthening. PW

CLUTTER KNEW FOREST ECONOMICS

Dr. Michael Lee Clutter, who served as Dean of the University of Georgia Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources from 2007-2015, and was a noted expert in his field, died on December 24. He was 63.

Clutter was considered an authority on the economics of the forestry industry, including finance, budgeting, timberland management and timber supply and sizing trends. Early in his career he held various management positions with GeorgiaPacific Corp. and Union Camp Corp. in Savannah. Joining Warnell’s faculty in 2001, he was later named the Hargreaves Distinguished Professor of Forest Finance and received the Warnell School’s Faculty Award for Outstanding Teaching.

Richie LeBlanc provides insights on himself, Hunt Forest Products and the wood products industry in this question-and-answer exchange with Panel World.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Since this is the March issue of Panel World, and March means baseball (to some people), what better person to interview than Richie LeBlanc, president and CEO of Louisiana-based Hunt Forest Products, LLC? No, we’re not interviewing him about baseball, because his insights into the forest products industry take center stage here. But before we get to that…a

belated congrats goes to LeBlanc for being inducted into the Louisiana Tech 2021 Athletics Hall of Fame. LeBlanc, from Lafayette, was the Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year in 1986 and 1987 and led Ruston-located La Tech to the NCAA Regionals both seasons. His 12 wins in 1986 is still tied for the school’s most wins in a season, and his 29 career wins is second. He also completed 18 games, nearly unheard of today. They still talk about his 10-inning 5-4 win over perennial power LSU at J.C. Love Field in 1987. The Kansas City Royals drafted LeBlanc and he proceeded to pitch well as he moved up the minor league ranks, but he decided to start the next phase of his life, wrapping up his business degree at La Tech and working with an insurance agency as vice president in Ruston for 10 years, before joining Willamette Industries in Ruston and then Weyerhaeuser after Weyerhaeuser acquired Willamette in early 2002 following a prolonged takeover battle. He initially served on the integration team, charged with merging the cultures of Willamette and Weyerhaeuser. He became the land adjustment program manager of Weyerhaeuser’s North Louisiana timberlands organization. In 2015, he was named director of U.S. real estate operations for Weyerhaeuser. Legendary familyowned Hunt Forest Products appointed LeBlanc as president in 2016. In addition to its timberland assets, the compa-

ny continues to operate a plywood mill in Pollock, La. and in recent years has partnered with Tolko Industries at a newly constructed sawmill in Urania, La. and also at a sawmill under construction in Taylor, La.

PW: You have a broader perspective, given your company’s (and your own career) involvement in panel, lumber and timberland. We keep hearing about softening of markets, but then again, we’re moving into spring; overall, what’s your take and expectations on the building products marketplace through this year and into next? The forecasts at the recent APA meeting were pretty soft.

LeBlanc: You are correct. The APA forecast was somewhat soft. However, we have and will continue to be optimistic that markets—albeit, not like we had experienced since May of 2020— will continue to be good. During the last several years we have witnessed very strong market takeaway. Our focus during that time was to capitalize our mill to ensure when the markets returned to “normal” pricing, we would continue to operate efficiently. We never lost sight of where the markets had been and would return.

PW: We hear about labor issues affecting operations across so many industries. Is Hunt seeing this as well, and what initiative is Hunt taking to

LEBLANC HAS SETTLED IN AS LEADER OF LONGTIME CLOSELY HELD HUNT FOREST PROUCTS

“You have to learn and improve every day if you want to move to the next level.”

attract, train and retain employees, and also to procure younger talent into the industry?

LeBlanc: Labor issues are a common theme at many industry events across the U.S. In the last several years we have experienced many challenges that impacted our work force…Covid, hurricanes, ice and snow storms. Our owners and partners agreed with the company’s leadership to pay all hourly employees during these events that caused extended downtime at our mills. I feel strongly that how we treat our employees during these uncertain times has helped us retain our talent during these trying times. We were able to take advantage of the favorable markets and provide additional bonuses to our employees. We recognize that it is both a business and strategic imperative that talent must be developed from within the organization. Our owners and leadership are committed to

helping develop employees and give them the tools and skills necessary to increase employee engagement, thereby enhancing performance.

PW: Developing a company culture continues to be a growing theme. Is Hunt invested in this and what are the keys to its successful implementation?

LeBlanc: When we took over in 2016, we started molding the company’s culture into a system that is proactive with respect to safety, capitalization, automation, growth, and development of people. This was a tremendous change from where the company was prior to the change of ownership within the Hunt family. Trott and Jimmy Hunt have and continue to advocate growth both within existing assets and new projects like the greenfield lumber mill in Urania, La. and the most recent announcement of the new mill in Taylor, La.

PW: Given your experience with timberlands, there has been discussion about potential conflicts with carbon credit programs that could essentially take forestland out of timber production. How closely does that bear watching?

LeBlanc: I am by no means an expert in the carbon credit markets. I do believe there are areas that can be set aside without much impact to timber production. As we have seen, this is a very dynamic space that will continue to evolve.

PW: Is there a possibility that Hunt will enter mass timber production, again give the company’s combined panel and lumber expertise? And what about any expansion plans the company may have in panel?

LeBlanc: We have and will continue to grow our business within our core competencies. As with carbon markets, finding new ways to utilize the renewable resource we have in wood products

the table with respect to any growth opportunities within this space.

PW: Given your recent appointment to the board of APA—The Engineered Wood Assn. and the everevolving dynamics of the building products industries, how do you see APA’s role moving forward and what would you like to contribute to it?

LeBlanc: For those in our industry, they understand that the APA has a long history of dedicated scientists and engineers who through their research efforts continue to provide new solutions and improved processes that benefit our industry. I want to be part of the group that continues to tell the story and to help ensure that standards are maintained.

PW: Given your diverse experience in the industry through the years, provide a few reflections on what the industry has meant to your development of character and professionalism?

LeBlanc: It certainly has been an interesting ride. I joined Willamette in 2000 not knowing much about wood products. My role was more administrative than operational. Shortly, after joining the Willamette team, Weyerhaeuser announced their bid to acquire Willamette. I was asked to be part of the integration team that would bring the two companies together. It was an incredible experience, some good and some not so good. As with any merger, there are many people that were displaced. That was a difficult time because Willamette had such a significant presence in Ruston, Louisiana. However, with Hot Springs, Arkansas just to our north, the redundancy in services was unnecessary.

I made mistakes along the way, but fortunately worked for leaders that supported me through some of those events. I learned from those experiences and one of the most important

Long-running plywood mill keeps picking up the pace. Timber base and supply remains strong for Hunt Forest Products.

lessons I learned was what type of leader I wanted to be.

PW: How did you come to be with Hunt Forest Products?

LeBlanc: Joining the Hunt team was all about timing. The Hunt Brothers needed someone to oversee the company and I was in Seattle with Weyerhaeuser at the time. My son became very ill and my wife had already returned to Ruston. I remember telling my team at Weyerhaeuser, “It’s easy to say that family comes first right up until that time when you have to make the decision to leave Weyerhaeuser and return to Ruston to take care of family matters.” I also remember the day Trott Hunt called…same day I found out that my son was ill.

PW: What’s it like to lead a familyfounded company like Hunt, and what lessons learned perhaps through your sporting days do you continue to bring to the leadership table today?

LeBlanc: The Hunt family has a long history of success in the North Louisiana Piney Woods. Being part of that history is certainly special. In the seven years I have been part of this company, we have experienced the peaks and the valleys. I tell my team it is our responsibility to leave this company in better shape than we found it for the next generation of Hunts.

When people ask about working with family companies, I tell them that the biggest difference is that your shareholders are sitting in church with you— it’s hard to hide from them in our small town. Therefore, we have to ensure our actions are sound business decisions and what will be the effect. It is similar to playing minor league baseball: You have to learn and improve every day if you want to move to the next level. Once you stop wanting to learn and improve, your career is over.

PW: If you had to pick out a major challenge the industry (and Hunt) faces moving forward, what would it be?

LeBlanc: I believe labor will continue to be challenging in the future—not only from the employment side but also from the knowledge side of our business. We are seeing employees retire after working for the Hunt family for 40+ years. That is quite a bit of knowledge walking out the door. We have to transfer that knowledge and train our people to make sure what we are doing is sustainable over time. PW

Hunt Forest Products keeps its head in the game through sponsorship at the Ruston Parks and Recreation Center Sports Complex, doubly appreciated by 8-year-olds Alex Anderson, left, and Fitz Anderson, sons of PW Senior Editor Jessica Johnson.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following companies submitted these editorial profiles and images to complement their advertisements placed elsewhere in this issue. Please refer to those advertisements for web site and contact information. All statements and claims are attributable to the companies.

ARGOS SOLUTIONS

It has been more than 10 years since Argos developed and delivered its first Panel Repair System (PRS). The advanced system was delivered to one of the major panel producers in Finland, allowing them to repair wooden surfaces more efficiently and accurately, while maintaining high production speed.

Now, Argos Solutions is the leading developer and producer of both Automatic Surface Grading and Panel Repair Systems. With a demonstrated record of providing efficient and trustworthy solutions to the industry, they have established themselves as an innovative and reliable supplier and partner to panel manufacturers all over the world.

Over the past year, the company has secured deliveries to major companies in Chile, the U.S., Canada and France, and there are several prospects in the pipeline.

“We see a growing demand in the market for PRS systems,” says Richard Lepine, General Manager for Argos Solutions, North America. “The reasons for this are many, but I believe that our reputation in the market, the reliability and accuracy of our systems combined with an outstanding service team make us an attractive partner when producers are looking to address the shortage in labor forces, reduce downgrade and rework, enhance quality, reduce cost and optimize their production processes.”

The lack of personnel, combined with increased production speed and increasing quality requirements, forces many producers to think differently about how they best can utilize the resources they have, and how they can create an attractive workplace that motivates their people to stay and further develop themselves, as well as the company. By installing automatic repair systems that are faster, more accurate, and more reliable than the human eye, panel manufacturers can be sure to deliver the quality their customers expect. It also allows them to relocate their valuable human resources to other operations.

Oregon-based Swanson Group is one of the companies that has benefited from an Argos Panel Repair System. Quality Control Manager Shawn Crager is very positive about the system:

“Part of what makes our company unique is that we handle many different types of hardwood, and the specifications for repairs and grain pattern complexity varies. We needed a system that could handle our many requirements. This PRS system is awesome, and the quality of repairs is unmatchable. In addition to being a reliable and sturdy system, the cost savings have been remarkable. The Argos system uses only a fraction of the poly and putty, reducing the cost compared to how we worked earlier.”

Argos Solutions has delivered more than 300 systems to more than 40 countries across the world.

BAUMER

Baumer ColourBrain CPL 4.0 is a state-of-the-art inspection system developed for hybrid manufactured CPL decorated both digitally and in gravure. The special features of both manufacturing worlds are combined in one system and can detect all significant deviations. Furthermore, with the improved evaluation of the overlay paper, even minor, weakly visible defects are detected in all decorations. A special process ensures that the actual decor, as opposed to defects, is almost completely suppressed.

Thanks to the patented FlashingSky and other high-performance evaluation channels, process defects such as bubbles, decor particles (also of the same color as the actual decor), milkiness, gloss deviations, breaks and cracks can be reliably detected. The system also detects typical digital printing defects such as nozzle or printhead failures.

Detected defects are directly marked, alarmed and, if required, recorded in a roll log. This enables the press operator to immediately identify and eliminate the causes of process-related defects. On the other hand, the roll log enables him to remove defective areas in a targeted manner in later process steps.

The CPL 4.0 system features a new, intuitive touch user interface. The Baumer “Dashboard” provides an overview of the current production. The inspection results with defect logs as well as the production statistics are displayed scalable in different zoom levels over different production sections—from a single to several hundred running meters.

By using templates, Baumer Inspection creates order and clarity in product data management. Similarly structured products are grouped together so that suitable inspection settings do not have to be found for hundreds or thousands of different CPL items, but only for a handful of templates.

The ColourBrain CPL 4.0 system is ready for Q-Live. This enables consistent data management to systematically compare several CPL 4.0 systems in a plant or group, thus ensuring that the same article is assessed with the same criteria in different lines or locations.

The CPL 4.0 systems are calibrated and preset in a standardized manner at Baumer so that commissioning can be carried out quickly

Argos PRS has come on strong in the past decade.

Endless inspection for digital and gravure decorated CPL

and with the shortest possible line downtime.

A high level of operational reliability is achieved through the self-monitoring functions and the reporting of changes such as temperature increases, illumination losses, failure of computers, cameras, luminaires or deposits on luminaires or mirrors.

For years, Baumer Inspection has followed the strategy of developing and manufacturing the critical core components such as cameras, computers, illumination and control modules in close cooperation with the resources in the Baumer Group. This pays off several times over. The success is the control of the supply chains and the adherence to the promised delivery dates.

BIELE GROUP

Biele Group has been developing and supplying its self-developed Quality Control System for many years in order to give additional value to its complete turnkey lines supplied to customers.

In recent years Biele has been focusing its efforts on providing these vision solutions in various lines in multiple sectors, including:

—Door Press and Trimming lines

—HPL Trimming lines

—Furniture Packaging lines

—Embossed in Register (EIR) Pressing lines for panel and for flooring

—Veneer Sheets Processing lines

Moreover, Biele Group is providing customized high-end handling solutions that synchronized with its Quality Control System maximizes the optimization of different processes, including automatic outsorting and insorting systems of panels and sorting and stacking of different quality panels.

One of the latest examples is a complete manufacturing line for residential doors, where Biele has included a brand new quality control technology. This cutting-edge technology integrates in a small form factor vision system (only 750 mm wide) 14 cameras to detect defects in all six sides of the doors.

The artificial vision equipped in this line enables the system to detect up to 40 different types of defects. These imperfections include knot holes, resin pockets, skin delaminating, split timber, glue on face, water marks, trim damage, poor trim, loose lip, open joint or face decoloration.

The key to this technology is to merge and synchronize in only one vision system what normally would be done by means of three or four different systems. The other key remains on how easily this quality control solution can be adapted to layout restrictions that each customer may have.

Another clear example of how Biele vision systems can take automation a step further is the solution installed on plywood/veneer patching lines. A unique vision system detects the imperfections on the veneer so that afterwards, the robot’s performance is optimized to handle the veneer to patch all the defects.

Furthermore, Biele Group is able to develop this quality control solution without losing the hallmark that characterizes its engineering: the customization of its production lines. Biele Group adds the feature of advanced customization in all the projects, no matter what product is manufactured and no matter what wood-based raw material is used.

CMC TEXPAN

CMC Texpan, a subsidiary of the Siempelkamp Group and located in Northern Italy, is a worldwide leader in the production of wood-based panel machinery and plants. One of the main purposes of CMC Texpan has always been to respond promptly to an ever-changing market and to the customers’ needs through customized imachinery, services and plants.

CMC Texpan has invested and continues to invest in training staff and in new technologies in order to ensure and maintain a high level of quality of its products. For example, LYNX sorter, which is a compact and versatile technology for the detection and removal of contaminants, based on advanced proprietary technology developed by CMC Texpan, can be equipped with one of its latest innovative tehnologies: the Speed Classifier. It is a system that allows the classification of different wood composites, such as PB, MDF, wood chips and OSB. It is also able to predict the area and geometric barycentre of the examined samples while they are carried on the conveyor belt.

Another system, based on THz technology, has been developed in the last year. It measures the density profile of the wood panels and mats in real time and with non-contact technology. It can be applied for various types of wood and mat heights. In addition, it is possible to install another new device that has the capacity to identify humidity gradient. With all these systems is possible to collect information regarding the repeatability and quality of the panels.

Biele Group vision quality control system

CMC Texpan builds quality control into its machinery and services.

QC

CUSTOM ENGINEERING

Custom Engineering has been an ISO-9001 certified industrial metal supplier since 1997, positioning us as a worldwide leader in manufacturing high-quality products. Our comprehensive and thorough quality assurance program employs controlled documentation to communicate quality and manufacturing specifications through procedures and detailed work instructions, ensuring high-quality fabrications manufactured to exact customer requirements. Custom upholds high quality standards and procedures through monitoring and documenting nonconformities of products, evaluating the quality system itself, initiating corrective actions when necessary, and implementing preventive actions to mitigate potential quality issues. Our quality control program is backed by an ISO-9001: 2015 certification and an ASME Section VIII Division I Quality Control Program.

Maintaining platen flatness and parallelism is critical to operational efficiencies. When platens become nicked, bent, gouged or damaged, they will produce imperfections in the end product. Custom offers a complete refurbishing program to:

Re-machine platens that have been damaged in pressing accidents

Restore flat and parallel specifications to platens slightly misshaped from normal wear and tear

—Modify platens for heating with fluid instead of steam

—Upgrade hanger and guide systems to accommodate additional press openings

It is the ongoing commitment of Custom Engineering to provide the highest quality products and services achieved through careful selection of raw materials and components, well-planned production procedures, and thorough quality control testing. We have developed a thorough, comprehensive quality control system consisting of procedures and policies to ensure high-quality, certified fabrications. Our quality procedures and processes are reviewed and evaluated annually to identify any areas of improvement in order to make any adjustments necessary to ensure that the highest quality standards are upheld.

Custom Engineering employs various non-destructive examination techniques during manufacturing to evaluate materials, welds, and machined surfaces for discontinuities and defects, while maintaining the integrity of the part:

—Visual Examination

—Magnetic Particle Testing

—Liquid Penetrant Testing

—Ultrasonic Testing

—Radiographic Testing

Custom determines with diligence that its materials are free of conflict minerals in compliance as required by virtue of its customer base.

ASME Section VIII Division I maintains public safety as the number one requirement for pressure vessel design and fabrication. ASME Section VIII Division I also sets the code requirements for materials, design, fabrication, non-destructive examination, and hydro testing.

FAGUS GRECON

Poor customer satisfaction, panel rejects, excessive raw material used and waste are results from delaminations and blows incurred during panel board production. The use of GreCon Delamination Control (UPU) provides production line quality assurance and significantly reduces defective panels.

The two most common defects occurring in all types of panels, including particleboard, MDF, OSB, LVL, LSL, and plywood, are delaminations and blows. Delaminations occur when glued laminate or board material doesn’t bond properly. Blows are small air pockets or voids, resulting primarily from vapor development caused by excessive moisture or excessive material. Delaminations and blows also occur when the amount of material is insufficient and the reduced thermal conductivity in the press cannot adequately heat areas. Variations in wood, inadequate drying or pressing time, or even a simple equipment malfunction can all result in defective panels as well.

GreCon’s non-contact delamination control uses ultrasonic transmissions to scan the panel. When a blow or delamination appears, the ultrasonic waves are weakened considerably, and an alarm is activated based on predetermined tolerance levels. The analysis of each panel is recorded in the SPC (Statistical Process Control) and can be recalled at any time.

GreCon Delamination Control (UPU 6000) is available for various applications and board thickness up to 6 in. Our Delamination Control can also be paired with a Thickness Gauge (DMR) and Panel Weight Scales to measure bond, thickness, weight, and also raw panel density. GreCon quality assurance systems optimize energy and resources while maximizing your production and profits.

Custom Engineering high quality industrial metal fabrication and manufacturing services

Fagus GreCon UPU 6000 delamination control

IMAL-PAL GROUP

Imal-Pal Group offers major innovations in quality control, including a complete range of online and laboratory quality control equipment:

l FBC200 (Full Blister Control) detector: Utilizing a limited number of control channels to detect panel delamination, the newly designed FBC is able to control the whole width of the board. A lite version of this system is also available, the LBC100 (Lite Blister Classifier), which does not have as many sensors as the FBC system, but its coverage is three times greater than any standard channel system. The center-center distance between two consecutive channels is only 1 in.

l Thickness gauging system: highly accurate and reliable system for installation at press outfeed and sanding line with excellent all-round performance. Three-year warranty on the Imal measuring sensors. Also supplied in combination with the LBC100 on the same supporting beam. The center-center distance between two consecutive channels is only 3 in.

l CDP800: Essential for controlling MDF quality, is a rapid and extremely accurate online density profile analyzer, able to analyze thicknesses from 2 mm to 60 mm, a range which no other system can equal. Unlike other analyzers, the CDP800 installs both sensors below the board, a technical solution which protects the sensors from the vapors released by the board, hence they last longer and performance is not affected.

l PSD400 (Press Security Device): Designed to protect continuous presses from foreign objects (stones, wire, chunks of resin, plastic etc.) and other dense objects that could damage the belt; particularly important when producing thin panels. The X-ray system provides full mat width coverage and mat density is accurately displayed in 3D.

l ISO30X (On-Line X-ray mat density gauge): Performs an accurate on-line weight per surface unit analysis and is an essential device for managing and controlling mat formation.

l MMW (Millimetre Wave Scanner): Controls mat weight distribution online as well as moisture content, thickness and board weight after the press (the details are supplied for each layer in the case of PB and OSB production and not just for the board itself). Extremely accurate, rapid and safe scanning process without the application of X-rays or radioactive sources.

l Online moisture meters: UM300—a true thermal weighing scale which applies the loss-in-weight principle; UM700—which utilizes infrared rays to measure moisture content; UM900—microwave-operated analyzer for determining the amount of moisture present in chips, wood fiber or pellets.

The group also manufactures a full range of laboratory equipment such as the IB800 board property tester, DPX density profile meter, Lab Formaldehyde Tester, Fibercam and Screencam for analyzing the granulometry of wood particles and fiber.

LIMAB

An increasing number of companies have chosen the LIMAB PanelProfiler for accurate in-line quality control of panel thickness. We have many installations in both single, multi-opening and continuous press lines as well as sanding and finishing lines. The PanelProfiler measures all types of wood panels from thin MDF/HDF, particleboard, plywood, OSB, hardboard up to big size glulam panels.

The system works non-contact with laser-based measurement technology. This gives many advantages. The careful design and material selection of our sensor frames gives both temperature and mechanical stability, and this means that there’s no need for constant calibrations between panels, like with mechanical contact roller systems.

The PanelProfiler maintains its high accuracy over long periods and changing ambient temperature, especially important in high speed and continuous/endless production lines. The high measurement frequency, 4000 measurements/sec, enables thickness control already from the very front edge of panels. No panel contact eliminates dirt and scratch marks on sanded panels. With no moving system parts, maintenance costs are low as well as total cost of ownership.

We have PanelProfiler versions to fit various process lines. A system can have a selectable number of fixed measurement tracks; the outer measurement tracks can automatically adapt to different product widths. For endless/continuous press lines, we can offer a traversing system, giving complete thickness cross profiles. We also supply multi versions systems with up to four measurement stations in one package, useful in before and after sander installations.

All systems are supplied with mechanical dimensions to fit each production line and have powerful air cleaning and sensor protection boxes to work with a minimal maintenance, even in harsh production environments.

The system software has an easy to understand real time graphical and numerical display of each produced panel. All out-of-tolerance conditions will immediately alert the operators. Database logging of panels, with thickness variations for each track, recipe handling, remote systems diagnosis and more is included as standard in the PanelProfiler.

LIMAB PanelProfiler thickness quality control

Imal-Pal FBC200 detects panel delamination.

RAUTE

Maximum recovery is a must for manufacturers in all veneer-based industries. So is operating at consistently high efficiency. But these can often feel like competing priorities.

With Raute’s R7-Series analyzers and MillSIGHTS software, you can automate and optimize the processes that most impact your operation’s bottom line.

Your peeling line is your first, best opportunity to get the most value out of your forest assets. By minimizing the width of your wet clipped sheets, you can produce more full-size veneer sheet per log and realize cost savings throughout the entire production process.

Raute’s Veneer Visual, Moisture and Strength Analyzer R7 – Peeling is an industry first: a compact, integrated unit that can accurately estimate how much each sheet will shrink during the drying process.

High-resolution color cameras ensure that each sheet is clipped according to a precise drying shrinkage estimation. A combination of microwave and x-ray density measuring technology determines the sheet’s moisture content, allowing you to sort your wet veneer into up to four different moisture classes. This additional moisture grading can increase your drying line’s capacity by up to 20%.

Optimizing the drying process is more than a matter of controlling energy and labor costs. It also requires making grading decisions that consistently improve your end products’ quality and profitability.

—Raute’s integrated Veneer Visual, Moisture and Strength Analyzer R7 – Drying unlocks multiple benefits.

l High-resolution defect detection supports automatic veneer grading, eliminating the need for manual sorting.

l Accurate moisture measuring, using multiple data points, reduces the risk of over-drying, delamination, and warping.

l Automatic dryer speed controls increase dryer efficiency and improve dry veneer quality.

l Industry-standard veneer strength grading processes identify the highest value of every sheet, especially those destined for use in structural products.

l Data captured on the drying line can drive continuous improvements and increase agility. For example, this data can feed simulations, turning a month-long recipe change test into a pilot project that can be completed within hours.

Visit the Raute website to learn more about the power, versatility and intelligence of the R7-Series analyzers.

SIEMPELKAMP

Internal bond and bending strength, thickness swelling, and surface soundness—these are essential quality parameters of a wood-based panel. More than ever, plant operators aim to ensure these quality characteristics in an autonomous control loop. In this context, Siempelkamp supports plant operators with a coherent concept from online trend display to quality-assuring optimization.

“From data to resource” is the principle of the higher-level MES system Prod-IQ made by Siempelkamp. The digital system draws valuable resources from plant data that allow the evaluation of the efficiency of a wood-based panel plant and the quality of the boards with pinpoint accuracy.

The module Prod-IQ.quality, which calculates the quality of the central board characteristics online, particularly contributes to the topic of “quality control.” This module, which is already running in more than 50 plants, uses machine learning methods for online quality control by determining the quality of the board on the basis of current process settings and displaying it in a trend diagram. This also includes the minimum quality reserve required to reliably maintain the specified quality limit.

“This ensures a narrow fluctuation range, so production can run much closer to maximum capacity. The result is more productivity with assured quality; the production processes are modeled as efficiently as possible,” explains Gregor Bernardy, Head of MES & Industrial IT at Siempelkamp Logistics & Service GmbH. Designed according to the principle of self-adaptive machine learning, ProdIQ.quality uses each laboratory control to automatically adjust the process model.

Prod-IQ.quality thus lays a central foundation for being able to predict the quality of the wood-based panel precisely and at an early stage. However, there is still an important process step to be taken from trend indication to the actual doing, namely setting up the process in the best possible way, which thus far has primarily been the responsibility of the operating personnel. “What should I do? How can I improve the process?” are the questions operators ask. “Can the system tell me what to do?” The answer is “Absolutely!”

Siempelkamp is now solving this question in cooperation with the Israeli high-tech company, SMARTECH. Both partners have been offering the closed-loop solution Prod-IQ · SmartPress for wood-based panel presses since October 2022—a groundbreaking autonomous process control.

Prod-IQ · SmartPress uses AI and machine learning algorithms, as well as real-time data, to immediately increase press performance and reduce production costs while ensuring board quality at the same time. The Prod-IQ · SmartPress architecture combines real-time production parameters with contextual operator input. This enables the performance level of the plant to be increased at all levels.

Siempelkamp and Smartech: groundbreaking autonomous process control with Prod-IQ · SmartPress

Raute Veneer Visual, Moisture, and Strength Analyzer R7—Peeling

Whereas the decision-making process used to lie with the operator, Prod-IQ · SmartPress shifts autonomous decision-making to the plant itself. Less manual intervention is required, and performance can also be harmonized between shifts. It is easier for new operators to run the plant optimally: Prod-IQ · SmartPress takes the burden off the operator and indicates the best settings to increase press speed while saving material and ensuring quality at the same time.

The “self-optimizing plant” has become a reality with this solution, which has been tested several times—and the Prod-IQ software family is given the finishing touch.

TAIHEI MACHINERY

Taihei Machinery has some of the best quality control in the industry due to our test building and commissioning system. When one of our machines is ordered, we first install it on our own factory floor. This allows us to ensure that the machine meets the specific qualifications and standards of the customer, ensure there will be no logistical issues with the customer-customized design, and, lastly, test out any new innovations requested by the customer prior to shipping. We also commission the machine prior to shipping, ensuring not only that the machine meets the physical qualifications, but the production qualifications as well.

Through the test building and commissioning system, we are firstly able to install at the customer’s location in a much shorter timeframe than other competitors. Ultimately, our quality control system aims and succeeds at ensuring that the best quality machine is installed at the customer’s site, every time.

USNR

USNR has taken its deep learning AI technology developed over years and proven in its sawmill grade optimizers and applied it to its NV4g green-end and GSc2000 dry-end veneer grading platforms. The result is a paradigm shift in solution accuracy achieving a new level of defect detection that makes grading solutions more accurate and more profitable.

USNR’s traditional neural net defect classifier can be time consuming to configure and can struggle to accurately identify certain defects. In the image you can see that the traditional classifier sees the single large defect as several smaller defects, identifying and classifying them individually. The deep learning classifier correctly identifies this defect as a single large defect.

With current market conditions, getting every bit of value out of your raw materials counts. USNR has several deep learning systems installed and operating with impressive results. Mills are reporting improved grading accuracy and more higher-grade finished products.

Deep learning is the ultimate defect classifier! Faster to start up, more accurate, and easier to use than a traditional neural net classifier, deep learning is available as part of a new system or an upgrade to an existing system. Contact us today to learn how your operation would benefit from deep learning.

Taihei Machinery quality control factory testing

Top image shows a defect detection solution using a neural net that classified all the individual defects within a larger defect. Bottom image shows a defect detection solution using deep learning that classified it correctly as a single large defect.

EMPHASIS ON CUSTOMER SUPPORT BODES WELL FOR DIEFFENBACHER U.S. OPERATIONS MOVING FORWARD

EDITOR’S NOTE: Dieffenbacher Customer Support, LLC has completed 10 years of operation in the U.S., and with that in mind Panel World tossed several questions at Bernd Deffland, President & CFO; Colin Folco, Director Modernization; and Rolf Krey, Director After Sales.

PW: What is your impression of what Dieffenbacher Customer Support has become in its 10 years and the key aspects that have contributed to its successful evolution?

Deffland: Dieffenbacher Customer Support (DCS) in Alpharetta, Georgia, stems from a company founded 150 years ago in 1873 by the Dieffenbacher family in Eppingen, Germany. It has been a family run business from the first

generation to the current fifth generation, and we are very proud of that. DCS began as a small subsidiary over a decade ago and has become our thriving U.S. headquarters through keeping our focus on customer needs. DCS has been able to come this far through our dedicated long-term employees who enjoy a family-like work environment, and are always willing to help one another. We have had strategic growth in both people and parts with over 100 talented people in North America and 80,000 spare parts housed in our warehouse.

PW: The team at Customer Support appears to be highly experienced in the industry and with longevity at Dieffenbacher. What skills are you looking for in your personnel and the way they conduct business that perhaps sets Dieffenbacher apart?

Folco: We strive to add people to our team who have knowledge and experience in the mill environment, who can speak the lingo, who know what our customers expect. Our people come with a great attitude, go the extra mile and put the customer first. We make it a point to stay on top of the newest technology trends by attending trade shows and conferences to ensure we are providing the best options and services to our customers. We pride ourselves on being proactive, caring, accurate and fast.

PW: Since we last interviewed Customer Support management in 2017, we’ve seen continued emphasis on parts availability, delivery and service. What has made this so successful?

Krey: Constant communication with our customers to understand what they want and when they need it, to keep

them running smoothly. We try to make it as easy as possible for customers to obtain parts. We have implemented a plan to align with mills to keep a running list of critical parts to have onsite to ensure less downtime by having a holistic view on the parts needed and to provide risk assessment to our customers. We do this by making sure to keep these parts in stock and in the right quantities through continuous warehouse improvements and expansion. We also are helping our customers assess their risks on large parts and gaps in critical spares. To further make it as easy as possible for our customers, we have implemented a program to laser engrave item/part numbers on our parts. This saves our customer a lot of time trying look up parts numbers, assists our customers with reordering and lessens the lead time on these parts. We provide same day shipping for stocked parts because at DCS express service is the standard. Having close cooperation with our global service team enables us to support locally.

PW: How was Customer Support able to overcome the challenges brought on by the pandemic, and what has been implemented in your operations that you found useful during the pandemic?

Deffland: Five years ago, we made the decision to change from desktop computers to laptops. This helped tremendously, during the pandemic, when we immediately pivoted to having everyone work remotely. We cloned office workstations for use in our home offices and went completely paperless to increase efficiency. We kept our office staffed with only our warehouse personnel to ensure a safe environment during the pandemic. We enhanced our virtual meeting capabilities by using Microsoft Teams, having weekly virtual meetings with the entire team to stay in touch, to maintain the family work environment and keep up morale through virtual team building events, such as virtual wine tastings, where we shipped bottles of wine to each colleague.

PW: How does the Georgia office go about contributing to the development and continuing modernization of the various Dieffenbacher technologies, such as through continuing communication along these lines with your German and Canadian operations and wood panel producers themselves?

Folco: We are fortunate to have a lot of good knowledge about Dieffenbacher

The team at Dieffenbacher Customer Support

North America, Inc. in Windsor, Ontario, and their capabilities, as I used to be the manager there. We have many discussions with our product groups in Germany such as engineering on what customers are trying to accomplish. We, here in North America, develop a solution that we believe would suit our customer needs, then work together with our German colleagues to finalize the concept/solution. It is important that we listen to our customers and to understand what they really need to make their business successful. Then having the knowledge of how to translate what our customers are asking for, we turn that into an equipment solution. Even before COVID, our Modernization team held frequent virtual calls with our German colleagues to discuss, work together on, and finalize solutions for our North American customers. We attend North American industry events like CPA meetings, APA/EWTA info fair, IWF, PELICE, etc. to stay informed and close to our customers.

PW: What actually constitutes Dieffenbacher Customer Support in terms of its structure? That is, what are the different operating units of emphasis?

Krey: DCS Alpharetta HQ supports North America (United States, Canada and Mexico). We have three directors who lead our After Sales Team (spare parts, service, warehouse and logistics), Sales Team (modernization/upgrades, key account management and new lines) and our Finance Team. North America has an installed equipment base of $1 billion, which makes DCS the largest subsidiary within the Dieffenbacher group. Our After Sales Team consists of many talented personnel who support and help our day-to-day operations including our Customer Support Specialists (CSS) who visit our customers on a frequent basis. Our Sales/Key Account Management Team also consists of many talented personnel, both here in the USA and Germany, who have specialties in modernization, mill operations and new line sales. Our Finance Team ties it all together. We make sure to have the right people in the right places at the right time in order to provide the best possible solutions for our customers.

PW: Describe the current location, its square footage breakdown, and any new developments there in the

past couple of years whether in additional spacing, warehouse material flow and optimization or new inhouse design and communication technologies or culturally driven programs and layout you’ve implemented to enhance your operation?

Krey: Due to our increase in personnel and parts stocked, we moved into a new building of 20,000 sq. ft. in 2017. This allowed us to increase our inventory to over 80,000 parts and provide faster delivery from our warehouse. We have since optimized our warehouse space to hold 50% more value. We implemented laser engraving of our parts

reliability programs and needs in order to become a better partner. There they saw new technology trends like Spot, the robotic dog from Boston Dynamics, and how Spot can be utilized for maintenance and reliability needs.

PW: What are some of the more exciting developments Dieffenbacher is involved in, technologies and panel products, in the U.S. and North America wood products industry?

to provide ease of reordering for our customers. To maintain our family environment and appreciation of our employees, we celebrate team successes with warehouse barbecues to promote team comradery.

PW: The Dieffenbacher North America team is very visible with its participation at events such as the PELICE conference in Atlanta as well as the annual APA and CPA meetings and many other events? What benefits do you find in this regard?

Krey: In addition to PELICE, APA and CPA trade events, we also attend IWF in Atlanta and MEM Industrial in Mexico for North America, as well as joining our global team at LIGNA in Germany. This gives us the opportunity to speak with many of our customers face to face, allowing them to have discussions with our experts. The virtual world allows for improved communication throughout the year, but it is no substitute for these in person opportunities at the shows. This also helps to build long-term relationships with our customers. Bernd and I recently attended the International Maintenance Conference in Marco Island, Florida, to better comprehend customer and vendor

Folco: There are many exciting things happening in our industry including our own CEBRO smart plant concept and products like our EVOscreen and our new belt dryer. In the industry, we see an exciting new trend regarding reliability, which is driving a new/renewed interest in data acquisition and AI products. Our customers, more and more, depend on hard data to make sound business decisions. With personnel becoming more and more difficult to find and retain, our customers are turning to AI and data acquisition systems to do more and more of the repetitive tasks in their mills and using their skilled personnel for other tasks. Several of our customers believe this is mission critical and have created standalone control centers where they can monitor all of their mills in real time. There are also many exciting new products happening with our customers. We are seeing quite an increase in the wood fiber insulation boards. One of our customers here in the U.S. is currently building up the first wood fiber insulation board plant here, which will produce a number of different insulation products. We see exciting new products that are a mix of recycled wood and other recycled products along with strong interest in other “green” building products.

PW: In your 10 years of operation, how would you describe the difference between the nature of panel mill modernization and operation, and Dieffenbacher’s contribution toward it, today versus 10 years ago?

Folco: In general our customers have evolved from simply panel manufacturers to more integrated value add companies. At DCS, we have also evolved from an equipment and parts supplier, to a complete plant solution provider. By doing so we have moved from a transactional type of relationship with our customers to a more integrated partner type of relationship. Along the way,

“It is important that we listen to our customers and to understand what they really need to make their business successful. Then having the knowledge of how to translate what our customers are asking for, we turn that into an equipment solution.”

we have shifted the focus to be more proactive with our customers, and view ourselves as a value-adding partner rather than just a vendor. There is more focus on ensuring customers have the solutions they need when they need them. Integrating our departments to work closely together to identify needs

of the customer whether it be solutions for reliability, spare parts, service solutions, modernization of older equipment or even complete new line solutions. We always take our customers one step further in what they do.

Please provide additional insight into your CEBRO and EVORIS smart solutions and con-

CEBRO’s advanced plant engineering solutions include intelligent heat recovery concepts such as reusing heat from the press and dryer exhaust air elsewhere in the production process to reduce energy costs and emissions and increase profit. To help manufacturers achieve operational excellence, CEBRO uses optimized processes and innovative technologies that improve board quality, increase output, save costs and support a plant’s sustainability. With

wood recycling solutions, smart environmental and new energy-generation technologies, CEBRO also helps manufacturers find the right balance between economic and sustainability goals to build a better future for business and the environment. Complementing solutions for advanced plant engineering, operational excellence and sustainability is our new digitalization platform EVORIS. Based on standardized interfaces that collect and process sensor and actuator data—including camera footage—EVORIS gives manufacturers more insight into their production and processes. AI-supported analysis of live data is just one way that EVORIS helps plant operators better understand and control their plants and make important decisions more quickly. EVORIS is available for any wood-based panel plant regardless of the equipment manufacturer, panel type, and whether it is a new or existing plant. Together with advanced plant engineering solutions, operational excellence and sustainability initiatives, EVORIS forms the holistic approach that makes a CEBRO plant a truly smart one. PW

Parts availability and turnaround is integrated with real-time data and inventory at the mills.

PROJECTS

says Fred Chinn, Vice President StrandBased Business at Tolko. “Once we rebuild, High Prairie will be better than ever, and our new CEBRO smart plant will be a big part of that.”

Chinn believes the plant will produce its first new board by year’s end. Once operational, the plant’s annual production capacity will reach up to 734,000 m³.

ROYOMARTIN PLANS MORE WORK AT CHOPIN

Tolko Industries Ltd. has commissioned Dieffenbacher to supply the core components of a new OSB line at High Prairie, Alberta, Can. On May 20, 2022, a fire in the press building damaged beyond repair a Dieffenbacher 12-opening press, which Tolko had commissioned in 1995, and much of the surrounding equipment. A Dieffenbacher CPS+ continuous press will replace the previous press.

Dieffenbacher’s scope of supply for the rebuild also includes the forming station and forming line, and the raw board handling system. In line with Dieffenbacher’s CEBRO smart plant concept, the Press Emission Control System and the Intelligent Air Management System will improve the plant’s sustainability by creating cleaner air inside and outside the production hall. Dieffenbacher’s new digitalization solution, EVORIS, and the digital service platform, MyDIEFFENBACHER, will help make Tolko’s new plant a truly “smart one.”

“It’s great that Dieffenbacher stepped up so quickly to help us after the fire,”

Martco, LLC announced it will invest $9.5 million to install production equipment at its lumber and plywood facility in Chopin, La. The expansion will allow the company to retain approximately 684 existing jobs through 2035.

The Chopin plant began production in 1996 and has undergone multiple expansions that established it as one of the largest single-site plywood production facilities in North America.

The brunt of this work will be around the plywood finishing end, including the installation of new scanning technologies as well as robotic repair and patch.

“RoyOMartin-Plywood manufacturing facility continues to modernize its operations to be competitive in the future,” RoyOMartin Chairman, CEO and CFO Roy O. Martin III says. “The plywood mill has been in continuous operation since 1996 and has survived the Great Recession, COVID pandemic and other harsh obstacles without downtime. The team leaders and team members at this facility deserve the job sustainability and security that this project and previous modernization projects provide.”

SOUTHERN VENEER UPGRADES PENDULUM

Southern Veneer Specialty Products is receiving a new USNR (Coe) 760 pendulum to breathe new life into its lathe system at Moncure, NC.

The USNR pendulum features a heavy-duty tube steel design to precisely transfer blocks to the lathe spindles. It prevents slow-downs during the process and works seamlessly with the charger and lathe to keep things moving.

Once the pendulum is installed, Southern Veneer Specialty Products will have a fully-optimized lathe system designed to provide the highest quality veneer.

High Prairie OSB mill readies for production upgrade.

Fire destroyed multi-opening press in May 2022.

WISEWOODS ORDERS REFINING SYSTEM

Andritz has received an order from Wisewoods Co., Ltd. to supply another pressurized refining system—the second from Andritz—to its mill in Phetchaburi, Thailand. Startup is scheduled for the first half year of 2024.

The new fiber preparation system will feature a capacity of 30 tons per hour and process rubberwood for production of high-quality MDF.

Visarut Palarit, Deputy Director, Wisewoods, comments: “Our first line from Andritz has been showing excellent performance since its installation in 2016. The new line will enable us to enlarge our production capacity significantly. In parallel, Andritz technology ensures that we receive top fiber quality—a precondition for our MDF board to deliver lighter color and smoother surface properties.”

Wisewoods Co., Ltd. is a renowned player in the wood panel industry for four decades and manufactures MDF products for the Middle East and Asian region.

STEVES & SONS ORDERS DOOR SKIN LINES

U.S. door manufacturer Steves & Sons, Inc. has placed an order for two Siempelkamp forming and press lines for the production of door skins. The San Antonio, Texas-based customer also placed an order with Siempelkamp subsidiary Büttner for two fiber dryers and an energy plant. Steves & Sons is entering the door skins manufacturing business with this project.

The two press lines each consist of a fiber classifier, mat forming, forming line and the multi-daylight press yielding millions of door skins per year. For the press line design, the focus was specifically on the wide product variety, combined with the minimization of trim waste. For the process heat supply of the mill, Büttner contributes an energy system based on biomass combustion, including flue gas precleaning as well as two fiber drying systems. The energy system not only supplies thermal energy to the drying systems, it also heats ther-

mal oil for press heating and generates steam for wood defibration.

Commissioning and startup is scheduled for 2024.

Siempelkamp has proven its experience in door skin production with a high-performance plant operated by a Turkish customer.

“Our experience in the North American market, our competence in being

able to adapt technical designs very specifically to local requirements convinced Steves & Sons. This ensures an optimal process technology and operating cost design, for example in the form of low maintenance and energy costs, a minimized use of raw materials, and a high degree of automation,” say Dirk Koltze, President Siempelkamp LP/Büttner in Charlotte, NC.

CON-VEY PROMOTES GOEBEL TO VP

Con-Vey LLC, manufacturer of automated material handling equipment for engineered wood products, announced the promotion of Jeremy Goebel to Vice President.

Goebel joined Con-Vey as a sales representative in 2013 and quickly rose through the ranks, becoming the sales manager in 2017. With exceptional technical skills and personable nature, Goebel has been instrumental in driving Con-Vey’s success and growth.

“We are thrilled to have Jeremy take on this new role of Vice President at Con-Vey,” says Dave Larecy, CEO and President, “His vision, commitment and strengths make him the right guy for the job, and we are confident he will help us achieve our strategic initiatives and continue to grow Con-Vey into the future.”

As Vice President, Goebel will continue to lead the sales team, while also managing other department operations. This promotion is part of Con-Vey’s growth plan and the next step in expanding its management team.

BÜTTNER EXPANDS PRODUCT RANGE

As a globally operating supplier of burners as well as drying and energy plants, Büttner—a member of the Siempelkamp Group—is taking the next logical step by establishing a new environmental technology competence center in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and expanding its product range in the field of environmental technology.

Büttner will now be designing and manufacturing dry electrostatic filters to separate ash from hot flue gases in energy plants and wet electrostatic precipitators (WESP) to reduce particles and volatile emissions from the waste air emitted by drying and press systems.

This gives new customers the opportunity to focus on energy efficiency and the reduction of emissions during the planning and design stages of their plants. But the new competence team will also be able to help current customers in regard to the modernization, conversion and extension of their existing plants.

“The environmental technology sector will continue to grow in importance. We’re proud that we’ve been able to expand our range of services in the field of integrated environmental technology on a contemporary and competent basis, which will also enable us to continue to deliver adapted solutions for all requirements in the future,” says Andreas Klug, Managing Director at Büttner Energie- und Trocknungstechnik GmbH in Krefeld.

DIEFFENBACHER BUYS ENERGY FIRM

Germany-based Dieffenbacher has acquired the key assets of BERTSCHenergy, based in Bludenz, Western Austria, through the newly formed Dieffenbacher Energy GmbH subsidiary. Dieffenbacher states that the acquisition accelerates its

LINES SUPPLY

ability to support its customers while helping to shape Europe’s rapidly evolving energy future.

Dieffenbacher, a longtime equipment and technology provider to the wood based panel industry, now adds to its portfolio fluidized bed combustion systems for solid fuels (e.g. biomass), gas and steam turbines for power and steam production, and industrial waste heat systems. In addition, the acquisition further extends Dieffenbacer’s longtime use of conventional grate firing in energy systems.

Dieffenbacher will continue to use the existing company headquarters in Bludenz (province of Vorarlberg), maintain the existing product portfolio and plans to take on all 150 employees.

BERTSCHenergy and Dieffenbacher operate in some of the same markets and have successfully implemented customer projects together.

“BERTSCHenergy and Dieffenbacher are both family businesses with a similar spirit. We very much look for-

ward to working with our new employees and to our shared future,” comments CEO Christian Dieffenbacher.

PEAK NA ACQUIRES ENDURANCE EQUIP

Peak North America is acquiring Endurance Equipment of Irvington, Ala., known for it log cranes, drum debarkers and log merchandising systems, and plans to invest $24 million at Irvington, near Mobile, to provide equipment and services to various production segments in the wood products industry.

The project will create 175 jobs over the next four years, according to an announcement by the Mobile Chamber.

“By being strategically located in the Southern United States, we will offer state-of-the-art manufacturing and fabrication services related to the forest products sector, while gaining a geographical competitive advantage for our clients,” Peak North America CEO Brian Fehr says.

“We will create a culture of safety, efficiency, enthusiasm, and inclusivity for all our employees, with the intention of growing operations beyond projected forecasts, and we will use the local workforce and community to do so.”

DAUBERT NAMES NEW LEADERSHIP

Daubert Chemical Co. Inc. announced that Dr. Mike Duncan, previously executive vice president of technology at Daubert, will succeed Matt Puz as president and CEO.

“Matt Puz has played an indispensable role in Daubert’s success throughout his tenure over the past seven years,” says Matthew McGinnis, vice president of commercial development. “On behalf of the the leadership team at Daubert Chemical, we are delighted to congratulate Matt Puz on his upcoming retirement, as well as to celebrate Mike’s promotion.”

Duncan brings more than 30 years of industry experience to the role.

CLIPPINGS

PACIFIC WOODTECH REBRANDS AS PWT

Pacific Woodtech, an engineered wood products (EWP) manufacturing leader, is revising its branding and adopting the identification, PWT, and anchored by the tagline, Focused on EWP.

The company says the revised brand identity and messaging reflect PWT’s in-

dustry expansion and stewardship and highlights PWT’s innovation and focal point on EWP production, which was bolstered by the company’s recent acquisition of Louisiana-Pacific’s EWP division.

Customers will see the fresh face of PWT in all facets of the company’s brand—from apparel, literature, product stamps, and paper wrap to every corner of digital marketing and a complete

website redesign.

PWT is headquartered in Burlington, Wash. and has factories in California, North Carolina and British Columbia.

EGGER-LEXINGTON ENHANCES RECYCLING

Egger Group has acquired the business and assets of Novem Industries, Inc., a wood recycling facility located in Charlotte, NC. The acquisition, via Egger’s whollyowned subsidiary, Timberpak, LLC, is expected to enhance the mission of Egger Wood Products LLC to create more from wood and to be sustainable for future generations.

Timberpak will process post-consumer recycled materials to be used in the production of particleboard and thermally fused laminate products at Egger’s Lexington, NC manufacturing plant. This diverts resources that would have otherwise gone to landfills.

With the Novem Industries acquisition, Timberpak intends to transition and adapt its European-based processes and procedures to meet the needs of Egger’s Lexington plant, supplying raw materials for the plant’s on-site wood-recycling opera tions, which is currently under construction.

In addition to Timberpak’s acquisition and new operational location, Egger Wood Products has strengthened its mission toward sustainable production by investing an additional $38 million in its Lexington production plant, which will further the ability to process raw recycled materials.

Timberpak will accept construction and demolition waste wood, in addition to packaging waste—primarily used and broken pallets—from distribution centers for industrial manufacturing. The wood will be ground into pieces about 1 ft. in length before delivery to Egger’s Lexington plant.

Further processing will occur at the on-site wood recycling facility, which is expected to be completed in early spring.

First recycled wood from Timberpak

to 5'x12', Internal logistics for fast on-time deliveries

Contact us: Birchland Plywood-Veneer Ltd. TeL: 705-842-2430 • Fax: 705-842-2496 Visit www.birchlandplywood.com to view our “Live Log Program”

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Manufacturers of Decorative Hardwood Veneer Domestic and International Markets Species include: Walnut, White Oak, Red Oak, Hard Maple, Cherry and Birch

“Quality is the Lifeblood of our Business” 112 Shelby Ave. ◆ P.O. Box 7 Edinburgh, IN 46124 Phone: 812-526-2671 ◆ Fax: 812-526-5865

E-mail: info@amoshill.com

Website: www.amoshill.com

The mark of responsible forestry FSC Supplier: SCS-COC-002445 * SCS-CW-002445

Send your ad information on a separate sheet of paper, or send via email, and we will typeset it for you for FREE.

Please be sure to include appropriate contact information so we may contact you for questions and payment.

Make sure to send any artwork that should be included in your ad. It should be a good-quality print or high resolution logo. We will fax or email you a proof before final print for your approval.

2-5 • Delhiwood 2023, India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida, India. Call+91-80-4250 5000; visit delhi-wood.com.

29-31 • International Wood Products Assn. 67th World of Wood Convention, Hyatt Regency, Savannah, Ga. Call 703820-6696; visit iwpawood.org.

3-5 • Amer. Wood Prot. Assn. annual meeting, Francis Marion Hotel, Charleston, SC. Call 205-733-4077; visit awpa.com.

11-13 • American Forest Resource Council annual meeting, Skamania Lodge, Stevenson, Wash. Call 503-222-9505; visit amforest.org.

16-19 • Composite Panel Assn. Spring meeting, The Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa, Tucson, Ariz. Call 703-7241128; visit compositepanel.org.

16-18 • Western Wood Products Assn. annual meeting, Embassy Suites, Portland, Ore. Call 503-224-3930; visit wwpa.org.

14-17 • APA-Engineered Wood Assn. annual meeting and Engineered Wood Technology Assn. Info Fair, JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa, Palm Desert, Calif. Call 253-5656600; visit apawood.org and engineeredwood.org.

22-24 • Composite Panel Assn. Fall meeting, Lansdowne Resort, Leesburg, Va. Call 703-724-1128; visit composite panel.org.

28-December 1 • Woodex, 18th International Exhibition of Equipment and Technologies for Woodworking and Furniture Production, Crocus Expo, Moscow, Russia. Visit woodexpo.ru. Listings are submitted months in advance. Always verify dates and locations with contacts prior to making plans to attend.

15-19 • Ligna: World Fair For The Forestry And Wood Industries, Hannover Exhibition Grounds, Hannover, Germany. Call +49 511 89-0; fax +49 511 89-32626; visit ligna.de.

6-8 • Forest Products Society International Conference, Morgantown Marriott, Morgantown, WV. Call 706-443-1337; visit fpsconference.org.

25-28 • AWFS Fair 2023, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV. Call 800-946-2937; visit awfsfair.org.

23-25 • Forest Products Machinery & Equipment Expo, Music City Center, Nashville, Tenn. Call 504-443-4464; visit sfpaexpo.com.

17-21 • American Wood Protection Assn. Technical Committee meeting, Le Meridien Downtown, Denver, Colo. Call 205-733-4077; visit awpa.com.

This issue of Panel World is brought to you in part by the following companies, which will gladly supply additional information about their products.