Retailers can show Wood Works

Western

Wood

Products Association when the problem

Vis lumber supply, the first one to feel it is the lumber supplier. Yet the solution lies in the perceptions of the public, the consumer. And the surest line to the consumer is through the retailer.

Story at a Glance

How retailers can share western !umber's environmsntal benefits new Wood Works program offers point-of-sale items, certification labels.

As a result, Western Wood Products Association is tailoring powerful tools within its Wood Works environmental comrnunications program especially for the retailer. "Retailers are on the front lines of our industry's environmental battles and they represent our best direct link to general consumers," explained Bob Petow, WWPA executive director of marketing and communications. "Recognizing this, we will be providing dealers the ammunition they need to convey the positive environmental story westem lumber has to tell."

The Wood Works program provides wood users with the infonnation they need to make responsible choices when selecting building materials. It features advertising, publicity, literature, video productions and demonstration pfojects designed to promote wood' s positive environmental slory.

To find out what types of cornmunication methods and tools would be most useful to dealers, WWPA conducted two surveys and a series of telephone interviews with varyingsized lumber retailers. The retailer tie-in program will likely include a variety of point-of-sale items, including brochure racks, bannen and posters, all available for a nominal charge.

WWPA is also working with Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), a third party environmental auditing ffuur, on studies comparing the environmental effects of western lumber with those of non-wood materials in like applications. Compared are wood and steel studs, wood and vinyl windows, wood and aluminum siding, and wood and concrete floor systems. The methodology, known as Life Cycle Assessment, quantifies and inventories the environmental burdens of products and systems over their lifetimes, from resource exracdon through manufacturing and use to final disposal.

Preliminary results suggest "that western lumber is unique among the products we have tested in that its use can actually have a positive effect on the environment"" said SCS president Dr. Stanley Rhodes. The results are currently undergoing site-specific verification and will be subjected to scientific peer review. Final results are expected early next year. wwPA will then receive an Environmental Report Card for western lumber and Certified Environmental Advantages reports outlining the comparative advantages of wood"

WWPA member mills will begin producing lumber with aWWPA/SCS "trigger logo," designed to trigger customers and wood users to look for, or call for, the environmental information that backs the product. Mills will likely include some pointof-sale explanatory information with deliveries. While details have yet to be ironed out, the launch of the retail tiein program is expected early next year, to coincide with the frst shipments of envirostam@ lumber.

Other elements in the Wood Works program are already available. The flagship publication, Choice s, provides an in-depth look at timely environmen- tal issues and the role building materials play. A series of Environmental Background Information papers consists of Wood vs. Steel; Life Cycle Assessmcnt & Building Materials, and Write the Wrong in Environmental Clains for Steel. And a 16-question Environmental IQ Quiz aims to correct misconceptions about forests and wood products.

In an attempt to reach school children with a positive environmental message about wood, WWPA, with American Forest & Paper Association, American Plywood Association and Southem Forest Products Association, has produced a nine-minute video, called House. The video follows a tree out of the forest, thrcugh manufacturing and construction as it becomes a home. It winds up back in the forest where trees are being planted for fuhrre generations. House will be distributed to as many as 5,000 school districrs nationwide for viewing by up to 30 million students and teachers over the next five years.

Two print advertisements are appearing in design and construction trade journals. Can You Spot tlw Env ironmentalistZ stresses th4t everyone who uses wood is an environmentalist because the chosen material comes from a renewable resource, absorbs carbon dioxide and gives off oxygen as it grows, is energy-conservative, energy-efficient, bio-degradable, recyclable and reusable. They Don't Grow on Trees responds to attempts by competing industries, particulady steel, to infringe on lumber's traditional markets. The headline, copy and prominent photograph of rolled metal remind that wood is the only commonly used building material from a renewable source.

For more information on Wood Works progran, contoct llrWPA, Yeon Bldg., 522 SltV 5th Ave., Portland, Or. 972042122; (503) 224-3930.