Recordpanel production

By William T. Robison President American Plywood Association

T HE AMERICAN Plywood AsI sociation (APA) expects 1986 to become the fourth consecutive record year for structural wood panel pro- duction. Unfortunately, that good news comes tempered with the fact that industry capacity still exceeds market demand.

APA's overriding challenge in I 986 and throughout the decade, therefore, is to bridge the gap between capacity and demand by developing new markets and expanding existing ones.

To that end, APA's 1986 promotion plan reports several carefully targeted promotional programs in each of the panel industry's five major markets -residential, nonresi- dential. distribution, industrial, and export. Together, they offer a net increase in 1986 demand of about 475 million sq. ft. (3/8" basis). The latest volume forecast is 22.6 billion for 1985 and 23 billion, with the promotional gains included, in 1986.

The forecast for overall improvement next year takes into account an unexpected 390 decline in housing starts. That represents a drop from APA's latest estimate of 1.75 million starts this year to 1.7 million in 1986.

Still, housing will remain far and away the panel industry's single largest and most important market, consuming approximately 40o/o of total production. And while a modest deiline is expected next year, substantial opportunities have been identified and targeted for promotional emphasis. These include floors and foundations, siding, and manufactured housing.