BDN 2019 Northeast Forest Products

NORTHEAST

CENTER

BANGOR, MAINE

Show Display Hours: Friday, May 17, 9 am - 5 pm Saturday, May 18, 9 am - 4 pm

A Special Advertising Section of the Bangor Daily News • May 10, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

MOBILIZATIONS GIVE MAINE FOREST RANGERS VITAL EXPERIENCE COURTESY OF KENT NELSON, FOREST RANGER SPECIALIST | DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND FORESTRY

Living in a “fire camp” is not very glamorous. It involves sleeping in a tent with up to 1,200 other firefighters nearby, limited showers and catered meals, 12- to 16-hour work days and no days off. The payoff comes when Maine’s forest rangers gain vital experience in managing large wildfires, which benefits both the Maine Forest Service (MFS) and Maine’s forest landowners.

The key component of the mission of the Forest Protection Division is to protect forest resources, property, infrastructure, businesses and homes from wildfire. To be able to do that, forest rangers need as much wildland fire experience as possible. Mobilizations last two weeks and provide large wildland fire (>2000+ acres) knowledge and skills. Forest rangers often doing hard labor on uncontained firelines in remote, rugged terrain. In many cases, Maine’s forest rangers have management level responsibility that affects the safety of firefighters, the public and property on a large scale.

During the fire season of 2018, Maine’s forest rangers dealt with 557 fires that burned 681 acres in Maine. They also made time for 26 separate mobilizations for out-of-state fire duty.

If you include the civilian firefighters who worked with us, a total of 92 firefighters were mobilized to eleven different states as well as a remote section of Quebec, Canada. These mobilizations allowed them to get signed off for national fire qualifications. The positions ranged from entry level/upper level wildland firefighters and safety officer, to public

information officer and air support group supervisor. They also went out as part of 20 person fire crews, four-person engine crews or individually, and as single resources.

Over the last few years, Maine forest rangers have been dispatched to many parts of the country for most Incident Command System (ICS) positions from firefighter to incident commander. Maine, like other states, is challenged with a dwindling number of civilian call-when-needed firefighters. Crew mobilizations help to keep these firefighters motivated and fully trained, which is a high priority.

Before Maine’s forest rangers were mobilized, their experience on large wildfires was limited. In 1977, the Baxter State Park Fire burned about 1,800 acres in Baxter Park and about the same amount on mostly Great Northern land outside the park. While I mean no disrespect to the brave firefighters involved with that fire, newspaper reports indicate that “most of the fire crews were totally inexperienced.” There were 45 accidents associated with the fire (some that caused injuries) and 24 firefighters had to be rescued by helicopter as “wind-whipped flames threatened their position.”

A review of the Baxter State Park fire dated August 24, 1977, states there were “problems with using heavy equipment” in the rugged terrain and that “more training was needed for using portable fire pumps.” It also mentioned that the fire, which lasted a week, “wasn’t really organized until the fourth day of the fire.” In recent years, emergency management organizations and first responders have developed a much better system to avoid confusion on large incidents.

After the 9-11 terror attacks in 2001, all federal and state agencies were mandated to use the Incident Command System (ICS). It is now used on all large wildfires (and other natural disasters) and is well known by Maine’s forest rangers. The ICS system was designed to help incident managers organize and manage resources such as firefighters, vehicles and equipment. It is flexible and allows incident managers to change the amount of resources as the incident grows in size (and complexity) and eventually dies down. A team of safety officers are assigned to make sure firefighters are working safely and no one works more than 16 hours a day. Ask any forest ranger and they will agree that ICS can be learned through online courses and classroom courses, but is never really mastered until it you have used it on an incident.

Standardized wildland firefighting training has enabled firefighters from the eastern U.S. to become qualified to help our partners across the country. In Maine, this process starts with getting permission to mobilize from Chief Forest Ranger Bill Hamilton. It is his responsibility to make sure that there are enough forest rangers to handle any wildfires here in Maine before authorizing them to mobilize to other parts of the country. He considers these mobilizations as huge opportunities for the Maine Forest Service as well as for individuals who want to gain experience on large wildfires.

“The qualifications and effectiveness of the Maine Forest Service today, concerning wildland fire management, as compared to that before we mobilized forest rangers nationally, has improved exponentially,” Hamilton said.” The experience they gain is irreplaceable.”

On the financial side, national fire mobilizations also save the state thousands of dollars in salaries. When forest rangers are mobilized their salary and benefits are 100 percent reimbursed by the incident. In 2018, the Maine Forest Service realized $285,743 in salary savings for the hard work of Maine’s Forest Rangers on out-of-state wildfires.

Additionally, engine assignments generated revenue that can be used to replace aging capital equipment.

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

Not all forest rangers chose to be mobilized on these fires. Some have family obligations, important court cases or other training or work commitments that prevent them from volunteering for this type of duty. In some cases, the Rangers that don’t mobilize work extra days to help patrol areas temporarily vacated by mobilized rangers. When this occurs, the USDA Forest Service reimburses their salary and benefits for those days worked here in Maine.

Mobilizing Maine’s forest rangers helps them prepare for large wildfires here in Maine. Not only will they be ready for a large wildfire, but when out-of-state wildland fire resources are brought in to help on a large fire in Maine, the transition will go smoothly.

Wildland fire mobilizations are considered a “two-way street.” Maine’s Forest Rangers are happy to help their fellow rangers on wildfires in other states. When we have another Baxter State Park fire, Moxie fire, Allagash fire or fires like the deadly ones of 1947 throughout Maine, then other state and federal firefighters may mobilize to Maine. Due to ICS and qualifications standardized by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG), they can literally “hit the ground running.”

Lastly, these mobilizations also help Maine forest rangers strengthen their call-whenneeded wildland firefighters. The Maine Forest Service relies on local wildland firefighters to help with wildfire suppression here in Maine. These firefighters have NWCG qualifications and take time off their regular jobs to help with in-state wildfires as well as occasional out-ofstate fires. This helps them gain valuable experience and encourages them to continue to serve as on-call firefighters here in Maine. It also reduces the chance of injury, as these mobilizations expose them to established safety protocols and the ICS system.

Maine’s forest rangers are well respected throughout the national wildland fire community. They are proud to use their fire experience to save lives and reduce property loss here in Maine and across the nation. The benefits of out-of-state mobilizations are

If a fire similar to the Baxter State Park fire occurred today, Maine forest rangers would have the advantage of experience from managing large wildfires during national mobilizations. Photo courtesy of Maine Forest Service. two-fold. They help improve qualifications and effectiveness of the agency as a whole, while providing financial benefits to the state. We are thankful to our private industry partners, department administration, the Northeastern Interagency Coordination Center and all the others who work behind the scenes to make these mobilizations possible.

NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

MAINE LOGGER, TRUCKER JOB AND WAGE REPORT RELEASED COURTESY PROFESSIONAL LOGGING CONTRACTORS OF MAINE

Living in a “fire camp” is not very glamorous. It involves sleeping in a tent with up to 1Maine is facing a shortage of loggers and log truckers that will grow and could hinder the growth of the $8.5 billion forest products industry in the state if wage growth does not occur, an occupational analysis released in March concluded.

The employment availability and wage analysis prepared by the Maine Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Southern Maine found wages for logging equipment operators and log truckers in Maine are lower than those for comparable jobs in competing industries in the state. Combined with a tight labor market and looming retirement for large numbers of loggers, this is concerning for Maine’s forest economy.

“This analysis simply confirms and reinforces what many in the industry have known for a long time,” said Dana Doran, the executive director of the Professional Logging Contractors of Maine (PLC), which commissioned and partnered with the Center on the study. “The root of Maine’s vital forest products economy—the logging industry—must be able to offer higher wages to compete for existing workers and attract new ones at a time when they are desperately needed to support a resurgent forest products industry.”

The heart of the problem is that profit margins for logging contractors have dwindled as costs of doing business have risen, limiting the ability of contractors to raise pay for workers. With low unemployment and strong competition for skilled operators of heavy

machinery and trucks, logging contractors are struggling simply to keep the workers they have, let alone attract new ones, Doran said.

“We know from surveying our own membership, which cuts approximately 75 percent of all wood harvested in Maine, that the industry is already unable to fill an estimated 750 to 1,000 jobs today,” Doran said. “Add to that the projected loss of upwards of 200 workers per year over the next 10 years due to retirements, coupled with the need for more loggers and truckers to meet rising demand for wood from expansions that have been announced by mills in the state recently, and you begin to see the extent of this problem.”

KEY FINDINGS OF THE EMPLOYMENT AVAILABILITY AND WAGE STUDY INCLUDE: Although capital expenses in the logging industry have risen across the board, rates for wood harvesting and trucking have not.

Recently-announced expansions increasing demand for wood will require an additional 100 jobs in the logging industry in the immediate future. In addition, occupation projections suggest upwards of 200 workers per year will need to be replaced over the next 8–10 years due to an aging logger workforce.

Business-critical occupations in the logging industry, including equipment operators and truck drivers which comprise two out of every three jobs, currently earn relative wages well below comparable occupations in other industries, making it difficult to recruit and attract workers. Logging equipment operators ranked lowest for wages out of 19 comparable skilled occupations surveyed, while logging truck drivers ranked second to last for wages out of 14 heavy truck driving sectors.

The average earnings for all employment in Maine’s logging industry have increased by 5% since 2010, an average increase of just over $2,100 per worker compared to an average increase of $5,500 in comparative industries, such as construction, wood manufacturing, and pulp and paper manufacturing.

Over 400 workers in the industry are at retirement age (65+), while an additional 850 workers will reach retirement age within the next 10 years.

Attracting younger generations of workers will be critical in replacing the retiring workforce.

Based on 2018 data, an estimated 4,927 jobs were directly supported by traditional (paid employee), self-employed, and proprietor income employment in logging. This supported another 3,266 jobs from indirect and induced spending impacts. In addition, a total of $320,824,489 in earnings (compensation) were supported by direct, indirect, and induced employment from the logging industry.

The executive summary and the full report of the study is available at maineloggers.com.

NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

2019 ‘LOGGERS’ EXPO’ PROMISES FOREST PRODUCTS FOR ALL LEVELS

BY JOSHUA ARCHER

It’s “mud season” in Maine, and that means many loggers’ operations are hampered in the woods. What to do instead? Why, mingle at what many folks refer to as Bangor’s biennial “Loggers’ Expo,” of course.

But you don’t have to be a logger to attend and enjoy this year’s Northeastern Forest Products Equipment Expo held May 17–18, 2019, at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.

The Loggers’ Expo alternates between Bangor in odd years and Essex Junction, Vermont, in even years. It’s an opportunity for those in the industry as well as the public to meet face-to-face with forest products industry leaders and vendors, said Joseph Phaneuf, the executive director of the Northeast Loggers’ Association.

“There is something at the show that should interest most people,” said Phaneuf.

“Tools and supplies most homeowners need can be found at the Loggers’ Expo.”

Topping the charts at this year’s expo are home heating units that utilize wood, “and of course the CAT Log Loading Championship is always exciting to watch,” Phaneuf said.

Over 200 exhibiting companies will attend the expo. Attendees can look forward to large in-woods equipment, specialized equipment, firewood processing and portable sawmills, demonstrations, and trucks and trailers featured throughout the grounds.

“You have the full range of vendors at this show. Companies selling $500,000 pieces of equipment down to companies selling hand tools, T-shirts, splitting mauls. If you need

something for your in-woods harvesting operation or your home tool shed, you’re going to find it here at the Loggers’ Expo,” he said.

The Loggers’ Expo has come to Bangor for several decades, maintaining a sense of community within the forest products industry, and Phaneuf said the expo has grown into a traditional meeting place for loggers.

“Logging and sawmilling, for a variety of reasons, are often solitary pursuits. So it’s important to allow the hard working people in our industry to relax with their peers,” Phaneuf said.

“We always enjoy coming to Bangor, Maine, and the Cross Insurance Center is a worldclass facility that is run very efficiently,” he said. “Bangor should be very proud of this beautiful facility. While Bangor’s downtown has evolved and renewed in recent years, we really appreciate the fact that the forest products industry and our Loggers’ Expo is still embraced and welcomed. It’s always great to see the Paul Bunyan statue in front of the Cross Insurance Center.”

DOORS OPEN BOTH DAYS AT 9 A.M. For more information, visit northernlogger.com/loggers-expo.

NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

2019 FOREST PRODUCTS EXPO VENDOR LISTS

OUTSIDE DISPLAY

A - B2....................NORTRAX DEERE/ MORBARK B3 - 7 ....................BELL’S MACHINING, WELD, HYD B12 & 13...............WESTERN TRAILERS B14 - 18 ................MAINE KENWORTH B19 & 20 ..............CN WOOD NORTH B21 - 23................DARLINGS BANGOR FORD B24 - 27................QUADCO/SOUTHSTAR C1, 3, 5, 7 & 9......NORTRAX DEERE/ MORBARK C2 & 4...................KILN DIRECT C6, 8 & 10 ............EASTONMADE

D1 - 6 ....................ROTOBEC D7 - 10 ..................DYNA PRODUCTS D11 - 14 ................ROI E1 & 3 ..................TBA E5 & 7...................AM MACHINERY, INC. E9 & 11.................LOFTNESS SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT E13 & 15...............ROLL RITE, LLC F6...........................POWER PERFORMANCE WORK SAWS F7 & 8 ...................FOX FORESTRY LOGOSOL F9 - 11...................BLACKS CREEK INNOVATIONS

F12.........................RYAN’S EQUIPMENT F13.........................NORTHEAST IMPLEMENT F14.........................PEAVEY MFG CO. F15 & 16 ...............NORTHEAST STIHL F17 - 19.................AMERICAN LOGGERS INS. & FIRE SUPPRESSION F20 ........................NELSON TRACTOR LTD. F21 ........................MAIL POUCH TOOL F22 - 24 ................KATAHDIN FIRE CO F25 ........................H.O.P. SALES F26 ........................CUMMINS SALES & SERVICE F27 ........................WOLFE RIDGE MFG.

F28 & 29 ..............WARATAH F30 & 31...............TB EQUIPMENT & RENTAL F32 & 33...............METSA MACHINES F34 ........................NE CENTER OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY G1 - 3 ....................CORD KING G5..........................CUMMINGS & BRICKER G6..........................TIMBERWOLF G7 ..........................HALVERSON WOOD PRODUCTS OUTSIDE DISPLAY VENDORS AND MAP CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 & 13

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

OUTSIDE DISPLAY

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

H1 ............................BUILT-RITE H2 ............................BRENNTAG LUBRICANTS H3 - 8...........................DAIGLE & HOUGHTON, INC. H9 -16 .....................ANDERSON EQUIPMENT J1 -10 ......................CHADWICK-BAROSS J11 & 13 .................CRAIG MANUFACTURING J12 & 14 .................GB EQUIPEMENTS J15 - 22...................HEAVY MACHINES K1 - 10.....................O’CONNOR MOTORS K11 - 14........................NORWOOD SAWMILLS USA K15 & 17.................MORIN DIESEL K16, 18, 20 & 22 ...DYSARTS LUBRICANTS K19 & 21.................MATHESON L1 - 6 .......................MILTON CAT L7 - 10.....................PRO PAC INDUSTRIES L11 -20.....................FREIGHTLINER OF MAINE

L21 - 26 .................MULTITEK NA/WOOD BEAVER M1 - 10....................WHITED TRUCK CENTER M11 -18 ...................JACKMAN EQUIPMENT, INC. M19 - 22 .................NORTHLAND JCB N1 -12......................VERMEER N13 & 14.................WOODCRACKER/ WESTTECH N15, 17, & 19 .........LES EQUIPEMENTS MARQUIS N16, 18, & 20.........BEAUREGARD EQUIPMENT N21 & 22 ................SENNEBOGEN O1 -4 .......................BARRY EQUIPMENT O5 & 6 ....................HULTDINS, INC.

O7 & 8 ....................OLOFSFORS, INC. O9 - 12 ....................WESTMOUNT O13 - 18..................MANAC P1 - 10.....................NH BRAGG & SONS P11 & 13.................CANADIAN CHAINS P12 & 14.................HUD-SON FORESTRY EQUIPMENT P15 -18....................HALE TRAILER Q1.............................THOMAS BANDSAW MILLS Q3 - 6 ......................SALSCO, INC. Q7 - 10 ....................J.S. WOODHOUSE Q11, 13 & 15..........PETE’S EQUIPMENT Q12, 14 & 16 .........ROTOCHOPPER, INC. R1 ............................OESCO R3 & 4.....................HEWS COMPANY

R5 - 10 ....................WOOD-MIZER SAWMILL S1 - 4.......................MAINE OXY S5 & 6.....................KEN’S TRUCK REPAIR S7 - 10.....................BLOCKBUSTER, INC. T1 & 2 .....................BANGOR TRUCK & TRAILER SALES T3 & 4 .....................CROWN ROYAL STOVES/ GREENTECH T5 & 6 .....................HAKMET X1 - 3.......................BANDIT INDUSTRIES X4 ............................FECON X5.............................CBI/ECOTEC-TEREX BRANDS X6 & 7 ........................ALBACH NORTH AMERICA X8.............................CRD METALWORKS

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

CONCOURSE

101........ HATTON-BROWN TIMBER HARVESTING 102........ AMERICAN LUMBER & PALLET 103........ HALLCO INDUSTRIES 104........ NUMARK MARKER CO. 105........ NYLE SYSTEMS DRY KILNS 106........ ALLIED POWERS 107........ KIMBALL MIDWEST 108........ THE CHIP DOCTORS 109........ CARIBOU SOFTWARE 110 ........ TIMBERLINE 111 ........ BBF ENTERPRISES 112 ........ SAWMILL & WOODLOT 113 ........ CDL USA 114 ........ CDL USA 115 ........ LUMBERMEN’S EQUIPMENT DIGEST 116 ........ PAW TAW JOHN SERVICES 117 ........ LATE HOSE 118 ........ TEAM SPACE TRUCKING 119 ........ PRECISION HUSKY 120........ TRUCK BUYER’S GUIDE 121........ AMERICAN LOGGERS COUNCIL 122........ CHAMBERS DELIMBINATOR 123........ CANNON BAR WORKS 125........ SANTOS CUSTOM BUILDERS 201........ NORTHERN LOGGER MARKETPLACE

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

ARENA DISPLAY

401 - 403 ..............WALLINGFORDS, INC. 404, 405 ...............SOFTUB 406, 407 ...............TST HYDRAULICS 408.........................F.A. PEABODY CO. 409.........................FORESTRY TRADER 410 .........................SOLENO 411 .........................GRANITE STATE COVER CANVAS 412 .........................DIRIGO WASTE OIL 413 .........................WALCO EQUIPMENT, LTD. 414 ........................JS LOGGING SUPPLY 415 .........................UNITED INSURANCE 416 .........................COMSTOCK LS 417 .........................LINDSCO EQUIPMENT CO. 418 .........................PEWAG 419 .........................KLEIS EQUIPMENT 420.........................AIRGAS USA LLC 421.........................SCHAEFFER’S MFG. 422.........................GRINDER WEAR PARTS 423.........................HYDRAULIC HOSE & ASSEMBLIES/GENALCO 424.........................BERCO OF AMERICA/ GENALCO 425.........................NOKIAN TYRES 426.........................UNITED COUNTRY LIFESTYLE PROPERTIES OF ME 427.........................ATLANTIC HARDCHROME

428.........................MAINE FINANCIAL GROUP 429.........................COLUMBIA FOREST PRODUCTS 430.........................HAROLD’S LOGGING SUPPLIES 431.........................TELESTEPS 432.........................COMPONENT REPAIR SUPPLY 433.........................DIAMOND SAW WORKS 434 ........................MPG LUBRICANTS 435.........................IRVING BLENDING & PACKAGING 436.........................BAR-TENDER 437.........................LABONVILLE 438, 439 ...............FARM CREDIT EAST 440, 442 ...............JESCO 443 ........................MERCIER WOOD FLOORING 444 ........................MONTANA TRACK CLAWS 445 ........................CEMAR ELECTRO 446 ........................ACADIA F.C.U. 447.........................AMERICAN WOOD DRYERS 448, 449 ...............WOOD-MIZER SAWMILL 450.........................IRVING WOODLANDS 451.........................VITILLO USA 452.........................DIGITAL WOOD CARVER

501, 516 ................WINDY RIDGE CORP 502 - 504 ..............NORTH AMERICA SUPPLY 505.........................THE KNIFE SOURCE 506, 507 ...............TRACTION HEAVY DUTY 508, 509 ...............LOG MAX FORESTRY, INC. 510.........................SUFFOLK SAW 511 .........................ENGINE SOLUTIONS 512 .........................TIMBERPARTS 513 .........................KENNEBECK LUMBER 514, 515 ................HYDRAULIC CONNECTION 517 .........................AMEX HARDWOOD 518 , 519 ...............MAINE COMMERCIAL TIRE 520.........................COUSINEAU FOREST PRODUCTS 521.........................FOREST MACHINE MAGAZINE 522.........................CONTINENTAL ENGINES 523.........................SIMPLY COMPUTING 524, 525 ...............CJ LOGGING EQUIPMENT 526.........................PROFESSIONAL LOGGING CONTRACTORS OF MAINE 527.........................TRUST TO CONSERVE NORTHEAST FOREST LANDS 528.........................YORK PORTABLE MACHINE TOOLS 529.........................ADVANCED DRAINAGE SYSTEMS

530.........................LOGGINGENCODERS.COM 531.........................AKE SAFETY EQUIPMENT 532.........................AMEX HARDWOOD 533.........................CONNECTICUT FOREST PRODUCTS 534.........................US BLADES 535.........................LAONA MACHINE SUPPLY 536.........................HAIX NORTH AMERICA 537 .........................CAMEROTA TRUCK PARTS 538.........................CROSS INSURANCE AGENCY 539.........................NORTHEASTERN LUMBER MANUFACTURER ASSN 540 ...........................AFTERMARKET PARTS, INC. 541.........................STRIPPER DELIMBERS 542, 543 ...............THE HOPE GROUP 544, 545 ...............BANGOR TIRE COMPANY 546, 547 ...............RD FAULKNER 548 ........................MOBILIER RUSTIQUE, INC. 601, 602................ FRANK MARTIN SONS, INC. 701.........................GRYB 702.........................ALLIANCE TIRE AMERICAS 703, 704................SCANDINAVIAN FORESTRY EQUIPMENT

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

YOUR DOCTOR’S OFFICE MAY SOON BE LESS GERMY BECAUSE OF A MAINE PAPER MILL

BY LORI VALIGRA | BDN

Sappi, once synonymous only with large forests and paper mills, during the past 30 years has turned its expertise with wood to the fashion runways and even doctors’ offices.

At its Westbrook Technology Center, scientists research, test and manufacture textured paper products that can be used to embellish designer handbags, running shoes, wood veneer, privacy filters for windows and even imitation leather for cars.

More recently, Sappi’s texturing expertise is being tested in the medical world to create surfaces with miniscule textures on them. Potential uses are in doctors’ offices and in ambulances. The physical structure of the surfaces inhibits microbial growth without requiring chemicals. The textured papers also can be used to make tiny patches for patient diagnostics.

The reason for the technology focus: Sappi’s legacy commercial and publishing paper business is shrinking and will continue to shrink, said Beth Cormier, vice president of research and development and innovation at Sappi North America’s Technology Center in Westbrook.

“Sappi has used research and development on how to get into new markets,” she said.

That includes the textures at the Technology Center and packaging paper at other mills, including the Somerset Mill in Skowhegan.

The company’s revenues were $5.6 billion worldwide in 2018. Sappi North America has paper mills in Westbrook, Skowhegan and Cloquet, Minnesota.

In Skowhegan, the company invested $200 million last fall for a new machine that could increase the production capacity of the packaging papers, which Cormier said is a growing business.

But it’s in Westbrook where the cutting edge research is taking place for Sappi North America.

“We can do a lot with wood, manipulating cellulose, which is the most abundant polymer on Earth,” she said. “It’s an opportunity for the forest products industry to expand.”

One example is a collaborative project with the University of Maine in Orono, which has developed a tiny, paper-based medical test device that Sappi has worked to mass produce.

Howell has been collaborating to test several Sappi textures, including materials inside an ambulance, and the very tiny square of paper which, with special microfluidic patterns imprinted on it, potentially could be used by doctors to test their patients for a multitude of maladies.

Sappi has been working on functional applications, such as medicine, for several years, but only recently has started testing the materials for potential commercial use.

The Sharklet paper, for example, mimics the surface of shark skin, which naturally slows the growth of barnacles and algae.

It is being tested now in doctors’ waiting rooms and inside of ambulances, said Cormier.

“We’ve been testing Sharklet for over two years and confirmed we can make a

pattern to impede microbial growth,” she said.

Cormier would not reveal details of the company’s research or current products in which the more fashionable patterns are used, but they include famous shoe and couture brands, she said. However, she said the company has been working with Boeing on a paper pattern for airplane overhead luggage bins and interior partitions that can bend light to give the cabin a certain hue.

The Technology Center has focused on new product advancements, improving operating margins and reducing costs for the past 30 years.

“We put new materials into products for lower cost efficiency,” Cormier said.

“While some materials are fossil-fuel based, we are looking at ways to get products [from wood] that perform like latex but are not made of fossil fuels.”

Cormier said a lot of the new graduates who interview at the company are interested in the sustainability platforms in its new products.

“It’s cool science,” Cormier said. “We put new materials into fossil-fuel based industries. There’s an image problem in this industry [paper mills]. We are starting to talk more about how we have the most abundant resource on Earth and are working with reusable materials.”

She said the texturing business mimics nature and uses wood, which is a renewable resource.

“We can replicate any texture,” she said. “You think your expensive sports car upholstery is genuine leather. Some is, and some is our textured synthetic leather. And we have a lot of wood grains as part of catalog.”

While the high-tech fabrics in Westbrook grab a lot of attention, Cormier points to another new business that is much larger than the specialty market: packaging for foods or cosmetics.

The new business, which started a year ago, includes the thin boxes containing perfumes and some foods. Sappi makes the packaging paper in large sheets that an intermediary company prints logos on and cuts to fit for the final customer.

The packaging paper is made in Skowhegan and Minnesota. That paper includes grease-resistant papers used in pet food bags, labels on a food can or jar and paperboard for point-of-sales displays. Currently, the company’s legacy graphics papers for commercial print contribute about 70 percent to Sappi’s business, but Cormier said she hopes the new businesses will increase to half of the business in five years. Among Sappi’s legacy business customers is Vogue magazine.

“In North America 20 years ago, 90 percent of what we did was printing, writing and commercial print,” she said. “Then globalization caused us to rightsize.”

The company also has its Verve dissolving wood pulp business, which is produced at its Minnesota mill and sold to customers worldwide. Cormier said customers turn the dissolving pulp into yarn, textiles and other products.

“This type of natural fiber is a great, sustainable alternative to polyester and cotton fibers used in textiles,” she said. “In addition to clothing, you may find this type of cellulose in food as a thickening agent and as a binding agent in pharmaceuticals.

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

MECHANIZED LOGGING PROGRAM RECRUITING SUMMER STUDENTS Recruiting is now underway for students in the Mechanized Logging Operations Program (MLOP), which is beginning its next class June 24 in the woods of western Maine.

Students enrolled in the post-secondary training program will spend weeks harvesting timber using sophisticated state-of-the-art machines like those they will encounter in the logging industry. The hands-on experience students gain operating equipment is something unavailable anywhere else in Maine and neighboring states.

This summer’s class will be the third since the program launched in 2017.

Graduation for the class will be held on Sept. 19.

“I would encourage any individual with an interest in a good-paying, exciting career in the Maine woods to take a look at the MLOP program,” said Dana Doran, executive director of the Professional Logging Contractors of Maine. “There is literally no better or more efficient way to gain the experience and knowledge you need to become an equipment operator in the logging industry.”

The Mechanized Logging Operations Program was created thanks to a partnership between three Maine community colleges, the PLC, and industry partners including Milton CAT and Nortrax.

The program gives students a broad overview of the most common mechanical systems found in modern timber harvesting equipment, and an understanding of the variables of timber growth, tree species, and markets.

It also includes a strong emphasis on safety.

Students who are accepted into the program pay no tuition, but are responsible for transportation, housing and food costs. Personal protective equipment (PPE) is provided by the program.

A 2014 study by the PLC found the average annual salary for workers employed by logging firms in Maine was $42,795. Mechanized logging operators are among the highest paid members of the logging workforce.

Anyone with an interest in the program should contact Leah Buck at Northern Maine Community College at (207) 768-2768. Information and application instructions may be found online at nmcc.edu/industrycustomized-training/mechanized-forest-operations.

While the logging industry has seen some contraction in recent years due to the loss of pulp and paper mills, the demand for skilled operators of the feller bunchers, harvesters, grapple skidders, forwarders, delimbers, and other mechanized logging equipment that now harvests 95 percent of all timber in Maine is strong and getting stronger. Many current operators are reaching retirement age and the steep costs of training new operators is driving up demand and wages.

The new program is working in tandem with the state’s current vocational training system and is expected to draw many of its students from within the logging industry itself as well as from Maine’s four high school vocational logging programs. For the first time, logging operators are being trained similarly to other advanced trade occupations with a high school and postsecondary approach.

Approximately 95 percent of logging in Maine now relies on mechanized equipment including feller bunchers and harvesters, delimbers, grapple skidders, and forwarders. It generally takes at least a year of training and experience before an operator becomes skilled enough to run this equipment safely and efficiently. The cost for companies to train these operators themselves is approximately $100,000 each.

THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE BANGOR DAILY NEWS, MARCH 21, 2019

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019

AMISH SAWMILL CHARTS NEW VENTURES AFTER COUNTY BOX & PALLET CLOSURE

BY ANTHONY BRINO | BDN

Recently sawed wood awaits pickup recently at the site of Noah Yoder’s sawmill in Easton, while sawing takes a break during mud season.

BDN FILE PHOTO While the Amish are a small part of Aroostook County’s large forest products industry, one family has kept up a strong business sawing pallet lumber and plotting some new opportunities in hardwood flooring.

Noah Yoder, one of the first Amish settlers in central Aroostook County more than a decade ago, has spent the past four years sawing pallet lumber for County Box & Pallet, which in turn was a major supplier for McCain Foods. County Box & Pallet, run by the Central Aroostook Association, shut down this month due to a range of cost factors.

“We thought we were going to be out of work, but it never happened,” Yoder said. “We didn’t slow down.”

Another local pallet maker, Kearney Pallet in Mars Hill, has kept on supplying McCain Foods and needed to buy additional pallet lumber.

“We’ve been kind of fortunate to switch our business over to selling to Kearney,” Yoder said.

Yoder’s is one of two Amish-run sawmills in central Aroostook County. The other, run by the family of Jacob Miller, produces custom softwood lumber.

The Amish originated from the Christian Anabaptist movement and practice simple-living traditions, avoiding many aspects of modern society such as electricity, motor vehicles and telephones. Most Amish light their homes with oil lamps -- the Yoders use mineral oil -- and dress in plain clothes, with women often wearing bonnets and men hats.

Their sawmills in Aroostook use non-electric diesel engines, a relatively simple technology that’s been accepted in Amish tradition for more than a century, Yoder said.

Yoder’s pallet lumber business buys lower-grade hardwood from area loggers and partially-sawed square logs that are sawed into pallet wood, and then trucked to the Kearney pallet and box mill.

“I’ve been in lumber for most of my adult life,” Yoder said, adding that he also THIS STORY ORIGINALLY APPEARED IN THE BANGOR DAILY NEWS, APRIL 17, 2019.

ran a dairy herd. “Sawing pallet lumber is something done in many Amish communities. It’s a really good type of work for us to do. The trouble we have here is we don’t have enough market here for more mills.”

Yoder said he is currently in talks with PalletOne of Livermore Falls to produce and sell them pallet lumber.

“Logistics is going to be the big thing, finding a good way to truck the material down there. That’s the one hurdle we’re going to have to overcome.”

Yoder has also started sawing grading stakes for the surveying and construction industry. The stakes are sold at local S.W. Collins stores.

And in addition to the sawmill, Yoder is in the midst of converting a building on his farmstead into a small hardwood flooring mill that will use higher-grade hardwoods for flooring sold to both wholesale and local markets.

“We think there might be a need for that. There’s no longer any more hardwood flooring being built up here,” he said, referring to the 2017 closure of Moosewood Millworks in Ashland.

“We also hope to make some reclaimed barn board flooring. We already have the machine for the molder and I just purchased another piece of equipment in Massachusetts. We’re hoping to be up and running by fall.”

One thing that the Amish sawmills have in common with other forest products businesses in northern Maine is the challenge of dealing with sawdust, bark and mill residues in the aftermath of the ReEnergy biomass plant closures.

“Every year, we’d have about 600 to 700 tons of mill waste that would go to those plants. We don’t know what we’re going to do with it.”

The Yoders and other Amish families use the sawdust for livestock bedding, mulch and composting, but have more than they need.

“We’re giving it away to area farmers, as much as they want, but there’s a lot left over.”

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NORTHEAST FOREST PRODUCTS • Bangor Daily News Special Advertising Section • May 10, 2019