TP 0616 Digimag

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/27/16 3:28 PM Page 1

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 2

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 3

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 4

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 41 • Number 5 • June 2016 Founded in 1976 • Our 424th Consecutive Issue

Renew or subscribe on the web: www.timberprocessing.com

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 Art Director/Prod. Manager: Cindy Segrest Ad Production Coordinator: Patti Campbell Circulation Director: Rhonda Thomas Marketing/Media: Jordan Anderson

5 10 14 34

Classified Advertising: Bridget DeVane • 334.699.7837 800.669.5613 • bdevane7@hotmail.com

49

Advertising Sales Representatives: Southern USA

58

Randy Reagor P.O. Box 2268 Montgomery, AL 36102-2268 904.393.7968 • FAX: 334.834.4525 E-mail: reagor@bellsouth.net

62

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

THE ISSUES The Sawmill Survey Results

NEWSFEED Sawmills In Flux

SOFTWOOD LUMBER Sawmills Waiting For A Boost

HARDWOOD LUMBER Survivors Are Charting Their Course

MACHINERY ROW USNR Has A New Facility

PRODUCT SCANNER 10 Remote-Controlled Log Crane

MAIN EVENTS Here Comes Portland!

COVER: Softwood lumber mills and hardwood lumber mills have a similar take on the immediate future: Not bad, could be better. Softwood survey story starts on PAGE 14, and hardwood on page PAGE 34. (Dan Shell photo at Oregon’s Southport Forest Products) VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www.timberprocessing.com Member Verified Audit Circulation

Western USA, Western Canada Tim Shaddick 4056 West 10th Avenue Vancouver BC Canada V6L 1Z1 604.910.1826 • FAX: 604.264.1367 E-mail: tootall1@shaw.ca 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 ® 2016. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited. Periodicals postage paid at Montgomery, Ala. and at additional mailing offices. Printed in U.S.A.

Postmaster: Please send address changes to Timber Processing, P.O. Box 2419, Montgomery, Alabama 36102-2419 Other Hatton-Brown publications: Timber Harvesting • Southern Loggin’ Times Wood Bioenergy • Panel World • Power Equipment Trade

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 5

THEISSUES

10

14

34

49

Rich Donnell Editor-in-Chief

SURVEY RESULTS SHOW OPTIMISM STILL IN PLAY

I

t’s difficult to interpret such things, but the results of our Sawmill Capital Expenditure Survey reveal that 66% of U.S. softwood lumbermen expect business to be excellent or good for the remainder of this year and into the near future. That’s slightly down from 67% a year ago, and considerably down from 88% two years ago. However, a year ago, 9% expected business to be poor in the near term; the recent survey shows only 4% expecting it to be poor. Which means more people rose into the “fair” category during the past year.

Still, as it has been my experience that most lumbermen have a Missouri show-me approach, two-thirds anticipating good or excellent is pretty impressive. One reason could be that these lumbermen expect housing starts to at least continue their gentle rise.

The APA-Engineered Wood Assn. monthly housing report showed that both single-family and multi-family starts increased in April, up 6.6% from March, running at an annual rate of 1.172 million units (of which single-family starts accounted for 778,000). APA is forecasting 1.225 million starts (single and multi) for 2016 and 1.340 million for 2017. When you average the forecasts from eight forecasters (RISI, Wells Fargo, APA, Mortgage Bankers, Fannie Mae, Royal Bank of Canada, Forest Economic Advisors and National Assn. of Home Builders), it’s 1.213 million for 2016 and 1.372 million for 2017.

APA did offer some caveats: Ongoing tightening of lending standards is a constraint that adds downside risk to the starts forecast through 2017. The homeownership rate fell in the first quarter, with the decline occurring across just about every age-class. The average size of new homes started in the first quarter of 2016 was below that of the average for the year 2015.

Also, APA noted that U.S. labor productivity on an output per hour basis fell again in the first quarter and is likely to be flat in the second quarter. The lack of growth in productivity is a long-term concern because it implies lesser income gains that will frustrate the desires of people to afford a home. The active rig count for oil and gas exploration in the U.S. continued downward and will remain a drag on real GDP growth in the second quarter.

Despite all that, annual U.S. housing starts are more than double what they were five years ago. Softwood lumbermen who have been able to improve their mill operations during the interim are reaping the benefits, as framing lumber prices have been solid, and as recently as mid-May continued a bounce upward that has been going on since early in the year, as depicted by Random Lengths.

The survey reveals that a lot of lumbermen have done a lot of work to their mills (or are in the process of) since the beginning of 2015. And it also reveals that many of them have future projects on their minds as the current projects wind down.

Another reason for their optimism is that more and more of the Millennials (basically ages 18-36, who already have surpassed Baby Boomers as the largest living generation in the U.S.) should be entering the homebuilding and home ownership stage of life. The going concern is that they’ve been holding back because of too much debt, much of it in the form of student loans. But if that dam breaks loose...

TP Contact Rich Donnell, ph: 334-834-1170; fax 334-834-4525; e-mail: rich@hattonbrown.com TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

5

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 6

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 7

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 8

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 9

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 10

NEWSFEED TRINITY RIVER TIMBER PURCHASES KORBEL MILL Trinity River Timber Co. is purchasing the California Redwood Co. sawmill in Korbel from Green Diamond Resource Co. The sale includes all of the fixed sawmill assets and a long-term lease on the mill site, including the associated log and lumber yards. The sale also includes a log supply agreement between Green Diamond Resource and Trinity River that will provide Douglas fir logs from Green Diamond’s timberlands to the sawmill.

“The mill is in close proximity to our timberlands and the sale ensures these logs will be manufactured into lumber at a local mill,” says Green Diamond Senior Vice President Neal Ewald.

Trinity River President Frank Schmidbauer adds: “The Korbel mill is a great addition.

10

■

JUNE 2016

■

It is located in close proximity to timber supplies and good transportation, both east and south. The Korbel operation will be complementary to our Weaverville sawmill (also operating as Trinity River Lumber) and our sawmill in Eureka (operating as Schmidbauer Lumber).”

After modifications to the existing facilities, the Korbel sawmill is expected to be op-

erational by early 2018.

The Korbel mill has deep roots. For more than 130 years, except for cleaning up and rebuilding after floods and fire and a nine-year closure during the Great Depression, the location has continuously produced lumber under a number of different ownerships.

The Korbel brothers of Sonoma County acquired the Arcata & Mad River Railroad

Lumber is air-dried and kiln-dried at Korbel

and extended a line up the river’s north fork where they built the Humboldt Lumber Co sawmill in 1883. Simpson Investment Co. purchased the mill in 1956, and Simpson’s sister company, Green Diamond Resource, supported by an extensive timberlands inventory, purchased the mill in 2007.

The mill began a major operational adjustment, including changing the name to California Redwood Co. and implementing a more aggressive sales and marketing plan, new product lines, and enhancements in the mill to improve production efficiency, recovery and finished lumber appearance.

The operation was put up for sale in late 2014 as it wrestled with redwood lumber manufacturing and sales.

Trinity’s Weaverville sawmill was destroyed by fire in

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 11

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/25/16 2:19 PM Page 12

NEWSFEED 2009, but was rebuilt as a modern sawmill and resumed operation in 2011.

ENVIVA LEADER IS BIG ON PELLETS John Keppler, president of the world’s largest manufacturer and exporter of wood pellets for biomass power generation overseas, spoke of continued renewable wood energy growth during the fourth Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo held April 56 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in Atlanta Keppler nearly shouted to the keynote session attendance that wood pellet demand worldwide increased 13% in 2015 to 27.6 million metric tons. “Thirteen percent year-on-year growth!” Keppler said. “How many industries in the world have grown

12

■

JUNE 2016

■

13% year-on-year?”

Keppler emphasized the importance of the wood pellet industry to forestland management and that many people are misinformed about the wood-to-energy impact on timberlands. “Today we’re 2.4% of the removals in the Southeast U.S.,” he said.

“We’re byproducts of traditional harvesting practices.”

MARY’S RIVER SELLING MILLS In mid-May western red cedar lumber manufacturer and distributor Mary’s River Lumber’s put up for sale five recently closed Northwest operations sites.

President Brad Kirkbride had earlier commented that the limited availability of suitable cedar logs and harvest restrictions in public forests con-

tributed to the decision. “We are especially sad about the impact this will have on our employees, who are a core part of the Mary’s River Lumber Company family,” he said.

“It’s a sad moment, but there comes a point where with this extreme shortage of logs, you just don’t see a future. We fought this thing for a long time trying to keep the business open.”

Established in 1974, Mary’s River Lumber became a western red cedar industry leader.

With headquarters at Corvallis, Ore., the company operated a sawmill at Philomath, Ore., as well as production operations in Montesano and Bow, Wash. and Corvallis.

At its peak, the company had 160 workers.

James G. Murphy auctioneer company advertised in May that it was soliciting bids for purchase of the sites as sepa-

rate packages or as a single package as part of a 60 day entirety sale.

LINDEN CLOSES FLOORING DIVISION Linden Lumber, LLC announced it closed its hardwood flooring division in Linden, Ala. in May. “This has been an incredibly difficult decision to make, but we believe it is the right decision given the ongoing depressed state of the solid flooring industry,” comments Hugh Overmyer, Linden Lumber president. “When business decisions such as this negatively impact employees, it is very emotionally difficult for everyone.”

The decision to exit flooring does not affect the ongoing operation and manufacturing of Linden’s lumber and industrial wood products operations.

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:52 AM Page 13

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 14

GOOD

TOGO By Rich Donnell

S

oftwood lumbermen are fairly optimistic about their business for the remainder of 2016 and into 2017-2018, according to Timber Processing’s 2016 Annual Sawmill Capital Expenditure Survey.

Thirteen percent expect business to be “excellent,” while 53% said it will be “good.” Another 30% said “fair,” and 14

■

JUNE 2016

■

4% said “poor/very poor.” Those outlooks are actually a little better than reported in the survey a year ago, when 9% said poor, while 24% said fair, 52% said good and 15% said excellent.

Two years ago in the 2014 survey, 14% had said excellent, 74% good, 12% fair, and zero had said poor.

“We have several product lines. Each has a different market situation. But the markets will be slightly better. But will industry production increases overcome

Most softwood lumbermen expect to maintain the pace, but are prepared for a surge.

the opportunity, again?” commented Eric Schooler, president/CEO of Oregonbased Collins Companies.

“Who knows? It is best to be prepared to be able to run with the market and be able to pull back when needed and still pay the bills,” said Ross Jackson, general manager of Spanish Trail Lumber in Florida.

“I think the underlying demand is still strong and growing. My greatest fear is that our industry makes the same mistake we’ve made so many times in the past

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 15

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

15

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 16

and over-supply the market,” added Patrick Harrigan, president of Harrigan Lumber in Alabama.

Timber Processing conducted the survey in April-May by e-mailing a sampling of its readership and providing a link to the survey questions. The survey was directed toward owners, presidents, regional managers, general managers, plant managers, supervisors and corporate executives of sawmill operations.

Forty-five percent of the respondents said the majority of their production at their mill or mills was 2 in. lumber, followed by significant percentages of respondents who said that either 1 in. lumber (18%) or timbers (17%) accounted for most of their production.

The respondents represented a range of annual production output at their sawmills. Thirty percent said their mill will produce (or mills will average) more than 100MMBF in 2016 (of that number, 16% said more than 150MMBF), while 25% will produce 50-100MMBF, 13% at 25-50MMBF, 13% at 10-25MMBF and 19% less than 10MMBF. These figures don’t differ too much from actual annual production in 2015, when 29% said they produced more than 100MMBF, 25% said 50100MMBF, 12% at 25-50MMBF, 13% at 10-25MMBF and 20% less than 10MMBF. ➤ 18

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 17

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 11:17 AM Page 18

CAPITAL PROJECTS The heart of the survey asked several questions related to capital expenditure in machinery and systems, including one that asked how much in spending their mills had committed to since the beginning of 2015, whether or not the investment project was completed yet.

About 48% of the respondents said more than $1 million. Broken down further, 19% said $1-3 million, 10% said $3-5 million, 11% said $5-10 million, and 8% said more than $10 million (of which 4% said more than $20 million).

Another 17% said $500,000 to $1 million, 6% said $300,000-$500,000, 8% said $100,000-$300,000 and 22% said less than $100,000.

The survey provided a list of 40 machinery/systems categories and asked the lumbermen to select any of those in which the mill had invested since the beginning of 2015. Dry kilns and/or controls topped the list at 32% (of which 11% specified continuous dry kilns), followed by wheel loaders at 31%. Then it was lumber handling forklifts at 27% and maintenance for 23%. Other big winners were boilers, log scanning/optimization, and debarkers, each at 20%. Then came log loaders, 18%; downstream sawing (gang/edger/trimmer), 18%; downstream scanning/optimization, 17%; filing room equipment, 17%; planer mill sorting/stacking, 17%. Numerous other categories also fared well such as convey18

â–

JUNE 2016

â–

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 19

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:54 AM Page 20

20

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:54 AM Page 21

ors, chippers/hammermills/screens, log carriages, log yard handling.

As to the status of their capital investment commitments and projects since early 2015, 48% of the respondents said they had projects in full production mode; 15% said projects were in the startup stage; 19% said installation stage; 17% still in the planning stage; and 29% said a combination of the above.

“Doing carriage and optimization replacement (right now),” commented Ron Holen, general manager of Yakama Forest Products in Washington.

“New planer mill infeed system; finally installed a tilt hoist system! Installed whole tree butt reducer before the debarker,” noted Jackson of Spanish Trail Lumber in Florida.

The survey asked several questions about these ongoing or recently completed projects. One was for lumbermen to rate their overall satisfaction with their return on investment. An impressive 24% said it was excellent, and 49% said it was good. Another 15% said fair and only 1% said poor, while the remainder said it was too early to tell.

“The environmental compliance projects essentially have no return other than to allow continued operation,” said Schooler of Collins Pine in Oregon.

Asked to address their startup timeline, 11% said they stayed ahead of schedule, 54% said the project stayed pretty much on schedule, while 23% said it ran a little behind schedule, and 5% said it ran way behind schedule.

Equipment vendors scored well in a question that asked the lumbermen to rate the overall cooperation and effectiveness of the vendors who supplied equipment to the project. Twenty-three percent of the lumbermen said it had been excellent, while 56% said good, and 12% said it was fair.

As to when these projects committed to since 2015 will be completed, 52% said by the end of this year, 34% said it was done, 9% in 2017 and 5% in 2018.

The survey asked the lumbermen to look further ahead, beyond their current capital investment projects, and select from the same list of machinery and systems categories that may require additional capital investment. Dry kilns and controls, and downstream sawing (gang/edger/trimmer) each came in strong at 23%; filing room equipment also scored well at 21%; debarkers came in at 20%; wheel loaders, 19%; planer mill sorting/stacking, 19%; planer mill strapping/packaging, 19%. Also scoring well were log merchandising cutup, log scanning/optimization, ➤ 24 TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

21

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 11:17 AM Page 22

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 23

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:54 AM Page 24

maintenance, lumber handling forklifts and dust control systems.

A survey question asked what percentage of normal capacity did their mill produce in 2015. About 42% said 90-100% and 26% said 80-90%. As to what percentage of capacity they think they will produce in 2016 compared to 2015, 44% said 90-100% and 27% said 80-90%. As for anticipated downtime in 2016 compared to 2015, 15% said more in 2016, 23% said less and 62% said about the same.

“We have several capital jobs going on that will require extra days down,” said Jesse Dauphin, plant manager, Coastal Forest Products in Alabama, voicing a similar comment as several others.

“Fire damaged one of the primary breakdown units at one of our mills,” said Steve Anthony, president, Anthony Timberlands in Arkansas.

OPERATIONS An open-ended question asked lumbermen what they are most concerned about as to the efficiency of their mills.

Harrigan at Harrigan Lumber said, “We still have some catching up to do after several years of minimal upgrades.

We need to improve our recovery and production per hour.”

“Bottlenecks,” simply said Parker Dempsey, president at Dempsey Wood Products in South Carolina. ➤ 26 24

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:54 AM Page 25

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

25

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:54 AM Page 26

“Fine-tuning the new mill small log line with the large log line and becoming very efficient,” said Jay Jackson, maintenance manager at Southport Forest Products in Oregon.

“The human element and the lack of modernization. The more workers that are required the higher the cost structure,” said RJ Glover, NE Washington Region Manager for Boise Cascade.

“Need more volume to compete in today’s market,” said Ben Crim, vice president of engineering and environment, Hood Industries in Mississippi.

Several voiced concern over maintaining quality labor, aging of equipment, log supply, reducing downtime, improving mill flow, recovery, keeping costs low, improving automation, software upgrades.

One question addressed log supply more specifically. About 42% said they had plenty of log supply, 39% said an “okay” supply, while 16% said supply is pretty thin, and 4% said drastically thin.

“At the moment very good but subject to wild swings depending on mainly paper mills consumption and the weather,” said Jackson of Spanish Trail Lumber in Florida.

“Export competition is always a problem,” said Bill Wilkins, president of WKO in Washington.

What are softwood lumbermen ➤ 30 26

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 27

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 2:54 PM Page 28

28

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 29

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/25/16 1:29 PM Page 30

most concerned about with regard to their lumber markets?

Many lumbermen weighed in, including Holen at Yakama FP in Washington: “Industrial shop markets. Impact of reduced exports forcing lumber into our domestic markets. Over-supply and a continuing weak home building market.”

“Cutting a lot of salvage pine; market is saturated with this type of product,” said Kent Duysen, general manager at Sierra Forest Products in California.

Many voiced concerns about over-production, Canadian softwood lumber imports with no border constraints, low grade

30

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 31

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:55 AM Page 32

markets, exchange rates, price fluctuations, housing starts.

Two questions addressed labor. An impressive 83% said they had minimal or average turnover, while 17% said they had too much turnover. A related question asked the lumbermen what is the key to maintaining a strong labor force: “Competitive wages and benefits.

Hours and days off are becoming a larger issue with younger generations,” noted Glover with Boise Cascade.

“Communicating and working with the employees,” said Duysen at Sierra Forest Products in California.

“Allowing key people to be decision makers,” said Howard Zosel, partner at Zosel Lumber in Washington.

“Try to be the best place in your area for someone to work and invest in your people. The rest will take care of itself,” said Harrigan of Harrigan Lumber in Alabama.

“Employee recognition and appreciation,” said Jim Henderson, operations manager, Limington Lumber in Maine.

“Paying for the skills needed. Developing skill internally and use of local technical colleges,” added Holen from Yakama FP. “Involvement and inclusion. Training. Team building,” said Bob Lewis, president of Columbia Vista Corp. in TP Washington.

32

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 33

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 2:56 PM Page 34

SOLID

FOOTING By Rich Donnell

Hardwood lumbermen seem to have a firm grip on the capabilities of their operations and markets.

U

.S. hardwood lumber producers are a little more optimistic today about their future than they were a year ago, according to Timber Processing’s 2016 Annual Sawmill Capital Expenditure Survey.

Asked to forecast their lumber business situation for the remainder of 2016 and into 2017-2018, 14% expect business to be excellent, 39% said good, 42% said fair and 6% said poor. A year ago, 14% said poor, 41% said fair, 39% said good and 6% said excellent.

“We are an export dominate producer focusing on niche markets in Asia. We hope the Asian economy keeps growing at a sustainable pace,” commented Wilson Jones III, president of Mackeys Ferry Sawmill in North Carolina.

“From where we sit, we can’t produce all we could sell. However we are concerned about any hiccup that may occur in the overall economy,” said Rhonda Kendrick, owner of Kendrick Forest Products in Iowa.

A related, open-ended question asked hardwood lumbermen what they are most concerned about with regard to their lumber markets.

“That market pricing will continue to fall as it did in 2015,” said Brian Smith, owner of Peachtree Lumber in North Carolina.

34

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 2:57 PM Page 35

“Mid to low grade lumber markets are saturated. Railroad tie, cant and pallet lumber inventories are very high resulting in falling prices and demand,” said Larry Smith, owner/president of Landmark Wood Products in Indiana.

“Being a global economy with cheaper products coming in from overseas,” said Tony Nash, operations manager, AJD Forest Products in Michigan.

Several lumbermen pointed to China, as did Kenneth Johnson, general manager with The A Johnson Co. in Vermont, who said, “China is a concern, given the uncertainty about their economy and political stability.”

“Worried that customers will stop buying live edge slabs,” said Scott Wunder, owner of WunderWoods in Missouri.

Indeed their market concerns also included: l Uncertain customer demand l Margins

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

35

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 2:57 PM Page 36

l Seasonal

wood availability due to the election year l New housing construction l Low grade markets l EAB (Emerald Ash Borer) affect on ash supply l Strength of the dollar l Oversupply of ties l Stability with hard maple markets Timber Processing conducted the survey in April and May by e-mailing a sampling of its readership and providing a link to the survey questions. The survey was directed toward owners, presidents, regional managers, general managers, plant managers, supervisors and corporate executives of sawmill operations.

The majority of the respondents said the majority of their production at their mill or mills was 1 in. lumber (49%) and furniture grade lumber (22%). Half of the respondents represented mills that produced 5-15MMBF in 2015, along with 11% above 15MMBF, and 38% less than 5MMBF. In 2016, they expect production to trend upward a little, with 54% at 515MMBF, 12% above 15MMBF, and 33% at less than 5MMBF. Staying on the theme of production, 37% said they produced at 90-100% of normal capacity in 2015 and 43% expect to run at 90-100% in 2016. About 26% produced at 80-90% capacity in 2015 and 26% expect to maintain that capacity in 2016.

Slightly more than half of the hardwood lumbermen said they anticipate downtime in 2016 to be about the same as it was in 2015, while 38% said they will have less downtime, and 11% said more downtime.

“Installation of new resaw system will effect production rates,” said Jones of Mackeys Ferry Sawmill.

“We will be having two weeks of shutdown for maintenance rather than just one,” said John Kantola, general manager of Northern Hardwoods A Longyear Company in Michigan.

“Milder winter and more efficiency,” said Ray White, CEO of Harold White Lumber in Kentucky.

“Log supply is better and we are sawing some overtime hours for our single shift to get lower costs,” said Johnson of A Johnson Company in Vermont. l Fluctuation

CAPITAL PROJECTS The heart of the survey is several questions related to capital investments in machinery and systems. The first question asked how much capital investment in machinery and systems their mill has committed to since the beginning of 36

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 37

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 38

38

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 39

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 40

2015, whether or not the project was completed or in the process thereof.

About 13% said they’ve committed to more than $1 million in capital expenditure since early 2015. Of that group, 7% said $1-2 million and 6% said $2-8 million. About 4% invested $750,000 to $1 million, 9% said $500,000-$750,000, 10% have spent between $300,000 and $500,000, and 30% have invested $100,000-$300,000. About 33% have committed to less than $100,000.

Where’s this money going? The survey provided a list of 40 machinery/systems categories and asked the hardwood lumbermen to select any of those in which the mill had invested since the beginning of 2015. Maintenance was the number one vote getter with 39%, followed by trucking with 31%, dry kilns and or controls, 28%; log yard handling and wheel loaders each with 26%; lumber handling forklifts at 19%; conveyors, 18%; downstream sawing (gang/edger/trimmer), 17%; log loaders, 15%. Also scoring well were log carriages, log scanning/optimization, boilers, filing room equipment, dust control, bandmill resaws, debarkers, chippers/hammermills/screen and mill information systems.

“We replaced our entire circle sawmill line from the infeed deck to the green chain due to a fire,” noted Smith of Landmark Wood Products in Indiana.

In addition to investment in log yard handling, log loaders, wheel loaders and a bandmill headrig, Kendrick of Kendrick Forest Product commented, “We did 1.5 million in coloring and bagging equipment, land improvements, building for mulch, 600,000 in T-shed and dry storage, 100,000 in cabinetry equipment, 500,000 in logging/hauling equipment.”

As to the status of their capital investment commitments and projects since early 2015, 31% said projects were in full operation mode, 27% still in the planning stage, another 16% in installation stage, 6% said startup stage and 27% said a combination of the above.

The survey asked the lumbermen to rate their overall satisfaction with their return on investment on the completed projects—19% said it was excellent and 47% said good.

Asked to address their startup timeline, 38% said the project stayed pretty much on schedule, while 33% said it ran a little behind schedule, and 8% said it ran way behind schedule, but 6% said it stayed ahead of schedule.

Equipment vendors scored well in a question that asked the lumbermen to rate the overall cooperation and effectiveness of the vendors who supplied 40

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 41

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 42

equipment to the project. About 47% of the lumbermen said it had been good, while 25% said excellent.

Asked when the last of the capital improvement projects they have already committed to will be completed, 51% said by the end of 2016, 32% said it was completed, 13% said in 2017 and 4% in 2018.

“We rebuilt one of two mills that were destroyed by fire. They were contained in a single building. We will rebuild the second in the future when the lumber business begins to stabilize,” said Smith of Landmark Wood Products.

No doubt echoing the thoughts of many a sawmiller, Kendrick of Kendrick Wood Products added, “We are in a continuous state of improvement and are really never complete.”

The survey asked the lumbermen to look further ahead, beyond their current capital investment projects, and select from the same list of machinery and systems categories that their mill or mills may invest in next. Maintenance investment remained in sight for 31%, debarkers and log yard handling equipment each at 25%, downstream sawing (gang/edger/trimmer) at 24%, dry kilns and or controls at 21%. Other items that will receive significant consideration for upgrade include lumber handling forklifts, trucking, dust control, wheel loaders, metal detectors.

OPERATIONS An open-ended question asked lumbermen what they are most concerned about as to the efficiency of their mills.

“Reducing downtime by having necessary equipment to do a better job,” said Mark Schrage, plant manager at Ames

42

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 43

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 44

44

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 2:57 PM Page 45

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

45

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 46

l Edger

losses

l Availability

of logs getting older l Preventive maintenance With regard to log supply, 49% said their log supply was okay, while 31% said they had plenty of log supply. More than 20% said their log supply was pretty thin or drastically thin.

“Hardwood pulpwood demand will drive our log supply. I hope the pellet mills are not ‘flash in the pan,’” said Jones of Mackeys Ferry Sawmill.

“As long as we are willing to pay top dollar,” said Donald Isaacson, vice president of PalletOne in Maine.

“Competition for log supply is sometimes tough and lack of loggers,” said Nash of AJD Forest Products.

“We’ve had a lot of rain this year. Last year we ran nine more weeks of 45 hour weeks than we have so far this year,” said Kendrick of Kendrick Forest Products in Iowa.

The survey asked lumbermen to address their employee turnover situation: 84% said they had average or minimal turnover and 16% said they had too much turnover.

“It is difficult to find good workers and we have started paying a little more l Equipment

Co. in New York.

“Log availability and quality. May have to run less than ideal material in order to run the mill full time,” said John Lucy, president of Clary Lumber in North Carolina.

“Need to improve production volume.

We will struggle with edger and trimmer stations to handle the volume,” noted Johnson of The A Johnson Co. “Drying lumber in a timely fashion,”

46

■

JUNE 2016

■

said Wunder of WunderWoods.

“Being able to handle various types of log input,” said Chuck Baxter, owner of Ottawa Forest Products in Michigan.

“Sawyers getting best grade out of logs and not over-edging lumber,” commented Kevin Rhodes, mill manager, Kerex Inc. in Pennsylvania.

Other efficiency concerns: l Kerf width too great l Skilled labor

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 47

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:45 AM Page 48

and actually being fussier about who we hire. We believe setting the standards higher is part of the key to attracting good people,” said Johnson of The A. Johnson Co. Many lumbermen weighed in with comments on what is the key to maintaining a strong labor force.

“Continuous training, motivation and benefits,” emphasized Craig Pyron, president of Copiah Lumber in Mississippi.

“Keep them informed and involved,” said Johnson of The A. Johnson Co. “Treat with respect,” said Rhodes of Kerex Inc. “Communication and treating people the way you want to be treated,” said Gerald Storey, vice president at Storey Sawmill & Lumber in Tennessee.

“We are working with the high schools and junior colleges in job fairs.

We work with teachers and administrations in encouraging youth to look at the trades and the wages and opportunities available,” noted Kendrick of Kendrick Forest Products.

“Offer a competitive wage/benefit while maintaining a safe, secure, fair work environment,” added Schrage of TP Ames Co.

48

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:46 AM Page 49

USNR Opens Modern Facility In Jacksonville USNR announced the opening of its new facility in Jacksonville, Fla. The site comprises 10 acres of land, more than 150,000 sq.ft. of manufacturing and warehousing space, and a large office complex for the company’s Jacksonvillebased sales, engineering, project management, service and operations personnel. The offices also include a new training center with facilities to host customers and provide technical training.

MACHINERYROW The company has a long history of manufacturing products for the wood processing industry in Jacksonville. The Moore Dry Kiln Co. was started there by Lafayette Moore in 1897. From 1914 until this year, the Moore Dry Kiln Co. and subsequently USNR manufactured lumber dry kilns, plywood veneer dryers, sawmill machinery, and other industrial products at a site close to downtown.

Troy Johnson, general manager over the Jacksonville operations, comments, “Our old site served the company for more than 100 years, but it was holding

us back. The new facility is a gamechanger. We now have the opportunity to rethink every one of our processes and set everything up to optimize our operations. Only a few weeks in we are already seeing improvements in our productivity and quality control.”

Along with the building and site improvements, USNR invested in a number of new machine tools and other equipment to significantly expand the plant’s manufacturing capabilities. The new plant uses state-of-the-art equipment and technology for raw material preparation, machining, fabrication, painting and assembly. The new plant also features double the crane-served area, and more than double the useful manufacturing space as compared with the old plant.

Roseburg Saw’s Lines Purchases Cal Saw

USNR’s new facility in Jacksonville, Fla.

California Saw & Knife Works announced a deeper collaboration with Dan Lines and Roseburg Saw & Tool Co. On April 30, Cal Saw’s San Francisco manufacturing operations were purchased by

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

49

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:46 AM Page 50

MACHINERYROW California Saw & Knife Works, LLC, a new Oregon-based company under the ownership of Lines.

With the new Cal Saw LLC in Oregon under Lines’ leadership, and with the continued collaboration and involvement of Warren Bird and the Bird family, Cal Saw’s specialty saws for wood products and knives for food processing and other applications will carry into the future.

Cal Saw will be moving to a spacious remodeled facility in Sutherlin, Ore. over the next few months. Roseburg Saw & Tool Co. will also relocate to the new Sutherlin facility.

Cal Saw’s operations under its new ownership will incorporate and expand on Cal Saw’s 130 years of expertise in the design and manufacture of thin circular saws and specialized machine knives.

Combined with Roseburg Saw & Tool, Cal Saw’s design and manufacturing capability, its commitment to assessing its customers’ processes and improving them, and its followup of the results, will be continued and enhanced.

Roseburg Saw & Tool will finish circular saws as it has been doing for Cal Saw customers, in addition to building Roseburg Saw & Tool’s other product lines.

Warren Bird will continue to serve Cal Saw’s customers, bringing to them his years of experience in saw and knife design. Lines and his staff have extensive experience in sawfiling, in making sawfilers’ tools, in finishing circular saws, and in manufacturing and servicing brazed tooling for both solid and laminated wood products; this expertise is combined with a commitment and dedication, like Cal Saw’s, to improving the reliability of customers’ processes and providing them with quality products.

Contact Dan@calsaw.com or WBird@ sawbirds.com. The mailing address of California Saw & Knife Works, LLC, is PO Box 165, Winchester, OR 97495.

LIMAB Leads Edger Upgrade At Setra Wood The LIMAB BoardProfiler 3D edger system measures the board from any direction to provide data for cutting in systems from one to five saw blades. The advantage of the system is its high thickness accuracy. When defining a cut decision in an optimization, it is important to correctly detect the board thickness and separate wane from cup. A correct and accurate cutting decision will result in yield improvements.

50

■

JUNE 2016

■

LIMAB new BoardProfiler edger system at Setra Wood Sawmill in Sweden

In early 2015 Setra Wood Products in Kalix, Sweden decided to upgrade its edger to obtain a higher yield. The edger line was equipped with an older measurement system. The choice was between building a new edger or to do an upgrade. “In terms of investment cost, the decision to upgrade was pretty easy,” says Hans Liljeström, site manager.

“With the suppliers LIMAB, Andor Automation and Höga Kusten Teknikkonsult we found a competitive and interesting solution.”

In the summer of 2015 LIMAB received the order for the measurement system, Andor for the automation solution and the Höga Kusten Teknikkonsult for control and mechanical solutions.

The requirement was 97% yield, but the target was set to 98%. Simultaneously, the demand for the production rate was set to 25 pcs/minute, with a goal of 30 pcs/minute. The installation was done in autumn 2015.

Before the edger, all boards are transported in a cross conveyor. LIMAB’s measuring system, the BoardProfiler 3DTE, is installed between the elevator and the linear infeed to the edger. Since the space does not allow an installation of a measuring system which measures in a lineal direction, LIMAB’s BoardProfiler 3D-TE fits perfect. The system scans with 3D laser technology the whole board in a cross conveyor and demands a very limited space.

When the lumber is scanned, the system makes an optimization based on established rules. The cut proposal is sent to a PLC which controls the positions of the saw blades and servos. This integration is made by Andor Automation. The BoardProfiler 3D-TE is also able to tilt the board to further maximize the yield.

“During the takeover a verification test was made to verify that the yield re-

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:46 AM Page 51

quirements were met,” says Liljeström.

“We found that the requirements were achieved and that the yield was actually higher than expected.” This also applies to capacity, which is now consistently around the target of 30 pcs/minute.

“We are convinced that there are more sawmills that are interested in our BoardProfiler 3D-TE,” says Christian Tellvik, business area manager at LIMAB. “Many edger mills have older measurements and automation systems and with a setup similar to what we have installed at Setra Wood Products in Kalix they could raise their yield considerably.”

The measuring system BoardProfiler 3D-TE is especially designed for cross conveyor edger optimization. LIMAB also has a linear system, BoardProfiler 3D-LE, which can also handle edgers with ripsaws up to six blades. The sensors are developed and manufactured by LIMAB and uses the latest laser technology to measure accurately and on high speed lines. The sensors are mounted on a specially adapted measuring frame with scanning from two sides.

Autolog Provides Optimizer, Controls

Autolog trimmer optimizer at Eacom mill

Eacom recently completed the installation of a new trimmer optimizer system at its Val d’Or, Quebec mill, including the controls for a 46 bins sorting line.

The previous system was in operation for more than 15 years and was showing serious signs of reliability issues, not to mention the difficulty of finding replacement parts on the market.

The new optimizer as well as the controls for the line were provided by Autolog in Blainville, QC. The 10 ft. optimizer includes a mechanical modular structure which ensures a quick setup and assembly.

The modular design allows for an easy installation at mills with even the most difficult access, without having to open the TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

■

JUNE 2016

■

51

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:46 AM Page 52

MACHINERYROW roof. This technique ensures substantial cost savings to the client.

The Autolog optimizer is supplied with Hermary scanners mounted at 45° enabling four faces image reading, providing an increased level of precision as well as a reduction in cleaning intervals. It scans every ¼ in. and offers the best measurement resolution. The system is delivered with the new Autolog software that was entirely developed by the company’s technical group over the last few years.

The controls for the line were achieved with a PLC ControlLogix system from Allen-Bradley which meets the highest standards in North America’s wood industry.

The entire project was achieved over a period of nine days (two weekends, one of which was three days, and four business days).

Valutec Progressive Kilns Being Installed Hasslacher has invested in two progressive kilns from Valutec for its laminated wood plant in Sachsenburg, Kärn-

52

■

JUNE 2016

■

ten, Austria. “We need to increase the drying capacity and drying quality in terms of precision in the moisture content and reduced cracking. Valutec offered the best complete solution,” says Michael Fercher, technical manager, Hasslacher.

Hasslacher is a family-owned sawmill group with seven plants in three countries. In connection with this investment, they are increasing their capacity in Sachsenburg, one of Europe’s most modern laminated wood plants, from 320,000 m3 to more than 400,000 m3 per year.

The kilns from Valutec will be solely used to dry center cut timber down to a 12% final moisture content.

The progressive kilns, which are made of stainless steel, will be equipped with pressure frames for minimal deformation of the top timber layer, as well as Valutec’s system for heat recovery. The delivery also includes the Valmatic control system. The kilns will be delivered and assembled in the spring and summer and commissioned in the middle of September 2016.

The progressive kiln technology is still

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 53

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:46 AM Page 54

MACHINERYROW relatively unknown in Central Europe, but in recent years Valutec has made a number of successful deliveries of progressive kilns to these countries.

Leading up to the choice of supplier, Hasslacher visited several plants to evaluate Valutec and the other suppliers of timber kilns.“All of the Valutec plants were characterized by production running smoothly at the same time that the users were very positive. This is why Valutec feels like a safe choice as our supplier,” Fercher says.

Caterpillar Backs Off From Truck Market Caterpillar Inc. has withdrawn from the on-highway vocational truck market, saying its decision was based on the current business climate in the truck industry and a thorough evaluation of the market. Caterpillar said the decision blends with the company’s ongoing restructuring to align its businesses with existing conditions.

The company says it remains committed to existing truck customers and will support the Caterpillar trucks they own.

Caterpillar launched its first vocational truck in the North American market in 2011, working with Navistar in a design/build arrangement. Last year the company announced it would begin independently designing and manufacturing trucks at its Caterpillar plant in Victoria, Tex., but that plan never materialized.

“Remaining a viable competitor in this market would require significant additional investment to develop and launch a complete portfolio of trucks, and upon an updated review, we determined there was not a sufficient market opportunity to justify the investment,” says Ramin Younessi, vice president with responsibility for Caterpillar’s Industrial Power Systems Div.

Morbark’s Shoemaker Receives State Honor Morbark, LLC announced that President James Shoemaker Jr. has been named the 2016 John G. Thodis Michigan Manufacturer of the Year Award recipient for Large Tier companies by the Michigan Manufacturers Assn. (MMA).

Now in its 35th year, the award program recognizes manufacturers for their dedication to community service, issue advocacy and their role as a symbol of the positive work being done by the manufacturing industry.

Shoemaker joined Morbark in 2003 as 54

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 55

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_cs.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 10:46 AM Page 56

MACHINERYROW director of operations before being promoted to vice president of Operations, and then was appointed President in 2011.

The Large Tier category award is presented to a company with 200 or more employees. Shoemaker is a founder of one of Michigan’s most respected regional industry associations (the Central Michigan Manufacturers Assn.), partner to both the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center and MMA, a voice on top

economic issues impacting businesses across the state, and an advocate for promoting a positive image of manufacturing careers.

Sellick Constructing Facility In Harrow On April, 20, 2016, at the young age of 97 years, Walter Sellick along with sons Howard Sellick, president; David

Sellick, vice president; and grandson Colin Sellick, systems manager, hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for a new multi-million dollar, 120,000 ft. facility at Harrow, Ontario.

“In order to compete on a global scale, we needed to expand and build a stateof-the-art plant,” says Howard Sellick.

Sellick Equipment has been manufacturing rough terrain and truck mounted forklifts for more than 47 years to a variety of industries including engineered wood products. In recent years, a new generation of forklifts was introduced featuring enhanced ergonomics, environmentallyfriendly diesel engines and increased lift capacities. Sellick products are supported by a nationwide dealer network.

Cowin Will Distribute Fuchs Material Handlers Cowin Equipment Co., Inc. is now an authorized distributor of Fuchs material handlers for Alabama, northern Georgia and Florida’s Panhandle. Cowin Equipment covers this territory with seven locations and offers sales, rental, parts and service support for the full Fuchs equipment line.

Fuchs material handlers provide high lift capacities, 27- to 80-ft. working radii and operating weights from 41,888 to 191,800 lbs. The field-proven line features durable wheel- or track-driven undercarriages, elevating cabs, intuitive controls, rigid hydraulic pipes and a doublerow slewing ring. The newly introduced Fuchs MHL 370 F handler marks Fuchs entry in the 120,000-lb handler class, while all F Series Fuchs handlers offer Eco Mode operation to reduce fuel consumption by up to 36%.

Cowin will also have at its disposal financing options offered by Terex Financial Services (TFS) to help improve the customer’s cash flow.

The distributor offers local support for its Alabama customers from its Birmingham headquarters and four branch locations in Mobile, Montgomery, Huntsville/ Decatur and Oxford. Cowin Equipment also operates branch locations in Pensacola, Fla. and Atlanta, Ga.

56

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 57

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_ASM_Layout 1 5/24/16 2:40 PM Page 58

PRODUCTSCANNER10 Hardfacing Alloy Postle Industries’ PS98 is a hardfacing alloy to be used as a matrix welding wire for tungsten carbide embedding, also known as MIG carbide embedding. Using specially designed vibratory feeding equipment in conjunction with the gas metal arc welding process (GMAW), tungsten carbide particles are fed from an

overhead hopper directly into the PS98 molten weld pool. The resulting weld deposit, which has a hardness of 55 to 60 HRC, contains a large volume of tungsten carbide particles embedded in a hardface matrix alloy.

The high hardness tool steel microstructure of Postalloy PS98 is designed to encapsulate and protect the tungsten

carbide particles from premature erosion.

The chemical composition of PS98, with chromium and molybdenum, is a triple deoxidized iron base hardfacing matrix alloy that will consistently provide an even distribution of carbide particles throughout the entire weld deposit.

Tungsten carbide particles, which are extremely hard and wear-resistant, combined with the hard PS98 matrix alloy, protect a variety of equipment from premature wear in many challenging applications such as bulldozer and grader blades, dragline bucket wear parts, loader and excavator buckets, railroad tie tampers, wear plate, logging and wood chipping wear parts, as well as construction, demolition, and landfill equipment including hammermills, horizontal grinding equipment and tub grinding hammers. Visit postle.com or hardfacetechnologies.com.

Remote Log Crane

With the option of a remote style log crane, an operator can be in a separate control room away from the log crane.

This allows one operator to control the infeed deck system and still operate the log crane, too. In many cases where an operator is not comfortable traveling on the crane, this allows him or her to be in a stationary control room.

Progress Industries offers log cranes from 75' to 180' with capacities of 14 tons to 45 tons. These radial cranes travel in a 360° circle, unloading trucks with treelength logs or short logs. The logs are then stacked in a circle for storage or fed for processing. Storage capacities can reach up to 20,000 cords of 60' treelength.

Visit progressindustries.com.

All products presented here were submitted by manufacturers, who are responsible for any and all claims made. TP reserves the right to edit for style and space considerations.

58

■

JUNE 2016

■

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 59

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 1:14 PM Page 60

Call Toll-Free: 1-800-669-5613

EMPLOYMENTOPPORTUNITIES Executive – Managerial – Technical - Sales

JOHN GANDEE

FOREST PRODUCTS RECRUITING SINCE 1978

The Jobs You Want — The People You Need WWW.SEARCHNA.COM

CONTACT CARL JANSEN AT 541-593-2777 OR Carlj@SearchNA.com

& ASSOCIATES, INC

Michael Strickland & Associates, LLC Executive Recruiters Wood Products/Building Materials Industries Mike Strickland mike@woodproductjobs.com 601-529-2157 • www.woodproductjobs.com Fees paid by employer

Depending on Circumstances / Needs

“Your Success Is Our Business”

Specializing in confidential career opportunities in the Forest Products industry 2200

Contingency or Retainer

Management Recruiters of Houston Northeast

Gates Copeland 281-359-7940 • fax 866-253-7032

Serving the Wood Products and Building Materials Industries For more than 21 years.

gcopeland@mrihouston.com • www.mrihouston.com

Top Wood Jobs

Toll Free 1-800-536-3884 www.johngandee.com Austin, Texas

SEARCH NORTH AMERICA, INC. IT'S YOUR MOVE...

1615

Recruiting Services

Recruiting and Staffing George Meek 3779

Sr. Design Draftsman/Engineer. Industry leader in equipment manufacturing is interviewing for an individual with forest products experience to manage their engineering/design department. Must have past experience working in a fast paced environment. AutoCAD Inventor a plus. Compensation based on experience. Medical, 401K. Draftsman. Industry leader in equipment manufacturing is interviewing for an individual with forest products experience. Must have extensive AutoCAD experience. AutoCAD Inventor a plus. Job requires detailing, and preparing shop fabrication drawings. Compensation based on experience. Medical, 401K

1987

3220

geo@TopWoodJobs.com www.TopWoodJobs.com (360) 263-3371

8187

Send resumes to: Dept. TP1987 PO Box 2268 • Montgomery, AL 36102

LUMBERWORKS 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

60

■

JUNE 2016

■

• 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

GREENWOOD KILN STICKS Importers and Distributors of Tropical Hardwood Kiln Sticks “The lowest cost per cycle” GW Industries www.gwi.us.com

Dennis Krueger 866-771-5040

Jackie Paolo 866-504-9095

d.krueger11@frontier.net

jackie@gwi.us.com

TIMBER PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

127

PROFESSIONALSERVICES

TPjune16pgs_SS.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:55 AM Page 61

WOOD PRODUCTS marketplace NORTH AMERICA ■ United States

■ Kentucky HAROLD WHITE LUMBER, INC. MANUFACTURER OF FINE APPALACHIAN HARDWOODS

(606) 784-7573 • Fax: (606) 784-2624 www.haroldwhitelumber.com

■ Florida 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

(352) 529-2070

■ Georgia

Ray White

Domestic & Export Sales rwhite@haroldwhitelumber.com

Green & Kiln Dried, On-Site Export Prep & Loading Complete millworks facility, molding, milling & fingerjoint line

• Red Oak, White Oak, Poplar •

Green Lumber: Air Dried, Kiln Dried Timbers & Crossties • Hickory, Sycamore, Beech, Gum & Elm • Custom Cut Timbers: Long lengths and wide widths

Sales/Service: 336-746-5419

336-746-6177 (Fax) • www.kepleyfrank.com

■ Tennessee

Next closing: July 5, 2016

STACKING STICKS

■ Minnesota

AIR-O-FLOW profiled & FLAT sticks available Imported & Domestic

Beasley Forest Products, Inc. P.O. Box 788 Hazlehurst, GA 31539

FOR SALE

DHM Company - Troy, TN 38260 731-538-2722 Fax: 707-982-7689 email: kelvin@kilnsticks.com www.KILNSTICKS.com

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

Buyers & Wholesalers We produce quality 4/4 - 8/4 Appalachian hardwoods

■ 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 NATIONAL HARDWOOD LUMBER ASSOCIATION

WANT TO GET YOUR AD IN OUR NEXT MARKETPLACE? Call or email Melissa McKenzie 334-834-1170 melissa@hattonbrown.com

02/16

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_ASM_Layout 1 5/24/16 12:48 PM Page 62

MAINEVENTS JULY 20-23—2016 Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Assn. annual conference, Belmond Charleston Place, Charleston, SC. Call 770-631-6701; visit slma.org.

23-25—Georgia Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Jekyll Island Convention Center, Jekyll Island, Ga. Call 478-992-8110; visit gfagrow.org.

23-26—Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers Summer Conference, The Greenbrier, White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. Call 336885-8315; visit appalachianwood.org.

AUGUST 24-27—International Woodworking Fair 2016, Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Ga. Call 404-693-8333; visit iwfatlanta.com.

30-September 1—Florida Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort, Amelia Island, Fla. Call 850-222-5646; visit floridaforest.org.

30-September 1—Louisiana Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Golden Nugget Resort and Casino, Lake Charles, La. Call 318443-2558; visit laforestry.com.

SEPTEMBER 8-10—Lake States Logging & Heavy Equipment Expo, Sunnyview Expo Center, Oshkosh, Wis. Call 715-282-5828; fax 715-282-4941; visit timberpa.com.

8-11—FMC China 2016: Furniture Manufacturing & Supply, Shanghai New International Expo Center, Pudong, Shanghai, China. Call +86-21-64371178; visit fmcchina.com.cn/en-us.

11-13—Alabama Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Perdido Beach Resort, Orange Beach, Ala. Call 334-265-8733; visit alaforestry.org.

26-27—28th Annual WMI Workshop on Design, Operation and Maintenance of Saws and Knives, Holiday Inn Portland Airport, Portland, Ore. Call 925-943-5240; visit woodmachining.com.

28-30—Timber Processing & Energy Expo, Portland Expo Center, Portland, Ore. Call 334-834-1170; visit timberprocessingandenergyexpo.com.

28-30—SPIB Dry Kiln Operator Training Course, Hilton Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Beach, Fla. Call 850-434-2611; visit spib.org.

OCTOBER 5-7—North Carolina Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Grove Park Inn & Resort, Asheville, NC. Call 919-834-3943; visit ncforestry.org.

7-9—Paul Bunyan Show, Guernsey Co. Fairgrounds, Cambridge, Ohio. Call 614-497-9580; visit ohioforest.org.

62

■

JUNE 2016

■ TIMBER

8-12—Wood Processing Machinery & Intermob Fair, Tüyap Fair Convention and Congress Center, Istanbul, Turkey. Call +90 212 867 11 00; visit intermobistanbul.com/en.

19-21—Southern Forest Products Assn. annual meeting, Williamsburg, Va. Call 504-443-4464; visit sfpa.org.

24-27—Lesdrevmash 2016, 16th International Exhibition for Machinery, Equipment and Technology for Logging, Woodworking and Furniture Industries, Expocentre Fairgrounds, Moscow, Russia. Call 8 (800) 707-37-99; visit lesdrevmash-expo.com.

Listings are submitted months in advance. Always verify dates and locations with contacts prior to making plans to attend.

A

●

D

●

L

●

I

●

N

●

K

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 Acrowood American Wood Dryers Andritz Iggesund Tools Autolog Baxley Equipment Brunson Instrument Comact Equipment Cone Omega Corley Manufacturing Esterer WD GmbH Expo 2017 Halco Software Systems Holtec USA Hurdle Machine Works IWF James G Murphy JoeScan Linck Linden Fabricating Lucidyne Technologies Metal Detectors Mid-South Engineering Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show Morbark Muhlbock Holztrocknungsanlagen Nelson Bros Engineering Oleson Saw Technology Pantron Automation Pierce Construction & Maintenance Pipers Saw Shop Rawlings Manufacturing Rema Sawco Resch & 3 GmbH Rockwell Industries Sennebogen Sering Sawmill Machinery Serra Maschinenbau Gmbh Smith Sawmill Service Springer Maschinenfabrik Telco Sensors Terex Construction Americas U S Blades U S Metal Works Union Grove Saw & Knife USNR/Soderhamn Ustunkarli Makine Vollmer of America Wagner Meters West Coast Industrial Systems West Salem Machinery Woodtech Measurement Solutions

PG.NO. 52 56 2 31 33 6 19 58 46 55 43 58 3 30 59 47 51 57 12,30 7 6 53 12 27 49 10 29 23 11 52 52 41 53 37 9 51 48 39 63 54 64 53 53 32 13 37 17 23 43 50 48

PH.NO. 425.258.3555 503.655.1955 813.855.6902 450.434.8389 501.623.0065 800.445.9405 418.228.8911 229.228.9213 423.698.0284 +49 86 71 5 03 0 504.443.4464 604.731.9311 800.346.5832 901.877.6251 404.693.8333 425.486.1246 360.993.0069 936 676 4958 250.561.1181 541.753.5111 541.345.7454 501.321.2276 662.325.2191 800.831.0042 +43 7753 2296 0 888.623.2882 800.256.8259 800.211.9468 601.544.1321 800.845.6075 866.762.9327 888.734.2659 +39 0471 353137 604.882.0066 704.347.4910 360.687.2667 +49 8051 96 40 00 800.598.6344 +43 4268 2581 0 800.253.0111 662.393.1321 800.862.4544 800.523.5287 704.539.4442 800.289.8767 +90 232 782 13 90 412.278.0655 800.581.2722 541.451.6677 800.722.3530 503.720.2361

ADLINK is a free service for advertisers and readers. The publisher assumes no liability for errors or omissions.

PROCESSING

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 63

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!

TP_0616_JAG.qxp_Layout 1 5/24/16 9:53 AM Page 64

CLICK HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY OPTED IN!