by Web Editor | May 9, 2016 | News
A new bill from Congress would establish performance driven research for advancing tall wood building construction in the U.S.
The “Timber Innovation Act” would:
· Authorize the Tall Wood Building Prize Competition through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) annually for the next five years
· Create federal grants to support state, local, university and private sector education, outreach, research and development, including education and assistance for architects and builders, that will accelerate the use of wood in tall buildings
· Authorize technical assistance for USDA, in cooperation with state foresters and state extension directors (or equivalent state officials), to implement a program of education and technical assistance for mass timber applications
Recent advances in technology, engineering and safety have made it possible to build taller wooden buildings using newly-developed mass timber products, like cross-laminated timber. In the last five years, 17 buildings between seven and 14 stories have been built using heavy timber construction globally. Canada, Norway, Australia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Sweden and France all have constructed and occupied multiple tall-wood buildings.
Other countries have already been considering wooden skyscrapers. Researchers presented the Mayor of London with plans for an 80-story wooden building just a few weeks ago.
Multiple organizations in the U.S. wood industry, including The American Wood Council (AWC), American Forest Foundation (AFF), Binational Softwood Lumber Council (BSLC) and Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association (SLMA), have all announced strong support for the bill.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/new-bill-would-push-research-timber-building-construction-us?utm_source=WIT050616&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=WeekInTrees
by Web Editor | May 2, 2016 | News
Fourteen composite panel facilities and one corporation as a whole were recognized for their safety achievements during the Composite Panel Association’s annual spring meeting held last week in Tucson, Arizona.
Louisiana-Pacific Corp. received the Safety Innovation Award for its Behavior-Based Safety Observation Program.
Awards were also given to participating manufacturing plants with exemplary safety records, including acknowledgments for long-term, annual, safety improvement, and safety achievement. Awards were given to plants with low/less than 277,000 worker-hours per year (Class I) and high/more than 277,000 worker-hours per year (Class II).
The awardees for the best long-term safety record over the past three years were Arauco North America, Malvern, Arkansas (Class I) and Louisiana-Pacific Corp., Roaring River, North Carolina (Class II).
The annual safety award for having zero incidents among Class I plants during 2015 was shared by Arauco North America (MDF), Bennettsville, South Carolina; Kronospan LLC, Eastaboga, Alabama; Plummer Forest Products, Post Falls, Idaho; Roseburg, Taylorsville, Mississippi; and West Fraser Mills Ltd. (WestPine), Quesnel, British Columbia.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/wood/panel-supply/composite-panel-plants-awarded-safety-records?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news
by Web Editor | Apr 25, 2016 | News
Georgia-Pacific officials announced last week that the Crossett plywood mill is being closed permanently.
On April 7, the company announced that the Crossett plywood facility and another in Talladega, Ala. were both being permanently closed.
Georgia-Pacific Crossett public affairs manager Jennifer King said equipment at the Crossett plywood mill would be sold or scrapped, adding that the buildings would be removed for safety reasons.
Operations at the Crossett plywood mill ceased in September of 2011, and King said the facilities are currently being used for storage of plywood and products from other mills.
She said it would probably take two to three months to remove all stored material and several months to complete the removal of the equipment and buildings.
From the Ashley News Observer: https://www.ashleynewsobserver.com/article_1960.shtml
by Web Editor | Apr 22, 2016 | Update
Proteak Starts Up MDF Operation
In February 2016 Proteak announced the startup of its MDF plant in Huimanguillo, Tabasco, Mexico, under the brand Tecnotabla. “With state-of-the-art technology, this plant is the first of its kind in Mexico and will use certified wood from the company’s own 100% sustainable plantations,” the company states.
Panel production will increase gradually to reach the plant’s annual capacity of 280 thousand m3. MDF will be sold in the domestic and international markets.
“This plant represents the most important forestry industrial project in the country’s history and evidences that the forestry sector can be sustainable and profitable at the same time, to the benefit of many Mexican families,” comments Héctor Bonilla, founder of Proteak and President of the Board. “Mexico has everything to become an international forestry industrial powerhouse and we are proud to be the first ones to prove it.”
This project diversifies the economy of Tabasco and is the source of more than 1,500 direct and indirect jobs in the state’s rural areas.
Proteak is the largest forestry industrial company in Mexico and Central America. With more than 20,000 hectares of forestry plantations, it exports to more than 15 destinations in America, Europe and Asia.
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by Web Editor | Apr 20, 2016 | News
Capacity for the North American composite panel industry is expected to increase 4.21 percent in 2016, Composite Panel Association Chairman Steve Stoler told a record crowd at the CPA’s spring meeting in Tucson, Arizona. Increased usage of engineered wood panels in cabinetry, furniture, flooring and other products is helping spur the growth.
The upward trend follows a three-year capacity decline, reported Stoler, general sales manager of Boise Cascade. Capacity is defined as the amount of panels produced, based on maximum press utilization.
“I’ve been encouraged by signs of growth an new investment in our industry after a long period of inactivity,” Stoler said, citing recent announcements of plant upgrades and new lines. The addition of three mills in Mexico also is projected to increase North American MDF capacity by 10 percent.
The CPA also projects shipments of particleboard and MDF to grow 3 percent in 2016. Last year’s shipments of U.S. and Canadian panels hit 5.561 BSF, which was up 3 percent from 2014 figures.
More than 300 people from more than 100 companies attended the April 17-20 CPA event.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/composite-panel-market-to-grow-4-percent?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news
