by Web Editor | Jul 6, 2018 | News
One of the best aspects of our industry is how open and inviting other producers are to visitors. It is a fact that in the wood products industry some of our fiercest competitors may also be our best customers, which encourages companies to be open and helpful. Visiting mills can often be the best way to build relationships, learn about new production processes and equipment, and develop partnerships. This is not only true for North American producers, but also foreign producers.
In January of this year, representatives of Freres Lumber learned this first-hand. Invited by Taihei, a Japanese equipment manufacturer, Freres Plant Manager Bill Childress, Chris Harpole our Plywood Maintenance Manager and myself traveled almost 24 hours to Japan for a whirlwind, five-day tour of manufacturing and equipment fabricating facilities. There was much to learn and much to see.
In a production line the magic is often in the small details, but we noticed some large differences between U.S. and Japanese production processes right away. From the start of the production, many of the blocks were conditioned in nominal 12’ lengths. A standard metric sheet of veneer or plywood is 1-meter x 2-meter, or about 3’ x 6’. Blocks this size would be difficult to handle, so they kept full length and cut in half at the lathe.
Japanese veneer processing lines are not unheard of in the States, and in fact Swanson Group, a local Oregon manufacturer has a Japanese Meinan lathe. These lathes are known for their precision and how few people are required to operate the line. They also have a substantially different philosophy in handling random veneer, which was not only evident on the veneer line, but also in the plywood workstations.
U.S. production on lines typically add the people they need to handle small, random pieces. Japanese producers crowd, stack, and compose the random veneer instead. It varies from plant to plant whether or not random veneer is composed green or dry.
Read more of this article from Kyle Freres at https://frereslumber.com/blog/2018/07/freres-lumber-representatives-visit-japanese-wood-products-manufacturers/?utm_source=Forest+Business+Network+email+newsletter&utm_campaign=7bbb0fdb95-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_07_04&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3a629cb392-7bbb0fdb95-111950185.
by Web Editor | Jan 9, 2017 | News
To be competitive in the wood products industry, companies must stay on the cutting edge. But to get to the forefront, wood products companies must invest in their production facilities to increase automation and efficiency, and to lower manufacturing costs, experts say.
“It’s a competitive market,” said Jon Anderson, president and publisher of Random Lengths, a wood products industry trade publication based in Eugene. “Unless people are investing in their plants, they’re going to fall behind and, ultimately, fall by the wayside probably in the tougher markets.”
In the past couple of years, Swanson Group in Springfield, Seneca Sawmill in Eugene, Weyerhaeuser in Eugene, and International Paper in Springfield have made major investments in their facilities totaling about $273 million. Such upgrades are part of a trend throughout the North American woods products industry, Anderson said. Wood products companies in the Pacific Northwest, Canada and the southern United States have improved their operations, he said.
The improvements can help firms capture market share during strong markets and allow them to stay afloat when the economy weakens. “It’s the more efficient, more productive producer that is going to survive the downturns,” Anderson said. “We’re not in a downturn now, but most of these operators have gone through ups and downs in their time, and they are going to get ready for the next one.”
Seneca Sawmill on Highway 99 in Eugene is nearing the end of a major facilities renovation, including the installation of new kilns, revamping its shipping and loading facility and expanding its log yard. Early this year, the company plans to upgrade its planer, the equipment that smooths lumber. By the time it’s finished, the firm will have spent $63 million on improving its operations.
From The Register-Guard: https://registerguard.com/rg/business/bluechip/35084194-62/competition-drives-mill-investments.html.csp
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 | Jan 27, 2016 | News
A plywood and veneer mill being built in Springfield will provide 200 full-time jobs once fully operational.
Glendale, Oregon-based Swanson Group is building the new mill on the site of its former facility, which burned in a 2014 fire. According to information from the company, total costs, including permitting, construction and equipment, could exceed $55 million.
While the plant is expected to be up and running in April, it likely won’t reach full capacity until August. The new mill will be roughly 345,000 square feet, located at 1651 S F St., according to company spokesperson Cameron Stewart.
Several factors pushed the company to rebuild rather than lease a different facility, including Springfield’s “proven and dedicated workforce” and its nearby timber sources, according to Stewart.
When at full capacity, the plant will produce about 20 million square feet of veneer each month, which will be turned into 10 to 12 million square feet of plywood products. Annually, it will produce some 120 million square feet of finished plywood products.
From the Portland Business Journal: https://www.bizjournals.com/portland/blog/sbo/2016/01/springfield-plywood-mill-rises-from-ashes-will.html
![PELICE Will Address Greenfield Projects]()
by Web Editor | Aug 19, 2015 | Update
Organizers of the 2016 Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo 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 manufacaturing 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 Weyerhauser 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 Weyerhauser 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 exhibiting information, contact Fred Kurpiel by e-mail: Fredkurpiel@ aol.com or call 678-642-1238.
