HMA EXPO

Hardwood Manufacturers Assn. holds 2021 annual meeting in Texas

Seven learning sessions were held during the HMA annual meeting.

AUSTIN, Tex.

Hardwood lumbermen from across the U.S. gathered in Austin for the Hardwood Manufacturers Assn. annual meeting, March 23-26. The meeting, held at the Hyatt Regency overlooking the beautiful Colorado River, drew more than 100 under the theme of “resilience.” The program included seven learning sessions, the Board of Directors business meeting and annual elections for HMA and a meeting of HMA NextGen—formerly known as the HMA Millennial Council.

The census among attendees was that everyone, while perhaps a little apprehensive at first to gather, definitely still needs the networking and information sharing that happens at annual meetings and conferences. “It was great reconnecting with HMA members and having the opportunity to share new product information,” Stacy Mellott, Mellott Mfg., remarks.

Anderson-Tully’s Geoff Henderson had similar sentiments, saying it is easy to just stay home, as everyone has gotten used to it with the pandemic, but stepping out and sharing information also has its place in the world and mingling with others in the industry does nothing but good.

HMA Board of Directors elected Troy Brown, Kretz Lumber Co., Inc., Antigo, Wis., as President. Other HMA officers for 2021 are Vice President Tommy Petzoldt, East Perry Lumber Co., Frohna, Mo.; and Executive Vice President Linda Jovanovich, HMA, Pittsburgh.

Additionally, HMA Board of Directors elected members to the Executive Committee. They are Geoff Henderson, Anderson-Tully Co., Vicksburg, Miss.; Hal Mitchell, Atlanta Hardwood Corp., Mableton, Ga.; Craig Miller, Battle Lumber Co., Inc., Wadley, Ga.; Wayne Law, New River Hardwoods, Mountain City, Tenn.; and Tom Gerow, Wagner Millwork, LLC, Owego, New York. Bob Miller, Frank Miller Lumber Co., Union City, Ind., will serve on the Executive Committee as the immediate past president.

During the Conference’s Thursday Business Meeting, HMA members elected Directors Hal Mitchell, Atlanta Hardwood Corp., Mableton, Ga.; Richard Buchanan, Granite Hardwoods, Inc., Granite Falls, NC; Bruce Dahn, HHP, Inc.,

The Vendor Expo and Café were incredibly popular during the three-day event.

Henniker, NH; Kirby Kendrick, Kendrick Forest Products, Inc., Edgewood, Ia.; and Bucky Pescaglia, MO PAC Lumber, Fayette, Mo.

Newly appointed to the HMA NextGen Leaders Council are: Kaitlyn Wood, Gates Milling, Inc., Gatesville, NC; Lindsey DiGangi, Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Co., Philadelphia; and Patrick Cullinan, Stella-Jones Corp., Pittsburgh. Bob Miller, Frank Miller Lumber Co., Union City, Ind., continues to serve as the Council Coordinator.

SEMINARS

The HMA learning sessions provided essential information on industry hot topics such as pathways to resilience; the scary truth about cyber crimes; and global market trends from Michael Snow, the American Hardwood Export Council Executive Director. Hardwood Federation Executive Director Dana Cole offered an update on their advocacy and representation work; while committee representatives from the Real American Hardwood Coalition provided an update on their work as well.

Chris Fehr with UC Coatings says he was happy to be a part of the group that broke the ice and networked, and the Real American Hardwood Coalition (RAHC), which appears to have widespread support among the industry, gave him hope that through this program the industry will finally have a voice to combat some of the misinformation being spread by those products offered as wood substitutes. Mellott echoed Fehr saying, “The Real American Hardwood Coalition presentation was fascinating and showed many exciting possibilities towards promoting natural hardwoods.”

Many attendees remarked on the importance of educating the industry on topics like cyber crimes, as the industry gets more and more digitized. For Nyle’s Jeremy Pitts, the HMA event served as a good jumping off point—showing that people were ready to be together again, as the country opens up more and more. “The learning sessions were absolutely great,” Pitts said. “I truly enjoyed the session on cyber crime because I think it’s something that typically gets ignored in an ‘older’ industry like ours.” TP

Each day provided a chance to catch up. TP’s booth had plenty of candy!