Roseburg Announces Historic $700 Million Investment in Southern Oregon Manufacturing

Roseburg Forest Products recently announced plans to invest $700 million over the next four years to upgrade and expand its manufacturing operations in Southern Oregon, where the company was founded nearly 90 years ago. The investment includes the creation of two new, state-of-the-art manufacturing plants, and technological improvements and upgrades at existing plants in rural Douglas and Coos counties.

The total project represents the largest ever known investment in manufacturing in rural Oregon, and one of the largest private capital investments of any kind in the state’s history.

“Across the business, Roseburg is embracing advanced manufacturing and leveraging new technology and methods to make our current products and develop new ones, with the goal of ensuring we remain competitive in the global market,” Roseburg President and CEO Grady Mulbery said. “I want to thank our partners at the Governor’s office and Douglas and Coos counties for helping make this historic investment possible.”

Nearly 100 people gathered at the Douglas County Fairgrounds for the announcement. In attendance were Allyn Ford, Roseburg’s owner and board chairman, and representatives of the state and county agencies who worked with Roseburg on the project.

The investment includes two new highly technical manufacturing plants at the company’s Dillard Complex, located just south of Roseburg, Oregon. Visit roseburg.com for more information. n

Registration Opens for WMS, Canada’s National Woodworking Event

Registration for the first Woodworking Machinery & Supply Conference & Expo (WMS) in four years is now open at www.wmscanada.ca.

Canada’s national industrial woodworking show returns Nov. 2-4, 2023, to the International Centre in Mississauga, Toronto. The event, normally held every other year, was last held in 2019, with the 2021 show cancelled due to COVID concerns.

“We are obviously thrilled to be organizing WMS with the pandemic far back in the rearview mirror,” said Harry Urban, show manager. “As we have seen from the response to other industry events that have taken place since the wain of COVID, professional woodworkers are eager to get back to seeing live demonstrations of machinery, and software; sampling new hardware and other supplies; and meeting with vendors and their peers face to face.”

Canada’s largest display of industrial woodworking machinery and supplies manufactured around the globe will be augmented by WMS Live, a free conference program right on the show floor. Each day of WMS Live will open with a keynote presentation including:

• Thursday, November 2 – “Investing in Robots; Incentivizing Employees” by Luke Elias, president of Muskoka Cabinet Co.

• Friday November 3 – “Digital Integration: Industry 4.0 Roadmaps for Cabinetry, Millwork, and Furniture Manufacturers” by Mark Corker, executive director, MTechHub (WMCO)

• Saturday, November 4 – “5 Digital Marketing Trends That Will Impact Your Business in 2024” by Darrell Keezer, CEO, Candybox Marketing (WMCO)

In addition to the keynote presentations slated for Friday and Saturday of the show, the Wood Manufacturers Cluster of Ontario (WMCO) is organizing four other education sessions on topics such as cybersecurity trends and lean manufacturing.

Other WMS Live highlights include:

• A panel discussion on “Troubleshooting Common Wood Project Miscues” featuring members of the Architectural Woodwork Manufacturers Association of Canada (AWMAC);

• “Employee Recruitment & Retention,” a joint presentation by the Canadian Kitchen Cabinet Association and Wood Manufacturing Council; and

• A step-by-step “Advanced Closet Installer Demo.”

Visit www.woodworkingnetwork.com to view the full WMS Live schedule, for more information and to register. For information about exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities, contact Gavin McAuliffe of Corcoran Expositions at 312-265-9649; gavin@corcexpo.com. For general inquiries, contact Harry Urban, show manager, at harryurban@ woodworkingnetwork.com. n