Log Logistics Cedar logs are hauled to Fireside Lodge in the spring after the logging season ends. The company works through a semi-truck load of logs every three weeks, turning between 25,000 to 35,000 logs into furniture each year.
Workforce Opportunities Like other manufacturers, the Recession took its toll: The company laid off 10 percent of its workforce, only to hire all of them back within four months. Today, Andersen said he is struggling to find enough workers.
Natural Beauty Once the cedar logs arrive, workers peel them by hand. One person can hand-strip 10 to 15 logs per hour. Although there are automated ways of stripping bark, doing it by hand retains the logs’ unique markings, such as knots and beetle marks.
Sales Boom The hospitality industry is booming and flooding Fireside Lodge with orders. Sales are expected to grow by 10 percent this year. Lucrative Leftovers The leftover parts of the cedar log that can’t be used for furniture are burned to heat the production facility or ground into mulch and sold to local landscapers. Andersen estimates they sell 12-18 semi-truck loads of cedar mulch per year.
In Fashion Furniture styles, colors and woods go through trends, much like clothing. Reclaimed barn wood has become a popular material and represents Fireside Lodge’s fastest growing segment of business. Sleeper Hit Approximately half of the furniture sold by Fireside Lodge is bedroom furniture. “Most houses only have one kitchen or one gathering room,” Andersen said. “But nearly everyone has multiple bedrooms.”
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