USNR ramps up its turn-key capacity

Mid-South Engineering

USNR ramps up its turn-key capacity

NEW RELATIONSHIP; KEY WIN FOR INDUSTRY PROCESSORS

USNR is pleased to announce that it has acquired North America’s foremost consulting and industrial engineering firm – Mid-South Engineering. This marks a significant step forward for both companies, reinforcing and building upon both USNR’s and Mid-South’s capabilities for the execution of large scale turn-key projects. Welcome to the future!

The expansion in our capabilities resulting from this acquisition will increase USNR’s capacity to offer large scale turnkey solutions.

For decades USNR has delivered turn-key projects to its customers around the world, but we have not had all of the internal resources we felt we needed to manage and run multiple turn-key projects on a large scale. That changed recently when USNR acquired Mid-South Engineering, the leading engineering consulting company in the wood products industry in North America. We’re taking the extensive experience, expertise, capabilities, and knowledge about the industry that both USNR and Mid-South possess, and establishing a combined force that can build a better result for our customers. This strategic move creates a step change for both USNR and Mid-South going forward.

USNR and Mid-South have worked together on sawmill and plywood mill projects for many years, and both companies have benefited from this strong relationship. As separate entities we inevitably focused on optimizing our own segments of the project; together we can work to improve the execution of the entire customer project, reducing time, cost and risk, and delivering a superior integrated turn-key system.

The players

Mid-South is the largest full-service consulting engineering company in North America, established in 1969. It employs more than 100 multi-disciplined personnel, with a particular expertise around the building products industry. The company is based in Hot Springs, AR, and has offices near Raleigh, NC and Bangor, ME.

Mid-South’s services fall into the categories of engineering, project development, project management, and construction. Its extensive list of services include mechanical engineering and design, industrial project planning and development, electrical engineering, project management, production process development, civil engineering, construction, and structural engineering. The company boasts a who’s-who of clients in the lumber and panel industry, including Weyerhaeuser, West Fraser, Canadian Forest Products, International Paper, Georgia-Pacific, Martco, Louisiana- Pacific, Deltic Timber, Bowater Lumber, and a host more.

Mid-South is also well versed in projects relating to biomass, pellets, power generation, pulp and paper, and mining.

Today the market is seeing a new trend, with a lot of our clients interested in turn-key projects. This will be a win for all parties.

Globally, USNR is the largest manufacturer of systems and services for the wood processing industries, with four manufacturing plants in the US, Canada, and Sweden, and more than a dozen regional engineering, service and sales offices across North America, and Europe. Employing around 1,000 individuals worldwide, USNR is best known for providing end-to-end solutions for sawmills and planer mills, including log lines, curve sawing gangs, edger lines, trim-sort-stack systems, dry kilns, and the optimization and control technologies to maximize the output and performance of that equipment. USNR is also known for its Söderhamn Eriksson debarker, sawlines, and high-speed edger systems, and its Coe- and Ventekbranded products used in the manufacture of plywood and other panel products.

Turn-key, or à la carte

There is a trend in the industry toward more interest in turn-key capital projects. Wood processors are looking to concentrate more of their efforts on their business, their products, and markets. They want to take less of a hands-on approach to project execution and let experts take care of the details.

Whether you’re looking for a turnkey partner, or you want to run your project using your own team, USNR is a strong option. If you want to build a complete new greenfield complex, expand your existing lines, or replace a single machine center, USNR has all the elements required to take your project and run with it. Or you can pick and choose the products and services you want USNR and Mid-South to provide. It’s your choice.

Maintaining independence

Although we expect that USNR and Mid-South will collaborate on many projects, Mid-South will remain an independent company and will continue to be available to serve its clients as an independent consultant.

Mid-South will also continue to serve industry segments in which USNR has not traditionally been involved (biomass, aggregate, gypsum, power generation, etc.).

By preserving Mid-South’s independence, wood processors will continue to have the option to work with other equipment manufacturers as they have in the past with full confidentiality. Similarly, USNR will continue to work with other engineering firms according to customer preference.

PROJECTS IN THE WORKS

USNR and Mid-South are currently working together on a number of major projects as we have done in the past. While these projects are at various stages, we plan to begin streamlining the process to the degree appropriate for the stage of each project. Upcoming projects will afford even more opportunities to achieve synergy.

Arkansas

A mill in Arkansas is updating its sawmill with a horizontal shape sawing system, bucking optimization, vision scanning on two edger lines, Multi-Track Fence and ElectraTong Lug Loader.

Another mill in Arkansas is making a major investment to install a new primary breakdown line, horizontal shape sawing line, two Counter-Flow dry kilns, 4200E electric planer, and Lineal High Grader (LHG).

Alabama

This mill is installing a complete new planer mill including tilt hoist, stick collection, planer infeed, 4200E electric planer, and trim-sort-stack line. It is also investing in a sawmill line including optimization for log bucking and primary breakdown, horizontal shape sawing system, edger optimization, and green lumber handling line.

Planning for this project allowed for the mill to keep up its operating pace throughout the project execution. Once the project is complete, the mill will produce over 3 times the current volume of lumber and replace the entire plant’s infrastructure, offices and production lines.

Mississippi

A long-time customer is updating its curve saw gang to add canting and profiling. At the same time it is investing in a new trimmer-sorter line for its sawmill.

Mid-South connection

On these projects, Mid-South is providing a range of services, including:

• preliminary equipment layouts

• bid specifications

• building layouts

• site work design

• design and engineering for the foundation, structural steel, and walkways and platforms

• electrical design for power distribution and plant lighting

Construction and site supervision on these projects is handled by USNR in some cases, and done by the customer in others.

Making contact

There is no wrong way to make contact for either salesrelated information or engineering services. You can continue to make initial contact with either Mid-South or your USNR account manager. The contact you are most familiar with will take it from there.

Engineering services will be quoted and delivered by Mid-South unless they are part of a turn-key project. For turn-key projects, USNR and Mid-South personnel will work together to develop a scope and an estimate, and to deliver the project.

Adding Mid-South services to USNR’s portfolio brings a brand-new dimension to what is possible in turn-key solutions. Now you have a stronger choice for your next turn-key project.

USNR / MID-SOUTH TURN-KEY PROCESS

Throughout a turn-key project, our team works with the owner to provide a balance of services to meet the customer’s needs for project planning, detailed engineering design, construction services, and implementation. Our goal is to provide the owner with an on-time, on-budget project, and to establish a relationship that leads to repeat business for the future.

1. Project planning

The engineering group helps customers take concepts and visions and turn them into preliminary project plans. These include preliminary designs and layouts, feasibility analysis, capital cost estimates, business analysis, preliminary project schedules, review of project execution methods, resource studies, mass balance calculations, and many other tasks that are a part of planning a project. A well-defined project scope and budget, and an agreed-upon schedule are the foundations for a successful project.

2. Engineering design

Once an owner decides to fund a project, we provide project management and detailed engineering services. This involves developing the final dimensional controls for the process, developing equipment specifications, obtaining equipment pricing and installation cost, finalizing project budgets and project schedules, and setting up cost tracking reports.

We develop all equipment layouts and interfaces, we layout and design equipment substructures and foundations, we perform electrical engineering for power distribution and control wiring, and we develop designs for the plant infrastructures (sitework, fire protection, roads, etc.), all with the thought of constructability in the construction phase, to facilitate the installation schedule.

3. Procurement

As the design is finalized, our project managers begin finalizing contracts for subcontractors, and procuring the outsourced products and services.

Our project managers understand that the project schedule is greatly influenced by procurement activities, so they work hard to insure that supplier information arrives in time to allow for proper engineering of infrastructure, and to allow for fabrication and delivery schedules that coordinate with installation and shut-down schedules.

4. Construction and installation

During the construction period, we can provide on-site construction managers and/or construction coordinators. In this role, working with the owner we will coordinate contractors on-site, monitor the installation quality, and track the contractor progress to completion of the construction phase.

5. Start-up and commissioning

As construction nears completion, we offer start-up assistance. These services can include pre-startup inspections, commissioning support, and post start-up evaluation of the equipment performance. In all phases, safety is our top priority.