by Web Editor | Sep 14, 2016 | News
Research and Markets has announced the addition of the “U.S. Hardwood Veneer And Plywood Market – Analysis And Forecast to 2020” report to their offering.
The report provides an in-depth analysis of the U.S. hardwood veneer and plywood market. It presents the latest data of the market size and volume, domestic production, exports and imports, price dynamics and turnover in the industry. In addition, the report contains insightful information about the industry, including industry life cycle, business locations, productivity, employment and many other crucial aspects. The Company Profiles section contains relevant data on the major players in the industry.
From 2007 to 2015, U.S. hardwood veneer and plywood market showed mixed dynamics. A significant drop in 2009 was followed by steady growth over the next six years. Finally, the market value reached 4,848 million USD in 2015. An increase in U.S. hardwood veneer and plywood market was supported by the growth of the housing and commercial building sectors and, as a result, the furniture sectors increased as well. That upward trend is likely to continue in the medium term.
Strong employment is the driver of market growth, which creates new income growth and advances consumer spending.
Affordable credit creates another impetus, which propels investments in construction and supports related industries. The performance of the market is forecast to continue with moderate growth, with an anticipated CAGR of +2.6% for the five-year period from 2015 to 2020.
From Yahoo.com: https://sports.yahoo.com/news/united-states-hardwood-veneer-plywood-111900041.html
by Web Editor | Sep 12, 2016 | News
Like much of the industry, engineered wood producers are still navigating a fickle recovery in which builders are challenged by supply constraints, tight lending, and hard-to-come-by lots. Though the market is emerging from the recession, it’s still on the slow side.
“The demand is there for 1.5 million housing units. We’re not meeting that,” says Joe Elling, director of market research for APA–The Engineered Wood Association. Production is up on a year-ago basis, “but starts could be stronger if some of these supply-side constraints were not as binding,” Elling says. “I anticipate a modest improvement in the second half of the year, but it’s still going to be agonizingly slow going forward.”
For engineered lumber manufacturers and the dealers who sell their products, the slow recovery presents both challenges and opportunities. Along with the obvious—a slower return to at-peak sales—the ongoing labor shortages have created an even stronger need for product education. At the same time, those labor constraints provide even more motivation toward using engineered products that boost efficiencies and cut back on waste.
Overall, the industry has seen a positive boost in public opinion toward wood products, be they engineered or otherwise, as high-profile projects showcase their capabilities, beauty, and warmth.
“One of the biggest things in the forest products industry today that affects EWP the most is the general feeling in the world that wood is good,” says Mike McCollum, director of engineered wood business at Roseburg. “Wood is now the first choice in everybody’s eyes. Its sustainability, its efficiencies, its workability, its natural warmth, along with the fact that it is easy to design with and easy to build with…everyone has been awakened to this idea that wood is good. Then, when you take it to the next step, everything that engineered wood brings to the construction market is highlighted even more.”
From LBM Journal: https://www.lbmjournal.com/in-depth-engineered-lumber-2/
by Web Editor | Sep 9, 2016 | News
Michael Mordell, a senior executive of Universal Forest Products, Inc., was named Executive VP of International Operations to lead a new international division, UFP Global Holdings, Ltd., based in the United Kingdom.
Mordell will be responsible for sales, production, and distribution for operations outside of the U.S., and, growing sales in the international arena. Mordell joined Universal in 1993 as a lumber buyer, and has held leadership positions in purchasing as well as in operations. In 2009, he was named executive vice president of purchasing. He will begin his new role on Oct. 1.
“Expanding internationally has been among our stated strategies, as we seek to constantly attain new levels of sales and profitability,” said UFPI CEO Matthew J. Missad. “I have great confidence we’ll achieve that with Mike at the helm of the international division. He is a bold and creative leader who has had years of experience and success in our industries and at our company.”
“This is an exciting venture and a great time to be at Universal Forest Products as we seek new avenues to build on our success,” Mordell said. “I look forward to building the UFP Global organization and team, and to developing and successfully implementing strategies for growth with them.”
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/universal-forest-products-will-expanded-internationally?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news
by Web Editor | Sep 7, 2016 | News
The log yard is filled with two months’ worth of inventory and activity is humming at Columbia Forest Products’ veneer plant, east of North Bay. After being mothballed for five years, operations at the hardwood veneer mill in Rutherglen resumed April 18 running one shift of 52 employees.
Without delving into production numbers, mill manager Peter Loy said since the reopening, things have gone well as the operation continues to its ramp-up toward full production.
Heading into 2016, Northern American veneer demand wasn’t exactly bursting at the seams, but it had improved sufficiently enough for Columbia to make the decision to restart the 100,000-square-foot mill it had shuttered in 2010.
Loy said it’s difficult to forecast if the veneer markets will show signs of improvement over a sustained stretch. “Nobody can look forward any more than a few months and say, ‘it’s going to be a banner time’ or ‘no, we’d better think about slowing down.’ Historically, there’s a cycle to appetites through the year and typically it slacks off toward the end of the year and picks up early in the new year. It has to do with inventories and costing over the year-end.”
The U.S. remains the No. 1 global importer of hardwood veneer. “One of our largest competitors for our end product, being plywood, is China,” said Loy. “And they’ve eaten up a whole lot of market share in North America with their imports. As far as veneer goes, they’ll always be imports for sliced and specialty woods – things like that – but it’s not a big bite of our lunch.”
From Northern Ontario Business: https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/Industry-News/forestry/2016/09/Veneer-mill-thrives-amid-market-uncertainty.aspx
by Web Editor | Sep 2, 2016 | News
Working with Oregon State University (OSU), Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has been busy testing its design for a timber tower. The time-lapse video shows a section of the wood tower being submitted to 82,000 pounds of pressure.
SOM has been working on the Timber Tower Research Project, funded by the Softwood Lumber Board (SLB) since 2013. The goal of the project is to develop safe, sustainable building technologies using mass-timber. Using timber may reduce a building’s embedded carbon footprint by as much as 60% to 70% compared to benchmark concrete building. The Timber Tower Research Project has developed a structural system called the Concrete Jointed Timber Frame that employs mass-timber elements with reinforced concrete connections.
Since 2014, SOM and OSU have developed a comprehensive physical testing program, which recently completed a full-scale test to prove the system’s ability to satisfy code requirements. The 36-foot by 8-foot specimen is comprised of a Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) deck topped with a thin layer of reinforced concrete. The concrete is used to improve structural, acoustic, and fire performance. The composite allows for long spans with a relatively thin cross-section. The 82,000 pounds tested is roughly eight times the required design load. Forty-eight sensors recorded stresses as a hydraulic actuator loaded the specimen over two hours.
To see the video visit The Architects Newspaper: https://archpaper.com/2016/08/som-timber-tower-technology/#gallery-0-slide-0
by Web Editor | Aug 31, 2016 | News
In Vancouver, Canada, the towering timber Brock Commons just had its final panel installed, making the dream of the world’s tallest timber building a reality, reports the website Inhabitat.
In just 66 days – ahead of the original scheduled timeframe – the exterior of the Acton Ostry Architects‘ record-breaking design has come to fruition, which could bump up the projected fall 2017 completion date to next year’s spring semester. The final panel of the University of British Columbia student housing structure was lifted and installed earlier this month.
John Metras, managing director of UBC Infrastructure, said, “Construction just went really smoothly. It was well designed and the construction sequence went smoothly.”
Construction began last November, followed by the erection of the building’s freestanding concrete cores earlier this year.
To ease fire safety fears of an 18-story timber structure, Brock Commons is outfitted with a sprinkler system and the wood is encapsulated in drywall and concrete. The lighter weight of the building also allows for better energy dissipation during an earthquake, making it proficient at withstanding all kinds of disasters. Students will be able to move in next year, quite possibly in the spring semester.
From ProudGreenBuilding: https://www.proudgreenbuilding.com/news/worlds-tallest-timber-building-topped-off-ahead-of-schedule/
