LASC management conference

I NDUSTRY leader Harry Merlo, I president and ceo of LouisianaPaiinc Corp., described a bright future for engineered wood products in his talk to the 40th annual Management Conference of the Lumber Association of Southern California. A very different future was later described by renowned forecaster and climatologist Dr. Iben Brown-

Story at a Glance

L-P's Merlo enthusiastic about engineered wood products. climatologist debunks global warming theories.. Daryl Bond is new pres. '91 conference will return to desert.

ing, who foresees a 50/50 chance of an 8.2 earthquake in Tokyo this month, famine in Europe in l99l and a depression worse than the 1930s in 1992.

Merlo described L-P's increasing efficiency in utilizing the whole tree for engineered products as well as using small, plentiful trees of low commercial value as insredients for their successful line of Innerseal building products. This enables L-P to avoid environmental hassles, be a low cost producer and bring affordable products to the marketplace. LP is currently building its second Innerseal I-Beam plant in Priest River, Id.

The company has worked hard to be a responsible converter of society's resources. Merlo noted L-P's first expenditure as a new company was to establish a tree nursery. Today, the company plants six trees for each harvested.

Their new Fiberbond product, now in development, will be made of gypsum and recycled newspapers and will compete with gypsum wallboard. Typically, it's an environmentally sensitive product that stretches resources. Merlo defended L-P's redwood plant in Baja Mexico, saying that it had caused no job losses on California's North Coast and that it will enable them to bring more affordable products into southern California.

Dr. Browning poohpoohed global warming theories, pointing out they are based on merely 35 years of data and that his conclusions rely on 3500 years of data. He sees a cooling earth, with resultant crop losses causing famine and political upheaval.

Saying he didn't make predictions, but rather presented the odds on possible situations, Browing suggested that 1991 will be the stormiest year in U.S. history, that by 2010 there will be ice as far south as Natchez, Ms., that in 20 years there will be polar bears in Toronto, Canada, and that the depression of 1992 will last until 1995.

LASC's new president is Daryl Bond, All-Coast Forest Products, Chino, Ca.; lst v.p. Robert Slettedahl, Lumbermen's Building Center, Palm Springs, Ca.; 2nd v.p. William Sullivan, Golding Sullivan Lumber Sales, Tustin, Ca.i treas. Jerry Higman, Reliable Wholesale, Huntington Beach, Ca.; sec. Blaine Smith, Fremont Forest Products, Whittier, Ca., and executive v.p. Wayne Gardner, City of Industry, Ca.

An employee benefits panel discussion was led off by Robert Bushman, Sr., Mann-Parker Lumber, who described how his firm helped troubled employees by paying for certain counseling and related benefits. Rick Orlando, Barr Lumber, said their safety program used talks, lunches, meetings and cash safety prizes to reward employees.

Joe Audette, Champion Lumber, cautioned all to watch for drug use symptoms and to develop a pre-employment and on-the-job program to attack the problem. "Seek legal counsel before beginning," he said. Bob Spence, Reliable Wholesale, said their pre-employment drug screening physical costs the applicant $40 if he doesn't pass. Nothing if he does. Two out of three fail, Spence noted. The company also uses time off and monetary rewards for good employee behavior.

Leadoff speaker at a panel discussion on coping with the future was Bruce Kelly, Fremont Forest Products, who told of their team concept in sales and their stepped up prospecting for new accounts. He said just-in-time buying and tighter inventory control were increasingly prevalent. Bill Ferguson, Capistrano Lumber, observed that the environmentalists are controlling the lumber industry's future and that "we must educate the public, improve our image or be haunted by today's problems in the future."

Kevin Nichols, All-Coast Forest Products, suggested that today's slack market presented an opportunity to upgrade systems, contact customers, add new ways and new products and "take a hard look at the profitability of inventory items." Ray McKay, Ganahl Lumber, told how incentives for profitability motivated employees to work more effectively.

Noting Ganahl Lumber had I l0 fewer employees now, McKay said the company "was not afraid to scale

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