by Web Editor | Feb 27, 2017 | News
From: Panel World Editors
Organizers have announced that the sixth Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE) will be held Friday-Saturday, April 13-14, 2018, and once again in the Grand Ballroom North of the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
PELICE again immediately follows the Wood Bioenergy Conference & Expo, which will be held April 11-12, 2018, also in the Grand Ballroom North. Both events are supported by Panel World and Wood Bioenergy magazines, and Georgia Research Institute.
The 2016 PELICE set a record attendance of 450 industry professionals, including representatives from 32 wood products producer companies. They enjoyed 50 presentations on new project development, production technologies and market forecasts concerning veneer, plywood, OSB, MDF, particleboard and engineered wood products. The event was supported by a record 80 equipment and technology exhibitors, of which 37 exhibited in both the PELICE and Wood Bioenergy events.
Many forecasts expect what has been a gradual improvement in building products sectors to begin snowballing in 2018. Several new mill projects in both the structural and non-structural sectors will be hitting full production mode, and several others will be nearing startup. New developments in new engineered wood products will also be gaining momentum.
The 2018 PELICE will address all of this as well as the latest developments in machinery technologies.
Such momentum generates great anticipation for the 2018 PELICE. Once again, Gold, Silver and Bronze exhibitor sponsorship packages will be offered.
For exhibitor sponsorship information, contact Fred Kurpiel, fredkurpiel@aol.com; 678-642-1238.
To submit a presentation idea, contact Rich Donnell, rich@hattonbrown.com; 334-834-1170.
by Web Editor | Mar 16, 2016 | News
The fifth Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE) is one month away, and in addition to a range of presentations on new technologies and new mill projects in North America, the event has a heavy international flavor to its agenda.
PELICE will be held April 7-8 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. It is hosted by Panel World magazine and Georgia Research Institute.
Two of the event sessions are entitled “International Developments,” and “China Transitions to a New Paradigm.”
The International Developments segment will feature:
• Engineered Wood Trends in Europe—Heikki Vidgren, Principal, Pöyry Management Consulting
• North American Plywood and Veneer Based Industry: The Reinvention Continues—Dr. Richard Baldwin, Managing Partner, Oak Creek Investments
• Engineered Strand Lumber—Challenges and Opportunities—Dr. W. Ernest Hsu, Principal, Hsu Consulting
• New Trends in the Development of Wood and Natural Fiber Based Products—Dr. Bohumil Kasil, Director, Fraunhofer Wilhelm-Klauditz-Institute
• Status and Problems of the Panel Products Industries of the Philippines—Romulo Aggangan, Director, Forest Products Research and Development Institute, Philippines
China Transitions to a New Paradigm will include:
• China Is a Global Opportunity—Dr. Fred Kurpiel, President Georgia Research Institute
• Long Road to Quality—Dr. Hui Wan, Associate Professor, Forest Composite Products, Mississippi State University
• Market Demands: Engineered Strand Products and Applications—Dr. W. Ernest Hsu, Principal, Hsu Consulting
• China: Product Developments and Innovations—Colin Folco, Key Account Manager, Dieffenbacher, USA
In addition to these subjects, PELICE session titles include: Production Technologies; Adhesives Issues & Performance; Operations Planning; Heat Energy & Emissions Issues & Technologies; Environmental Issues & Technologies; Safety Issues & Technologies; QC & Optimization.
PELICE will also feature 78 exhibitor sponsors in the Grand Ballroom North of the Omni Hotel.
For more information and to register, visit www.pelice-expo.com.
by Web Editor | Aug 17, 2015 | Editor's Blog
Written By: Rich Donnell
Organizers of the 2016 Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE) have announced several keynoters from the structural panel segment of the industry. Keynoters from the non-structural composite side will be announced soon.
The fifth biennial PELICE will be held April 7-8, 2016 in the Grand Ballroom North of the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Hosted by Panel World magazine, PELICE in 2014 attracted 420 industry professionals who enjoyed 10 keynote presentations as well as forecasts and technical presentations delivered by 45 industry experts, supported by 75 equipment and technology companies that exhibited in the Ballroom.
PELICE will be immediately preceded by the fourth biennial Wood Energy Conference & Expo on April 5-6.
“The 2014 PELICE was refreshing because it was the first one going back to 2008 where all the talk wasn’t about the recession,” comments Rich Donnell, co-chairman of PELICE and editor-in-chief of Panel World magazine. “There was a lot of enthusiasm about projects-in-the-making. I believe that enthusiasm will continue into PELICE 2016 as housing and remodeling markets continue to climb. There will also be a definite buzz in the air at PELICE because it will be held right in the middle of the primary season for the 2016 presidential election.”
Donnell also notes that since the last PELICE there have been a number of production technology developments that will be addressed at PELICE 2016, as well as developments in engineered wood products, such as cross laminated timber, and in composite panels.
“We’ve rounded up a great lineup of keynote speakers from the structural segment of the industry,” Donnell adds. “We’ll now turn our attention to the non-structural side for additional keynoters.”
Donnell says two keynoters—Jonathan Martin, chairman & CEO of Louisiana-based Martin Companies, L.L.C.; and Steve Swanson, president and CEO of Oregon-based Swanson Group, will speak under the heading: “If I Could Build a New Plant In 2016, Here’s What I Would Do.”
Martin will address the development of Martco’s new oriented strandboard plant being built in Corrigan, Texas. The company currently operates an OSB plant in Oakdale, La., which it built and started up in 2006. Its history with OSB dates back to 1982 when it built and started up a plant in Le Moyen, La. It also operates a softwood plywood plant in Chopin, La., another greenfield project.
Swanson will address the new plywood and veneer facility Swanson Group is building in Springfield, Ore. to replace the plant that a fire destroyed in July 2014. Swanson Group operates veneer, plywood and lumber operations in Glendale and Roseburg, Ore. Swanson Group also purchased Olympic Panel Products in Shelton, Wash. in March and is relocating those assets to the new Springfield facility.
Also on tap is Kurt Liebich, CEO of RedBuilt and New Wood Resources, both companies part of Atlas Holdings. RedBuilt manufactures I-joists, open web trusses and LVL at several manufacturing plants primarily in the Western U.S.
Liebich joined RedBuilt’s predecessor, Trus Joist, in 1994 and served in numerous senior management roles. He remained with the company when Weyerhaeuser acquired it in 1999, and was appointed vice president of Trus Joist and later VP of marketing for Weyerhaeuser’s iLevel division. When Atlas Holdings acquired the former commercial division of Trus Joist from Weyerhaeuser in 2009, it appointed Liebich as president and CEO of the company, which they named RedBuilt.
Atlas Holdings also appointed Liebich as president and CEO of Wood Resources LLC, which later sold with two plywood mills to Boise Cascade. Atlas subsequently formed New Wood Resources with Liebich as CEO. New Wood Resources operates the long-running plywood plant in Omak, Wash., and is also building a new plywood plant in Louisville, Miss., known as Winston Plywood & Veneer.
Brian Carlson, president of OSB manufacturer Huber Engineered Woods LLC, will also join the keynoters lineup. Huber operates five OSB plants. Carlson has worked at Huber for 20 years and in various capacities prior to his promotion to president, including as product and field sales director, VP of sales & marketing and overseeing business development and strategy.
The remaining keynoters as well as the complete agenda of speakers and technical session topics will be released in September.
As of early August, numerous equipment and technology companies had already signed on as exhibitor sponsors of PELICE. Leading the way is Babcock & Wilcox MEGTEC, which is a Gold sponsor not only for PELICE, but for the preceding Wood Energy Conference & Expo.
Early Silver sponsor exhibitors for PELICE include Baumer Inspection, Biele Wood, Brunette, Cogent Industrial Technologies, Con-Vey, Dieffenbacher, Electronic Wood Systems, Evergreen Engineering, GP Chemicals, Globe Machine Manufacturing, Hexion, Imal-Pal, M-E-C, Merritt Machinery/Meinan Machinery, Mid-South Engineering, MoistTech, Raute, Sweed Machinery, TSI/ Sigma Thermal, USNR, Venango Machine, Veneer Services, Westmill Industries, Willamette Valley, as well as Bronze sponsors Ventek and GreCon. (Brunette, Cogent, Con-Vey, Dieffenbacher, Evergreen Engineering, GreCon, Imal-Pal, M-E-C, Mid-South Engineering, MoistTech, TSI-Sigma Thermal, Veneer Services/Biomass Engineering & Equipment will also join B&W MEGTEC as exhibitors in the Wood Energy Conference & Expo.)
For more information visit https://pelice-expo.com/.
by Web Editor | Apr 25, 2014 | Taking Stock
Story by Dan Shell,
Managing Editor
Let’s say you operate a plywood plant and think it’s time to upgrade or replace a veneer dryer. To help in making the decision, you decide to attend the 2014 Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE) in Atlanta at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center.
Just to begin your research, in the Grand Ballroom of the North Tower, you will find three dozen exhibitors that can provide equipment or services related to your project. More specifically, two veneer dryer technology-specific presentations are part of the first morning breakout sessions following the keynote general sessions, with numerous additional presentations on particulate emissions control, operational enhancements and project development on tap over the next two days—all of which mean something to your upcoming capital expenditure.
Held recently and for the fourth time, PELICE puts people together in a relaxed environment that allows effective information exchange and networking. Competition and alliances notwithstanding, PELICE brings all segments of the industry together to emphasize challenges and opportunities common to all—while also providing technical solutions and better operational ideas for specific panel manufacturing processes and applications.
One presentation that comes to mind was that of Dustin Neumann of Neumann Process Control, who spoke about technology upgrades and migrating legacy systems to new technology platforms. Neumann brought up considerations that strike to the heart of the technology and information opportunities that an event like PELICE provides, especially for those researching system upgrades and capital improvements.
“The last few years have shown the importance of staying competitive,” Neumann said, urging his listeners to prioritize process upgrades, evaluate proposals to determine highest-value propositions and also to simply take advantage of the expertise that vendors and suppliers possess.
And that’s what PELICE delivers as good as any other business move: An opportunity to invest in yourself and your organization by gaining better knowledge of the industry around you while learning more about the latest in panel manufacturing. For technology vendors, PELICE is a solid platform to highlight their latest products and services, with key industry leaders and decision-makers in attendance.
In a social-media age when business operators, managers, suppliers and vendors are all networked and linked electronically (but remotely) as never before, an event like PELICE gives industry’s top movers and shakers—and anyone, really, from the mill floor to executive suite—an opportunity to rub shoulders, meet face to face and build solidarity through better business strategies, providing the foundation for those crucial, numbers-crunching closed door meetings that were happening all over the Omni Hotel.
A hearty thanks goes out to all who attended, exhibited or otherwise supported PELICE this year. The staffs at Panel World, Hatton-Brown Publishers and Georgia Research Institute look forward to doing it all again in the same venue on April 7-8, 2016.
