by Web Editor | Jul 20, 2016 | News
For years, it was known as the ugly duckling, cheaper alternative to plywood. One design maven described it as “like the turkey loaf of building materials.” But oriented strand board – OSB for short – has come into its own over the past 3 1/2 decades as a major player in North American wood-frame housing construction and is increasingly used for industrial and other applications.
Structural OSB panels – made of wood strands that are resin-bonded under high pressure and heat – are mostly used as floor, roofing or wall substrate in home building. They’re also getting play these days on fashionable interior-decoration websites as a “shabby-chic” finishing material.
Capitalizing on OSB’s rise like no other forest-products company is Toronto-based Norbord Inc. Norbord, once a diversified forestry company, has shed assets over the years and focused on OSB. Now boasting annual sales in the $1.5-billion (U.S.) range and a market capitalization of about $2.4-billion (Canadian), it bills itself as the world’s largest producer of OSB.
The $763-million acquisition in 2014 of Vancouver-based Ainsworth Lumber Co. Ltd. gave Norbord – whose operations were concentrated in the U.S. southeast – a strong presence in Western Canada as well as a foothold in the promising Japanese market.
Right now, the steadily growing number of housing starts in the United States is giving Norbord a big boost, and low-key, media-shy chief executive officer Peter Wijnbergen says there are major growth opportunities in Europe and Asia.
From The Globe And Mail: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/forest-products-firm-norbord-riding-the-rising-wave-of-osb-sales/article30985989/
by Web Editor | Jun 1, 2016 | News
The long awaited news that Olympic Panel Products in Shelton would be closing down has finally come.
The State Employment Security Department released a layoff notice the 217 employees will be out of work starting on July 22. The news was originally announced in March of 2015, when notice came that forest products company Swanson Group Manufacturing LLC purchased the assets of Olympic Panel Products and would be moving operations to a new state-of-the-art facility in Springfield, Ore.
Cheryl Fambles, CEO of Pacific Mountain WorkForce Development Council (PMWDC), said the transition process will look a lot like what happened with the Simpson Lumber mill closure, which took place right next door and resulted in about 275 layoffs. The only difference is that employees may have an even harder time finding work closer to home. “(Simpson Lumber and Olympic Panel Products) are located side by side,” Fambles said. “The impacts in the community are cumulative.”
Before taking action, Fambles continued, PMWDC will talk to employees and evaluate to find out their plans — whether they are relocating, retiring or need retraining. Then, the organization will look for funding, including Trade Act Assistance dollars, which aids workers who lose their jobs due to international competition.
From there, Fambles said, PMWDC will continue operating the transition center in Shelton — originally erected to help Simpson workers — and hire on new peer advisors from Olympic Panel Products. That will help with paperwork, resumes, interview skills, finding a job, finding a school and other forms of assistance.
From Business Examiner: https://www.businessexaminer.com/blog/May-2016/Olympic-Panel-Products-closing-soon-with-217-layoffs/
by Web Editor | Mar 25, 2015 | News
Swanson Group Manufacturing LLC, a Pacific Northwest forest products company, announced today that it has acquired the assets of Olympic Panel Products LLC. Located in Shelton, Washington, Olympic Panel is the largest overlay plywood manufacturer in North America. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Swanson Group plans to relocate the Olympic Panel assets in 2016 to its state-of-the-art facility that will be constructed in Springfield, Oregon. The new facility will continue to produce Olympic-branded products. During the next twelve to eighteen months, Olympic Panel Products will continue to operate in Shelton to ensure a smooth transition for all customers and suppliers.
Swanson executives believe Springfield, Oregon is the right location to maintain the Olympic Panel tradition of building the highest quality overlay products.
“Swanson is building a world-class plywood and veneer manufacturing facility in a location with an excellent workforce and log supply,” says Steve Swanson, President and CEO of Swanson Group. “We have long been impressed with the quality and depth of Olympic’s overlay product line and believe that this acquisition fits perfectly with our goal to become the leading producer of overlay panels in North America.”
From ForConstructionPros.com: https://www.forconstructionpros.com/press_release/12057173/swanson-group-purchases-olympic-panel-products
