Fir Plywood Group Lays Plans . for Promotion Campaigns

West coast plyu'ood manufacturers laid plans at their annual meeting last month for a series of summer and fall smash campaigns that will triple the scope of fir plywood promotion in the second half of 1953.

In a meeting in Gearhart, Ore., attended by some 250 plywood leaders from Washington, Oregon and California, the panel makers outlined a series of promotion moves intended to absorb the expanding production facilities of the S7-factory industry which is now selling plywood at the rate of over 3 billion square feet annually. At the sarne time, they elected S. Eberly Thompson, vice president and director of M and M Wood Working Co. of Portland, Ore., president of Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Thompson succeeds B. V. Hancock, outgoing president of the industrv trade association, who delivered the keynote address. Hancock, executive vice president of Cascades Plyw'ood Corporation, announced that despite an average r,r'eekly production of 70 million square feet, the industry's total backlog of unfilled orders is still close to six weeks. However, he pointed to the industry's expanded capacity and said that since the beginning of 1952, the number of plants has increased from 76 to 87. Ticking off his points one by one, Hancock declared:

"Markets for more plywood can be found, but they must be sold. We need more intensive industry-sponsored sales promotion and more ell'ective sales techniques bf individual manufacturers."

Then he outlined a series of contemplated promotions including a big midsummer advertising campaigr-r behind exterior fir plywood for outdoor storage units, carports, small boats, and structural applications.in homes and comrrercial buildings.

The campaign will be follou'ed in the fall, he said, 'ivith two more big national promotior-rs-one a campaign built around eight practical, lou'-cost plyrvo<ld storage units and another keyed to increased clealer sales in the lush Christmas market.

The ply\ood leader also announced plans for introcluction this fall of a new plylvood specialty panel designed for modern architectr.rral trends. Hancock said the nerv material is intended to tap markets never before reached rvith standard grades of lir plywood.

Hancock's address rvas followed by a revielv of the ir,dustry's progress during the past year by E. \\r. Daniels, chairman of the industry's promotion management cornmittee and director of sales, Harbor I'lyrvood Corporation, Aberdeen, \\'ash. Daniels pointed out that one of the n.rost significant developments in that period was the increase in the sales of structural plvwood for subfloors, r'r.all sheathing and roof decking.

Daniels said sales in this bracket jumped frorn 335 million square feet in 1951 to 570 million square feet in 1952an increase of 70 per cent. He cited one big project builder u'ho save $100 per house with plyrvood constructiotr.

After his address, the meeting unanimously passed a resolution introduced by Fros{ Snyder, presiderrt of Vancorlver Plvrvood Co., honoring Daniels for his otttstanding (Contrnued on Page 14)