by Web Editor | Aug 8, 2018 | News
A burgeoning industry based on a relatively new type of material may be coming to Minnesota. Known as mass timber, the material is an alternative to steel in building construction. While dozens of buildings constructed with the product are dotted around the country, the majority stand in the Pacific Northwest.
“This type of building product is new to the U.S.,” said Brian Brashaw, a program manager with the U.S. Forest Service. “It’s geared at taller buildings; it’s building more along the lines of four, five and six stories. That product is seeing a lot of growth in the United States.”
Now, local groups and governmental agencies are working on a plan to bring that industry to the Midwest. But before a production facility can set up shop in Minnesota, officials need to know if the right kind of raw materials can be produced in the region.
“This is a feasibility study where we’re taking a closer look at if the Midwest has the lumber production capacity and softwood lumber supply chain in place,” wrote Kristen Bergstrand, of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, in an email.
A survey is being sent to 11 sawmills in the region that will help gauge if the state can sustain a mass timber industry. APEX, the local business and economic development organization which is sending out the survey, wants to learn the grade and board footage that mills have produced for trees such as red pine, jack pine, spruce and balsam — all considered viable materials for mass timber.
Read more on this from the Duluth News Tribune at https://duluthnewstribune.com/business/manufacturing/4482202-minnesota-looking-attract-mass-timber-producers.
by Web Editor | Nov 2, 2016 | News
Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (LP) recently announced that it has reached an agreement with Norbord Inc. to exchange OSB mills in Quebec, Canada. LP will swap ownership of its Chambord, Quebec, mill for Norbord’s Val-d’Or, Quebec, mill. The asset exchange is expected to be complete in early November 2016.
This transaction, along with the recent acquisition of a former OSB site in Cook, Minnesota, is part of LP’s strategy to increase siding capacity, an area of the business that has delivered consistent sales growth over the past decade.
“The Canadian mill exchange, coupled with the recent Minnesota acquisition, provides us flexibility and increases our ability to optimize our capacity for sustained business growth,” LP Chief Executive Officer Curt Stevens said.
“We have seen tremendous growth in our siding business and anticipate this growth to continue as we look to meet increasing demand,” he said. “The aim of these transactions is to provide additional siding capacity by the end of 2018.”
LP’s immediate priority will be to conduct a detailed evaluation of the Cook site and Val-d’Or mill. The assessment will determine the operational feasibility, including access to timely and adequate wood supply, the work required to convert the sites into fully operational siding mills, as well as conversion costs and annual operating expenses.
From LP Corp.: https://investors.lpcorp.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=73030&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2217033
by Web Editor | Jun 20, 2016 | News
The months-long mystery behind which home siding company would be receiving a $66 million subsidy package from the state has finally been made public. Louisiana-Pacific will construct a $440 million plant in Hoyt Lakes. This is the Nashville-based company’s second operation in the state (the other being in Two Harbors).
The Hoyt Lakes site will employ 250 people, amounting to roughly $264,000 in state funding per job created. The Duluth News Tribune notes that many of those employees will be loggers and felled tree transporters, a group of workers that has struggled to find employment following years of board plant closures and layoffs at paper mills in the area.
The new plant will also source its wood products from Minnesota. LP is currently estimating its take to be 800,000 cords per year (one cord equals 128 cubic feet of wood) or about 200 logging trucks each day.
Minnesota lawmakers began developing the public financing package for LP earlier in the year. Senator David Tomassoni, DFL-Chisholm, previously said at least Michigan and Canada were vying for the LP plant as well.
Funding for the project comes from a number of sources. The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development will be kicking in $20 million from its 21st Century Minerals fund, while the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board will be contributing $16 million from its economic development trust fund. The final $30 million will come from state taxpayers in a 10-part, $3 million per year deal.
From Twin Cities Business: https://tcbmag.com/News/Recent-News/2016/June/Louisiana-Pacific-Is-Mystery-Company-Receiving-$66
by Web Editor | Mar 4, 2015 | News
Last November, the Hines development company unveiled plans for a new office building in the North Loop section of Minneapolis. Seems like ordinary news, except that the building would be the first of its kind in the U.S to be made primarily of wood. The builders refer to the project as “T3” for “Timber, Technology and Transit.”
“This building is very unique,” the lead architect, Michael Green, told the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission earlier this month. “It is the first large-scale office building built of timber in America. It is part of a revitalization of century-old ideas of how to build buildings.”
At the federal level, the U.S. is encouraging the use of sustainable wood products in building. The MinnPost reports that Green says that wood grown sustainably has a smaller carbon footprint than concrete and steel. If this seven-story building were to go forward, it would include a foundation and a first floor made of concrete and steel and six stories of mass timber construction.
As Next City columnist Alexis Stephens reported in “Can Taller Buildings Make Toronto More Affordable?,” the province of Ontario recently relaxed height restrictions on wood-frame construction to encourage residential density.
In Minneapolis, the MinnPost notes, the city has been flexible. Dan Callahan, supervisor of the city of Minneapolis’ plan review section, said he has had several meetings with the T3 team to talk through building code issues. The building would fit under code sections for heavy timber buildings. Callahan said he expects further meetings to get more information and to present the design team with other issues the city has before a formal permit application is received.
From NextCity.org: https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/minneapolis-office-building-wood-plans
