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A Hatton-Brown Publication
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
Volume 45 • Number 7 • September 2020 Founded in 1976 • Our 466th Consecutive Issue
Publisher: David H. Ramsey Chief Operating Officer: Dianne C. Sullivan Editor-in-Chief: Rich Donnell Senior Editor: Dan Shell Senior Associate Editor: David Abbott Senior Associate Editor: Jessica Johnson Associate Editor: Patrick Dunning Publisher/Editor Emeritus: David (DK) Knight Art Director/Prod. Manager: Cindy Segrest Ad Production Coordinator: Patti Campbell Circulation Director: Rhonda Thomas Online Content/Marketing: Jacqlyn Kirkland Classified Advertising: Bridget DeVane • 334.699.7837 800.669.5613 • bdevane7@hotmail.com Advertising Sales Representatives: Southern USA Randy Reagor P.O. Box 2268 Montgomery, AL 36102-2268 904.393.7968 • FAX: 334.834.4525 E-mail: reagor@bellsouth.net
Renew or subscribe on the web: www.timberprocessing.com
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THE ISSUES
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NEWSFEED
Putting A Show In A Magazine Housing Starts Continue Torrid Pace
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AJD FOREST PRODUCTS
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SUPPLIERS RESPOND
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TP&EE SHOWCASE
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MACHINERY ROW
85
Piece By Piece For Michigan Hardwood Mill
Pandemic Pushes Suppliers To New Heights
Exhibitors/Advertisers Show Off Their Wares Action In The Supplier Ranks
LUMBER WORKS
Employment Opportunities
COVER: AJD Forest Products has steadily modernized its hardwood sawmill in Grayling, Mich. and more work is on the way. Story begins on PAGE 12. (Jessica Johnson photo.)
Midwest USA, Eastern Canada John Simmons 32 Foster Cres. Whitby, Ontario, Canada L1R 1W1 905.666.0258 • FAX: 905.666.0778 E-mail: jsimmons@idirect.com
VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www.timberprocessing.com Member Verified Audit Circulation
Western USA, Western Canada Tim Shaddick 4056 West 10th Avenue Vancouver BC Canada V6L 1Z1 604.910.1826 • FAX: 604.264.1367 E-mail: tootall1@shaw.ca 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
Timber Processing (ISSN 0885-906X, USPS 395-850) is published 10 times annually (January/February and July/August issues are combined) by Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc., 225 Hanrick St., Montgomery, AL 36104. Subscription Information—TP is free to qualified owners, operators, managers, purchasing agents, supervisors, foremen and other key personnel at sawmills, pallet plants, chip mills, treating plants, specialty plants, lumber finishing operations, corporate industrial woodlands officials and machinery manufacturers and distributors in the U.S. All non-qualified U.S. Subscriptions are $55 annually: $65 in Canada; $95 (Airmail) in all other countries (U.S. Funds). Single copies, $5 each; special issues, $20 (U.S. funds). Subscription Inquiries— TOLL-FREE: 800-669-5613; Fax 888-611-4525. Go to www.timberprocessing.com and click on the subscribe button to subscribe/renew via the web. All advertisements for Timber Processing magazine are accepted and published by Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. with the understanding that the advertiser and/or advertising agency are authorized to publish the entire contents and subject matter thereof. The advertiser and/or advertising agency will defend, indemnify and hold 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. Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. neither endorse nor makes any representation or guarantee as to the quality of goods and services advertised in Timber Processing. Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. reserves the right to reject any advertisement which it deems inappropriate. Copyright ® 2020. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited. Periodicals postage paid at Montgomery, Ala. and at additional mailing offices. Printed in U.S.A.
Postmaster: Please send address changes to Timber Processing, P.O. Box 2419, Montgomery, Alabama 36102-2419 Other Hatton-Brown publications: Timber Harvesting • Southern Loggin’ Times Wood Bioenergy • Panel World • Power Equipment Trade
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THEISSUES
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Rich Donnell Editor-in-Chief
NO BARNUM & BAILEY ACT BUT WE’RE TRYING
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f you didn’t know any better, you would think the Timber Processing & Energy Expo, scheduled for September 30 to October 2 in Portland, Ore., has not been cancelled. You probably do know better, if you’ve seen the numerous announcements that indeed it has been cancelled until the next one in 2022. But as you can tell from this issue of Timber Processing, TP&EE lives on…at least in print, and in video, too, for that matter. What am I talking about? TP&EE of course is produced by Hatton-Brown Expositions, an affiliate of Timber Processing magazine, which serves as the media host of the event in Portland, which would have been the sixth TP&EE since we started it in 2010. When we decided to cancel the show due to the virus, we quickly realized that the September issue, which was to be the show preview issue, was left flapping in the wind. Many equipment companies that had signed up to exhibit had also planned to advertise in the September issue. We’ve already started the exhibit sales process for the 2022 show, and any company that had signed on for 2020 is able to keep that booth space and put any payments they had already made for 2020, toward 2022. But before we totally left the 2020 TP&EE, we felt inclined to give it one last hurrah. Alas, we decided that any company that had signed on to exhibit for 2020 and also advertise in this issue would be invited to submit at no additional cost an editorial profile and photo related to their products and technologies for inclusion in the never-say-die TP&EE Showcase section. Forty-five exhibitor/advertiser companies took us up on it, and the result is a Showcase that spans across 40 pages of this magazine. If you had planned to attend the show in person, or even if you hadn’t, you now have at your fingertips a quick read on the latest product and technology offerings from the leading equipment companies in the sawmill industry. In addition, we’ve invited these companies to submit two-minute videos on some aspect of their operations and products. Those videos will be accessible during the same dates as when TP&EE was supposed to be held, September 30 to October 2. A video can say a lot about a company and its promotional skills. And you’ll be able to have them all in front of you at the same time to check out what these companies have to say, especially with regard to their new technologies. So on those dates, go to: www.timberprocessingandenergyexpo.com/tpee-showcase/ A final note: The video site is not attempting to be a virtual expo. It’s straightforward: go to it, click on some videos and watch. We were approached about considering a virtual expo for the Portland show this time, but it was too late in the game and frankly we’d like to see one or two other expos “successfully” pull these off before we test those waters. Meanwhile, we miss trade shows and setting up our booths and talking personally to hundreds of sawmillers. While our company and many companies have discovered virtual skills during the pandemic, we feel that when large groups of people are allowed to gather out in public again, in-person trade shows may have TP more relevance than ever.
Contact Rich Donnell, ph: 334-834-1170; fax 334-834-4525; e-mail:rich@hattonbrown.com TIMBER PROCESSING
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NEWSFEED U.S. SOUTH LEADS LUMBER OUTPUT Western Wood Products Assn. reported that U.S. softwood lumber production was 35.165 billion SF in 2019, including 19.365 billion BF produced in the South and 14.254 billion BF produced in the West. Canadian softwood lumber produc-
tion was 24.432 billion BF, of which 14.586 billion BF came from east of the Rockies and 9.847 billion BF from British Columbia. However in British Columbia production through May 2020 was 25% less than during the same period in 2019, and it was 9% less from east of the Rockies. For the five months through May 2020, U.S. softwood lumber production was running less than a percent ahead of 2019,
thanks in most part to the South where production was 5% over 2019, while the West was 5% less. Southern U.S. production in 2019 represented 89% of capacity while it was 81% in the West. British Columbia ran at 74% of capacity, and east of the Rockies at 85%. In addition, the U.S. imported 14.563 billion BF in 2019, of which 13.056 came from Canada, along with 937MMBF from Europe and 391MMBF from Latin America. The U.S. exported 1.323 billion BF of lumber in 2019 to a range of countries, including 303MMBF to Canada. While importing 97MMBF of logs in 2019 (of which 77MMBF came from Canada), the U.S. exported 1.294 billion BF of logs, with China on top at 652MMBF followed by Japan, 345MMBF, and Canada, 137MMBF.
HOUSING STARTS CATCH FIRE U.S. housing starts in July increased more than 22.6% over June and 23.4% over July a year ago to an annual rate of 1.496 million, with both single-family housing starts (940,000) and multi-family housing starts (556,000) showing big increases, according to the U.S. Census Bureau monthly report. “The market is being buoyed by historically low interest rates, a focus on the importance of housing and a shift to the suburbs as more buyers are seeking homes in suburban communities, exurbs and more affordable low density markets,” says NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. On a regional and year-to-date basis (January through July of 2020, combined single-family and multi-family starts are 9.3% higher in the Northeast, 5.9% higher in the Midwest, 5.2% higher in the South and 1.4% higher in the West. Overall permits increased 18.8% to a 1.495 million unit annualized rate in July. Single-family permits increased 17% to 983,000 and multi-family permits increased 22.5% to a 512,000. “Strong builder confidence and heavy buyer traffic point to further production gains in the near term,” comments NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke, who adds, “but the more than 110 percent jump in lumber prices since mid-April is adding approximately $14,000 to the cost of each new single-family home.” 8
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NEWSFEED AWC NAMES PRESIDENT/CEO Jackson Morrill, president of the Composite Panel Assn. since 2015, is resigning from that position and will become president and CEO of American Wood Council effective in mid-September. AWC contributes to the development of public policies, codes and regulations which allow for the responsible manufacture and use of wood products. It has been out front in recent years in its support of mass timber construction. Prior to his work at CPA, Morrill was director at American Chemistry Council and he practiced environmental law with a DC-based firm. Morrill graduated from Tulane University School of Law and gained a bachelor of arts from the University of Virginia.
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AWC was re-chartered in 2010 and has links to the old National Forest Products Assn. The AWC web site lists approximately 50 member companies, most of them primary manufacturers of lumber and panel products.
BINDERHOLZ WINS KLAUSNER SAWMILL Austria-based Binder Beteiligungs AG submitted the winning bid at auction for the Klausner Lumber One LLC sawmill in Live Oak, Fla. Binder out-bid Austria-based Mayr-Melnhof Holz and Vancouver-headquartered Mercer International. In the preliminary (Stalking Horse) round of bidding, Mercer had bid $26 million and Binder subsequently increased it to $30 million. But the winning bid tally by Binder (acting through Timber
One Acquisition Holdings LLC) reached $61 million plus liabilities, while Mayr-Melnhof was the backup bidder. The bankruptcy court was expected to approve the sale Klausner sawmill at Live Oak, Fla. appears at a hearing on Auheaded for Binderholz ownership. gust 31. The Florida pand its CLT production casawmill, which started up in 2015 with 350MMBF of annu- pacity in Germany and Austria al production capacity, has ba- and there’s some speculation whether Binder will bring sically stumbled through the CLT manufacturing to the ensuing years, and earlier this Florida sawmill site. year its ownership filed for Another Klausner operaChapter 11 bankruptcy. Fountion, Klausner Lumber Two dation problems and labor issawmill in Enfield, NC, has sues apparently plagued the also filed for bankruptcy. It sawmill from the outset. Family-owned Binder of reportedly never reached production. Fügen, Austria operates in 12 Mercer, known more for its locations in Austria, Germany and Finland producing lumber, pulp mill manufacturing, purCLT and laminated beams. chased a Klausner sawmill in Binder has continued to exGermany back in 2017.
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IT IS
THE START By Jessica Johnson
Tim Neff and Tony Nash are working on optimizing AJD Forest Products.
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GRAYLING, Mich. eteran lumbermen Tim Neff and Tony Nash are on a mission to bring Michigan hardwood manufacturer AJD Forest Products into a new era—an era that sees 12
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the 16MMBF hardwood mill produce a few more pieces, sure, but mainly produce lumber with up-to-date machinery at industry standard speeds, and with greater recovery and efficiency. Nash points to the fact that at first, when AJD acquired the mill from Scott Paper in 1979, it was a primarily a softwood mill, and the original AJD operations team converted it to hardwood. The cost of evolution has been high, and the conversion lengthy. But in 2006, the first major improvement was made, adding an optimized trimmer/sorting line, and it’s been all about automation since then. In 2014, the mill added a new Cleereman Lumber Pro headrig, which helped further automate the facility and was a necessary step.
“With the problems that we see now in the industry and nationwide, the lack of qualified help,” Nash says, “to combat that we’ve got to optimize the mill, and that means automation. We are putting in an optimized edger to reduce the amount of people we don’t have.” Neff says the facility will still employ 60 as it does now, but with the addition of a new McDonough linear optimized edger AJD will be able to run every machine center they want to run rather than every day making a production decision of what they aren’t going to do that day. What he means is, because the process had been so labor intensive, the mill couldn’t run everything all in a given day—it slap didn’t have the staff. Nash is having to come in at least an hour be-
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The addition of a Cleereman Lumber Pro headrig was the first of a series of projects to upgrade AJD Forest Products.
fore the shift started for the day to plan with the logistics and shipping staff, look at what trucks were scheduled, compared to what orders were n the books and what logs would be available that day.
Tim Neff, left, with Tony Nash
The mill trends heavy to oak, processing about 200 bolts per day.
PROJECTS “We’ve already started writing checks, starting and finishing projects,” Neff laughs. Nash says for them it is all about efficiency, as the mill has seen a steady uptick in production over the last decade, going from 12MMBF to 14, before now hitting 16MMBF of predominately industrial hardwood lumber consistently—well, before the COVID-19 pandemic stalled the economy. In 2019, AJD was just north of their targeted 16MMBF. For 2020, Nash says capacity is going back and forth between 60 and 70% of targets. The production uptick is easily traced back to the optimizing and machinery upgrades. For example, once the facility got the new bandmill up and running, the circular mill was idled. The circular mill took six to eight operators and AJD was able to process approximately 100 bolts per day. With the bandmill, one to two
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After passing a Cypress grade mark reader, lumber flows to a TS Manufacturing trimmer with Inovec optimization.
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operators are processing closer to 200 bolts a day. “Our goal is to create a bottleneck and then eliminate it,” Nash says, somewhat jokingly of the upgrade strategy he and Neff have created. “We’ve eliminated various bottlenecks, but then they will move. We know when we put in the new edger optimizer it’s going to move again, but we think we know where it is going to be. And we have some ideas already on how to put it somewhere else.” The pair says not staying static is key, and while they would love to be in a five-year upgrade cycle, realistically things are moving more in a seven-year cycle. The pair anticipates the next need will be to increase throughput at the trimmer/sorting line. “Or if we pick up the pace there could be a problem at the horizontal resaw. You really never know until it hits you,” Neff explains. The most recent project, the optimized edger was bid out to several different manufacturers, and amazingly not all were interested in it, but Nash says McDonough won the business for several reasons: “We have a good relationship with McDonough and they’ve done well for us. We opted to stay stateside and go with our neighbor.” Neff concurs adding that McDonough was able to show them the sawbox design would be able to perform the way they wanted, and with the addition of Nelson Brothers Engineering, the optimization process hit more of the team’s wish list. “That was a big contributing factor,” he emphasizes. While restrictions came into play with the timeline because of winter/frost laws, and the addition of the pandemic, the project was only delayed a few weeks. Startup on the new optimized edger was scheduled for the first week of September. The mill anticipates a jump in production, but Nash says his personal goal isn’t a targeted number, it’s all about the mill’s efficiency: “We’ve done many things to increase the efficiency, you have to keep looking for ways to improve.” The ability to be flexible, thanks to a more efficient process, has been the personal goal for Nash. Neff says that the mill has a good balance right now between customer demand and log supply. But, if the demand rises after the pandemic, the added efficiency means the mill can swing up; if things stay a little more static, the mill will continue to consume less raw material. These are decisions and flexibilities that they didn’t have before. “The investment process is constant,” Neff adds. “We’ve invested almost as
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For AJD the investment process is constant, making upgrades every seven years, like this new optimized edger line from McDonough with Nelson Bros. Engineering.
much in hard machine upgrades as we have in electronic, computer and PLC upgrades.”
PROCESS AJD predominately processes standing timber purchased by three staff procurement foresters sourced within a
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100-mile radius, an important piece to the production puzzle, Neff says, because having the right stand in inventory is a big part of what the mill’s coordination effort is about. Log yard has a 65% oak, 15% aspen, 20% all other northern hardwoods mix, cut-to-length in either 8 ft. or 10 ft. blocks. Logs are scaled on the yard using a voice-activat-
ed cord scaling system. Tickets are wireless transmitted from the Simply Computing Inc. scaling system to the office where a log load slip is printed. Sometimes the mill will run up against market conditions that will force the mix to change, but typically logs are processed based on orders, on a six-week rotation schedule, first in, first out. White woods are processed as quickly as possible, while oak tends to have a longer life in the yard, for example. With the change of seasons, including what can be a harsh winter for northern Michigan, the yard adapts mainly thanks to a sawfiler Nash calls “genius.” “There’s a difference between sawing lumber in the summer and the winter— frozen solid you’re good to go, but in between causes problems. When it’s frozen solid it is harder to handle, but as in sawing it I don’t see issues there. We make adjustments in our saws and feed speeds,” he explains of breaking down logs during the various seasons. Suppliers Oleson Saw for needed bands and Cuttech and Sharp Tool for circular saws do very well for AJD according to Nash. Filers use an Armstrong grinder and leveler in the shop. Logs are transported from the yard to
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Lumber is sold rough green.
Sorts are made by length, primarily, as the mill focuses on industrial grade lumber.
the deck using a 2019 Caterpillar 966 wheel loader with a clam, and fed to a 27 in. A5 Nicholson debarker, then MDI metal detector—then on into the mill. Using a rotary log kicker, logs are sorted to either the newer headrig or older Mainland scragg using older technology photo eyes, with sorting decision mainly focusing on size. Nash says scanning at the primary breakdown is next on the upgrade list. Boards off the bandmill go to the edger; low quality cants drop to the gang, which is really an 8 in. single bottom arbor edger from Schurman. AJD is cutting cants in 4, 6 and 8 in. Cants coming off the scragg go straight to the gang. Slabs move to the 62 in. McDonough horizontal resaw to capture extra boards. All boards then flow to a landing table where three operators sort pieces ahead of the trimmer/grading line. Boards travel to an unscrambler, then to graders, where lower quality simply flows through, marking defects, and grade lumber is marked for reading by a Cypress grade reader. Lumber moves to a TS Manufacturing trimmer with Inovec (now USNR) optimization. Once trimmed and scanned, finished boards flow to an Autolog sorting system. Once sorted, boards are stacked and packaged. All lumber produced by AJD Forest Products is sold rough green. It didn’t always used to be that way—AJD was drying some packs for customers, but when oil prices spiked in 2007, the mill elected to shut down the kilns. Neff explains that while the price of oil initially pushed the mill to shut the kilns down, 18
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Nash calls his saw filers geniuses for what they can accomplish in the filing room with Armstrong machines.
after a good look at the books, it was the best idea all around. “We put in a limited amount of kiln space to help our existing customers; they had more orders than they could dry, because of the kiln shortage before the recession. So we said we’d dry x amount and sell it to them dry. But as our customers built out their kiln capacity, they wanted to use their capacity, not ours. The gas got our attention, but even now, very few of our grade customers use outside drying. They all have enough capacity in-house and they all have their own process,” Neff explains. Since the mill is primarily an industrial quality mill, the need for drying just isn’t there, Neff reiterates. Instead, the mill focuses on generic moisture levels—though moisture content can vary since many times the timber coming out of the woods is a salvage harvest. The mill targets 40% moisture content, but with timber that has been standing dead in the woods for a year, it can go to the gate drier than Neff and Nash would like. The simple nature of salvage harvesting is a drier yield. Chuckling, Neff says, “It’s great for the chip market, but sometimes not so good in the sawmill.” Overall though, the kiln decision is the perfect summation of the improvements in efficiency Neff and Nash have done: Looking at what they were doing, seeing where it might be better to go a different direction, and plunging headfirst into an update. Of the work they’ve done, Nash says simply, “We have a long ways to go, but TP this is the start.” TIMBER PROCESSING
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SAFETY
IN MIND By David Abbott
Sawmill equipment manufacturers appear to have adjusted to the challenges of conducting business remotely and on-site during the pandemic.
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t goes without saying that our vision for 2020 could not have foreseen the reality that the year brought with it. “Coming into this year we expected it to be a good year for the industry,” comments Seth Vance, Chief Operating Officer of Timber Automation. “As is typical in the industry we expected to see a lot of orders in that FebruaryMarch time frame.”
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Things changed quickly in North America around the middle of March with the appearance of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Individuals, businesses and governments all reacted and continue to react. “We definitely saw people pulling back, I think just out of fear and uncertainty,” Vance says. “As we look at the second half of March and even most of April, it just seemed like everyone was in a wait-and-see mode, to try to get a sense of what was going on and where things were headed. We weren’t sure what rules and regulations would look like day to day in March and April.” BID Group CEO Alistair Cook concurs: “The uncertainty that came with the pandemic in Mach and April froze many plans for our customers. Federal, Provincial and State governments were implementing rules daily and even hourly at times, reacting to the severity of the pandemic. We had a mandatory shutdown in Quebec for three weeks at our operating facilities. In general that initial period impacted the business; however, I would praise our people and our customers for being resilient and playing a key role in the fight against the virus. Being designated essential was a challenge for our team and they took it head on and continue to do so.” Things started to improve in May, Vance continues. “We saw more orders come in the door. June was a very good month for us, and July, too. So we are starting to see things open up from an ordering and sales perspective.” As lumber prices have increased substantially and mills are hitting full speed, Vance believes his customers are feeling more confident. Likewise, Cook says, orders and demand certainly slowed down at the peak of the pandemic. “But as we continued to work through it with our customers to gain some clarity both in how to work in the new environment and respond to favorable
Equipment suppliers have stepped up big time during the pandemic. (Opposite page photo supplied by Andritz; above from USNR)
market conditions, we are fortunate to have booked some solid opportunities going forward and maintain a high level of service to our customers. It has impacted our business but our people have responded relentlessly to mitigate the impact.” USNR Corporate Service Manager Jason Corkle says some customers delayed project startups due to COVID and some have delayed because of the healthy price of lumber and panels. Most delays due to COVID, he says, are international customers where 14-day quarantines and other local government restrictions are either preventing entry into the country, or small projects that can wait or are not economically feasible to proceed due to COVID requirements at this time. Others say they’ve seen little disruption. McDonough Vice President/owner Matt Tietz says COVID hasn’t had much
impact on his company. “I don’t know if our industry is all like this or if we have been excluded, but the only issue we have encountered is on the startup side of things,” he says, referencing a few delays. Similarly, Norvin Laudon, Chief Technology Officer at Springer Microtec North America, says the pandemic has not affected their business dramatically. “A few projects were delayed until next year, some of the decisions on larger projects have been delayed, but the day-to-day business and normal machinery sales are pretty much going forward,” Laudon says. “Lumber prices are good, people still seem to be buying. I don’t know why lumber prices are high but there is a great demand and whenever lumber prices are high our business goes well.” According to Bill Beck, North American Sawmill Manager for Andritz, the un-
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certainty of the early days of the pandemic brought with it some surprises for those in his business. “Like everybody else when all this started in March and April, with a lot of mills closing or curtailing, that impacted our business for a while,” he acknowledges. “But right now we are pretty much on target. We are still seeing projects moving along, somewhat delayed but still moving along.”
Beck continues, “What nobody saw coming was, since everybody went home, they decided I’m going to build a deck, or repair a fence. So everyone is going to Lowe’s and Home Depot and buying lumber, and it drained the pipeline. So now they are seeing lumber at record prices and there is no end in sight as far as mills being able to fill the pipeline back up.” In terms of manufacturing and installation of new projects, Linck U.S. representative Bill Craig says Linck has remained very busy despite COVID. “We have been running a two-year backlog,” he says. “Our shop is full.” He says that they have actually had to miss the opportunity to compete for some projects in Europe and Canada because of the number of projects to which they had already been committed. It’s both a good and a bad problem to have, he says. By the end of this year, Craig says Linck should be caught up with the demand and able to compete for new projects again.
SAFETY PROTOCOLS Consider the raw numbers. At the time of this writing in mid August, given a U.S. population of slightly more than 328 million, about 1 in 61 Americans (5.38 million) had contracted
Augmented reality software has entered the sawmill vocabulary. (Photo supplied by BID Group)
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COVID-19, and around 1 in 1,940 (169,350) had died from the virus or complications arising from it (with the vast majority of those cases in the elderly categories). Extrapolating those numbers for an entire year would still put the virus well behind heart disease and cancer, the top two leading causes of death, but significant nonetheless, especially with the fear of the unknown still lingering at least until a preventive vaccine is revealed. “The COVID-19 pandemic is ever evolving and challenges all decision makers, stakeholders, and Health and
Safety professionals as we navigate unchartered territory,” comments Adrienne Bootsma, Corporate Safety and Training Manager at USNR. As for USNR, “The new normal for personal protective equipment now includes face coverings, sanitizing spray and wipes, hand sanitizer, and gloves,” she says. “There is a renewed emphasis on behavior-based safety, the notion that individuals are responsible for their behaviors. This proactive approach shifts influence from ‘having to work safely’ to ‘wanting to work safely.’ Wanting to
wear a face covering rather than having to wear a face covering.” Most companies have put similar safety measures into place and some have adjusted shifts and hours. At its offices and manufacturing sites in Germany, Linck is allowing only half of its engineering and accounting staff to work on site at a time, with the other half working at home. Linck’s manufacturing is normally done on a single shift, but in light of the pandemic, the German company has added a second shift so that only half its employees are there on each shift to better allow for social distancing, along with requiring masks and hand sanitizer. Andritz was already running three shifts in its manufacturing plant. “So we had to move production around a bit to keep the first shift away from the second shift away from the third shift,” Beck explains. “We had to modify our operating hours so there is an hour in between each shift, with no intermingling. The guys come in, spend the first 15-20 minutes disinfecting their work area, then they go on doing their thing. Everyone wears a mask and stays away from each other as best as they can.” Those measures really seem to have been effective so far, he reports. “On our manufacturing side, we have had just one person who did test positive, so we shut that shift down for 10 days, sent everybody home and told them to isolate. Fortunately that cleared up, he recovered, and it did not spread.”
BY REMOTE Cook says BID moved quickly to get its people working remotely, “We were very fortunate to have a robust IT system across all 15 facilities and were therefore able to manage the business remotely, keeping our people safe.” He cites OT (operational technology) and ERP (enterprise resource planning) systems that had been fully integrated across BID sites, and points to Chalk augmented reality software as a particularly useful tool for providing remote diagnostics to customers. BID has also engaged in a series of webinars to offer remote training. “I have been truly impressed with our people and how they are performing under these conditions,” Cook says. “Working from home is not easy for some people, but they have been able to do that and service customers remotely, and with the technologies implemented, we can continue to grow that business so we don’t have to travel as much to service our customers. It definitely has changed our view about people working at an of24
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fice versus remotely and we will consider that as we move forward.” USNR Bootsma comments, “There are a multitude of dynamic and innovative tools and technologies at our fingertips that allow remote learning to replicate and simulate, bringing a whole new experience to our learners.” Corkle of USNR adds, “USNR has supported customers remotely for many years using webcams and remote support systems. Today we’re using newer platforms that allow augmented reality via remote camera sharing and real-time
video streaming using mobile devices. We can easily observe customer systems whether it’s machinery, PLC controls, optimizers, or anything else. Our service experts can then guide customers through the solution repair by placing arrows and markers on objects as they are displayed on a mobile device.” In August USNR began conducting Zoom online training with a customer in Australia. The class spans multiple days and the USNR service tech out of Parksville, BC adjusted his schedule to accommodate the Australian time
zone. Other meetings which would normally have taken place at the customer site are now conducted via video conference. Video and screen sharing technology has been very beneficial in sharing information, and still allows ability to grow relationships face to face. Linck’s’s Craig says that Microsoft Teams has been the virtual meeting platform of choice for Linck. “We have remote sales calls, we have put off meetings and we have not been traveling,” he says. In lieu of in-person sales visits, Craig has been making use of social media to send videos of Linck equipment via LinkedIn to potential customers who have requested information. Andritz found that much of its office work can be done from remote locations. “Right now we have our office on a 25% staffing cycle,” Beck reports. “Our engineering teams have learned how they can work at home on design work and CAD work, and the same thing with accounting. We have all learned how to use Microsoft Teams for meetings. I am in charge of all sales and sawmills in the U.S. and Canada, so my sales guys are spread around the country and work from home anyway. That is nothing new for them. I think I have been in my office one time in the last four and half months. I can do just as much damage here as I can from my office.” Having meetings, sales visits and trouble shooting virtually requires good WiFi service and cell coverage. “Mills are typically not in densely populated areas, so there are fewer cell towers,” Vance points out. “If I am going to try to remotely access your system and change parameters to fix optimization, it makes it more challenging.” BID’s Cook says they supply their own connection when at sites to ensure solid Wi-Fi. “Our customers are very accommodating and sophisticated in this area.” “Most customer locations have good cell coverage, but a few are limited,” USNR Corkle says. “Almost all customers have internet access that enables remote support directly into USNR computer systems through the customer’s Mill Wide Network, or a direct connection to the internet. An internet connection is key to providing timely support and preventing downtime.”
IN-PERSON While McDonough has toned down sales travel some, Tietz emphasizes, “Our industry is a face-to-face, handshake deal. At a certain point in the sales process, we’re going to travel.” 26
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Not every job can be done remotely. “Our products are hands-on to install,” Beck says. Andritz service techs have been going to mills, but they follow all safety protocols the mills have established: wearing masks and maintaining as much social distance as possible. “We have had a few people exposed to the virus but fortunately no one has gotten it,” Beck says of those Andritz employees who have made site visits. Linck is handling installations with
the normal restrictions in the mills: distance, masks, hand sanitizer. When techs return from on-site installations, they are quarantined for several days to prevent spread in case of an infection. “We’ve been collaborating with customers about their COVID prevention measures and sharing ours including cleaning/disinfecting routines, social distancing policies, and mask/face shield requirements when 6 feet/2 meter social distancing can’t be maintained,” says Corkle
of USNR. “This ensures we align with our shared goal of preventing the spread of COVID-19 and ensuring the safety of customer employees and USNR employees while at site. This has helped provide a comfort level to our traveling employees and customer employees when we, as outside contractors, arrive on-site.” There have been a handful of reports of sawmill employees catching the virus. Many mill companies have implemented stringent safety guidelines requiring masks or face shields whenever workers cannot maintain six feet of separation; neck gaiters or bandanas are usually not considered to offer sufficient protection. Many aren’t allowing “non-essential” personnel into their mills. “One thing we have noticed is that the bigger companies, like GP, Interfor, West Fraser or Canfor, have been sticklers for following the rules,” Beck says. “Unless there is a very specific reason for you to come to the mill then they don’t want you to come around.” With smaller and independent mills, he says, the approach seems to be a little more relaxed. McDonough’s Tietz indicates the majority of people with whom he interacts firmly believe that the dangers of the virus, and the response to it, have been sensationalized and that the accompanying hysteria is driven by rhetoric in the media.
GETTING THERE Vance says one challenge for Timber Automation had to do with getting across national borders. “We had some specific situations where we had to make shipments from one facility to another; we have one facility in Quebec City and we were not sure what we would be able to get out of or into Canada.” Just in case, they made sure to have all the inventory and parts they’d need
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“We’ve had to adapt our travel to the U.S. a bit to deal with quarantine requirements on people returning to Canada. Using members of our team already based in the U.S. is the preferred option.” —Norvin Laudon,
the company’s European installations this fall, but had to postpone those trips due to COVID travel restrictions. Bootsma of USNR notes that as a global participant in wood products industry, USNR has become well-versed in COVID-19 related trends, recommendations, policy, and law in jurisdictions around the world. USNR has had continuous operation of its six manufacturing and electrical shops at its worldwide locations, she says, providing uninterrupted service and support for customers around the globe.
“USNR is considered an essential service provider to critical infrastructure for both the U.S. and Canada which enables our service and engineering teams to cross the US/Canada boundary uninhibited for most regions,” Corkle says. “Our first line of defense is remote support, but sometimes problems require on-site support to resolve. USNR is still able to provide on-site support for U.S. and Canadian customers as we did pre-pandemic.” Corkle adds that with the loosening of restrictions in Europe for some countries, USNR is now able to provide on-
Chief Technology Officer at Springer Microtec North America
on both sides of the border, enough for six to eight weeks. That challenge now has more to do with people than with inventory. Anyone returning to Canada from the U.S. is supposed to be under a mandatory quarantine period. “In some cases we have had people get quarantined for two weeks when they go back to Canada from the U.S., or vice versa. There is certainly not the flexibility to move labor around the way there used to be, so it requires a lot more forethought and planning.” Laudon agrees that travel is where they have been affected the most. Travel restriction across the U.S./Canadian border poses a challenge. “We’ve had to adapt our travel to the U.S. a bit to deal with quarantine requirements on people returning to Canada. Using members of our team already based in the U.S. is the preferred option.” While based in Wisconsin, McDonough Mfg. also has a facility in Canada. “The restriction of getting people across the border has given us some grief,” Tietz says. “We have worked around that with some of the startups.” When they couldn’t get their usual controls person from Canada to a startup south of the border, McDonough was able to bring in someone local who had done work for them in the past. With its base in Oberkirch in southwest Germany, about 20 miles from the French border, Linck’s big customer base is in Europe. Craig has been working hard to expand it into the U.S. He has had a customer request a to visit some of TIMBER PROCESSING
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site support for many European customers. USNR’s first trip since the pandemic was scheduled for mid-August to Germany for a project startup there. Additionally, USNR has been working with Australian and New Zealand customers to provide on-site installation and startup for projects starting this fall and into January 2021. “Australia and New Zealand still have many restrictions including 14-day quarantine upon arrival, and we are working through various government/visa requirements to enable our on-site presence to
move these projects forward in conjunction with remote support from North America,” Corkle says.
MARKETS Business has remained mostly robust for McDonough, as it has for many others in the industry, almost like there was no pandemic at all. In mid-July, Tietz reports, the company gained one of the largest orders it has ever received, from a mill in the Midwest. “I’m not sure what to make of that—if it means the economy is strong, or
the industry, or if it is just that this customer is confident in the future and confident in us. But we won the business and it will be a great installation for them.” Cook remains skeptical that the worst is behind us. “Obviously we are not out of it. In certain regions we were on track for it lessening, but it feels like it’s coming back in many areas we operate in and we cannot let our guard down. We remain focused on the safety of our people.” Still, the markets look pretty good, he adds. “We are seeing high lumber and panel prices, which is driving profitability and cash flow. We are still in uncertain times and continue to manage what we can control as we move forward. We are cautiously optimistic with the macro dynamics for the demand of building products, which bodes well for our business. 2020 will be a good year for us and we believe 2021 could be very good, but it just depends on how the pandemic turns the economy one way or the other.”
LESSONS LEARNED Chuck Wert, USNR Senior VP, comments, “We have learned to operate extremely effectively in a virtual environment. We have had a significant number of our employees working from home since early April. As a result, we have learned how to collaborate online, train online and most importantly, support our customers more extensively online. No doubt, when we combine our newly acquired virtual skills with our more traditional in-person support, we now deliver a significantly improved overall package of sales and support.” Vance of Timber Automation adds, “I think that it has shown there is a greater opportunity to use technology to get our work done. Some things you can’t replace with virtual interaction, but it has shown us that we can have sales calls via videoconference platforms and in some cases even review approval drawings with customers. I think it has shown some things traditionally we thought had to be done face-toface or with a visit to the customer’s site can definitely can be done virtually.” Microtec’s Laudon indicates the pandemic has brought forth greater flexibility. “We have adapted to working remotely pretty well,” he says. “I was pleasantly surprised to see how well our team can work remotely and how well we can do business remotely. Now we know we can do some of these things in the future if we need to. If there is trouble traveling to a site, for instance, then we know we have some different ways of doing it, TP which is good.” 30
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SHOWCASE EDITOR’S NOTE: As earlier announced, the Timber Processing & Energy Expo that was scheduled for September 30 to October 2 in Portland, Ore. has been cancelled due to the pandemic. The event was nearing an exhibitor sellout and many of those exhibitors had planned to run advertisements in this issue of Timber Processing, which was to be the show preview issue. But as they say, the show must go on, and even though there is no show in Portland, there is still a Showcase in this issue, which has been made available to the advertisers in this issue who were also signed up to exhibit for the Portland event in September. On the following pages these companies have supplied editorial profiles and photos. But that’s not all, these same companies have been invited to submit videos of their operations to be shown on the TP&EE web site Showcase Video section, which will be available for viewing on the same dates as the Portland show would have been held, September 30-October 2. We’ll keep reminding you until then. That web site is: www.timberprocessingandenergyexpo/tpee-showcase/
AMERICAN WOOD DRYERS American Wood Dryers, LLC designs, builds and installs high efficiency, high quality dry kilns with installations throughout the world. Designs incorporate quality materials such as ALCLAD aluminum panel sheeting and Themax closed cell rigid foam insulation. The Modular Panels Design reduces installation labor and operating costs in terms of energy and maintenance. Package kilns are supplied for smaller volumes of high value hardwood. Track kilns are designed for large volume, high temperature, high through- American Wood Dryers CDK put softwood mills. Track kilns can be batch or continuous. Continuous track kilns can be a counter flow design or American’s newly patented Single Pass, one-way flow, which produces a higher grade of lumber at lower energy costs. Kiln enclosures, both package and track types, are designed for each application and can be all-aluminum structures with ALCLAD aluminum panel surfaces and R20 insulation or all-stainless steel in special cases. Continuous kilns are typically a combination of aluminum construction in the cold sections and steel in the hot section for economy of material costs. Heat systems vary from hot water or steam coils in hardwood kilns with larger steam systems in conifer kilns, as well as thermal oil coils, direct fired natural gas furnaces and green or dry wood waste fired systems with optional natural gas backup burners. Air circulation systems are designed for each application and can be direct drive specialized kiln-duty motors mounted inside the kiln or standard motors mounted external of the kiln chamber. In most cases motors are driven by variable frequency drives to adjust air flow to match kiln schedule requirements and reduce electric power costs. The Continuous Dry Kiln (CDK) design has become especially prevalent in the southern yellow pine industry. This design provides increased throughput and higher efficiency by taking advantage of both the stored heat in the lumber and the chamber humidity to preheat the entering lumber while conditioning the exiting product. American’s proprietary Drystar Kiln Control is a PC based system that provides flexible and intuitive operation when processing high value materials to exact specifications. Drystar II is a PLC based control system and are supplied for high production conifer kilns Visit drykilns.com
ANDRITZ IGGESUND TOOLS Since Andritz Iggesund Tools introduced our Powerhead Primary Canter heads in 2003, we have delivered more than 500 chipping heads to mills all over North America. These applications have covered every conceivable species, feed speed and region in the U.S and Canada. Using this experience to further optimize the design of our chipping heads and TurnKnife System, mills have the absolute best options for canter heads. We continue to work very closely with the OEMs of canter lines (Bid-Comact, Optimil, Cone-Omega, etc.), to help them deliver exactly what the customer demands from a new processing line, or a revamped one. Our Next Generation powerheads have proven to be the most economical, trouble free chipping heads available to mills today. These things are built like tanks, and coupled with the TurnKnife System, gives mills the worry free operations they want. Most recently, we have supplied the second mill Biewer Lumber built in Newton, Miss. They will have 100% Iggesund Tools chipping heads on the Comact canter, profil- Andritz heads frequent NA sawmills. ing units, and TBL-12. Other mills that have recently added Andritz Iggesund Tools canter heads are: Milan Lumber in Milan, NH; Mt. Hood Lumber in Mt. Hood, Ore.; and Canfor in Darlington, SC. Not only do we manufacture primary and secondary canter heads, but our smaller size HSH (Helical Solid Heads) heads are excellent for high speed board edger applications. These smaller heads are designed for high speed small log processing and board edgers. Our TKD drum style chipping heads are just like our conical heads—built to last, trouble free and economical to operate. Coupled with our TurnKnife System, these chipping heads are the “Go To” for mills all over North America and the world. Visit andritz.com 32
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SHOWCASE AUTOLOG Autolog solutions are built with mill personnel in mind. With more than 30 years of experience in the wood transformation industry, Autolog has proven itself to be an instrumental player for creating easy to use solutions from the front end to the back end of the mill. As a leader in automation, optimization and vision for the lumber industry, Autolog continues to invest heavily in R&D to ensure they are at the cutting edge of today’s technology to meet the growing needs of their clients. A great example of how Autolog partners with their clients to improve mill performance is their ability to work with any original equipment manufacturer as well as a variety of suppliers and layouts. This offers the customer an automation and optimization alternative to their existing mechanical manufacturer. From primary and secondary Autolog ProGrader linear planer optimizer breakdown, to planers, stackers, robotic equipment and Industry 4.0 (just to name a few), Autolog is ready to adapt their solution to cater to that of their customer’s need. This is just one key element to Autolog’s business model. Let’s focus in on their ProGrader linear planer optimizer which has been quoted by mill personnel as one of the easiest grading systems to work with. What does easy to use mean exactly? It means you can quickly leverage the knowledge and the experience of your key graders. At many locations, graders with limited computer knowledge can learn and delve into the system in order to extract the most value out of every piece. Easy to use means that your resources will be autonomous. Autolog’s ProGrader is a linear optimizer designed to fully automate the grading process of dressed lumber at the planer. Being positioned just after the planer, its group of sensors (geometric, vision and tracheid), which face each side of the board at 90 degrees, provide an unobstructed reading as well as stop any major planer mechanical production issue. It is a reliable and fast system that can be installed closed coupled or not, processing all dimensions between 1 in. x 3 in. to 6 in. x 12 in., 6 ft. and up. It offers the best price-performance ratio in the industry with less than one-year payback. Visit autolog.com
BID GROUP (COMACT) With Comact in its brand portfolio, BID Group is the North American leader of optimization products with vision. Over the years, Comact products actively contributed to the technological advancement of the timber industry. It is therefore not surprising that the Comact GradExpert is the number one grading optimizer in North America and that the brand has installed more than 225 optimizers with vision. Over the last years, several members of our team specialized in Artificial Intelligence (AI) after a research and development phase that allowed us to conclude that this was the future of wood grading. The AI models used by Comact products were created in-house to ensure extremely high efficiency. Our AI internal experts with a team of wood processing specialists educated the basic model and each system installed. In other words, the BID Group Comact’s Artificial Intelligence: benchmark for optimization Comact defect detection with AI models combined with the ultrapowerful optimization software is the equivalent of 25 Comact wood specialists in your machine 24/7. AI allows defect identification with pixel precision. Since the AI system is well educated, it can recognize the different shades of visual defects like rot and knots that may vary considerably according to the origin of the wood, the species and the severity of the defect. Historically, the different shades were difficult to distinguish. Today, AI excels at identifying and dimensioning various shades. Thanks to the superiority of the Comact software structure, the new software platform based on AI was easily deployed on the full range of Comact optimization products with vision. Therefore, the EdgExpert edger optimizer with vision, as well as the TrimExpert trimming optimizer with vision also benefited from the developments on the GradExpert. The AI team was very satisfied with the AI performance on these high-speed applications where the environmental conditions are more challenging. Comact’s AI platform will revolutionize the industry and establish new standards. In the short and medium term, our complete range of machines will benefit from the latest developments in applications that go beyond optimization. As a result, Comact will meet the client’s current and future needs in an outstanding manner and offer a return on investment unparalleled. Stay tuned for BID Group’s innovations—this is only the beginning of the AI revolution! Visit bidgroup.ca TIMBER PROCESSING
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SHOWCASE BRUNNER HILDEBRAND Brunner Hildebrand Lumber Kiln Co. specializes in kilns for softwood and hardwood. The company s expertise ensures that customers receive individual dry kiln solutions tailored to their needs. Each solution is chosen based on the requirements of the customer in terms of capacity and lumber grade. The priority is in providing the best-engineered, installed and serviced product in the market today. The company’s service network is on standby to provide full after-sales support, either on location or by remote access. Recently, the company introduced the brand-new Hildebrand Weight Precision Technology (HWPT), which is capable of weighing entire lumber stacks in wireless mode. In contrast to the former Brunner Brunner Hildebrand HWPT (Hildebrand Weight Precision Technology) for weighing Hildebrand in-kiln-probe-system, this is a massive lumber stacks improvement because it produces more accurate results and it may easily be integrated into the daily work routine by using weighing devices looking just like regular 4x4s. In combination with the new Vector EW control system, which shows kilns in appealing 2D and 3D mode, customers benefit from a superb level of accuracy and practical implementation. The latest kiln development is the single-direction Hildebrand Continuous Kiln, which is the right solution for mills that produce large volumes of lumber, e.g. dimension SPF. While developing the HCK, Brunner Hildebrand put great emphasis on creating exactly the right drying conditions for the respective lumber moisture content. Integrated into the kiln carts, the HWPT devices ensure full control. To provide best results, the technical features of each individual drying zone are customized to the drying state and moisture of the lumber passing through. Special emphasis has also been placed on energy-saving measures in the Hildebrand continuous kilns, such as the company’s special GreenKilns system with large cross-flow heat exchangers and the application of frequency-controlled fan motors throughout the kilns. Automatic indexing of kiln carts is performed hydraulically by powerful pusher units integrated in the feeding section of the kilns. Systems can be single-track or multi-track with lengths according to the desired production volume. It s also applicable for drying of different lumber dimensions simultaneously in one continuous kiln. Visit bhldrykilns.com
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SHOWCASE COLONIAL SAW Colonial Saw, Inc., a leading distributor of advanced saw and knife grinding machinery, is offering a hi-tech solution for sharpening a high volume of carbide saw blades. Sawmills, lumber manufacturers, and grinding and sharpening shops will benefit from its robot loading system that enables unattended and overnight grinding at a surprisingly affordable price. The Premium-Loader, an 8-axis grinding machine, is built by global pioneer ABM Grinding Technologies. This new generation machine minimizes human labor with a robot and probing system, allowing for true unattended processing with superb accuracy and superior finish grind quality. “We’re very excited to introduce this new technology. It will revolutionize workloads and deliver unprecedented cost savings, helping filing rooms get ahead in an increasingly competitive inColonial Saw offers the ABM Premium-Loader grinding machine dustry,” says Dave Rakauskas, Vice President of Colonial Saw. “We have two U.S. customers who were so excited about its potential they purchased the Premium-Loader in advance of its formal introduction. Their feedback tells us being able to run Premium-Loader overnight with no personnel delivers dramatic productivity increases and boosts the bottom line.” Designed to meet the increasing demand for automation by today’s circular saw manufacturing and mill filing rooms, the Premium-Loader offers vast range of production capacity for round saw blades. It delivers a high ease-of-use factor with a userfriendly control system, web camera monitoring, live error notification and a familiar Windows platform. Shops will also appreciate its compact footprint and efficient power consumption. Any shop grinding 250 or more blades per week should seriously consider this machine. A detailed cost justification is available by request. For over half a century, Colonial Saw has delivered uncompromising performance and value, along with one of the most comprehensive and responsive after-sale customer support programs in the grinding and filing industry. Visit csaw.com
CON-VEY As a world leader in material handling equipment for wood products, Con-Vey can build individual pieces of equipment or complete lines to efficiently move wood products and other building materials. Con-Vey’s experienced mechanical and electrical engineers can also easily integrate equipment into existing systems. Engineers at Con-Vey design and manufacture everything in their 100,000 sq. ft. full-service facility in Roseburg, Ore. for your value-added, cut-to-size, sanding, sawing, laminating, flooring, or panel/veneer handling lines. Everything at Con-Vey is custom designed to fit your needs, including the automated controls. Con-Vey is a UL-508A and CSA manufacturer with highly trained and qualified employees. Con-Vey’s experi- Con-Vey mass timber material handling enced personnel offer custom enclosure assembly and wiring that is second to none. They build panels to support their internal engineering projects as well as provide design-build services so that you always get a quality control panel built to high standards. Every panel is audited to a rigorous Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) checklist, then labeled and prepped for easy installation. Not sure if your materials can be moved by Con-Vey equipment? Con-Vey builds equipment to handle wood products throughout the whole production process, including fiber, panels, boards, and units for oriented strandboard (OSB), plywood, I-joists, laminated veneer lumber (LVL), oriented strand lumber (OSL), fiber panels like particleboard and MDF, mineral composite panels, cross laminated timber (CLT), and lumber. Con-Vey designs and manufactures material handling equipment for engineered wood products in cooperation with the standards set by the APA—The Engineered Wood Assn. As a member of the APA’s related organization, the Engineered Wood Technology Assn. (EWTA), Con-Vey has access to industry resources and knowledge that then trickles down to their customers and ensures their machinery and equipment meet high standards for quality operation. Because of their dedication to quality and customer service, Con-Vey was recognized as the 2019 EWTA Supplier of the Year in the Equipment/Tooling category among a total of 62 nominees! Let Con-Vey show you what true customer service and quality equipment looks like. Contact Con-Vey today for your innovative solution! Visit con-vey.com 36
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SHOWCASE DELTA COMPUTER SYSTEMS With the needs of multi-axis hydraulic control applications in fields such as forest products manufacturing, metal forming and test systems for automotive and aerospace applications in mind, Delta Computer Systems Inc. of Battle Ground, Wash. has been continually upgrading its RMC200 motion controller product family. The RMC200 can control and synchronize up to 32 axes with a single unit, making this product the most capable electro-hydraulic motion controller offered to industry. The RMC200 extends Delta’s high-performance motion control product line, which includes the RMC75 two-axis and RMC150 eight-axis controllers. Delta controllers provide built-in support for precise closed-loop position, velocity, pressure, and force control for electric, hydraulic and pneumatic applications. The controllers are provided with a powerful, free software suite called RMCTools, which includes automated wizards for programming, tuning and plotting of motion results. This software distills decades of practical hydraulics control experience into an Delta Computer Systems electro-hydraulic motion controller products easy-to-use package, allowing the user to set up, tune, program and commission their system in days rather than months. Delta is dedicated to ensuring user success, which means 24/7/365 technical and applications support from our technical support and engineering staff. Delta has a zero obsolescence policy, as well. Delta will not discontinue support for a product as long as there is demand, and all Delta Legacy motion controllers are still available for sale. This offers unique and lasting value to the industrial motion control market. Visit deltamotion.com
DO2 More than 30 DO2 Rapid Wrapper units are already running on three continents. It’s the only proven automatic wrapping solution that can run woven wrap; no operator is required and each project has a fast ROI. With the capacity to print the product labels directly on the wrap and to make the integration of the equipment, DO2 offers the automated outfeed solution that can fit all production, up to a turnkey project. Over time, we have developed other equipment around the wrapper to maximize your outfeed production, with centering device, lath breaker, package measuring systems, pack doubler as well as handling equipment like transfers and rollcases, etc. You can have the full automated outfeed from just one supplier with state-of-the-art technology. We have many wrapper models to align with all types of production and can fit even the best producing mill in terms of DO2 Rapid Wrapper automatic wrapping system speed. Started as a specialized machine for lumber about 10 years ago, the wrappers are now adapted to wrap panels and engineering wood products, so all wood product types can be automatically wrapped, including finished products using specialized solution. With the new design introduced in 2018, the wrapper is more flexible in terms of package size capacity and speed, while being smaller than before. We also have some solutions for the non-wrapped package to manage them automatically by printing or stapling a label directly on the wood. The 24/7 service line ensures a full coverage of operations all around the world for trouble shooting and assistance. The system also includes a full machine safety access that shuts down the machine at the gate opening to minimize downtime for reloading consumable while ensuring a safe environment for the operators. Visit do2.ca
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SHOWCASE GILBERT Over the past two decades, Gilbert has striven to be a first-class world leader in the planer mill industry. In 2002, Gilbert participated in the Portland Show for its first time. This event has always been very valuable to Gilbert. This was the first time a planer was brought to the stand in the U.S., attracting the curiosity of many! Since then, Gilbert has succeeded in installing more than 125 planers worldwide in more than 10 different countries. At Gilbert, understanding our customers’ needs, and adapting our planer accordingly, has always been a priority. From smaller operations to high speed planer mills, Gilbert presents five different models of planers: l Gilbert S Series Planer for smaller operations and slower speeds from 100 FPM up to 1800 FPM l Gilbert 6 Roll Planer for mid-size operations up to 2800 FPM l Gilbert High Speed Planer, the fastest and biggest model up to 4000 FPM l Gilbert Moulder for special patterns and profiles Gilbert planer installations have pushed forward during l Gilbert Mass Timber Planer for big glulam and CLT operations the pandemic. Recent Startups During COVID 19: The COVID 19 pandemic hasn’t stopped Gilbert from working on four startups in the USA in the states of Florida (two), Georgia and Washington. Gilbert’s service team has been up to the task! High tech remote systems have been developed, which allows virtual participation in all installations and startups. Our customers have installed cameras at the infeed of the equipment which gives Gilbert technicians a live view from our Roberval office. The Planer staff also downloaded software onto their phones allowing for closeup views of the equipment. Mill Manager at Great South in Lake City, Fla., Mike Dennard, commented: “Even though the planning was more complex, the result was a good plan, well executed by everyone involved, resulting in a very successful project.” Gilbert’s Southern USA Service Rep, Jimmy Porter, has also been a key to the success of this enterprise. Based in Niceville, Fla., he is in contact with our team in Roberval 24/7—a service for which Gilbert and our American customers are immensely grateful. Although we are all looking forward to borders being reopened, one thing Gilbert can say is that this situation has propelled significant technological progress which we can all be quite proud of. We welcome you to view our complete line of planers and to learn more about our company and team. Visit gilbert-tech.com
GREG F. SMITH CO. (GMACHINE) The Greg F. Smith Co., Portland Ore., has recently completed the installation and startup of a Gmachine BA 6 in. shifting saw, chipping curve-sawing gang system in a southern yellow pine sawmill to produce decking, structural lumber and timbers. The new machine increased both production and recovery in the mill while providing maximum user configurability, easily switching between curve and straight sawn solutions depending upon grade. The custom designed machine incorporates proprietary concepts and industry standard components for ease of maintenance and parts availability. This recent application utilized Key Knife HY2 High Yield drum style chipping heads in specially designed mounts. Easily customized to control chip length and feed speeds across a wide variety of feed rates matched to each mill’s specific requirements, this machine has yielded substantial increases in recovery as well as production increases of up to 28% over the previously installed machine. Gmachine sawing and chipping system from Greg F. Smith Co. Maximum flexibility in product mix is achieved using thin-kerf guided saws in a versatile gang configuration that allows multiple saw configurations. The machine can move the saw banks independently of each other to produce custom sizes in a flexible center pocket while simultaneously sawing products in adjacent fixed arrays of saws to allow sawing of custom timber sizes and high value recovery boards at the same time. This design can be implemented with or without side and/or top head chipper assemblies and incorporates a full complement of electric linear actuators, direct coupled arbor and chipper motors and can be produced in a single bottom arbor (BA) design for up to 10 in. thick material. The Gmachine Company is focused on designing custom gang and edger machines to meet user specific requirements that can fit into difficult physical layouts as well as standard configurations for retrofit and new build applications. Visit gmachinecompany.com 40
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SHOWCASE JOESCAN Fresh from a presentation at the Forest Product Society Virtual International Conference, JoeScan’s Joey Nelson is embracing his company’s relationship with academia. His presentation on the state-of-the-art in sawmill scanning for 2020 will find a new audience with students in the WSE 465 Renewable Materials Manufacturing Experience course at Oregon State University. “Normally we have our seniors spend the week before Fall term begins touring various types of wood processing facilities and industry vendors around Oregon,” says Dr. Scott Leavengood, Director of the Oregon Wood Innovation Center at OSU. “We typically visit about 15 mills in five days. Obviously with COVID-19, Michelle Maller, this year’s instructor, is having to be creative and do something quite different this year.” JoeScan was happy to share the video presentation for an Industry 4.0 learning session to replace the on-site visits. The scanning company has Oregon State students learn about scanning technology partnered with Dr. Leavengood and Oregon State in the past, donating scan from JoeScan. heads for students to get hands-on experience with real industry equipment. “We’re big fans of working with Oregon State and other universities,” Nelson says. “We get to help the next generation of sawmill integrators get their feet wet. And the feedback that we get from students and professors helps us to improve our scanners and make them even easier to use.” So what’s next for the partnership between Oregon State’s Oregon Wood Innovation Center and JoeScan? “One of the challenges facing the program at OSU is having enough physical hardware for students to work with,” Nelson says. “That’s inspired us to begin working on a software-emulated version of our latest JS-50 scanner. When it’s finished, we’ll be able to digitally distribute virtual scanners for students and industry pros to test their software solutions.” Dr. Leavengood agrees that the relationship is a win-win. As he says, “We’ve recently added an option to our degree program called Advanced Manufacturing, which is specifically focused on wood products manufacturing. We’re a very hands-on major and our students really appreciate the ability to work directly with the high-tech scanning equipment used in sawmills. When I’ve done classroom demonstrations using the scan heads JoeScan donated to our program, it’s really great to see how engaged the students are when they see a live image from the scanners being displayed on-screen. We’re really looking forward to a continued working relationship with JoeScan and know that our students will benefit greatly from this first-hand experience using the equipment that their future employers use.” Visit joescan.com
LINCK Linck, the largest European sawmill machinery company, is also the world’s leader in profiling, having invented and patented the profiling system over 40 years ago. With 180 years of sawmill machinery experience, Linck develops customized lumber production systems to achieve overall solutions for large production volume mills as well as for small specialty mills. Every biennial world benchmarking study since 2000 has proven that Linck equipped mills have the lowest cost of lumber manufacturing. A majority of the largest lumber producers in Europe have partnered with Linck as their preferred machinery supplier. Linck equipment is known for highest quality of engineering design and machine manufacturing, and our equipment is valued by customers worldwide for its longevity in continuous operation, having been designed with safety, operations excellence, ease of maintenance as top priorities. The flexibility of product options and sawing patterns with Linck equipment is unparalleled in the lumber production equipment industry. Linck has the long-standing reputation of meeting our customers’ production goals and schedules, as well as their capital project schedules and startup performance. Regardless of whether you are looking for curved-sawing chipping-canter profiling lines for high production of dimension lumber or reducer technology for producing special lumber products for CLT or other uses, or even long timbers, Linck’s innovative solutions are the answer to your production needs. Core values of the privately-owned Linck Holzverarbeitungstechnik are reflected in the commitment to excellent solutions for the customer by providing long-lasting, highest quality machinery with high automation resulting in lowest possible manning Linck sawline at Pieper Holz in Olsberg, Germany and high returns on investment for the customer. Despite our leading global market position, our success is never compromised: “Linck Quality Made in Germany.” Visit Linck.com 42
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SHOWCASE LONZA WOOD PROTECTION Lonza Wood Protection offers innovative technologies and engineering solutions that result in clean, bright wood. Our AntiBlu line of products provides short-term protection for logs, poles and lumber against biological growth that can harm the wood’s color and desirability. The Mycostat family of products are featured in the AntiBlu line along with specialty items for controlling log pre-infection, iron stain, end checking and appearance weathering. —We provide the highest quality anti-sapstain products along with the best application solutions for your site. —Our usage and performance guidance allows you to keep your treatment costs affordable. —Our research and development focuses on product development with regulated chemistries that have a proven track record. —With excellent technology, our equipment is designed to meet your specific performance requirements and fit seamlessly into your existing process. Lonza technologies for enhancing wood performance —We analyze thousands of wood samples a year to ensure that treated wood production meets your specifications. Lonza Wood Protection is a global leader providing innovative technologies that improve the performance of wood, making it resistant to termites, fungi, smoke development and flame spread, mold and moisture. Lonza manufactures many of the highest quality wood protection products, including its Wolman line of preservatives, Dricon line of fire retardants, SillBor borate treatments, and FrameGuard and Wolman non-pressure mold inhibitors. Lonza also offers formulations such as Permatek that are specifically designed for the treatment of engineered wood. With expansive offering of services and expertise, Lonza is dedicated to the success of its customers. Visit lonza.com
MCDONOUGH MANUFACTURING McDonough Manufacturing Co. is a global supplier of specialized machine solutions dating back to 1888. Built on a foundation of trust, McDonough focuses on mutual honesty and long-term ethics and meeting customer quality expectations. Founded in the Chippewa Valley in Wisconsin in order to service the 13 sawmills that occupied “Sawdust City” on the banks of the Eau Claire River, McDonough received its first patent on a “Traveling Bed Feed Resaw” in 1892. This machine would become known as a linebar resaw, the most profitable machine in many modern mills and has saved many sawmills from extinction. McDonough is owned and operated by CEO Sue Tietz and VP Matt Tietz in Eau Claire, Wis., with Hugh Hawley, P. Eng. serving as the General Manager in the Canadian facility. While capable and experienced in creating equipment for many industries, the historical focus and expertise lies in machinery for the sawmill industry, namely: bandmills, linebar and horizontal resaws, board edgers, gang edgers, carriages, material handling, parts repair and replacement, specialty services. Understanding that yield is king, McDonough offers a variety of equipment to suit all sawmills with an aim to maximize yield, minimize payback time and always with long-term durability in mind. Products like the OptiFit linear edger has revolutionized the industry, and there are more McDonough headrigs in operation than any other brand. Supplying the forest products industry with precision engineered and built material handling equipment of all types, McDonough designs are completed with accuracy and ease of maintenance in mind. Recognizing that no two sawmills are the same, customization is the name of the McDonough provides primary and downstream sawing. game to ensure the equipment is right for each customer’s needs. Whether you are looking at installing a new or used McDonough line, or any other brand, your first call should be to the professionals at McDonough—we’ve been doing this for more than 130 years. Visit mcdonough-mfg.com 44
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SHOWCASE METAL DETECTOR INC. Technological advancements in today’s mills are causing increasing environmental interference due to electrical noise such as radios, CBs, VFDs, and EMFs; which is why MDI continuously strives to develop metal detector systems that can operate at maximum sensitivity in even the harshest of environments. MDI’s newest innovation is the View-Link Remote Diagnostic Module—a network interface that provides “live” realtime information from your MDI metal detector directly to our facility in Eugene, Ore. This enables our technicians to monitor the metal detector and its environment to make custom adjustments and tweaks to the system’s software remotely. Combined with the significant advancements we’ve made to our premier TWA-2000-HD metal detector search coil (our most advanced metal detector search coil to date), the MDI MDI View-Link remote interface View-Link will further slash downtime and increase profitability. Leading North American mills call the View-Link a “game changer”! The following are a few examples of problems that MDI View-Link has been able to solve for our customers: —Unknown false tripping caused by a broken weld in a nearby catwalk —Detecting and then ignoring minerals and saps found in specific wood species —Monitoring during weather extremes in order to find a nearby motor that, as the weather becomes hotter, will creep into the same frequency as the metal detector causing false tripping —Adjusting the systems programming to ignore various nuisance targets that do not pose a threat to the customer’s processing equipment and machinery The View-Link gives MDI the ability to make on demand software upgrades, customizing the system’s programming to the specific needs of your application, in order to more fully optimize the performance and capability of your metal detector system. It’s like having an MDI service technician right there in your mill! Visit mdiblue.com
MICROTEC (SPRINGER) The Goldeneye 900 Multi-Sensor Quality Scanner in transverse transport is the ultimate showcase of Microtec’s technological innovation and leadership in scanning technologies. Using Microtec’s proprietary Crometic cameras, with the fastest and highest resolution available, the scanner is capable of seeing different wood defects that are important for your grade. Coupled with its integrated Deep Learning AI (Artificial Intelligence) module, advanced algorithms detect and localize all types of defects, including knots, cracks, discoloration, pitch pockets, wane, curvature and other dimensional defects. Capable of imaging both rough green and planed dry surfaces, the scanner can be installed in both sawmills and planer mills, and be used for trimming, grading and sorting, as well as edging optimization. In addition to structural and visual fixed length product evaluation, re-edging/re-sawing, cut-in-two, and even finger-jointing products can be simultaneously optimized, to ensure maximum value for each board. Microtec’s Goldeneye 900 multi-sensor transverse lumber scanner The Goldeneye 900 is a true four-sided scanner, with a full multi-channel view of each surface of the board. When fitted with the special occlusionless transport chain, no portion of the board is hidden, even on the bottom surface. Installation and startup is straightforward as the scanner fits in at standard chain height, with no elevation changes or height modifications. Microtec, always at the forefront of innovation, includes in all recent quality scanners, whether lineal or transverse, the option of improved defect detection through Artificial Intelligence. The advanced AI module is currently providing real benefits to many clients all over the world, with six successfully installed transverse scanners in the last year and eight new orders placed since Ligna 2019. In fact, the new generation of Goldeneye 900 transverse quality scanners are running and creating value for customers in North and South America, Europe, Australia, as well as Russia. Visit springer-microtec.com 46
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SHOWCASE MÜHLBÖCK In a world where sustainability and renewable energy is key, the continuous high output of Mühlböck’s continuous dryer system is a game-changer. The experience and knowhow gained all over the world and the high quality installations have already convinced many customers. The commissioning of the first Mühlböck CDK for North America, installed in 2019 for Delco Forest Products of New Brunswick, Can., has been successfully completed. This Progressive Dynamic CDK equipped with model 1003 Heat Recovery is now in full production to great satisfaction. “There were many factors that came into play, from technical aspects and yard logistics, thermal and electrical energy capacities, to operating and investment costs. With the implementation of our Progressive Dynamic CDK with model 1003 Heat Recovery, we were able to provide Delco with every aspect they were looking for,” comments Peter Driessen of Mühlböck North America.. Another innovation, which is currently installed for a Mühlböck Progressive FLOW CDK under construction in France European customer, is the progressive FLOW CDK. Although Mühlböck has been scoring globally for several years with its progressive kilns and its various heat recovery systems, they still saw further potential in making the progressive kiln even more flexible than before. Mühlböck explains the origin of this idea: “Many of our customers have noted in the past that with the stacking of the lumber into a dry kiln, the continuous process in the production from the sawmill to the planer mill is interrupted. With this system we have now combined the flexibility of a classic dry kiln with the continuous feeding system of a progressive kiln.” To make sure that interested parties no longer have to make trips to Europe to see this leading edge technology first hand, the Mühlböck CDK built for Delco is serving as a Reference Project and can be visited by interested parties. Visit muehlboeck.com
NELSON BROS. ENGINEERING Nelson Bros. Engineering (NBE) has been specializing in scanners and optimizers for almost 30 years with the goal of making systems that are simple and simply better. Simplicity and accuracy are most important. Whether using lineal scanners or transverse scanners, NBE aims to be the innovative group that people go to when they want to do a “first of a kind” system. Or when they just want to have an easy startup. At NBE, the focus is on equipment startup and NBE’s best startups have been the scanner/optimizer/controls upgrades. These have all been weekend startups, plus the mill can usually see the improvement in overall mill recovery during the first week. For new equipment, startups are more involved, thus entail more risk. NBE’s best startups result from: a shop test or an off-line startup; an experienced startup team; a simple system; avoiding words like “new” and “first” and questioning statements like “no problem;” hope for success, but plan for problems. NBE believes that simplicity and accuracy is most important. Therefore the single zone lineal scanner system is best, then the multizone lineal, and lastly the transverse scanning system with positioning table. Visit millsmart.com
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SHOWCASE OLESON SAW Oleson Saw, a division of York Saw & Knife Co. Inc., and Iseli & Co. of Switzerland are proud to announce the introduction of the new BNA100 plasma Stellite tipping machine and the BNF100 CNC 4-axis dual side grinding machine for the application and maintenance of Stellite tipped band saw blades in the forest products industry. The new BNA100 is Iseli’s version of the former Vollmer GPA200. Building on the success of the GPA200 platform, Iseli has kept the mechanics of the machine while adding their own upgraded controller. Stellite application in mold blocks ensures economical use of Stellite and shortened grinding times. The plasma welding process with an inert gas guarantees a very strong connection between the Stellite and the body of the saw blade. In addition to sophisticated Iseli BNA100 is supported by Oleson Saw. technology, the BNA100 is characterized by its robust design, ease of operation and price to performance ratio. The BNF100 is a fully automated 4-axis CNC dual side grinding machine giving you maximum grinding accuracy for your band saw blades, and a top-quality finish grind. The machine works with water emulsion or with oil. The BNF100 comes fully equipped with three grinding programs including oscillation grinding. The high reliability of the Iseli machines makes them the best possible solution for your Stellite tipping and dual side grinding applications. Fast and reliable parts and service for Iseli machines is supplied by Oleson Saw from either their York, Pa. or Post Falls, ID locations. Visit olesonsaw.com
OPTICOM Sawmills and wood processing plants are not the only industrial operations that regard the CC02 as invaluable. In 2005, Planetworks Consulting Corp. engineer Colin Savage chose the CC02 as the video monitoring solution for the $800 million Seymour Capilano Twin Tunnels Project, which consisted of two 3.8 meter wide, 7.1 kilometer long tunnels bored under Grouse and Fromme mountains for water infrastructure enhancement. Savage said, “I would challenge others to find a harsher environment than a tunnel boring machine. We used cameras at multiple locations along the TBM to view progress and as indicators for material conveyance. These cameras were mounted beside conveyor belts, which had hard rock tunneling waste transported at high speed past the camera. It was not uncommon for small and medium sized rocks to hit these cameras on the lens and body. They stood up to this punishment 24/7, and the only thing replaced occasionally was the protective glass on the camera enclosure.” Opticom continually researches the development of new products with new technologies. Opticom has now released a new generation of CC02s based on high definition analog or TVI (Transport Video Interface) technology. The TVI equipment is easily integrated into ex- Opticom cameras have proven their reliability and toughness. isting coaxial cable systems and delivers the equivalent of 2 megapixel (1080P) resolution, while retaining all of the durability and reliability customers have come to expect. This new technology allows customers to migrate to high definition video without having to rewire or re-learn video transmission. Today, Opticom sells their cameras throughout North America and Europe to hundreds of customers in a wide range of industries who are looking for reliability and video system support. Visit opticomtech.com
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SHOWCASE OPTIMIL MACHINERY Over the last couple of years Optimil has introduced both side board profilers and a new true balanced cut horizontal arbor saw box. These are aimed at reducing the amount of reman that is commonly found in conventional four-sided and two-sided canter systems. These allow higher feed speeds with better control to eliminate missmatch that occurs from similar saw boxes. Optimil’s standard designs have grown to incorpoOptimil primary breakdown line rate state-of-the-art sawdust and chip containment to promote a cleaner environment and safer workplace. Other key sawdust and chip containment features include: new chipping sections with increased head diameters and enlarged chip chutes; reconfigured chip chutes that allow for fewer transitions and diversion points that promote and reduce pockets for chips to strike and create dust and debris; new guarding promotes safety by preventing debris entering work areas from saw boxes and bandmills. With more than 180 extended length log infeeds running, exact placement and presentation of the log to the cutting tools is proven. Now these added value machine modules also have a role, improving mill flow and profits. Visit optimal.com
PANTRON AUTOMATION Pantron Automation, Inc. is the North American distributor of high-powered infrared photoelectric systems that are manufactured by the German manufacturer Pantron Instruments, GmbH. These incredibly powerful photoelectric sensors (photo eyes) are used in the most challenging areas of sawmills for detection, measurement, sorting and placement of logs and also for sensing the level of sawdust or pellets in bins. Pantron photo eyes are particularly well suited for sawmills due to their ability to function reliably in bright sunlight, areas of intense vibration, and environments with extremely harsh contaminants including sawdust, dirt, water, ice and Pantron photo eyes excel in sawmill environments. fog. Pantron photo eyes are 100% submersible and rated IP67. Quick-disconnect photo eyes are available to simplify replacement of the sensor heads if needed. Using a super-high-powered transmitter and an external amplifier with manual gain control in a through-beam configuration, a sensing range of up to 230 ft. can be achieved. At close range, this level of intensity translates to the high penetrating power needed to see through the worst conditions the mill has to offer. An external photoelectric amplifier controls the photoelectric sensors and is available with special features required by the most demanding applications, including time delay, diagnostic tools, and automatic gain control. Replace limit switches and inferior photo eyes in your sawmill with Pantron photo eyes today and enjoy less maintenance and improved performance that is just not possible from lower quality sensors. Pantron Automation, Inc. offers a 30-day money back guarantee and free technical support. Visit pantron.com
PICHÉ PICHÉ has developed a lug loader that will handle any product and mix. With the help of a camera and quick responding servo drive motors, we can monitor the flow to and from the lug loader. This generates the proper backlog, which is key for steady, high-speed operation with phenomenal lug fill rates. Whether you are running a pine sawmill or planermill, a pallet mill operation or hardwood mill producing everything from small pieces to large timbers, we have the lug loader that will increase your efficiency and decrease mill maintenance and downtime. PICHÉ lug loader is suited for any product mix. Visit picheinc.com 52
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SHOWCASE PRECISION HUSKY Precision Husky Corp., located in Moody, Ala., has been engineering and manufacturing world-class equipment for chip mills, sawmills, wood yards, log loading, timber harvesting and waste recycling for 56 years. With more than 70 different pieces of equipment, Precision Husky is recognized as a leader in the industry for welldesigned, well-built, heavy-duty machinery. Precision chippers are currently operating in countries worldwide with nearly 5,000 installations. Sawmill chippers are available from 38 in. to 66 in., while roundwood chippers are offered from a 66 in. (20 in. roundwood) to our largest, Precision Husky offers Progrind tub and horizontal grinders. the 118 in. (36 in. roundwood). Other sawmill equipment, like the Kwik-Chip unit, Kwik-Bark debarkers, rotary screens, high-volume screens and vibrating conveyors are available in different configurations with a wide variety of options to suit the customer and installation needs. Precision manufactures a complete line of Husky “Brute” knuckleboom loaders from the XL-175 to the XL 345 which can be stationary, trailer or track mounted with optional power-on-demand hydraulics. Precision’s line of “Progrind” tub and horizontal grinders are designed for industrial, commercial forestry and waste processing markets for many different grinding applications, with engines ranging from 100 HP to 1050 HP. Precision Husky Corp. stocks and maintains one of the largest parts inventory in the industry for quick response and delivery to meet the customer’s needs. All equipment is listed on the website. Visit precisionhusky.com
RAWLINGS WOOD HOGS With more than 40 years of experience in the forest and sawmill related industries, Rawlings Wood Hogs has delivered a reputation for durability, high performance and reliability. As the proven leader in wood grinding technology, Rawlings assists our customers with the design of custom wood recovery systems to meet our client’s specific processing needs and budget. Rawlings wood hogs come in all shapes and sizes. We offer a complete lineup of seven different sizes of both vertical and horizontal hogs to fit any application: from simple stand-alone vertical hogs, to complete multi-dimensional horizontal grinding systems. Add a wide variety of available options, and you’ve got the flexibility to customize the perfect wood recovery system. Rawlings wood hog model VRM Each system can be designed with work platform decks, choice of belt, chain, vibrating infeed and outfeed conveyors, metal or magnet protection and product screening that allows the customer to protect their investment while producing a high quality consistent end product. The Rawlings wood hog is recognized in the industry as the “Green monster hog” and provides the crushing and shearing power needed to handle really tough jobs like green waste, cypress, redwood, cedar, black spruce, poplar and a wide range of other stringy and fibrous material. Each machine is equipped with the Rawlings Super Hi-Inertia Solid Steel Rotor. With the increased inertia of the solid steel rotor our machine runs at lower RPMs resulting in overall savings of electricity and maintenance costs. The machines are tolerant of contaminants, rocks and metal without catastrophic maintenance costs if metal enters the grinding chamber. We invite you to inquire about any of the projects that we have completed. We can provide you with full details. Visit wastewoodhogs.com
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SHOWCASE SAMUEL CODING & LABELING Samuel Coding and Labeling Div. is the industry leader in custom and off-theshelf solutions for the wood products industry. Samuel Coding & Labeling systems for wood products include ink jet grade mark systems, ink jet printers for marketing information, ink jet stencil machines for sawmills and planer mills, automatic board bar coding for retail sales, automatic package tag systems to print labels and staple them to finished packages, and product tracking by integrating printers and scanners for 20 bar codes. We provide a full system solution with design, fabrication, installation and ongoing support. Visit samuelsystems.com
Samuel Coding cutting edge solutions
SAMUEL PACKAGING SYSTEMS In response to customer interaction and cooperation, Samuel Packaging Systems’ innovation team has developed new and improved features and technology for its highly successful SLP-25 Unitizing strapping systems. New design concepts for Top Edge Protection delivery, lower bunk placement, and a complete and innovated control system upgrade were to be exhibited and offered for direct customer demonstration. Simplification, Safety and Reliability: Failure analysis provided by our systems self-monitoring diagnostics identified opportune areas to enhance performance and reliability. One key area was the application of top edge protection to the load. The system automatically applies fiber corner protectors as a sequence within the strapping cycle. Several internal and outside factors can affect the successful application of the protective devices and it is common for failSamuel Packaging System enhances its SLP-25 strapping system. ures to require line stoppage and operator intervention. To limit failure of this delivery system all effective areas were reviewed and considered; key determining areas included for design upgrade were ambient temperature effects on hydraulic control, loading ease and storage of the fiber protectors, mechanical and serviceability design of the dispenser, as well as increased capacity of the magazines housing the protectors. The electric, automatic batten feeding device was an early innovation for Samuel; however, customers asked us to change the design of the pushing mechanism to simplify and eliminate a high wear component. Listening to our users provided us with a more reliable machine. Product Throughput: The SLP-25HS is the popular high-speed model introduced two years ago. Providing the fastest strap cycle in the industry, the machine can apply top corner protectors, bottom dunnage and the strap in 8.5 seconds or less. IoT: Samuel, as an industry innovation leader, is committed to highly valuable IoT functionality for our current and future strapping systems in the market. We are focused on remote assist improvements and additional measures to ensure customers have immediate access to our Engineering and Field Support expertise to minimize any production gaps. Samuel is positioned to offer to customers access to remote monitoring of system performance, predictive diagnostics, and immediate remote support utilizing the most advanced technologies on the market today. Visit samuel.com
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SHOWCASE SERRA (WINTERSTEIGER) Horizontal log band sawmills are the core competence of Serra. Four different size classes are available, allowing you to mill logs with a maximum diameter of 36 in., 43 in., 52 in. or even 64 in., mobile and stationary. Serra’s mobile sawmills in various weight and size classes are mostly used for custom cutting. Long hauls for raw wood can be prevented. The mobile sawmills are available with electric motors or can be built to operate from an engine. Resaws and trimmers: Of course Serra also offers all peripheral devices for sawmills and can even design entire plants upon request. This includes logs and lumber conveyors, various reSerra offers a range of of mobile and stationary log band sawmills. moval systems, buffer tables, board separators etc. Serra also develops and manufactures resaws based on circular and band saws. These supplement the log band saw and increase the output and performance significantly. CutCoach: The high number of fatalities in the processing of storm wood has caused Serra to develop a training device for this type of emergency. The CutCoach is a mobile tension simulator that can bend logs. Experts will demonstrate how these logs can be safely cut with a chain saw without posing any risk to the human operator. Sharpening and blade doctoring equipment: As with all cutting technologies, it is very important that the tools are sharp. The “Shark” series of grinding machines offers innovative technology. Rolling and leveling devices complete the sharpening room. Best Solutions: Serra guarantees best solutions for your business. The art of project planning is to logically combine all machinery within a sawmill plant. Roller conveyors and transverse conveyors ensure a continuous flow of material. With a solution from Serra with a higher output, an additional resaw is recommended. Edging machines, circular resaws and band saws are available. Frequently, multiple band saws and resaws are used in the planning process. Installations with, e.g. two block band saws, one edging saw and one circular resaw have an output of about 3500 cubic feet or more per layer and have many advantages compared to large sawmills. Visit sawmills4us.com
SHARP TOOL The Sharp Tool Co.’s primary focus is the manufacturing of industrial saw blades/knives and the sale of premium carbide products. We’re a family owned, third generation company celebrating our 60th year in business. We have extensive knowledge in the sawmill industry. Over the years, we’ve built many filing rooms and helped mills maximize their sawing potential. Industrial Saw Blades: We offer a wide variety of saw blades ranging from blades for the primary/secondary wood market to various other industries. Circular Saws: We produce and offer a wide range of circular saws including, but not limited to: Strob saws, trim saws, truss saws, groovers, rip saws, cutoff saws, pallet recycle saws, custom saws and more. Wide Band Saws: We offer a variety of wide band saws. Using Wet-Grind Technology, our wide bands are precision ground on Vollmer CNC equipment. Using Uddeholm steel, we can supply bands punched and welded, strip form, swaged ready to run or Stellite tipped. The Sharp Tool Co. is celebrating 60 years in business. Carbide Products: We currently have the largest saw tip/bar inventory in the United States, featuring more than 1,000 sizes. With a stock inventory size of more than 10,000,000 parts, we have the carbide you’re looking for. We also have in house EDM stations to quickly produce custom carbide parts based on your application. All of our stock carbide parts are L.B. Toney Braze Treated to ensure excellent braze-ability. We have a variety of different carbide grades to suit your application. We offer a wide range of carbide products: saw tips, bars, blanks, debarkers, strips, notchers, profile knives, insert knives/indexable, profile knives, custom parts and more. Visit sharptool.com 58
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SHOWCASE SIGNODE Signode’s BPX compression strapping system provides load stability and integrity throughout the transportation cycle. It incorporates independent side compression along with advanced consumable systems that work together to provide consistent load alignment and tension levels for unparalleled package performance. The BPX’s streamlined design with innovative, builtin features enables faster cycle times for higher throughput rates to maximize efficiency. The BPX simplifies operation and maintenance to maximize uptime. It includes a highly intuitive, user-friendly HMI to streamline operation. Machine pre-programming allows for a wide range of flexibility, including quarter-packs, half-packs and long loads, while limiting downtime due to production changes. Plus, the HMI provides quick and easy diagnosis of service-related issues. When maintenance is required, The BPX features a unique modular design to simplify maintenance. Separate, lightweight strapping heads are easy to access and remove for maintenance. These Signode BPX strapper delivers higher throughput and flexibility. low-maintenance, adjustment-free modules incorporate a simple design with few moving parts for minimal upkeep. When spare modules are kept on hand, maintenance downtime can be limited to a matter of minutes. Plus, the feed module is located off the platen, enabling it to be removed and serviced quickly. Other productivity-enhancing features include remote strap feeding and large capacity consumables to limit production interruptions. The BPX comes standard with a number of features, including an automated platen latch, multiple e-stops and more, which enhance operator safety and improve OSHA compliance. In addition to strapping systems, Signode provides coding, marking and labeling solutions for the lumber and panel industry. From label applicators, capable of applying preprinted labels to the end of boards to multi-technology direct-to-product printing solutions, we have a variety of options available to suit both large and small operations. Signode’s automated printing and labeling equipment is easy to use and will integrate seamlessly into your production line. PLC based programming allows you to adjust your printing message and parameters between jobs quickly and effortlessly. Built-in features like emergency clear functions and error detection systems minimize downtime. Visit signode.com
SIMONDS INTERNATIONAL (BURTON SAW) Burton Saw & Supply/Simonds International is proud to showcase its extensive line of custom designed sawmill cutting tools, the automated filing room equipment to maintain them and the technical support to aide you in getting the most value from both. We wish to be your filing room solution. Our range of solutions to help you realize the maximum yield from your fiber, personnel and investments includes: Armstrong brand automation and time proven manual tools; reliable Wright Machine brand sharpeners; the latest generation Simonds Automated Bandsaw Bench; Burton OSI brand hand tools and saw guide products; the revolutionary Kirschner LK-Pro automatic tipper for carbide tipped circle saws; and our latest addition, Vollmer brand circle saw sharpeners for sawmills. We are working closely with Vollmer of America to help sawmills understand just what the range of advanced sawmill sharpening machines can deliver to North America sawmills. We would welcome the opportunity to review your saw blade de- Filing room technology and support from Simonds/Burton signs to help you confirm they are optimized for your current log diet and production needs. Our custom designed BGR, Cut Tech and Simonds brand saw blades are the industry leaders in quality and value. And when it comes procurement challenges, make your local Burton Saw brand representative your resource for sourcing solutions. They will work hard to be your choice for everything from cutting tools, capital equipment, saw tips, abrasives, hand tools and technical training to MRO products. Each Burton rep has a team of experts to support them in addressing your mill’s needs. And finally we would like to remind you that as our society returns to normal and learns to deal with COVID-19, we will restart our Saw Filer Vocational Training program at our Tech Center in Florence, SC. Our machinery showroom remains open by appointment so you can “try before you buy” when it comes to filing room equipment. Visit simondsint.com 60
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SHOWCASE TELCO SENSORS The SpaceScan series from Telco Sensors is a high-power, self-contained, industrial light curtain system made for the sawmill and wood products industry. Generating a dense infrared multi-beam light grid, the system offers a sensing range of 10 meters with high excess gain and 100,000 lux light immunity. The series is available in a wide array of sensing heights, ranging from just 160 mm up to 2460 mm, making it suitable for almost any application. The light curtains are housed in sturdy aluminum profiles which are fully sealed for a waterproof IP67 rating and are designed to withstand severe vibration, shock and misalignment. Available with discrete or analog output, the SpaceScan series offers 5 mm, 10 mm, 20 mm, or 40 mm beam spacing for accurate detection of even the smallest items. The SS 01 provides a discrete, solid-state relay output for reliable presence detection. Automatic sensitivity adjustment continuously maintains the ideal gain level and compensates for buildup of dust and contamination. Cross-beam/parallelTelco SS 01 discrete output sensor beam mode and blanking function are wire-selectable and require no external controller or DIP switches. The SS 02 offers both analog and discrete outputs for sizing and sorting applications. Easy setup and configuration are via free PC software interface, which allows the user complete control over output type, gain level, and blanking function, as well as the ability to configure the system to ignore smaller objects like sawdust and flying wood chips. New functions for 2020 include analog function filtering, zone detection, and an alarm output tied to signal level. The SpaceScan SS 02 offers a robust solution for measuring applications at the debarker infeed, resaw lines, planer mill, or wherever log, cant or board size or detection is needed. Visit telcosensorsusa.com
TIMBER AUTOMATION Timber Automation provides engineered equipment, control systems, optimization technology and turnkey construction services for wood yards and sawmills that maximize yield, increase uptime, and reduce production costs. Timber Automation combines the divisions of Baxley Equipment, LogPro VAB Solutions and Timber Automation Construction. LogPro has been the leader in innovation of high-speed merchandising systems for more than two decades, and we have refined our system for accuracy, speed, ruggedness and safety. More mills continue to choose our optimized log bucking system than any other because it is the most accurate and highest producing system on the market today. Our continuous duty, Class F log cranes are designed for offloading treelength stems in a single pick. The overall structural design utilizes heavy-wall pipe and tubing for a strong yet simple structure. Unlike other cranes of similar construcTimber Automation LogPro merchandising line tion, the structure at the pivot of the LogPro crane is filled with concrete of sufficient weight to counterbalance the crane lifting forces. As a result, the pivot bearing is always under compression. Inside the sawmill and planer mill, we provide everything from industry-leading edger systems to trimmer/sorter systems to package makers, tilt hoists, lug loaders and lumber handling equipment. Our robust and heavy trimmer design handles everything from dimensional lumber to timbers. A built-in platform and other features simplify your maintenance processes. And with our patented Cut-NTwo outfeed, you don’t even have to slow down. Our edger system feeds more boards, more consistently than any system on the market. Your operator can watch from the cab as there’s no need for manually straightening, separating or turning boards. Our robust optimization portfolio ensures you’ll achieve maximum value at every step of the process from log bucking through to grading. Each of our products is designed for simplicity, ease and value recovery. Our auto grader leverages Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to give you higher grades, more consistently, at a faster pace. Increasing premium grades, #2 and better while also reducing trim loss leads to payback for most of our customers within six to 12 months. Visit timberna.com 62
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SHOWCASE TOP WOOD JOBS Top Wood Jobs is a wood products search firm, recruiting and connecting quality, experienced industrial plant, engineering, construction and equipment personnel for the wood products building materials and renewable energy industry. We have experience working with the most skilled industrial employees and employers for the past 45 years. Our experience includes supporting primary wood products industries for operations, engineering and equipment suppliers for Wood Pellets, Flooring, OSB, MDF, Particleboard, Hardboard, Laminating, Plywood, Sawmills, Lumber, LVL, I-Joist, Flooring, Treating, WPC, and other secondary wood processing industries. Top Wood Jobs is a "Human Search Engine" for quality candidates and jobs. Owner George Meek grew up with the advancements in process controls computer systems and today's management systems. George knows what it means to make do with less, and we understand the technical knowledge required for the highly competitive marketplace of today. We have made contacts with the best in the industry and know where to find them to support plants with all their needs either full time or for individual projects. Through years of networking in the forest products industry we have developed long-term relationships with some of the highest skilled individuals in wood products. We understand what is required for successful wood products operations from designing facilities through construction and startup and operation of these plants. We can provide either full time or part time support, either one individual or a team by getting you connected to the top personnel in the industry. Contact us if you want a job working for the top forest products industry companies or if you need quality people. Contact us if you need a recruiter that understands what you need, and how important it is to be responsive, and professionally supplying you top experienced and skilled candidates that you need now. Visit topwoodjobs.com
TS MANUFACTURING TS Manufacturing offers a complete line of machinery, controls and software to fit your mill. For more than 45 years we have been designing and building systems that exceed industry strength and reliability standards. With the recent addition of a 15,000 sq. ft. expansion and acquisition of majority shares in Automation & Electronics (NZ) Ltd., we continue our tradition of offering customers our unique brand of quality, service and innovation. TS Manufacturing’s expertise will be on full display at Kykenkee Inc.’s new facility in Vance, Ala. “We were involved with Kykenkee right from the start of this project,” says Riley Smith, Sales Manager at TS. “Determining mill flow and picking the right machines to accomplish the pro- TS Manufacturing has expanded its operations and capabilities. duction goals of the customer is something we excel at.” Kykenkee’s new mill will include a 65 ft. stem debarking line, a dual log slasher merchandising line, a chipper canter twin band saw line, a transverse optimized thin-kerf gang system, two optimized lineal board edger systems, a twin 6 ft. horizontal resaw system and a trimmer and a sorter stacker line complete with auto stick placing. This turnkey project construction is well under way with start up later this year. “We are also seeing the benefits of our acquisitions into Automation & Electronics,” continues Smith. All the optimizers for Kykenkee are from A&E, including a log bucking optimizer, twin sawline optimizer, gang edger optimizer, two lineal board edger optimizers and trimmer optimizer. “We are bringing to market a product that is filling a void in our industry right now,” he contiunes, and can be best summarized by A&E’s “big enough to support your operation, small enough to care” adage. Visit tsman.com
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SHOWCASE USNR PGLR Reduces Log Rotation Errors by 50% The Precision Geometric Log Rotation (PGLR) system is located at the log turner to monitor and correct the log rotation process in real time. The system significantly improves cutting accuracy, increasing uplift and recovery by reducing rotation errors. l BioVision Increases Grade, Recovery and Value in the Sawmill BioVision delivers the highest-value optimized decisions for grade and recovery, based on detection of natural and geometric defects, and configurable grade allowances per product. With more than 100 grade scanning systems sold, BioVision is proven to maximize value for higher grade boards and volume for lower grade flitches. l Transverse High Grader The Transverse High Grader (THG) collects ultra-high-resolution images with precise geometric and grain angle measurements on all four surfaces of the board to accurately detect, measure and classify bow, crook, twist, skip, wane, knots, pith, stains, decay, bark pockets, splits, shakes and worm holes. Many features set the THG apart including DataFusion, strength grading, pith detection, full 4-face scanning with just two rows of BioLuma sensors, LED illumination, flat transport design, grade projection, and WinTally integration. l Deep Learning Advances USNR Transverse High Grader (THG) incorDeep Learning is a method of machine learning applied in our BioVision, LHG, and porates DataFusion. THG automated grading systems that significantly improves accuracy and dramatically reduces the time needed to commission these complex systems. Installed on more than 60 systems to date, Deep Learning speeds up the fine-tuning process and enables the system to “learn” the characteristics of wood species and their specific grade rules much faster. l Automated Stacker Breakthrough USNR’s electric Stick-N-Fork stacker provides excellent stick alignment and smooth continuous operation at high speeds. Close proximity and full automation enables one operator to easily handle it. It’s the fastest and smoothest continuous stacker of its size in the world. Advanced features never before combined into one sticker-stacker include air gapping, solid piling, course skewing, random width stacking, multiple package widths, continuous stacking with on-the-fly product changes, shifting from a stickered pack to a solid pack without stopping, all with greatly reduced stick misfeeds and the fastest stick feed rates in industry. Visit usnr.com l
VALUTEC As the leading developer and world leader in continuous kilns Valutec has delivered more than 1,500 continuous kilns to sawmills around the world. In October 2019, the company commissioned North America’s first TC continuous kiln at Pleasant River’s Moose River site in Jackman, Maine and now the feedback is in: “It does a great job in a lot less time than we’re used to and puts out a much better product,” says Fred Haigis, Lumber Yard Supervisor, Moose River. “The installation process was smooth without any major issues. And Fred Haigis, Lumber Yard Supervisor, in front of Valutec TC kiln when we saw one of the kilns in our mill for the first time we knew we made the right decision,” states Jason Brochu, owner of Pleasant River Lumber. A TC-kiln comes with distinguishing features such as high flexibility and superior capacity. It gives the operator the possibility to create the ultimate drying process with unlimited freedom to mix dimensions, minimal moisture content variation and reduced risk of checking. Annual capacity can reach 100MMBF with target moisture contents down to around 12–18%. Very simplified, a 10-zone continuous TC-kiln like Pleasant River’s can be viewed as 10 batch kilns joined together by the side walls, but with a feeder track straight through. All Valutec’s kilns are constructed in stainless steel, resistant to thermal expansion and fatigue, and require minimal maintenance. In April Valutec commissioned its second North American TC kiln at Pleasant River’s site in Dover, ME. Due to Corona regulations the commissioning had to be done remotely. “Corona forced us to challenge ourselves and find new ways of working. Since the outbreak of the virus we’ve successfully commissioned kilns remotely in North America, Russia and Europe. This has been possible because we have proven solutions with well functioning components,” says Ingo Wallocha, Managing Director, Valutec Wood Dryers Inc. The startup of the TC-kiln at Moose River has not gone unnoticed. Before the Corona outbreak several sawmills visited the sawmill to take a closer look at the Valutec TC-kiln and the response has been overwhelming. “I can honestly say that whoever sees the Valutec TC-kiln at Moose River probably won’t buy another type of kiln again. Whenever I talk to the guys as Moose River or Dover I’m really proud to hear that they’ve had the best experience with our kilns,” adds Wallocha. Visit valutec.ca 66
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SHOWCASE VECOPLAN The new VPC Precrusher machine from Vecoplan is designed to size-reduce large, bulky materials quickly for added efficiency in wood processing. Large wood scrap, 4x4 posts and even pallets are quickly and efficiently broken down before they go to the next stage of grinding or processing. Running materials through the VPC first will increase the grinding throughput by at least 50% when used in conjunction with Vecoplan’s VHZ or VAZ grinder/chipper as a stacked system. The VPC features a lateral shifting capability to help disburse output into the grinder. Motors are The VPC has two rotors with a combined 32 breaker arms to crush large protected from over torque by variable frequency drives. wood parts quickly. The VPC is a powerful crusher that can handle the toughest of oversized material. Specifications include: —63 in. x 63 in. infeed area —Two 30 in. D x 63 in. L rotors —15 HP motor on each rotor —Total dimensions 75 in. x 123 in. x 32 in. —11,000 lbs./hr. throughput capacity when combined with a VHZ with 1 ¼ in. screen. Visit vecoplanllc.com
WEST COAST INDUSTRIAL SYSTEMS The roots of the design of the West Coast Industrial Systems Flare Reducer is based on the rugged trunnion design of machines to debark old grown timber. The trunnion system is virtually indestructible, and built for multigenerational plants. Full length contact with the log ensures positive rotation. The positraction trunnions reduce and sometimes eliminate the need for an overhead hold down. The overhead hold downs are a source of increased maintenance. Overhead hold downs are only required on short logs or small logs, under 16 in. that have flare. The unique positioning of the cutter head in relationship to the trunnion wheel eliminates the need for photo eyes and measuring devices to know how much material to remove when reducing flares. This results in increased uptime, with no complex controls to fail. Visit westcoastindustrial.com
WCIS butt reducer with kickers
WILLIAMS & WHITE Building on Williams & White’s strong history and reputation for high quality and rugged machinery, we are proud to introduce the all new Hammerhead 3000 Auto Bench to our growing equipment line. The Williams & White Hammerhead 3000 Auto Bench is an all-in-one band saw processing center designed to automatically tension and level a band saw with ease. It is a must have for any sawmill or band saw producer. Stand out features include: an easy saw load system featuring hide-away clamps, independent rigid tension and level heads, intuitive touch screen control with teach functionality, and a full light curtain safety system. The precision measuring systems for level, tension, and back allow the Hammerhead 3000 to efficiently work the Williams & White Hammerhead 3000 auto bench band saw to exacting specifications. The Hammerhead 3000 is currently in stock in our facility in Burnaby BC. Visit williamsandwhiteequipment.com 68
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SHOWCASE WOOD-MIZER Wood-Mizer introduces the world’s most costeffective vision optimized edger system with the TITAN EA3000 Optimizing Edger. Using an advanced camera scanning technology to achieve high precision and low waste edging of boards, the entire edging process is automated from incoming boards to scanning to sawing. The mechanized material handling features allow a high piece count to be processed through the edger without tiring an operator. The system effectively aligns, scans and edges at top speeds with little to no physical contact with the boards. Boards can be fed from both sides and dual limit switches straighten boards for ultimate flexibility Wood-Mizer TITAN EA3000 optimizing board edger and productivity. Make the right grading decision without a skilled operator using the advanced vision system that takes a highly detailed picture of each board, analyzes it for maximize recovery, and positions the saw blades for the highest return. The advanced, multi-camera system and software automatically identifies board dimension, shape, color, sapwood, and grade; as well as unwanted visual defects including bark, wane or knots. The vision-based scanner easily locates bark and other characteristics, which is not possible with a geometric scanner. The simple to use industrial computer and windows-based software identifies where the independently movable blades are placed to ensure the highest value final product is produced. The net result is that recovery improves, product value improves and downgrade and re-work are reduced. In addition, get the full flexibility of offset sawing by positioning blades exactly where needed to maximize the yield based on the position of the board. The EA3000 features two independent blades which can be set asymetrically within the cutting window, thereby compensating for the exact position of the board relative to the cut zone. This feature greatly reduces the complexity of the infeed system while still achieving excellent sawing solutions. Capable of handling up to 20 boards per minute with yields of 2-5% higher compared to a manual system, the high performing EA3000 optimizing edger is a revolutionary machine that combines robust construction and advanced technology into an affordable solution. Visit woodmizer.com/titan
TIMBER MACHINE TECHNOLOGIES Timber Machine Technologies designs and manufactures a range of edgers, gangs and slab chipping machinery for both hardwood and softwood mills: custom, versatile and affordable systems backed by full parts and service support. Unique to the industry, Timber Machine Technologies can now offer electric actuators for our full line of gangs and edgers. Brand new this year is our all electric transverse infeed table. Feeding up to 40 ppm, this new system has several advantages over the older hydraulic models: Energy usage and costly maintenance is greatly reduced along with the absence of HPU’s. Built in feedback from the actuators prevents hard crashes that break expensive parts and create downtime. Electric actuators also provide better repeatability over hydraulic systems, meaning better recovery and fewer boards to remanufacture. Also new for this year is our new dual pressure fetcher system that will seamlessly feed small flitches and large cants back to back with effortless ease. TMT adds this capability to its already rock solid line of gangs and edgers. The longevity and low maintenance of TMT machine centers Timber Machine Technologies electric infeed table performance is well known throughout the industry. By performing routine simple preventative maintenance, these systems will continue to accurately operate at optimal levels. Reliability combined with superior wood recovery makes this an advantageous investment for lumber manufacturing companies. TMT specializes in tailoring an enhanced system to meet customer needs. Transverse or linear, a fast curve-sawing gang or a small handfed edger, there is no job too big or too small. TMT emphasizes custom, versatile machinery, conversions, parts and service support. Visit timbermachine.com 70
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SHOWCASE LINDEN FABRICATING Linden is a well recognized brand name for North American sawmill and related industries. Linden’s range of sawmill/wood processing products from infeed log decks and transfers to patented log merchandising systems, log ladders, quadrant log feeders and step feeders are found in mills across North America and overseas—everything that is re-
quired to process a log from the log yard until lumber breakdown. Linden’s self cleaning double acting step feeders unscramble, singulate and feed logs one at a time using only one moving section activated by two haydraulic drives handling up to 50 logs per minute while clearing debris as it unscrambles and singulates logs. The revolutionary log feeder from the designers of the step feeder features simple mechani-
Linden log merchandiser
cal electric drives which eliminate hydraulics. The log feeders ship as a complete unit. Options include ending systems and laser gap control. Linden’s patented, high speed custom log merchandising systems range in sizes to suit long lengths from 8 ft. to 24 ft. and log diameters 3-30 in. to deliver the competitive edge. Accurate and stable high performance saws travel at high speeds up to 137 in./second and shift to the required position before the stem arrives in the Cut Cradle where high speed Traveling Merchandiser Saws cut in under two seconds with Linden proven bell crank saws. The entire merchandiser system can be operated with electric motors and drives. Visit linfab.com
BM&M
BM&M chip screen
BM&M Screening Solution builds high speed, high capacity gyratory screening machines for wood chips, bark, sawdust and other byproducts of producing lumber, paper and other materials. The unique design of the BM&M machine’s centralized drive unit allows for motion throughout the length of the machine while providing speeds that nearly double the rate alternatives can provide. The patented BM&M high speed gyratory motion has proven to produce a far greater horizontal G-load for faster, higher capacity screening that translates to improved yield, improved quality and, ultimately, improved ROI—and with reduced maintenance cost over the life of the machines. Visit bmandm.com 72
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SHOWCASE LUCIDYNE GradeScan by Lucidyne Technologies, Inc., is breaking records for ongrade lumber production with Perceptive Sight Intelligent Grading, Lucidyne’s proprietary Deep Learning (artificial intelligence) platform. Available only from Lucidyne, Perceptive Sight is now running on a majority of Lucidyne GradeScan systems.
Because Perceptive Sight uses Deep Learning, new characteristics in a mill’s wood basket are quickly incorporated into the software, delivering fast, highquality results, including Diesel Rot and other defects previously undetectable. Lucidyne’s QCAssist Tablet, a standard component of GradeScan, allows mills to collect and evaluate lumber data on the go, no spreadsheet entry required, using a Surface Pro and LuciLucidyne GradeScan Perceptive Sight Intelligent Grading
dyne’s proprietary software. New characteristics in the lumber are immediately and automatically uploaded to Lucidyne, then updates are automatically downloaded back to the system, for mill activation at their convenience. The QCAssist: l Displays board images for verification l Displays the GradeScan solution and grade failure reasons l Identifies grader override boards l Captures corrected board data and notes l Facilitates evaluation of multiple, consecutive units of lumber without returning to the computer room l Immediately uploads board data to Lucidyne for further evaluation l Automatically populates and updates package data and board files QCAssist is a powerful tool for evaluating the ROI of an upgrade from legacy GradeScan to Perceptive Sight. Customers automatically upload packs of mill-run data to Lucidyne, which are run on the in-house Perceptive Sight platform, and compare the results. Even without additional training, the ROI on the upgrade is apparent. Lucidyne continues to raise the bar in the lumber industry for innovative mill solutions that maximize fiber and value recovery, and deliver consistently highquality, on-grade, best-value lumber to the marketplace. Visit lucidyne.com
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MACHINERYROW Gilbert Partners With Scantec
Gilbert announced that Scantec Industrieanlagen GmbH has been appointed as its official agent for the Gilbert Planermill Div. in the DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) region and Eastern Europe. Scantec, based in Feldkirchen, Germany, offers professional consulting, customer-oriented sales and the highest level of service. The company has planned, delivered and installed more than 750 projects ranging from individual machines to major turnkey projects in the sawmilling industry. “Scantec has decades of experience in the wood industry and excellent contacts to the leading sawmills and wood processors. We are very fortunate to have Scantec as a sales partner in our team,” emphasizes Heidi Danbrook, Sales Manager at Gilbert. “Gilbert won us over right from the start with the quality and performance of their products. The Gilbert planer equipment is a perfect addition for us in the high-performance wood processing sector,” says Scantec Managing Director Stephan Lohmeyer about the new business relationship. Today more than 130 Gilbert planers are operating worldwide. A new Gilbert planer has started up at Mercer Timber in Saalburg-Ebersdorf, Deutschland, designed to run up to 1200 mpm. With this new partnership, Scantec and Gilbert will put their efforts together to further develop Gilbert’s presence in the Central and Eastern Europe market.
South Coast Goes With GradeScan South Coast Lumber has purchased a Lucidyne GradeScan with Perceptive Sight 2.0 for installation in the Brookings, Ore, sawmill. South Coast chose the Lucidyne GradeScan after researching scanning systems over the last couple years. Nick Johnson, South Coast Operations Manager, states that along with showing great results, Lucidyne’s excellent customer service is what led them to choose the GradeScan system. South Coast lumber has been sawmilling since the early 1950s. All new Lucidyne GradeScans come standard with the Perceptive Sight Intelligent Grading platform, using deep learning artificial intelligence for unmatched defect detection and grading re76
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MACHINERYROW sults. The South Coast GradeScan will be installed and started up in mid-October of 2020.
Morbark Announces Boehler As CEO Morbark announced the appointment of Brad Boehler as the successor to current President of Morbark Holdings and Vice President of Alamo Group’s Forestry and Tree Care Business Unit, Dave Herr. Before joining Alamo Group, Boehler was president of the Skyjack Group, a Canadian manufacturer of aerial lift equipment, including scissor lifts and telehandlers. Before joining Skyjack he worked for seven years at Tigercat International. Herr joined Morbark as a board director and became CEO in October 2016. He successfully led the company through a period of intense growth, operational improvement, acquisition, and integration of complementary businesses, including Rayco Manufacturing and Denis Cimaf, Inc., and finally, the transfer of ownership to Alamo Group in 2019.
Con-Vey Appoints Product Manager Con-Vey named Brent Hensley as Product Manager for Panel Products. This new designation is essential to supporting increased initiatives and continued growth for Con-Vey’s panel product segments, including OSB, plywood, LVL, OSL, fiber panels, mineral composite panels, and CLT. Hensley began as sales representative at Con-Vey in 2017 and quickly became a leader in the department. His experience managing teams for over a decade in the financial industry as well as a technical sales role at another engineering and manufacturing company prior to Con-Vey led to his quick ascent to Product Manager. Sales Manager, Jeremy Goebel, shares that Hensley’s “initiatives to promote our company and create connections in the wood products and manufacturing industry has set him apart.”
Ozark Machinery Deals For Barko Barko Hydraulics announced the addition of Ozark Machinery Co. in West Plains, Mo. as the company’s newest dealer. Ozark Machinery has been an ex78
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MACHINERYROW perienced logging and sawmill supplier since 1972, offering a wide range of new and used machinery, parts and technical service. Ozark Machinery will sell and support Barko’s full line of forestry equipment for the state of Missouri. “Ozark Machinery has served customers in the forest products industry for almost 50 years—that’s an impressive legacy that Barko is proud to take part in,” says Joel Larsen, Barko President. “Their longstanding history as a highquality sales and support provider is a great opportunity for us and an honor for Barko to be a part of.” “For almost 50 years we’ve worked hard to provide our customers with the highest quality products specifically built to meet their needs,” adds Jeff Barber, owner and president of Ozark Machinery. “We’re proud to move forward with Barko as they have been a key player in the industry for many years.”
Schmid Energy Joins Fink Machine Fink Machine Inc., British Columbiabased supplier of wood chip and wood pellet boilers for commercial, institution and small industrial applications, has added Schmid Energy Solutions boilers to its product portfolio. Over the past 19 years, Fink Machine has sold more than 130 biomass boilers from its headquarters in Enderby, BC and is looking to build on that success by adding Schmid boilers to its product line. Schmid Energy Solutions is a Swiss company that has been dealing with energy issues for more than 80 years and has evolved as an international specialist and manufacturer of biomass energy systems.
Siebert Leads Ligna Press Team Deutsche Messe named Katharina Siebert as the new Ligna press spokesperson. She is responsible for international communications for the world's leading trade fair for tools, machinery and equipment for the woodworking and wood processing industries, which will be held May 10-14, 2021 in Hannover, Germany. She succeeds Gabriele Dörries, who will now be fully responsible for the press work for IT events. Siebert has been working for Deutsche Messe as press officer since 2005. She reports to Dagmar Wolf, Director Marketing & Communications. 80
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WOOD PRODUCTS MARKETPLACE NORTH AMERICA
■ Minnesota
■ North Carolina
■ Canada ■ Ontario Buyers & Wholesalers We produce quality 4/4 - 8/4 Appalachian hardwoods • Red Oak, White Oak, Poplar •
Green Lumber: Air Dried, Kiln Dried Timbers & Crossties
• Hickory, Sycamore, Beech, Gum & Elm • Custom Cut Timbers: Long lengths and wide widths
Sales/Service: 336-746-5419
336-746-6177 (Fax) • www.kepleyfrank.com
■ Tennessee
STACKING STICKS
FOR SALE
Next closing: January 5, 2021
AIR-O-FLOW profiled & FLAT sticks available Imported & Domestic
■ United States
DHM Company - Troy, TN 38260 731-446-4069 Fax: 707-982-7689 email: kelvin@kilnsticks.com www.KILNSTICKS.com
■ Georgia Beasley Forest Products, Inc. P.O. Box 788 Hazlehurst, GA 31539
beasleyforestproducts.com Manufactures Kiln-Dried 4/4 Red and White Oak, Poplar, Ash and Cypress Contact: Linwood Truitt Phone (912) 253-9000 / Fax: (912) 375-9541 linwood.truitt@beasleyforestproducts.com
Pallet components, X-ties, Timbers and Crane Mats Contact: Ray Turner Phone (912) 253-9001 / Fax: (912) 375-9541 ray.turner@beasleyforestproducts.com
■ Kentucky HAROLD WHITE LUMBER, INC. MANUFACTURER OF FINE APPALACHIAN HARDWOODS
(606) 784-7573 • Fax: (606) 784-2624 www.haroldwhitelumber.com
Ray White
Domestic & Export Sales rwhite@haroldwhitelumber.com Cell: (606) 462-0318
Green & Kiln Dried, On-Site Export Prep & Loading Complete millworks facility, molding, milling & fingerjoint line
WANT TO GET YOUR AD IN OUR NEXT MARKETPLACE? Call or email Melissa McKenzie 334-834-1170 melissa@hattonbrown.com 08/20
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Call Toll-Free: 1-800-669-5613
Recruiting Services Executive – Managerial – Technical - Sales
JOHN GANDEE
& ASSOCIATES, INC Contingency or Retained Search Depending on Circumstances / Needs
“Your Success Is Our Business” Serving the Wood Products and Building Materials Industries For more than 26 years.
512-795-4244
Call or Email me anytime! john@johngandee.com www.johngandee.com
Austin, Texas
3220 1615
Top Wood Jobs Recruiting and Staffing George Meek geo@TopWoodJobs.com www.TopWoodJobs.com (360) 263-3371
3779
GREENWOOD KILN STICKS Importers and Distributors of Tropical Hardwood Kiln Sticks 127
“The lowest cost per cycle” GW Industries www.gwi.us.com
Dennis Krueger 866-771-5040
Jackie Paolo 866-504-9095
greenwoodimportsllc@gmail.com
jackie@gwi.us.com
13679
www. randwoodproducts .com
VISIT US ONLINE: WWW.TIMBERPROCESSING.COM
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This issue of Timber Processing is brought to you in part by the following companies, which will gladly supply additional information about their products. ADVERTISER American Wood Dryers Andritz Iggesund Tools ARS Automation Design Autolog BID Group BM&M Screening Solutions Brunner Hildebrand Calibre Equipment Carbotech International Colonial Saw Con-Vey Cone Omega Corley Manufacturing Delta Computer Systems Dolbeau Oxygene Doosan Infracore North America Ernst Reiner GmbH Esterer WD GmbH G F Smith Georgia Pacific Chemicals Gilbert Products Holtec USA Hurdle Machine Works Hurst Boiler & Welding JoeScan Johnson & Pace Ledinek Engineering Liebherr-International Linck Linden Fabricating Lonza Wood Protection Lucidyne Technologies McDonough Manufacturing Mebor Metal Detectors Microtec SLR GMBH Mid-South Engineering Muhlbock Holztrocknungsanlagen Nelson Bros Engineering Oleson Saw Technology Opticom Tech Optimil Machinery Pantron Automation Piche Pole Mill Optimizer Precision-Husky Premier Bandwheel Progress Engineering Rawlings Manufacturing Samuel Packaging Systems Group Select Sawmill Sennebogen Sering Sawmill Machinery Serra/Wintersteiger Sharp Tool Signode Simonds-Burton-BGR Saws-CutTech Strategic Solutions NW T S Manufacturing Telco Sensors Timber Automation Timber Machine Technologies U S Metal Works UC Coatings USNR Valutec Vecoplan Vollmer of America West Coast Industrial Systems Westcoast Cylinders Williams & White Equipment Wood-Mizer
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PH.NO. 503.655.1955 813.855.6902 336.316.1204 450.434.8389 843.563.7070 800.663.0323 615.469.0745 +64 21 586 453 800.387.6317 877.777.2729 541.672.5506 229.228.9213 423.698.0284 360.254.8688 888.276.0554 877.745.7814 +49 7723 657 0 +49 86 71 5 03 0 971.865.2981 1.866.447.2436 418.275.5041 800.346.5832 901.877.6251 877.774.8778 360.993.0069 903.753.0663 +386 2 61300 51 +41 26 913 3111 936.676.4958 250.561.1181 678.627.2000 541.753.5111 715.834.7755 +386 4 510 3200 541.345.7454 +39 0 472 273 611 501.321.2276 +43 7753 2296 0 888.623.2882 800.256.8259 800.578.1853 604.946.6911 800.211.9468 833.574.4333 228.669.7786 205.640.5181 604.591.2080 207.623.0110 866.762.9327 800.323.4424 613.673.1267 704.347.4910 360.687.2667 801.550.4878 800.221.5452 800.323.2464 800.426.6226 503.924.4434 705.324.3762 800.253.0111 501.623.0065 503.691.0162 800.523.5287 716.833.9366 800.289.8767 +46 0 910 879 50 336.793.5143 412.278.0655 541.451.6677 877.637.6925 888.293.2268 866.477.9268
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