500,000 B.F, llponr

Lodgepole Pine Turns Commercial

While lumber manufactured from America's most abundant western softwood species, Douglas fir, hemlock/white fir, redwood and Ponderosa pine, combine to make up more than two-thirds of the West's huge sawmill output, another species is stepping into the commercial spotlight.

In 1987, the volume of lumber manufactured from lodgepole pine trees growing in the West reached 932 million board feet, enough to build almost 75,000 typical single-family American homes.

That was an all-time record performance, according to statistics compiled by the Western Wood Products Association, which represents lumber manufacturers throughout the area. A billion-foot production volume would put the species into a hypothetical "major" commercial volume category.

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The species owes some of its new prominence to the record-breaking U.S. lumber demand experienced over the past three years, according to Fred Reseburg, WWPA's director of economic services. This culminated in 1987 when America consumed 50.6 billion board feet of lumber, an all-time high.

Besides the traditionally high volume western lumber species already noted, only a handful of other species have major commercial importance in the United States. These are mostly found in the South.

Lodgepole pine is a slender tree that, in its commercial subspecies, prefers semi-arid high plateaus and rolling mountain areas. lt thrives over a vast section of North America, reaching from the Yukon of interior Alaska to Baja California, and as far east as the Black Hills of South Dakota.

The species is sawn into both boards and structural lumber for residential and light commercial construction. Its natural characteristics make it a typically straight lumber, easy to work and nail.

While many home builders have developed a preference for lodgepole for framing and paneling, the species usually is produced and shipped to market mixed with other woods of similar strength characteristics. These include Engelmann spruce, Ponderosa pine and Alpine fir. It also makes up a significant portion of the lumber Canada exports into the U.S. every year under the spruce-pine-fir species grouping.

Lumbermen Fight For Benefits

Three lumbermen who retired from American Forest Products, Martell. Ca.. have filed a lawsuit alleging their health insurance benefits were illegally cancelled.

The suit, filed on behalf of Frank Quattrocchi, Charles Fletcher, Harry Abraham and their wives, names Travelers Insurance Co., the health plan's underwriter; Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the leveraged-buyout firm which helped purchase American Forest Products in 1981, and American Forest Products, which has since been resold to Georgia-Pacific Corp. G-P is not named in the lawsuit.

Following the sale of American Forest Products to G-P in April, 172 retired workers reportedly were offered $25,000 each in lieu of the health insurance plan. The three plaintiffs, whose families had previously been hit by serious illnesses, were the only ones to decline the offer, and their benefits were cancelled.

The suit seeks a jury trial to reinstate the plantiffs' health insurance and provide unspecified damages, claiming the defendants violated the terms of the federal Employee Re- tirement Income Security Act of 1984, intended to protect worker benefits.

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts attorney John Anderson labeled the suit "without merit," saying Kohlberg Kravis was only one of the buyout partners and that American Forest Products attempted unsuccessfully to find a replacement insurer when Travelers cancelled.

Plaintiff Frank Quattrocchi is now with South Bay Forest Products, Orange, Ca.; Charles Fletcher works at Woodtek, La Mirada, Ca., and Harry Abraham is retired.

A. C. Houston Enters Az.

A. C. Houston Lumber Co., Wichita, Ks., is opening a store in Winslow, Az., as part of its newly formed Inter-Mountain District.

Other stores in the district are Angel Fire, Farmington and Gallup, N.M., and Crested Butte, Co.

The company expects to move into the Winslow location by late December, initially using it as a satellite yard for the Gallup store.

Roger Ricks, now at Gallup, will manage the Winslow store.

New Builders Square Execs

Glen R. Mielke will become K mart Corp. vice president and president and chief operating officer of its Builders Square subsidiary Jan. l. Mielke will be responsible for all Builders Square store operations, merchandising, marketing, distribution, transportation, construction and maintenance.

He will report directly to Frank W. Denny who will be elevated to chairman and chief executive oflicer of Builders Square from president and chief executive officer.

John S. Valenti, regional manager of K mart's Southwestern Region, will replace Mielke as vice president of that region.

K mart's chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer Joseph E. Antonini said, "With the growth of our Builders Square subsidiary, we felt it necessary to give added strength to this fast growing division. It will allow management to become more involved in the refinement of operations. Glen Mielke's wide field and executive experience was the ideal choice for this position."

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Pacific Wood Preserving of Bakersf ield produces vi rtually all pressure treated wood products. And, with computerized inventory control, Pacific Wood Preserving of Bakersfield offers accurate and complete service. A single phone call can put this complete capability to work for you. Call today:

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