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A Hatton-Brown Publication
Co-Publisher: David H. Ramsey Co-Publisher: David (DK) Knight Chief Operating Officer: Dianne C. Sullivan Publishing Office 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 39 • Number 2 • MARCH 2014 Founded in 1976 • Our 401st Consecutive Issue
Renew or subscribe on the web: www.timberprocessing.com
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Executive Editor David (DK) Knight Editor-in-Chief: Rich Donnell Managing Editor: Dan Shell Senior Associate Editor: David Abbott Associate Editor: Jessica Johnson Associate Editor: Jay Donnell
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Art Director/Prod. Manager: Cindy Sparks Ad Production Coordinator: Patti Campbell Circulation Director: Rhonda Thomas Classified Advertising: Bridget DeVane • 1.800.669.5613
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Advertising Sales Representatives: Southern USA
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Randy Reagor P.O. Box 2268 Montgomery, AL 36102-2268 904.393.7968 • FAX: 904.393.7979 E-mail: reagor@bellsouth.net
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THE ISSUES
From Mill Towns To Lumber Markets
NEWSFEED
Interfor Goes Shopping In Georgia Again
SOUTHERN LUMBER
Thirty Years And Stronger Than Ever
MILL TOWNS
How They Came To Be And Went Away
LUMBER MARKETS
Will Good Turn Into Great?
GOING MOBILE
BC Producer Has Sorter Under Control
SAWDUST DIARIES
Finding Fairness In Employee Wages
COVER: Southern Lumber in Hermanville, Miss. prefer big logs to manufacture long and wide lumber. 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 778.822.1826 • FAX: 604.264.1367 E-mail: tootall1@shaw.ca International Murray Brett Aldea de las Cuevas 66, Buzon 60 03759 Benidoleig (Alicante), Spain Tel: +34 96 640 4165 • FAX: +34 96 640 4022 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 ® 2014. 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 Publications Mail Agreement No. 41359535 Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to PO Box 503 RPO West Beaver Creek, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 4R6 Other Hatton-Brown publications: Timber Harvesting • Southern Loggin’ Times Wood Bioenergy • Panel World • Power Equipment Trade • IronWorks
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THEISSUES
Rich Donnell Editor-in-Chief
PAINT YOUR WAGON AND COME ALONG 12
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ometimes we use this space simply to pat ourselves on the back for what we put into the current issue of the magazine. This is one of those times. Talk about a mix of material! The meat of this issue, stretching over pages 18 to 34, is the article on Mill Towns, written by co-publisher DK Knight. This piece took a tremendous amount of research, and even more challenging was condensing it, because it could easily have enlarged into book proportions. So if you know of a mill town that wasn’t included in the article, be informed that the article was never meant to include them all, but rather just a healthy sample. You may remember the old movie, Paint Your Wagon, starring Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood, set in California, when worker gangs moved from one town to another, often building the town themselves, in pursuit of gold diggings. I suspect this same spirit pervaded many of the lumber mill towns and camps as they surfaced at a quick pace. The immense humanity that graced these grounds is something worth reflecting on. ● Great entrepreneurial spirit drove the creation of those mills and towns back in the day, but it’s not unlike the devotion that lumbermen today possess. A good example is our article on Southern Lumber of Hermanville, Miss. that begins on page 12. Chairman of the Board Floyd Sulser, Jr. is gung ho about the future of the mill operation, which just surpassed 30 years since his father, Floyd, Sr., and fellow lumberman Bill Dearman bought the mill from Masonite. I like Floyd, Jr.’s ever-so-succinct but encompassing comment about the importance of the team effort that saw the business through the recession and paves the way for the future. He said: “This is personal to all of us.” ● Speaking of Southern independent sawmills, you’re not paying attention if you haven’t noticed the influx of Canada-based forest products companies into the Southern U.S. to purchase southern pine lumber operations. A short news item in this issue reveals that the latest to be sold (at least as of this printing) is Georgia’s Tolleson Lumber, going to Interfor. You may have forgotten that Tolleson Lumber was purchased by Russian firm Ilim Timber three years ago. This makes six sawmills that Interfor has purchased in the state of Georgia alone in the past year—the Tolleson mills at Perry and Preston, Ga.; Rayonier mills at Baxley, Swainsboro and Eatonton; and Keadle Lumber at Thomaston. Our sources (whom by the way have been very good at giving us a heads up on these deals about to come down) indicate more Canada-backed acquisition of southern pine producers is in the works. ● Also in this issue, a quick look at lumber markets reveals that they outperformed most analysts’ expectations in 2013, and now the question for 2014 is whether mills will see a continuation of quickly improving markets or a slow-but-steady trend. So far, lumber producers seem to be planning for “slow-but-steady,” though ready to adjust to “quickly improving,” all the while expecting even better returns in 2015. TP
Contact Rich Donnell, ph: 334-834-1170; fax 334-834-4525; e-mail: rich@hattonbrown.com
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NEWSFEED TOLLESON MILLS SOLD TO INTERFOR Canada-based International Forest Products Ltd. (Interfor) announced an agreement with Ilim Timber Continental, S.A. to acquire Tolleson Ilim Lumber Co., including sawmills at Perry and Prestion, Ga. with a combined annual lumber capacity of more than 400MMF plus a remanufacturing facility in Perry. Cost of the acquisition is $180 million (U.S.). The Tolleson mills are within 75 miles of Interfor’s operations at Thomaston and Eatonton, Ga., which Interfor purchased from Rayonier in 2013, along with a mill in Baxley, Ga. Interfor also purchased Keadle Lumber in Thomaston, Ga. in 2013. Interfor’s annual lumber production capacity will increase by almost 20% to 2.6
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billion BF, placing it in the top five lumber companies in North America. The company’s lumber production in the U.S. Southeast will total more than 900MMBF. It’s estimated that the combination of Interfor and Tolleson will generate more than $5 million in annual synergies through a combination of process optimization, enhancements in logistics and transportation and best-in-class business practices. The Tolleson mill at Perry has plans to increase annual lumber production by 50MMBF, beginning in 2015, by upgrading the mill’s kilns and increasing the number of operating hours at the facility. Interfor will work with Ilim Timber to evaluate the potential for various international marketing initiatives including Interfor serving as an agent for Ilim Timber’s Euro-
pean sales in North America and other potential joint opportunities in China, Japan, the Middle East and elsewhere. Interfor’s acquisition cost of Tolleson includes $129.9 million in cash and retained liabilities and 3.68 million Interfor shares. Ilim Timber will hold 5.5% of Interfor’s outstanding shares. Rusty Wood, Tolleson’s CEO, will remain with Interfor following the transaction in an advisory capacity on matters related to business strategy. The transaction is structured to allow Interfor to maintain a strong capital structure that will allow it to continue to pursue additional growth initiatives, the company states. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter. Ilim Timber of Russia purchased Tolleson in 2011.
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HAMPTON SAYS IT WAS DUST Hampton Affiliates states it believes the underlying cause of the explosions at the Babine Forest Products sawmill at Burns Lake, BC on January 20, 2012 was fine sawdust from beetle-kill wood. Hampton recently responded to reports released by WorkSafeBC and BC Safety Authority concerning the sawmill explosion that killed two workers and injured 20, and the ensuing decision by The Criminal Justice Branch, Ministry of Justice, that no criminal or regulatory charges will be approved. Based on the evidence that would likely be available for presentation by Crown Counsel in court, the Criminal Justice Branch concluded that there is no substantial likelihood of conviction for any of
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NEWSFEED the regulatory offenses recommended by WSBC. The Criminal Justice Branch also concluded the manner in which WSBC conducted parts of its inspection/investigation would likely render significant evidence that it gathered inadmissible in court. It was also determined that the defense of due diligence would reasonably be open to Babine and, in light of that fact, it cannot be said there is a substantial likelihood of a conviction on any of the charges recommended by WSBC. “Along with the rest of the sawmilling industry in British Columbia, Babine has learned that drier and finer sawdust from beetle-kill wood can be a highly explosive fuel, much more so than sawdust from green timber,” Hampton states. “To our knowledge, prior to January 20, 2012, no one in the sawmilling indus-
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try knew this fact, and no representative of WorkSafe had expressed that fact to the industry, nor had Babine or any other sawmill in British Columbia received a warning related to combustible sawdust from any regulator. As Crown Counsel noted, when WorkSafe tested dust levels in the Babine mill in the fall of 2011 [at Babine’s request], WorkSafe “raised no concern that dust levels in the Babine mill posed a risk of a dust explosion.” Hampton noted, as mentioned in both the WorkSafe and BCSA reports, that Babine had internal processes to try and reduce the wood dust present in the sawmill and those efforts were actually increasing in the two years prior to the accident. Crown Counsel also remarked that wood dust conditions in the mill in the weeks leading up
to the accident “were as good or better than they had been since the mill started processing beetle-kill wood” and that a WorkSafe officer “who regularly inspected Babine and other sawmills in the area reported that Babine’s dust conditions were about the same as those in the other regional mills.” “The new Babine sawmill is starting up soon,” Hampton states. “Consistent with industry research conducted since the accident, and directives published by BCSA in May 2013, Babine is installing state-of-the-art equipment and systems to collect sawdust at machine sources, as well as constructing a building and floor plans designed to facilitate clean-up and reduce areas where sawdust can accumulate.” The WorkSafeBC report advanced a number of theo-
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ries for the ignition, fire and explosions: —A fire ignited in the basement of the sawmill, setting fire to airborne combustible sawdust; that sawdust accumulation had become a challenge for Babine after it started milling beetle-killed wood in late 2010. —Airborne combustible sawdust could have been ignited by any of the following: an open flame, metal halide lights, hot surfaces, electric arcs, motor control center panels, static or friction. It is not possible to point to a specific ignition source. This theory identified a rectangular “ignition probability zone” in the basement. —The in-house WSBC expert identified the ignition source as an electric motor with a gear reducer set. His theory is that there was a friction fire in the space enclosed
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NEWSFEED by a guard covering this equipment. The guard was illfitting and sparks from the friction fire ignited sawdust which had collected inside the guard. This led to the ignition of airborne combustible dust outside the motor. While the motor was located in the basement, it did not lie within the “ignition probability zone” identified by the outside expert. —Once the fire started, the experts generally agree on its course. They say that once the airborne combustible dust in the basement caught fire and exploded, a fireball created by the initial dust explosion spread through the mill. One mechanism involved was the lofting of settled dust by the initial explosion and fire and the spreading fireball. Once that dust was lofted into the air, it burned, probably quite violently.
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CANFOR CONSIDERS CHINA VENTURE Canfor Corp. has agreed to form a 50/50 joint venture with Tangshan Caofeidian Wood Industry Co. Ltd. of China (TCW) to review the potential construction of a secondary manufacturing facility to be located at the deep water Caofeidian Port Tangshan City, Hebei Province, China. The parties will develop a business plan over the next several months to determine the capital necessary to construct the plant. Canfor will enter into a supply agreement with the joint venture. “This is a strategic partnership that demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the Chinese market for lumber,” says Canfor President and CEO Don Kayne. “Building a secondary manufacturing facility
at the Caofeidian Port will allow us to work closely with customers to grow the market and expand the range of applications for Canfor products in China.”
CONSULTANT GUSS DIES AT AGE 86 Longtime panel industry consultant and economist Leonard Guss died at his home Leonard Guss in Woodinville, Wash. on November 7. He was 86 and president of Leonard Guss Associates, Inc. Forest Industry Marketing Research. A native of Philadelphia, Pa., Guss served in the Navy
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during World War II, then returned home to earn his B.A. in zoology and chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.B.A. from Drexel and a doctorate in marketing from Ohio State University. After working with E.F. Houghton, the Battelle Institute and serving as Weyerhaeuser’s director of corporate economic and marketing research, Guss founded his consulting and economic research firm Leonard Guss Associates in 1970. The company became a mainstay in the panel and forest products industries under Guss’ leadership, counting forest products companies, mill machinery suppliers, chemical and paper companies, furniture and cabinet manufacturers and government entities around the world as his clients. The company specialized in ➤ 53
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GOING
FORWIDE By Jessica Johnson
Even in a down market, Southern Lumber Company cleared a path to success doing what it does best— processing big logs.
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HERMANVILLE, Miss. hile many Southern independents are getting out of the mill business, Southern Lumber Co. is thriving. The Mississippi company, headquartered in Jackson, made a strategic decision in 2000 to focus on large dimension lumber—2x10s and 2x12s in 22, 24, 26 ft. lengths—and hasn’t looked back. In fact, during a time when many mills across the South were cutting back or closing, Southern Lumber was differentiating itself and improving the mill.
One important improvement was in December 2007, when Southern Lumber installed a Yates-American A95 planer with bridge and infeed system. The project was finished in January 2008 and included installing a Baxley stacking system and Samuels banding system. In addition, during what some might call the lowest point of the recession, fourth quarter 2009, Southern Lumber installed custom built Advanced Sawmill Machinery cant pans. But those projects weren’t the only capital investments the family-owned sawmill made. Chairman of the Board
Cants come off left and right side headrigs to be scanned before flowing downstream. 12
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Mill Manager Bob Carpenter, left, and Chairman of the Board Floyd Sulser, Jr.
Floyd Sulser, Jr., says the mill was able to invest during the recession because, “We made certain we put our ‘seed corn’ away for the winter.” He cites several main reasons the mill has been able to enjoy success. “Our strategy has always been to retain a substantial part of our earnings, so we had a solid capital base going into the recession,” Sulser emphasizes. “We cut our salaries back because we all like being here. It’s a family owned and operated business, and its success is important to many people. This is personal to all of us.” Sulser says management did everything possible to keep the mill running, and the operation was only down for about six weeks over the entire downturn. “Most banks were unwilling to help us. The Mississippi Development Authority along with the Claiborne County Board of Supervisors came to our rescue. The support of our state and local government was another component of why we were able to survive,” Sulser says. “They helped bridge the gap to better times.” Southern Lumber recently celebrated 30 years in business. “We certainly had a difficult time during the last recession, but we’re better for it. We’re proud of the good job we’ve done so far. Operations here are better than ever,” Sulser says with pride. His father, Floyd Sulser, Sr., along with another well-known Mississippi lumberman, Bill Dearman, purchased the mill from Masonite in June 1983. The purchase included the main mill in Hermanville, along with a mill and treating plant in Crosby, Miss. Southern Lumber has since closed the Crosby mill, but still uses those grounds as a satellite wood yard. But Southern Lumber isn’t interested in looking back. Sulser says, “We’re ex-
Logs are sorted before either being processed or put into inventory.
Every area of Southern Lumber has seen improvements, including scanning on the carriages.
Southern Lumber makes use of a new Hurst hybrid boiler to provide steam for the dry kilns.
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MORE UPGRADES
About 20% of sales are rough green, with the rest being kiln dried.
The Southern Lumber supervisors include, from left, Bob Caulfield, Tommy Freeman, Mark Williams, Tommy Clune, Billy Clune and Eddie Clune; not pictured, Bob Davidson and Jimmy Sullivan
cited for the future. We hope current markets continue —we hope for some good lumber prices for a while.” However, Sulser and Bob Carpenter, Mill Manger, have been in this business long enough to know that even the best-laid plans often don’t materialize. Southern Lumber is one of the few mills still cuts a piece of lumber that’s 26 ft. and wide. Carpenter observes, “We make a wide piece of lumber.” Why? “Price,” he says. “We made a decision that we weren’t going to chase that small log market. It’s worked out real well for us. We don’t cut many narrows. We’re not in that business. The longer you buck a log, and the longer a piece of lumber you try to make, you give up some yield. But we’ve always felt that the sales realization is greater than the yield loss.” Sulser says, “We like to believe that 14
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we are on the cusp of a ‘super cycle.’ The landscape has changed due to the recession. So those of us who are left can hopefully enjoy a few years of solid performance. I believe that in the next three to four years we are going to see that super cycle play out. I trust the worst is behind us, but we’ve got to operate the business as if it isn’t, so we’re prepared if it turns.” Southern Lumber is doing its part to help kick start lumber market demand. The company’s sales offices and headquarters are in Jackson, where a brand new building has been constructed. One of the company’s best customers is 84 Lumber, which has recently started an initiative they call “Buy American.” In support of that idea, Southern Lumber incorporated American made materials into the new building wherever possible.
During the past several years Southern Lumber has spent over $5 million in capital improvements and upgrades. Almost every sector in the mill has seen improvement. In March 2007 a new Hurst 600 HP hybrid design boiler was installed in addition to two 600 HP boilers already in place. Both headrig scanning systems were replaced within six months of each other. First was the right side in September 2012 and then in March 2013 the left. Southern Lumber opted for a Lewis Controls Ready Scan 2 with Shape Scan 2440, incorporating the LMI Chromascan laser scanner. The mill went with Lewis Controls because of its ties to Corley Manufacturing and the success other mills were having with similar systems. The Shape Scan collects data over a 120° contour of the log, every one inch along the log’s length; using this contour map of the log, each opening of the log is optimized based on particular requirements. This past summer the mill began replacing three conveyors on the log deck with conveyors by Pepper Machine and Welding out of Brookhaven, Miss. The mill is also in the process of upgrading the controls on its Jacobsen 300 HP carriage drives and putting in new SCR drives. Jacobsen Engineering out of California is providing this upgrade. In addition, an agreement was just reached with Baxley on upgrading the gang, edger, and trimmer optimizers. “There have been other minor projects,” Carpenter says, like investing in a Hyster H360 HD forklift, “to round out our mill improvements.”
RAW MATERIALS Southern Lumber purchases logs in two locations, at the mill site in Hermanville and the satellite wood yard in Crosby 62 miles south. Material comes in and is both weighed and scaled. All logs are scaled using Doyle log rule. About 70% of logs come directly to the mill at Hermanville and about 30% are purchased at Crosby, Carpenter notes. Carpenter explains how Southern Lumber is able to make the Crosby yard work, saying “There’s a certain amount of logging producers that are limited in hauling capacity. We can sub out the transfer cost (from Crosby to Hermanville) and those smaller producers can haul there. We can buy it where the pricing works out about the same, absorbing the handling and rehauling costs
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Simond’s circle saw leveler. CAMCO conventional carbide tips are being applied in the filing room to saws. Southern Lumber in 2001 experimented with kerf, electing to try .140 in. on the gang and .100 in. on the plate. “We cut such a big log, wide and long, that it takes a pretty good saw to stand up to that material,” Carpenter says. Each area supervisor is responsible for that specific area’s maintenance, and they have a maintenance team that works directly for them. Otherwise, the mill makes use of a rolling stock maintenance shop that is responsible for all log lifts, forklifts, pick ups, and other general use items. Southern Lumber cuts a wide piece of lumber, believing that the yield loss is not greater than the sales realization.
for what we’re currently paying up here at the plant. It gives us another outlet.” The quality of logs taken at Crosby is still held to the standard of those taken at Hermanville. “We look at every stem. We measure it on the Doyle log rule. We feel this ensures quality. It’s labor intensive, but since we’re trying to make a premium product in twenty feet and longer items, it gives us better control,” Carpenter says.
MILL FLOW Logs are bucked and processed through a 38 in. Beloit debarker and MDI metal detector prior to mill entry. Logs kick left or right, to one of two headrigs. The two conventional carriage bandmill headrigs are both McDonough 4 knee carriages with Advanced Sawmill Machinery chip heads. Both headrigs function in the same exact way, with one exception on the right side the mill uses a Salem 8 ft. bandmill and on the left side a McDonough 7-8 ft. bandmill. From the headrigs, sideboards flow to a Baxley edger, while cants move to a curve-sawing gang supplied by Comact in 2001. From the gang, boards travel to a Baxley trimmer (both edger and trimmer have Baxley scanning and optimization). From the trimmer, boards move through a 44 bay bin sorter, and then to a stacker. Lumber is dried using one of three high-temp dry kilns, two provided by HEMCO built in the late ’80s and one built in 1999 by USNR. The mill uses USNR’s Kiln Boss system to control the kilns. Though the kilns have the capacity, the mill opts to only run two at any given time, Carpenter says. Steam is provided to the kilns by three boilers, the new Hurst and two ABCOs. The ABCOs, installed in 1990, are 20,000 lb. per hour vessels. From there, lumber either goes to a 16
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rough dry shed or the planer mill, which was erected in 1997. The planer processes everything but a small percentage of rough green. Roughly 98% of Southern Lumber’s production is 2 in. lumber, with the other 2% decking. The mill fills a niche market—over a third of finished product goes into 22 ft. and longer dimension lumber. Southern Lumber is currently making site visits on automatic grading equipment, but for now three lumber graders are hand grading in the planer mill. Southern Lumber’s annual production volume is 72MMBF, though the mill peaked in 2004 with 81MMBF. Carpenter says the mill is trying to find the optimum range to operate since the mill’s kiln capacity is 90MMBF. “It’s a moving target,” he says, citing raw materials availability and pricing, product mix and “all the other factors” that contribute to determining the mill’s optimum range. The filing room is located above the mill and is staffed by three. Most of the filing is handled in house, Carpenter notes. On October 21, 2005, the mill had a fire and lost its entire filing room. It has since been rebuilt with new equipment. The fire only caused about a week and a half of production loss, Carpenter estimates. “We got a lot of help from local lumber folks while we rebuilt,” he adds. “They let our employees file at their facilities.” Southern Lumber runs Simonds bandsaws on headrigs and Byrnes circle saws. One filer takes care of band saws, one filer does circle work, and one filing room helper handles the chipper knives and planer knives. Most of the filing room equipment is Armstrong with the exception of the knife grinder, which is a Reform. Southern Lumber also has a Vollmer dual side grinder, and two Vollmer face/top grinders along with a
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS “We’ve got great employees. We like what we do. We work hard. But we also play hard,” Carpenter says with a smile. Three managers answer to the mill owners: Carpenter, who oversees the mill and all operations; Doug Stroud, who works in the Jackson headquarters, serves as Sales Manager; and Tommy Freeman, who works in Hermanville, serves as Procurement Manager. Carpenter says he’s thrilled with the veterans he has working inside the mill, but worries for the future. “The current labor market is, I find, very difficult because the depth of the recession in our industry. A lot of people in our industry found employment elsewhere,” he says. “So, as things started ramping back up, people like us who want to hire folks with experience, I think we’ve had a very difficult time,’ Carpenter adds. “Replacing people is very challenging. Our core group of people who are here day in and day out are veterans and do a wonderful job.” Most of Southern Lumber’s employees have 30-plus years of experience. Mark Williams, Southern Lumber’s Safety, Environmental and Human Resources Manager, reports that safety is a paramount goal, and that the staff is trained in all aspects of safety and are provided with all needed safety equipment. The company also does monthly safety meetings, forklift operator training, and annual hearing tests. Sulser adds, “We feel real positive about this company. We’ve had a lot of struggles, and we’ve come a long way. We’ve got a lot of camaraderie here, so it’s a positive place to work. “We try to provide for our employees: if they work hard, we reward them. If our hourly workers meet certain production goals, they can get bonuses. We’re here for the long term. We’re a true independent company.” TP
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THE
MILL TOWN By DK Knight
Built to support sawmills, most of these villages sprang up only to fade away.
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eginning around 1875, railroads began having a significant impact on the logging and lumber trade. Lumbermen were no longer dependent on watercourses for sawmill sites and log transport means. Expanding rapidly, railroads and rail-related equipment enabled lumbermen to get closer to their forest resources and spider-like tramlines increased output in logging camps. Moreover, railroads helped make remote mill towns less isolated and got sawn products to market faster and more effectively. Railroads also helped spawn an unprecedented east-to-west industrial building boom that brought mills and plants to
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areas largely undeveloped in the U.S. In regions characterized by vast forests, these mills—many very large—produced lumber, shingles, lath, staves, barrel heading, boxes, shook, veneer, timbers and crossties, and generated untold tons of waste. The splendid virgin white pine forests of the northeastern and north central states were beginning to decline as the 20th century approached, causing many ambitious lumbermen, railroad barons and other wealthy “capitalists” to look South and/or West for new timber-related opportunities. Tapping into railroad land grants or dealing with other lumber companies or individuals, they bought virgin timber tracts by the square mile. Some were speculators seeking to turn a quick profit; some built sawmills and allied plants. The “cut-out-and-get-out era” thus expanded into southern and western frontiers and lasted for more than 50 years. When one forest played out, there always was another in the next county, state or region. Or so it seemed.
ISOLATION, CONTROL Sawmills typically sprang up in remote backcountry, in many instances miles from towns of any size, often mak-
ing it necessary for owners to build a village or settlement to meet the needs of mill workers. Railroads were frequently the only way in or out. Sometimes a town emerged pell-mell and barely met the housing and food needs of loggers and mill workers. Others were self-contained communities that included worker housing, schools, water system, churches, barber shop, hotel, commissary, doctor’s office, railroad depot, etc. Some even had a theater, farm, picnic area, golf course, library, club, filling station/garage, and baseball or basketball team. A few had a bank. Although some original mill towns remain intact today, most were short-lived. Credit exhausted forests, catastrophic fires, mismanagement or a backfiring economy (read Great Depression). To one degree or another, some survived for decades. Many were named after the mill company, its owners, shareholders or family members. Along with meeting essential needs, towns were viewed as a means of worker control by some company owners. More than a few businesses paid wages in scrip that was redeemable for goods only at the company store. An exchange for cash at the store could be done—usually at a discount—and this was also often the
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rule with local independent merchants. Other town owners prohibited or severely limited alcohol availability to help keep workers stable and productive. Moreover, company towns discouraged labor union activity. In keeping with the custom of the day, racial segregation ruled in housing, schools and social activities. On occasions when labor unions stirred to life, there were separate unions for whites and blacks.
CRITICISM
northern Wisconsin. Kansas City’s Robert A. Long, principal of Long-Bell Lumber Co., bought timberland and built mills in more than a half dozen states. Natives of East Machias, Me. and descendants of lumbermen, Andrew Pope and Capt. William Talbot sailed into San Francisco about the middle of the 19th century to explore establishing a regular trade. Lumber was their game and they saw big opportunity in the fast-growing West, where eastern white pine lumber commanded hefty prices. (Western lumber production was an infant in those days.) Subsequently, they put down new
Mill town owners were condemned at times, according to historical author W.T. Block. In his book, East Texas Mill Towns & Ghost Towns, Block noted that in 1915 George Creel published a story entitled “The Feudal Towns of Texas” in Harper’s Weekly. Creel lashed out at Texas-based Kirby Lumber Corp., particularly its towns of Kirbyville, Browndel and Bessmay. Block commented: “…Creel rebuked particularly a lifestyle whereby an infant was patted on the buttocks at birth by a company doctor, lived in a company house, was fed by the company Some stores only accepted company scrip. store, barbered by the company roots on Hood Canal near Puget Sound, barber, educated and churched in the Wash. At a settlement that ultimately company school and church, and at the evolved as Port Gamble, they humbly time of death, buried in a company coffin in the company cemetery.” But Block began what became a large publicly traded entity (Pope & Talbot) that lasted also noted that life in sawmill towns of more than 100 years. that era was typically no worse than life William Carlisle’s pursuit of timber in towns owned or controlled by other wealth left a trail through four states; he industries, including mining, meat packfounded four towns bearing a common Ining, fishing and textile manufacturing. dian name, Onalaska. His Carlisle Co. opWhile the work was tough, days long, erated for 10 years in Wisconsin, 20 in wages poor and living standards scant, Arkansas and eight in Texas before he most workers and families apparently acsold out to West Timber Co. He then cepted these conditions and developed moved to Washington, settling about strong social bonds with other workers halfway between Longview and Olympia, and families. Some companies provided for their workers and families in an excep- to found another town and build his last mill, which closed in 1931. Onalaska tional manner, providing running water, faded in Arkansas but remains on Wiselectricity and private garden plots. consin, Texas and Washington maps. Located southeast of Knoxville near ON THE MOVE the boundary of the Great Smoky MounMany lumbermen followed timber retains National Park, Townsend, Tenn. is sources from state to state and region to the namesake of Col. Wilson Townsend, region. Frederick Weyerhaeuser left the an accomplished Pennsylvania lumbercutover forests of Minnesota and northman and railroad owner who moved to ern Wisconsin to acquire vast holdings in far eastern Tennessee in 1900. There he the South and West. In addition to exfounded a large leather tanning business panding his Weyerhaeuser Timber Co., and soon launched a logging-lumber ophe helped form Potlatch and Boise Caseration known as Little River Lumber cade. Founded as a logging camp, the Co., which flourished for 25 years. Withtiny town that bears his name endures in in 15 years or so the logging settlements
of Elkmont and Tremont were founded as satellite hubs for Townsend’s railroad and logging operations. At Tremont there was a unique building nicknamed the “House of education, Salvation and Damnation.” The multipurpose structure served as a school, church, movie house and recreation facility. Little River’s logging camp housing was portable and could easily be transported from one location to another by rail. Most such camps, given the steeply sloping terrain, were arranged in a line, or a “string,” and were commonly known as “stringtowns.” Townsend eventually sold his cutover land to the government for inclusion in the national park. Portions of the park’s highway leading to popular Cade’s Cove are built on one of the lumberman’s tram railroad beds.
POTLATCH TOWN Frederick Weyerhaeuser was interested in the big white pine timberlands of northern Idaho. At the turn of the century, he and his partners purchased 40,000 acres, much of it on the upper reaches of the Clearwater River, and continued to purchase more in the region. His son, Charles, was the first president of Potlatch Lumber Company when it formed in 1903, named after the Potlatch River Basin, and when the company built and started up its first sawmill in newly named Potlatch Town in 1905. When the mill was built, it was one of the largest sawmills in the U.S. The company built 200 homes for its workers as well as a Catholic church, hotel, school, general store and an ice house. The mill town continued operations until Potlatch sold most of the homes and buildings in the early 1950s. Shortly after the mill was shut down in 1983 the company sold the town back to the residents. Potlatch Forests, Inc. was formed in and around Lewiston, Idaho in 1931 by the merger of Potlatch Lumber Company, Edward Rutledge Timber Company and Clearwater Timber Company. The prevailing investor was the Weyerhaeuser family. For many years Potlatch published an impressive newsletter, The Family Tree, which included developments in the logging camps, new technologies at the mills, railroad construction schedules, announcements of visits from dignitaries, marriage and obituary notices and costs of goods at the mill stores. TIMBER PROCESSING
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Pacific Lumber Co. maintained a “mill town” at Scotia, Calif. until 2007.
It also kept its readers up to date on the The Potlatch River Log Drive, which grew to legendary proportions and which drew out area residents to view this spectacular demonstration every April and May after the Chinook winds had reared up and the snow and ice began to melt, turning the rivers into torrential flood paths.
SCOTIA’S TRANSITION Perhaps the last functioning companyowned sawmill town in the country was Scotia, Calif., located in northern Humboldt County, some 30 miles south of Eureka near the coast. Pacific Lumber Co. (PALCO) founded Scotia in 1863 and continuously operated at least one mill there for almost 150 years, despite fires, floods, earthquakes, economic sinkholes, attacks from environmentalists, and numerous ownership changes. W. McPherson and Henry Weatherbee started operations along the Eel River River in 1863 and in 1882 began building the town of Forestville, only to change the name to Scotia a few years later. The mill town flourished from 1920-1950 as redwood-lumber powerhouse PALCO built employee housing, stores, a school, a hospital, a skating rink and theater. Under the ownership of Maxxam, Inc., PALCO filed for bankruptcy protection 20
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in 2007 amid mounting debt and logging restrictions. In 2008 it was acquired by Mendocino Redwood Co. and spun off as Humbolt Redwood, which continues to operate a redwood sawmill in Scotia. As part of the restructuring plan, one of PALCO’s creditors gained control of the town of Scotia, which included 275 residential dwellings.
MOTHER MCCLOUD In 1897, the town of McCloud, Calif. was officially established by George Scott and William VanArsdale, founders of the McCloud River Railroad Co. The two men purchased many failed mill sites in the area and formed McCloud River Lumber Co. McCloud River Lumber was settled on the southern slope of Mt. Shasta off the west side of the southern end of the Cascade Range—about midway between Yreka to the north and Redding to the south. In addition to housing for its mill employees, the town included a theater, a dance hall, bank and hospital. McCloud River Lumber owned or controlled more than 600,000 acres of timberland, almost all of it east of town. It had an extensive railroad system and for decades the company maintained portable log camps. One of its most famous moments was an Italians workers strike in 1909. Ac-
cording to The McCloud Strike of 1909, written by James Pruitt, Italians comprised a significant part of the work force and they claimed discrimination at the company store and said the company supervisors called them “Dagos” and “Wops.” They also claimed the company hadn’t made good on a promise of a wage increase and they wanted a 25 cents per day hike. The year the strike occurred, wages at the mill averaged $1.75. The strikers were even more concerned about the McCloud housing situation. Those who had purchased cabins on companyowned land said that the company refused to buy back the cabins for a fair price, meaning they were essentially stuck as employees of McCloud River Lumber. About 700 men went on strike. A group of 200 attempted to hijack a train and go to one of the logging sites in order to persuade loggers there to stop working. The effort was thwarted, however, when the sheriff of Siskiyou County and two-dozen armed deputies blocked the instigators from reaching the site. Two days later, disgruntled workers occupied one of McCloud’s headquarter buildings. The sheriff again confronted them with his deputies, but withdrew due to the overwhelming numbers of strikers. The strikers then seized a powder house and gained access to a ton of dynamite owned by the company. They paraded through
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McCloud, cut telegraph wires, seized the lighting plant and put the whole town in darkness, including the hospital. The governor of California, James Gillett, ordered the state militia to the site under the command of the adjutant general, Joseph Lauck. The militia approached by train at noon on June 3. Their presence enabled the mill to begin partial operations, but the strikers were still prevalent and meetings between the strikers and the company went nowhere. Then dozens of men from the Thiel Detective Service of San Francisco, led by noted “King of the Strikebreakers” James Farley, arrived on the scene. The sheriff arrested the three strike leaders. The situation grew even more bizarre. The next day, at the urging of the governor, an Italian Consul named Salvatore Rocca arrived by train where 500 strikers greeted him with shouts of Company baseball teams played good baseball. “Vive Italia.” Rocca met with the jailed strike leaders and company ofber and intended to build a sawmill in ficials. He worked out a settlement, northern Mendocino County. Anderson which called for the strikers to leave Mc- built a sawmill, along with a village he Cloud and for the company to purchase called Andersonia, near the Eel River, their cabins at a value determined by arabout a dozen miles south of Garberville. bitration. However, a fatal accident thwarted AnThe strikers and their families sold derson’s dream of developing a redwood about 200 cabins and departed McCloud. lumber empire. During mill startup cereThe troops and detectives withdrew as monies on October 1, 1905, Anderson well. Now facing a labor shortage, Mcblew the mill whistle and stood close to Cloud River Lumber once again began the sawyer to watch the cutting of the first hiring Italians. log. As the rollcase carried slabs away, Ironically, in later years, the company’s one caught on a cable, yanking free some excellent treatment of its employees earned temporary scaffolding and sending a it the nickname “Mother McCloud.” board down to strike the mill owner on U.S. Plywood purchased the mill, railthe head. All machinery was stopped as road and town in the early 1960s. The mill stunned relatives and workers tried to town whittled away as Champion Internacope with the mishap. A week later Antional continued operations until it closed derson was dead. the mill in 1979, only to have a pencil For numerous reasons, Anderson’s manufacturer purchase it and begin operasons decided to keep the mill idle. They tions in 1980 until closing in 2003. had ties in Gray’s Harbor and economic conditions took a turn for the worse in 1907, not long after an earthquake took DASHED DREAM out rail service to the largely abandoned California also claims one of the more community. interesting stories to come from the mill Published accounts relate that Andertown era. According to published acson’s grandsons considered starting the counts, Henry Neff (Pap) Anderson enmill many years later. Much of the matered the lumber trade by buying a chinery remained in good repair but the sawmill near Gray’s Harbor in southmill’s foundation was in peril and redwestern Washington in 1893. In the early woods had grown up through the railroad part of the 20th century he bought redbed, pushing cars askew. The timber was wood timberland in northern California subsequently sold. held by a bankrupt lumber company that Eventually, the town was renamed had punched a short railroad into the tim- Piercy—it’s still on the map—in honor of 22
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a watchman who looked after the property for many years. Anderson, by the way, was the grandfather of Harold A. Miller, who decades later led Oregon-based Stimson Lumber Co. to expand into northern California as Miller Redwood Co. Another California town that traced its roots to a sawmill was Weed, named for Abner Weed.
OREGON TRAIL Gilchrist, Ore. is believed to have been the last company owned mill town established in the 20th century. It was founded in 1938 by Gilchrist Timber Co., which relocated from Mississippi. Frank W. Gilchrist founded the family business in Saginaw, Mich. shortly after the Civil War and by the turn of the century had begun acquiring timberland in both Mississippi and Oregon. With the family’s Mississippi holdings nearing depletion, Gilchrist’s grandson, Frank W. Gilchrist, developed a plan to tap the family’s Oregon holdings. The only sizeable town near the Gilchrist property was Bend, about 50 miles away. So the town of Gilchrist was established. It included a bowling alley with billiard and card rooms, a restaurant, tavern, theater and high school. It was very modern by many standards. Its family cottages contained 700 sq. ft., had two bedrooms, running water and electricity. The company installed sewers, provided electricity and attended to all maintenance. Early on, about half the town’s 600 inhabitants were said to have been natives of Mississippi. Ceasing operation in the 1980s, the Gilchrist mill was bought in 1996 and resumed operations under Crown Pacific Co.’s ownership. Years earlier, three Gilchrist grandsons had gradually sold the town site. In 2000 the town had about 500 residents. Portability distinguished some other Oregon sawmill-related settlements, including the logging village of Shevlin, namesake for the Shevlin-Hixon Co. Its earliest family dwellings were basically boxcars minus wheels and axles, and with neither electricity nor plumbing. Even though at times it boasted as many people as the permanent town of Gilchrist, and included more than 400
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structures, the entire town could be moved by train in a matter of days, and with surprisingly little damage. With its own post office building, Shevlin was relocated many times in the Cascade Mountains of southcentral Oregon. Shevlin ceased to exist after its owner sold to BrooksScanlon Co. in 1950. After leaving school at 14 to become a tally boy for a lumber inspection firm in Chicago, Edward Hines at 21 formed a wholesale lumber trading entity, Edward Hines Lumber Co. (EHLC) in Housing in Dierks, Ark. 1892 and three years later bought his former employer’s firm. He reported- est in 1928, Hines simultaneously built ly became friends with Frederick Weyer- the town of Hines and a large sawmill, haeuser, who for a time served on which operated for decades before it EHLC’s board. Like many lumber was sold to Snow Mountain Pine in wholesale merchants, Hines eventually 1983. The mill was shut down in 1995. expanded into timberland acquisitions The company Hines founded opted out and lumber manufacturing. He estabof lumber manufacturing in the 1980s lished and operated mills in South Dako- but remains a large lumber distributor in ta, Arkansas, Mississippi, Oregon and the Chicago area. possibly other states. His timberland Established in 1912, Brookings, Ore. holdings in south Mississippi once was named for the Brookings brothamounted to 200,000 acres. ers—John E., Robert S. and W.D. (EarAfter acquiring rights to 890MMBF lier, Robert had endowed the Brookings of timber on the Malheur National ForInstitute in Washington, D.C.). The
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Brookings brothers acquired substantial timberland in Curry County, Ore. and erected a mill, which operated until 1925. Errors in judgement and management are said to have tripped the enterprise. Within a week after the mill went down, about 1,100 people moved out of the town, resulting in the closure of hotels and stores. The mill never reopened. In 1927 Kinzua Corp. built a sawmill and founded the town of Kinzua in north central Oregon. The mill functioned until it was dismantled in the late ’70s. Today the site is overgrown with trees. Westport, Ore. was likely named for John West, who arrived on the lower Columbia in the mid 19th century from Quebec. Halsey, Ore. was perhaps named for John Halsey Jones, who quit logging and joined his father, Justus, in a crude water-powered sawmill in the Portland area around 1850. Reedsport possibly carries the name of transplanted New Hampshire schoolmaster Cyrus A. Reed, another Portland sawmiller of the 1850s. The coastal town of Gardiner likely got its identity from Gardiner Chism, one of four men who built
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a sawmill there in 1856. Other mill settlements in the state were Algoma, Dee, Dalkena, Westfir, Wilark, Wheeler, Vaughn, Grande Rhonde, Wendling, Perry, Valsetz, Starkey, Mowich and Powers.
wound up in Kansas City, where an uncle worked as a bank cashier. A year later he relocated to a smaller town in the state to enter the hay business with a cousin, Robert White, and Victor Bell, the son of the president of the bank where his uncle was employed. As luck would have it, the group found that the lumber they stored CLASSIC RELOCATION their hay on sold better than the hay itself, and this sparked the idea of opening a Its timber supply exhausted, Cady lumberyard. R.A. Long and Co. was orgaLumber Co. abandoned the town of Mcnized in 1875 and grew quickly. White Nary, La.—named for Cady owner died a couple of years later, leaving Long James G. McNary—in early1924 and and Bell as principals. Operating 14 headed west. Cady management valued yards, R.A. Long and Co. became its Negro labor force highly and could Long-Bell Lumber Co. in 1884. not envision operating a sawmill According to published accounts, without its high performance employLong became president of the compaees. So it literally moved much of the ny in 1895 and a year later he and town and mill—buildings, dwellings, W.S. King, W.F. Ryder and C.D. machinery, livestock and about 800 Morris chartered King-Ryder Lumber people and their household possesCo. This company bought timbersions—via railroad. Two long trains land, erected a steam mill and created were reportedly required. a town in Choctaw County, Ala. In late1923 James McNary had arcalled Ryderville. ranged for Cady to put down new Another Long-Bell affiliate, Globe roots in the ponderosa pine high counLumber Co., was cutting lumber at try of east central Arizona, having bought buildings, a sawmill and rights Companies built churches, or supplied the lumber, for Yellow Pine, La., Webster Parish, by 1898. In the early 1900s King-Ryder to the town of Cooley from lumbertheir employees and families. built a new sawmill and town in Bon man Thomas Pollock of Flagstaff, Ami, La., where it had bought 52,000 who had erected the Cooley mill in 1916. acres of pine timberland. Hudson River (It is unclear if Pollock also previously LONG’S LEGACY Lumber Co. was formed to acquire land operated a mill and town in Louisiana, A big, powerful enterprise, Long-Bell near DeRidder, La. and to operate a but a community known as Pollock still Lumber Co., based in Kansas City, Mo., sawmill there. In a major maneuver for its exists just north of Alexandria, La.) Mctouched many communities across sever- time, Long-Bell in 1905 completed a Nary renamed Cooley after himself. al decades in a dozen states of the Midlandmark transaction with Bradley-RamCady survived the Great Depression but west, South and West. sey Lumber Co. that effectively gave it became part of Southwest Lumber Mills As a young man, Robert A. Long, a control of the longleaf pine lumber interInc. in the middle ’30s. Kentucky native, in 1873 looked west for ests in the state. Included were two Interestingly, the town was desegreadventure and a better livelihood. He sawmills and a planer mill in Lake gated in the late ’40s despite James Mc-
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Nary’s opposition. The community bustled in the ’50s, boasting about 2,000 residents, about half of them black. The mill and related facilities employed more than 600. In 1960 McNary and all its affiliated properties were purchased by Southwest Forest Industries, Inc., which began to automate the mill and reduce employment. By the early ’70s the mill and community were in steep decline. Stone Container bought Southwest in 1987 and the mill eventually closed. Less than 500 residents remain in the town.
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Charles; an allied chemical plant; 30 miles of narrow gauge railroad; various tugs, barges and other logging apparatus; a turpentine operation; “six squares” of land in Alexandria; and 115,000 acres of timberland, 65,000 of which supported virgin longleaf. Long-Bell or its sawmill affiliates also operated in Mississippi, Texas, Arkansas, Washington, Oregon and California. The company’s largest southern pine mill, operating as Longville Lumber Co., was sawing by 1908. It ceased operations when fire destroyed much of the complex in 1921 but later reopened as an oak flooring plant and operated until 1927. Longville (La.) Lake Park today encompasses most of the mill site. The park consists of a baseball diamond, picnic grounds, walking trails and a small lake that once served as the sawmill’s log pond. Long-Bell established Ludington Lumber Co. in 1913 and operated a sawmill near Ludington, La. until 1926. It founded Long-Bell Naval Stores in DeRidder in 1914. By 1918 the company reportedly had 10 southern sawmills turning out millions of board feet annually. Meanwhile, knowing that the company’s southern timber was nearing depletion, Long-Bell’s board looked west in
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1923. The city remains a bustling wood products center today International Paper acquired Long-Bell in 1956 and few of the former Long-Bell sawmills operated until the 1980s.
TEXAS SCENE
Robert A. Long
1918 and soon was buying property and timberland alongside the Columbia River near Kelso, Wash. Calculating that it would need thousands of workers to operate Long-Bell’s two new sawmills, company officials decided to build a new town and commissioned its engineers to plan it down to the sidewalks. Although never officially a company town, the port city of Longview was dedicated in July
East Texas’ stately pineywoods were a magnet for lumbermen and financiers. Perhaps the king was John Kirby, whose ‘Kirby Combine’ sawmill consortium in the early 1900s consisted of more than a dozen sawmills throwing off millions of feet annually. Kirbyville was named in his honor. Nearby is the community of Call, apparently the namesake of Dennis Call Jr., who served as president of Cow Creek Tram Co., one of Kirby’s affiliates. Kirby Forest Industries, as Kirby’s company would eventually be known, was acquired by Louisiana-Pacific in the last quarter of the 20th century. Another powerful lumber personality in the state was Arthur D. Temple, a principal in Southern Pine Lumber Co., later known as Temple Lumber Co., then as Temple Industries and even later as Temple Inland. The D in Temple’s name stands for Diboll, as in town of, the still-active site of a large
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mill complex now operated by GeorgiaPacific. IP bought Temple Inland in recent years and sold off its wood products manufacturing facilities. Georgian J.H. Ratcliff resettled in Houston County, Tex. and a few years later built a small sawmill in the thick longleaf pine not far west of Lufkin. By 1889 the settlement had a post office and was known as Ratcliff. In the late 1800s Louisiana and Texas Lumber Co. began buying timberland around Ratcliff and by early 1901 had purchased J.H. Ratcliff’s sawmill and adjacent timberland. The company later struck a deal with Kansas City-based Central Coal and Coke Co., commonly known as the ‘Four C’ company, to build and operate a huge sawmill (300,000 feet per day) less than a mile south of the town center. The company also built housing for its workers, erected a commissary and built numerous tram lines and logging camps. The town of Ratcliff benefited greatly from the booming mill activity. Its population swelled to an estimated 10,000 and in 1910 it boasted a bank, telephone office, drug store-hospital, depot, cafes, barber shops, saloons, churches, newspaper and various dry goods stores. Eventually, a rift developed between Four C
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management and the town’s merchants. In an attempt to keep its employees from trading with town merchants and to support its commissary, Four C had an 18foot wooden wall erected and posted guards at night. However, sections of the wall were dynamited repeatedly, thus thwarting Four C’s attempt at effectively controlling Ratcliff’s commerce. Four C had cleared its 120,000 acres by 1917 and its mill was dismantled completely by 1923. Most, if not all, the land was sold to the federal government in 1935 to form the core of the Davy Crockett National Forest. Very few residents remain in Ratcliff but visitors do enjoy recreation at 100-acre Ratcliff Lake, part of which once served as the Four C mill’s log pond. Long Leaf Lumber Co.’s town was Wiergate, named for owner Robert W. Wier. In many ways it was known as the “ideal sawmill town,” but its law enforcement icon, Cap Nolan, was known for his iron-fisted reputation. Despite his slight frame, many locals saw Nolan as “an intimidating man on horseback with a big hat, a pig pistol, and a mysterious ‘loaded arm’ that made him invincible in a fight.” Note: Nolan is mentioned in the book, Nameless Towns-Texas Sawmill
Communities 1880-1942, which is a most interesting and entertaining work on the life and times of residents of sawmill towns in the state.
MISSISSIPPI MILLS One of the most unusual names given a mill town was that of Electric Mills, Miss., established in 1912 and built in concern with a large shortleaf pine sawmill that Sumter Lumber Co. operated there for 28 years. The sawmill was said to be “the first completely electrified mill in the country.” It generated electricity by burning waste developed at the mill and supplied power to residents in the town. It was often spoken of as “the brightest town south of St. Louis.” Sumter Lumber also built a 52-bed hospital at Electric Mills and staffed it with several doctors and nurses. The mill shut down in 1941, its timberlands depleted. Flintkote Co. purchased certain of its assets, including its land, much of which later was sold to Weyerhaeuser Co. and Barge Lumber Co. Mississippi businessman and politician C.W. Rich left his mark in the greater Hattiesburg area in the late 1800s and early 1900s. His first sawmill was
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erected at namesake Richburg. That mill burned in 1897 and Rich opted to buy an existing plant a few miles north at Hattiesburg and gradually expanded, along the way taking in B.C. Hemphill of Michigan as a partner. They also owned a local ice and coal company. Rich also became mayor of Hattiesburg and is credited with pulling off a marathon 72-round boxing match known as “the great Sullivan-Kilrain contest.” Also making a name for himself in Mississippi was Certain mill towns were more family-friendly than others. native Lucius O. Crosby, who, along (another published account spells it with associates and with the backing of Stephenson). At any rate, he renamed International Harvester Co., formed the town after himself and went on enter Goodyear Yellow Pine Co. in 1917. The the chemical and paint manufacturing new company exercised an option on the industries. Crosby and his wife leased John Blodgett timber holdings in Pearl their considerable timberlands to St. River County and built a sawmill, one of Regis Paper Co. in 1960. five it would own in the state. Crosby assumed complete control of the compaNAMESAKES ny in 1929. Meanwhile, he instituted a While many sawmill towns were tree-planting program, a rare move in named after prominent people—a mill the 1920s. In 1934 he built a new principal or a member of a family—this sawmill at the tiny town of Stevenson
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was not always the case. Take the example of Bellamy, Ala., home to Allison Lumber Co. for some 80 years, beginning in 1899. Legend has it that the townspeople opted to break traditional custom and named the town for one of its most disrespected residents, Volney Bellamy, a Union army veteran of the Civil War. Alabama also has a mill town with an unusual name: Vredenburgh. Founded in 1911 by Peter Vredenburgh, an Illinois transplant, the town was home to an active sawmill until the ’70s. Wade’s Station, Alabama was the new crossroads home to a sawmill in 1888 constructed by Marcus Behrman, who with a partner established the Virgin Pine Lumber Co. In honor of Behrman, the community soon changed its name to Behrman. Owernship changed hands twice in the ensuing decade, selling to a Canadian doctor named McTaggert, who changed the company name to Scotch Lumber, in honor of his ancestry, and
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then to a group of New York investors, which began acquiring timber, formed the Alabama and Tombigbee Railroad Co. and changed the name of the town to Fulton. In 1902, they sold out to two partners who began building a bustling mill town, pieces of which Scotch Lumber would own for decades. One of those partners was William Harrigan, and the Harrigan family would remain a partner in the business until it sold to Canfor as recently as last year. According to a document posted on the town’s web site, South Carolina lum-
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berman D.W. Alderman took a syllable from his last name (Al), one from the last name of a friend named Coldwell (co) and one from his only daughter at the time, Lula (lu), to create the name Alcolu in the late 1880s. This is contrary to reports that the name represents three of Alderman’s daughters named Alma, Colleen and Lucille. The Alderman company store was erected in 1914. All sawmill workers were paid in “babbit,” metal coins stamped with the Alderman “A,” and were considered legal tender at the store.
The building, now used as an antique showroom, still looks much like it did 90 years ago. Georgia-Pacific acquired the old Alderman mill in 1968. Century, Florida emerged on the Florida panhandle-Alabama line in 1900— thus the name—to support Alger-Sullivan Lumber Co., owned by Gen. Russell A. Alger, the former Michigan Governor, U.S. Senator and President McKinley’s Secretary of War; and Martin H. Sullivan of Pensacola, Fla. Bogalusa, La. sprang up at the hands of the Goodyear family of Buffalo, NY, which amassed vast longleaf pine timber holdings in Louisiana and Mississippi and erected a gigantic sawmill just after 1900. The town’s name is a derivative of the Indian name for a local creek, the Bogue Lusa. The town of Fullerton, La. could well have been the namesake of S. H. Fullerton or his sons, Robert or Samuel. The elder Fullerton headed the Chicago Lumber & Coal Co., which operated 10 sawmills (and numerous lumber-coal retail yards) under its direct or indirect ownership. One of these operated in Fullerton’s namesake town, another at Stables and another in Calcasieu Parish. Speculation has it that Zimmerman, La. was probably named for lumberman R.B. Zimmerman and that Ball, La. was perhaps named for lumber counterpart J. F. Ball. There is also a central Louisiana community called Hineston but it is not known if it was named for Chicago lumTP berman Edward Hines.
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LUMBER MARKET SIGNS ARE POSITIVE But will housing starts continue to escalate in 2014? By Dan Shell ollowing a fourth quarter of 2013 that saw U.S. housing starts zoom to their F highest seasonally adjusted rate since the
start of the Great Recession, lumber producers have enjoyed prices that began rising last summer and aside from a few hiccups have moved upward ever since through early February 2014. Going against the consensus of many analysts’ expectations for the year 2013—that lumber prices would soften and drop as the year went on as more sawmills restarted, added shifts or simply turned up the volume—lumber markets instead went the other direction in the fourth quarter 2013. Boosted by continuing growth in housing starts and sustained demand in offshore markets, North American lumber producers saw prices bottom out for the year 2013 at roughly the mid-year point, according to Random Lengths’ Framing Lumber Composite Price. The turnaround in lumber prices went from roughly $320/MBF in late June 2013 to $403/MBF the last week of January. (Interestingly, Random Lengths reported that green Douglas fir had the best yearover-year pricing from 2012 to 2013, followed by large timbers.) The North American lumber market
saw strong gains in prices during the fourth quarter of 2013 and into the new year, supported by momentum in the U.S. housing market recovery and continued solid offshore lumber demand. In November, U.S housing starts reached their highest level in five years, averaging just above 1 million annually, up 14% from the previous quarter. Single-family starts increased 11% in the quarter, a further indication of the strengthening U.S. housing market. According to RBS economist Guy Berger, single-family starts should continue to increase, “as inventories remain low and household formation continues to generate demand for housing.” Industry analysts are reporting the uptick in markets and overall recovery, but also a cautious approach by softwood producers to greatly boosting production. According to Wood Markets, North American lumber production is expected to increase by almost 3 billion BF in 2014—an increase over 2013’s estimated gain of 2.6 billion BF. In a report on wood products markets through 2018, Wood Markets analysts note that in 2013 the North American lumber supply chain became more balanced in the second quarter as production swelled to meet overall demand. Housing activity at the end of the year boosted fourth quarter pricing, but without strong
gains in new residential housing starts of 20% or more (or 175,000 or more units), 2014 is more likely to be a “good” year overall, the Wood Markets report says, which still could feature supply chain shocks during the year that could create price spikes both up and down. Most recently, a Kiplinger economic outlook report from the end of January looked for continued double-digit increases in new home starts and new home sales in 2014. The report noted a drop in December housing starts and continued poor weather conditions through mid February that will affect business activity reports in first quarter 2014. Regional building materials suppliers are noting a more measured approach to the market going into 2014: Commenting on a January 2014 Lumber and Commodity Report on his company’s web site, Don Magruder, CEO of Ro-Mac Lumber & Supply in Leesburg, Fla., says, “It appears most mills are trying to hold onto previous increases, but harsh winter weather could create cracks in pricing.” He believes most housing start projections for 2014 are overly optimistic and notes that “Actual annual starts have not reached one million, and those numbers have only trended for a couple of months. If strong housing starts do not begin the year trending a million-plus
Both domestic and export markets are looking good in 2014—and even better in 2015 as demand continues to build. 36
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starts, expect lumber prices to remain in the doldrums.” According to Magruder, “The next month or so will dictate whether 2014 is for real in housing starts or just another false blip. Builders should be cautious in long-term bidding, just in case the starts materialize. My personal belief is that without some impetus from heavy spring storms in the South (or) cheap interest rates and more flexible mortgage rules, pricing will stay flat to down as will housing starts.” In an interesting note on major Northeast building material supplier Shepley Wood Products’ web site and its 2014 February Market Update, Paul Rogers, purchasing manager, perceives a difference in the market this year compared to last: “Fortunately, business was significantly better (in 2013). Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite to the level of expectation that was out there, and the glut of lumber created halfway through the year from over-reactive buying set the lumber industry back.” According to the market update, “This year, the general attitude is still quite optimistic that business will be strong, although it is reserved, controlled, and much less emotional,” he said.
International market conditions will also affect North American lumber in 2014. Analysts at Wood Resources International (WRI) recently reported in the Wood Resource Quarterly that global softwood lumber trade (and logs as well) in 2013 reached their highest levels since before the economic downturn in 2008. According to WRI, the past few years have seen an unprecedented increase in demand for softwood lumber in Asia, with Japan, China and South Korea combining in 2013 to import more than twice as much lumber as compared to five years ago. Strengthening U.S. markets mean West Canadian mills now heavily exporting to Asia may redirect more sales into the U.S. in the coming year, WRI says. Bob Lewis, President of Columbia Vista Corp. in Vancouver, Wash., a major high-end timbers exporter, believes that in 2014 “Japan and China will continue to stay aggressive in the lumber and log markets. Exchange rates play a part in their future viability but 2014 looks very strong,” he says, adding that he’s also seeing a stronger interest in domestic products from big box retailers than in several years. “All in all 2014 should be a little like 2013,” Lewis says. “I feel 2015 will
be a better year based on how the economy is improving and the strong demand from off shore markets.” In a year-end statement focusing on fourth-quarter results, Plum Creek Timber reported 2013 earnings of $230 million, compared to $203 million in 2012. According to CEO Rick Holley, “Over the course of the past year, results have improved significantly in our timber resources, manufacturing and non-timber resource businesses.” He notes that the fourth quarter 2013 was “very good,” even considering the expense of acquiring 500,000 acres of MeadWestvaco timberland. “Momentum is building, and we are well positioned to grow the company’s overall cash flow in 2014,” Holley says in the report. The company expects continued demand growth from its lumber, plywood and oriented strandboard (OSB) customers as construction activity increases. A major sawlog and fiber supplier in the South, Plum Creek’s timber division going into 2014 expects to benefit from higher sawlog prices, plus recovering demand from OSB producers and emerging demand from wood pellet producers in both Southern and NortheastTP ern markets.
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NEW SORT LINE GOES MOBILE Kalesnikoff Lumber implements MyMill technology. “USNR’s MyMill system is catching on as a time and money saving solution for streamlining mill operations. Mobile machine control offers all the functionality that is typically available through a stationary HMI screen, at a fraction of the cost. With 12 systems sold, MyMill is proving that mobile control technology is no longer a wave of the future, it’s the new way to work.” recent inductee to USNR’s MyMill technology, Kalesnikoff Lumber is A based at Thrums, near Castlegar, BC. The
mill just completed a major capital improvement project that saw its mill invest in a new primary breakdown line incorporating a USNR quad arbor saw box, vertical double arbor gang, scanning, optimization and controls; modifications to its board edger line; and trim/sort line improvements. One of the improvements the mill targeted was the USNR MyMill mobile control for its new 70 bin sort line. Chris Kalesnikoff, operations manager, relates that the mill had previously utilized a largely manual lumber sorting process. He recognized the value of going to an automated system and quickly saw the benefit of the MyMill technology. “The MyMill system suited us very well as the mill employs a young generation of sawmillers, and we understand and relate to mobile communications technology like using iPads and iPods,” he says, adding that the mill runs a tight operation with a single 12-person shift, and every member of its lean crew is versatile. Kalesnikoff explains that installing the mobile system required much less time and expense than a traditional sorter control system demands. There is no need to purchase and install multiple consoles, and no need to route the associated cables and wiring. He adds, “A big thing for us was the reduced cost.”
Chris Kalesnikoff is happy with the investment in mobile technology at Kalesnikoff Lumber.
sort bins, and when he noticed a bin didn’t index all the way down he called the trimmer operator with his radio to tell him about it. The trimmer operator simply lowered the bin using his mobile device instead of having to go to the bin console to manually press the button. Kalesnikoff says it’s nice to be able to scroll through the mobile screen, and the bin information is all right there. “It’s great for troubleshooting. The operators can tell which photo-eye is covered, and with the sorter being 300 feet long it saves a lot of time. It makes so much sense to have the control in the palm of your hand.”
Already running with a minimal crew, implementing the MyMill system didn’t reduce the labor force required to operate the Kalesnikoff mill. Kalesnikoff says, “We are using the same number of people, but we are using them in different places than we would have without the benefit of mobile technology. We planned on not having anybody chasing bins full time, and that’s definitely a nice feature.” Adding that he is happy with the mobile system, he says, “This is the way the world is moving.” TP This article appeared in the USNR publication Millwide Insider and appears here with permission from USNR. Visit unsr.com
EMBRACING The Kalesnikoff team was assigned two iPads and three iPods. Kalesnikoff says, “Our crew has all been trained on the mobile devices, and we all use them. Our guys are very hands-on, but our trimmer operator is the one who is primarily chasing the bins.” He explains a scenario experienced at the mill: The operator at the canter can see some of the 40
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With the MyMill system used to control the sorter, multiple control consoles are no longer required down the length of the sorter, saving installation and capital equipment costs.
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SAWDUSTDIARIES
Connie Grenz
e-mail: Connie.grenz@gmail.com
EDITOR’S NOTE: Connie Grenz has worked in the wood products industry for 34 years. Connie was Quality Control Supervisor for Crown Zellerbach; Director of Information Technologies for Cavenham Forest Industries; Executive reviewer for capital projects for Hanson PLC; and General Manager of Kane Hardwood for Collins Pine Co. She has consulted in people development projects at Columbia Vista Corp. She can be reached at Connie.grenz@gmail.com.
various job complexities, educational requirements, skill levels and training requirements. This came as a form of a matrix where 11 job factors were broken down further by five degrees, each degree with a clear definition for what that job factor at that degree level looked like. Let me explain further for it was these elements that we went over carefully when we had training meetings with the team.
THE REVIEW Once the supervisors and leads were trained on the purpose and process about to be undertaken, we shared the project with all the employees. It was explained that the results of this study would not
SKEWED RATES PROMPT STUDY When relating with employees, our human capital, we know they need to be acting safely and have the appropriate tools and work environment in order to provide the service or product they are hired to do. There are many meaDimension mill workers surements for assessing how well your safety program is succeeding and you are tallying product value and quality continuously to ensure production goals are met. But in what way do you know that the pay you give your employees is a fair compensation for their job content? What made me want to tackle a review of the job content and end up with an evaluation of all the hourly positions had to do with the pay rate schedule that had evolved over time. The top and bottom paid positions were closely scattered about just a few grade Maintenance workers levels. There were also no pay inreduce anyone’s pay, and that, on the flip creases for improved proficiencies withside, no one was getting retroactive pay in the same position. increases. In order to increase fairness in paying Next, each supervisor and hourly lead employees, we planned to perform a job for each area of the business—log yard, study where we could evaluate the jobs against a set of criteria. To implement this, maintenance, sawmill, secondary (kilns, planing, grading)—evaluated the existalong with the efforts of our managers, suing list of positions under their command pervisors and leads, we hired a human reand added or changed any jobs that needsource consulting firm in Erie, Pa. ed updated or clarified. They then took To begin, we got help in defining the 42
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each job factor (knowledge, experience, initiative and ingenuity, physical demand, mental or visual demand, equipment or process, material or product, safety of others, work of others, working conditions, hazards) and assigned their best assessment of what degrees of that factor the position required. The supervisors’ areas may have had nine different types of jobs and they had to evaluate 55 different definitions of what degree the 11 factors may be. For example, experience was defined at different lengths of time that it would typically be required to attain quality and quantity standards under normal supervision, whereas, the “initiative and ingenuity” factor involved assessing the amount of independent action, use of judgment and making of decisions. Soon, all areas’ jobs were given their cursory review and every job given assigned number of degrees for 11 different factors. Each job was entered into a master worksheet where all the factors and degrees were listed so that each job could be compared to any other job in any other area. All the supervisors and management staff including our Controller/Human Resource Manager, Jennifer Macey, would meet to analyze the worksheet draft. Every supervisor compared their rating for positions to those of other supervisors in other areas, which resulted in lively discussions. Questions arose as to why certain degrees were thought to be appropriate for similar jobs in different departments. What made them be evaluated differently? Each supervisor explained their interpretation of the definitions for the factors’ degrees and discussion continued until all were in agreement. We also had a separate group meeting where the leads could discuss the job study analysis without their boss to provide another avenue of review. Parallel to this activity, Jennifer was researching competitive pay rates from various industry and state sources. She sought pay information for all jobs, entry level positions to those that required advanced skills, as well as the pay for the hourly leads. This information was entered into the master worksheet.
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SAWDUSTDIARIES NEW PAY SCHEDULE The worksheet now had current pay for each job, competitive pay data, and resulting pay per the job study. Additional group meetings took place and the pays were grouped into grade levels and both “entry” and “proficient” pay rates were determined. We looked at the results and found some employees were to get pay raises as they were in positions with content that indicated their pay was too low. Some employees’ pay did not change. Other employees’ pay was currently too high, given the analysis, and their pay was “grandfathered.” As we expected, not all results were favorable to the employees currently in the “revalued” jobs. However, all results were reviewed and shared with all employees and detailed explanations given. All rules for job bids and impact on pay levels, having been grandfathered or not were spelled out in an updated employee manual. Now, a regular posting is made when pay rates change due to “raises” which shows 18 different grade levels and the job positions listed in the log yard, maintenance crew, sawmill, secondary area, dimension plant associated by those levels. Other information shows employees the average hourly rate paid in each grade level including impacts of increased proficiencies or bonuses earned. From time to time, business needs caused job content changes. We would meet to review the factors and how any of these 11 factors changed. Was there more physical demand? Was there more “mental or visual” demand? Was the position now responsible for a greater degree of the “work of others”? Sometimes, an employee would perceive a change in their job and inquire about having a review of their grade level. We would listen and review, and in all cases, provide detailed analysis as to why the grade level did not change, or if it did, act on it and correct the grade level as appropriate. It is obviously very important to have mutual trust between management and production personnel and that the structure used to evaluate job content and corresponding job levels must support fairness.
employee from each of the main work areas to join me for lunch in my office. Their acceptance was totally voluntary. I would use my desk for placement of catered food and refreshments and have five or six of us around my office table. There was no agenda. After seeing that everyone knew or met each other, I encouraged the sharing of any rumors or questions they might have. It was al-
ways pleasant and special to have time to visit and get to know the folks who keep the business running and it gave them a chance to be in the “corner office” with a positive experience (as opposed to any disciplinary event). These lunches were one way that helped to create the trust between us that was needed to successfully implement the TP results of a job study.
LUNCH WITH THE GM This project reminds me of the time I would periodically invite, usually monthly and by written invitation, an TIMBER PROCESSING
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MACHINERYROW
DIACON FORMULA INCLUDES CUSTOMERS Feedback, innovations, new technologies drive lumber protection firm. t Diacon Technologies, the focus A has always been on the science of lumber protection—in fact, that’s the
company’s motto. However, Diacon is also interested in how information technology can strengthen this focus. “Yesterday, Diacon was working hard to maintain the value of your lumber by preventing mold growth,” says Konrad Tittler, managing director of sales and marketing at Diacon. “Today, and into the future, we are focusing on adding value to your lumber.” Since the early 1990s, Diacon Technologies has supplied North American mills with Mycostat lumber coatings that protect against mold, iron stain, and checking. Each year, Mycostat is the preferred product for the production and delivery of 5 billion bd. ft. of mold-free lumber. Diacon, which has dual headquarters in Vancouver, Wash. and Richmond, British Columbia, also developed a spraying system that ensures Mycostat is properly applied. Named Diaplex, the lineal and transverse spray systems are constructed of high quality stainless steel. Using the most advanced technology, the spray system is both reliable and easy to use. “Our customers include the most sophisticated and environmentally responsible lumber manufacturers in the world,” Tittler says. “We start by listening to our customers’ needs, then offer the components that allow them to enhance the look of their lumber, safely and cost-effectively.” In the past, he says, a mill bought a drum of chemical and “we never heard from them again—unless there was a problem. We decided to become Diacon proactive, by developing close relationships with our customers. The Diacon Service program is unique and unequaled in industry today and includes what is now the industry standard, the Diacon Retention program. We visit the mill, look at the situation, and collect samples of treated wood to test in our labs. Our customers loved the idea of being able to measure the amount of Mycostat on their lumber and correlating that to protection time.” In addition to the Diacon Mycostat and Service programs, Diacon developed 44
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Konrad Tittler: “focusing on adding value to your lumber.”
Diacon provides precise application and lumber protection time correlations.
turnkey programs tailored to an individual producer’s needs. “We’re the only company in the industry to do this,” Tittler says. “We design, build, install and maintain the pro-
gram, with the goal of making customers’ lumber look more attractive and retain its fresh-cut appearance. Customers can opt for the total turnkey solution, or choose only those options that
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MACHINERYROW best fit their operation.” A key component of this turnkey approach is Diacon’s Smart flow computer control and measurement system—introduced in 2008—which provides realtime feedback on the performance of the Diaplex spray system. The software is updated and refined on a regular basis, to provide consistent and reliable feedback on the coating process. “We developed Smart flow to ensure everything works exactly as it should, 24/7,” Tittler says. “The system monitors the whole process and automatically alerts mill managers and other key personnel if anything is not right. The turnkey approach allows us to deliver the most complete mold-prevention program in North America.” According to Tittler, the company has always operated with its customers’ best interests in mind, especially when it develops and introduces innovations. “When a mill is producing 1,000 bd. ft. every half minute, it doesn’t take much for something to go wrong,” he says. “It’s so easy to mistreat, ship the
Diacon Analytics Group
material out, and then have mold and stain claims. If you’re not applying chemicals properly, you’re not protecting the wood properly.” Future innovations, Tittler says, will include value-added products that are designed to change a regular 2x4 lumber
commodity into a 2x4 lumber specialty product. “These projects are new and exciting to the lumber industry,” he adds. “No one has done anything like this before.” TP Article and photos submitted by Diacon. Visit diacon.com. 604-271-8855.
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MACHINERYROW Butt-End Reducer Easily Installed
“Logs are a valuable resource. Lately we have been trying to work out how we can increase productivity at the very beginning of the production flow in all types of sawmills. To this purpose we have now further developed our Taylor butt-end reducer,” Springer CEO Gero Springer explains. More than 20 have been installed successfully, and the first Taylor butt-end reducer for North America has just been delivered, according to Springer. The butt-end reducer can be directly integrated in the line with the log infeed unit without delaying production flow. Installation in an existing log yard is possible within a few days. The logs are thus processed without loading and unloading and further transported to the saw without slabs and trunks. Due to the high cycle rate, production flow is not delayed. By means of an angled milling shaft, even logs with a length of up to 6 meters are shaped to a cylindrical form that matches the contours. Failure-free handling during transportation is ensured; the logs receive optimum storage. The butt-end reducer can also be installed as a bypass solution. Springer Maschinenfabrik AG is a leading European manufacturer of machines and conveyor systems for sawmills and the timber processing industry. Exports account for 80%, with main markets apart from Austria and Germany including France, Russia and Scandinavia as well as plants in Australia. Latest orders have been delivered to North and South America. Visit springer.eu
Automatic Tipper Now Tips 30 Inch The Sawmill Kahny automatic saw blade tipping machine, sold exclusively by Cut Technologies, now has the ability to tip saws up to 30 in. in diameter. Mike Weckel, Vice President of Cut Technologies, states, “The Sawmill Kahny is a
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MACHINERYROW quality machine designed specifically for the filing room. It’s remarkable that an automated machine of this caliber is also user-friendly. This machine outperforms standard types of filing room equipment in most mills in its price class, making it the premier choice amongst mills looking for the quickest return on investment.” The new Sawmill Kahny 30 in. tipping machine allows for quick setup and changeover, reducing downtime. It has
the ability to braze preformed super alloy or carbide tips. The Kahny technology eliminates tip loss by providing a consistent bond and provides up to 15 to 20 resharpening before re-tipping using super alloy or carbide pre tinned tips. The automation of the Kahny machine allows for more frequent re-tipping because of a reduction in kerf; it allows you to start with a 0.010 in. smaller kerf size. Visit cuttech.com
Plastic Cap Stapler For Lumber Wrap
Utility Composites, Inc. offers a completely metal-free lumber wrap stapling system for timber and lumber companies concerned with rips, tears or staple pullthrough in their wrap, or corrosion, staining and degradation from moisture. With each stroke, the new RAPTOR RCSH/05 Cap Stapler delivers a plastic cap to distribute the contact point force over a larger area, and a RAPTOR polymer composite staple to fasten it. The RAPTOR staples do not need to be removed as they are not susceptible to corrosion, they will never rust, will not set off metal detectors or damage saw blades and sanding belts, according to the company. This tool features an open design allowing easy and quick staple and cap reloading. The high capacity canister holds 240 caps per reel and 96 RAPTOR composite SH/05 staples. Additionally, it converts easily from stapling caps to driving staples only. This RAPTOR composite cap stapling system is the ideal fastening solution for lumber wrap applications. Visit raptornails.com
Üstunkarli Celebrates 60th Anniversary Üstunkarli, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2014, continues to grow and expand its markets under the second generation of Üstunkarli family management. General Manager Üstunkarli Nezih explains that the company continues to emphasize the manufacture of cost efficient products; after sale services with quick technical assistance; projected hightech applications according to customer demand; turkey project implementation. In October, a 50,000 m3 annual capacity sawmill plant was finished at Tataristan Kazan, which processes softwood with diameters between 120 mm – 800 mm. On the log yard Üstunkarli provided log debarking and the sorting line with 48
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WORN OR MISALIGNED CARRIAGE RAILS? A Proven Process
Contact Us Office 541.760.5086 Cell 541.760.7173 Fax 971.216.4994 www.acculine-rails.com george@acculine-rails.com
• Rails straightened & ground in-place at a fraction of the cost of rail replacement • No down time for the mill • Restores carriage rails to optimum sawing efficiency •Precision Laser Alignment • Machining and Grinding • Carriage and Bandmill Alignment 489
MACHINERYROW metal detector. The plant encompasses two lines—one is the log carriage line with tandem band saw and canter for large diameters and the second is a quad axes circular saw prisma line for small diameters. The plant produces pallet boards as a final product. Üstunkarli, emphasizing its experience, high production capacity and quick response to customer demands, would like to expand its sales activity to North America and is looking for sales partners. Visit ustunkarli.com
EWD Announces Management Switch EWD chairman of the board André Fey is stepping down from the operational side of the business following 14 successful years at the helm. Herbert Oppenborn, who joined the EWD board as director of engineering in 2011, becomes the managing director. Oppenborn will continue working to expand the market position of EWD with innovative new products and further improvements on customer focus. This applies specifically to EWD’s position with
André Fey, left, and Herbert Oppenborn
forward looking medium sized sawmills, who are relying more on a partner providing custom made solutions for their individual and complex tasks. Fey will continue advising and supporting the company in the future.
Board Handling Line Installed A new sawn timber processing line offers a range of new possibilities for the Bavarian sawmill Schwaiger in Hengersberg, Germany. The sorting line handles dimensions of up to 171x171 mm and is also used for the post-sorting of dry boards. Springer installed the sorting line dur-
ing full operation of the sawmill. At a speed of up to 180 pieces per minute, boards of varying dimensions pass through the following stages: singulation, grading, moisture content measurement and tray sorting as well as the formation of board layers and trimming. After passing through a PASCAL package press, the product is finally ready for dispatch.
Homag Acquires Stiles Machinery Homag Group, a leading manufacturer of plant and machinery for the woodworking industry and cabinet makers, has purchased full ownership of U.S. distribution and service company Stiles Machinery. Homag Group s CEO Dr. Markus Flik comments, “As market leader in the U.S., we are acquiring the leading distribution and service organization in this industry. Increasing our interest in Stiles which we have held since 1992 is the only logical step. This measure allows us to benefit directly from the anticipated re-industrialization.” TIMBER PROCESSING
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WOOD PRODUCTS marketplace ■ Kentucky
NORTH AMERICA ■ United States
HAROLD WHITE LUMBER, INC. MANUFACTURER OF FINE APPALACHIAN HARDWOODS
Buyers & Wholesalers We produce quality 4/4 - 8/4 Appalachian hardwoods
(606) 784-7573 • Fax: (606) 784-2624
■ Florida
Ray White
• Red Oak, White Oak, Poplar •
Domestic & Export Sales
CRACKER SAWMILL CYPRESS AND SYP Sawmill, Drying and MillIng facility Custom Cut to Order Lumber, Cants, Specialty Beams to 44’ We will Mill Log Home logs S4S 6”x6” thru 8”x12” T&G Your wood or ours WE DO WHAT OTHERS CANNOT 20253 N.E. 20th Street Williston, Fl 32690 www.Crackersawmill.com Info@Crackersawmill.com
Green Lumber: Air Dried, Kiln Dried Timbers & Crossties
rwhite@haroldwhitelumber.com
Green & Kiln Dried, On-Site Export Prep & Loading Complete millworks facility, molding, milling & fingerjoint line
■ Minnesota
(352) 529-2070 ■ Georgia Beasley Forest Products, Inc.
• 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
Do you produce or buy lumber? Here's your #1 source for effectively promoting your hardwood or softwood service to your top prospective buyers.
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
■ Indiana
Next closing: July 7, 2014
■ North Carolina Cook Brothers Lumber Co., Inc.
Manufacturer of Appalachian Hardwood Lumber LEONARD COOK, Sales (828) 524-4857 • cell: (828) 342-0997 residential: (828) 369-7740 P.O. Box 699 • Frankin, NC 28744
WANT TO GET YOUR AD IN OUR NEXT MARKETPLACE? Call or email Susan Windham 334/834-1170 susan@hattonbrown.com by July 7, 2014
NATIONAL HARDWOOD LUMBER ASSOCIATION
02/14
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wood products marketplace ■ Pennsylvania
■ Tennessee
MERIDIEN HARDWOODS OF PA, INC.
P.O. Box 227 ● Pittsfield, PA 16340 www.meridienpa.com Export and Yard Quality Hardwood Green, KD, S2S, SLR Custom Walnut Steaming Available
Ph: 800-780-3187 Fax: 800-292-5773 Dan Ferman – meridien@penn.com Brandon Ferman – brandonferman@hotmail.com Rob Allard – 802-380-4694; rallard@hughes.net Mike Songer – 814-486-1711; mjs@zitomedia.net
■ Virginia
STACKING STICKS
Producing Quality Southern Yellow Pine Since 1939
FOR SALE
AIR-O-FLOW profiled & FLAT sticks available Imported & Domestic DHM Company - Troy, TN 38260 731-538-2722 Fax: 707-982-7689 email: kelvin@kilnsticks.com www.KILNSTICKS.com
P.O. BOX 25 • 628 Jeb Stuart Highway Red Oak, VA 23964 Tel: 434-735-8151 • Fax: 434-735-8152 E-mail Sales: john@morganlumber.com Website: www.morganlumber.com Product Mix: ALL KD, HT STAMPED 1x4 D&BETTER, 1x6 D&BETTER, 1x4 #2, 1x6 #2, 1x4 #3/#4, 1x6 #3/#4, 5/4x4 PREMIUM, 5/4x4 STANDARD, 5/4x4 #2/#3/#4, 5/4x6 PREMIUM, 5/4x6 STANDARD, 5/4x6 #2/#3/#4, 6x6 #2&BETTER, 6x6 #3/#4
Do you produce or buy lumber? Here's your #1 source for effectively promoting your hardwood or softwood service to your top prospective buyers.
WANT TO GET YOUR AD IN OUR NEXT MARKETPLACE? Call or email Susan Windham • 334/834-1170 or email: susan@hattonbrown.com before July 7, 2014 02/14
NEWSFEED 10 ➤ feasibility studies for various forest products industry ventures. Guss’ LVL in North America and Structural Engineered Wood Products in North America publications were widely read, each with multiple editions. He contributed key insights for the recent Panel Age 50 historical publication published in 2013. Guss received the Distinguished Service Award from Washington State University, College of Engineering & Architecture at the 33rd International Particleboard/Composite Materials Symposium in 1999. Guss was a charter member of the National Assn. of Business Economists, a national director of the American Marketing Assn.; and was on the advisory boards of several forest industry trade associations. He was passionate about ed-
ucation and put all of his children through school or provided them with other educational opportunities. He never retired from his work, and stayed vigorous with many interests including foreign languages, cooking, and horseback riding with his family. Guss is survived by his wife of 29 years, Claudia, a daughter, five sons and 10 grandchildren. Services were held at Holy Family Parish in Kirkland.
RENTECH REPORTS PELLETS PROGRESS D. Hunt Ramsbottom, president and CEO of Rentech, says the company is extremely pleased with the performance of its wood fiber processing business, as Fulghum Fibres generates solid gross margins and progress continues to be
made at its two wood pellet production facilities. Construction of the Atikokan and Wawa pellet facilities in eastern Ontario commenced in August, and Ramsbottom said they remain on schedule to meet pellet delivery obligations to Ontario Power Generation and UKbased power producer in 2014. The expected production of the Wawa plant has increased to approximately 450,000 tonnes, with 400,000 tonnes of annual pellet deliveries to Drax, and 50,000 tonnes available for sale to Drax or other customers. The production of the Atikokan facility is now expected to be approximately 100,000 tonnes, which will fulfill the existing contract with Ontario Power Generation for 45,000 tonnes, with the remaining 55,000 tonnes available for sale to OPG or other customers.
Rentech is installing 170 foot electric radial log cranes from Fulghum Industries at each plant wood yard. The Rentech team includes the former plant manager, wood yard manager, and manager of capital projects at the Wawa facility, all of whom worked at the plant when it was operated by Weyerhaeuser as an OSB mill processing nearly 750,000 green metric tons of logs annually.
BIOMASS PLANTS COME ON IN SC EDF Renewable Energy and utility company Santee Cooper recently dedicated two new biomass generating facilities called the Pinelands Biomass project. The two 17.8 MW facilities are located in Allendale and Dorchester counties in South Carolina.
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MAINEVENTS MARCH 1-4—National Wooden Pallet & Container Assn. annual meeting, Marriott Harbor Beach Ft. Lauderdale Resort & Spa, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Call 703-519-6104; visit palletcentral.com. 2-4—Western Wood Products Assn. annual meeting, Embassy Suites, Portland, Ore. Call 503-224-3930; visit wwpa.org.
19-21—Georgia Forestry Assn. Annual Meeting, The Westin Hilton Head Island, Hilton Head, SC. Call 478-992-8110; visit gfagrow.org. 22-25—Southeastern Dry Kiln Club annual meeting, NCS University, Raleigh, NC. Call 919-515-5582.
AUGUST
5-7—IWPA's World of Wood Convention, Renaissance Vinoy, St. Petersburg, Fla. Call 703-820-6696; visit iwpawood.org.
20-23—International Woodworking Fair 2014, Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Ga. Visit iwfatlanta.com.
12-14—Hardwood Manufacturers Assn. annual meeting, The Hyatt Regecy, Savannah, Ga. Call 412-244-0440; visit hmamembers.org.
26-28—Florida Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Sawgrass Marriott, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Call 800-222-5646; visit floridaforest.org.
APRIL 2-4—Kentucky Forest Industries Assn. annual meeting, The Brown Hotel, Louisville, Ky. Call 502-695-3979; visit kfia.org. 10-11—NELMA annual convention, Seaport Hotel, Boston, Mass. Call 207-829-6901; visit nelma.org. 22-24—American Forest Resource Council annual meeting, Skamania Lodge, Stevenson, Wash. Call 503-222-9505; visit amforest.org. 25-26—Southern Saw Filers’ Education Assn. Convention, Hilton Garden Inn, West Monroe, La. Call 936-254-3161; visit southernsawfilers.org.
MAY 4-6—American Wood Protection Assn. annual meeting, Marriott Newport Beach, Newport Beach, Calif. Call 205-7334077; visit awpa.com. 7-9—Forest Resources Assn. annual meeting, Virginia Beach Oceanfront Hotel, Virginia Beach, Va. Call 202-296-3937; visit forestresources.org. 9-10—Northeastern Forest Products Equipment Expo, Champlain Valley Expo, Essex Junction, Vt. Call 315-369-3078; visit northernlogger.com. 16-17—Expo Richmond 2012, , Richmond Raceway Complex, Richmond, Va. Call 804-737-5625; visit exporichmond.com.
JULY 16-20—2014 Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Assn. annual conference, JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country, San Antonio, Tex. Call 770-631-6701; visit slma.org. 54
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20-21—Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE), Omni Hotel at CNN Center, Atlanta, Ga. Call 800-669-5613; visit pelice-expo.com.
Listings are submitted months in advance. Always verify dates and locations with contacts prior to making plans to attend.
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18-19—Bioenergy Fuels & Products Conference & Expo, Omni Hotel at CNN Center, Atlanta, Ga. Call 334-834-1170; e-mail dianne@hattonbrown.com; visit bioenergyshow.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
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