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A Hatton-Brown Publication
Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. Street Address: 225 Hanrick Street Montgomery, AL 36104-3317 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 2268 Montgomery, AL 36102-2268 Telephone: 334.834.1170 FAX: 334.834.4525
Volume 46 • Number 7 • September 2021 Founded in 1976 • Our 476th Consecutive Issue
Publisher: David H. Ramsey Chief Operating Officer: Dianne C. Sullivan Editor-in-Chief: Rich Donnell Senior Editor: Dan Shell Senior Associate Editor: David Abbott Senior Associate Editor: Jessica Johnson Associate Editor: Patrick Dunning Publisher/Editor Emeritus: David (DK) Knight Art Director/Prod. Manager: Cindy Segrest Ad Production Coordinator: Patti Campbell Circulation Director: Rhonda Thomas Online Content/Marketing: Jacqlyn Kirkland
Renew or subscribe on the web: www.timberprocessing.com
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Classified Advertising: Bridget DeVane • 334.699.7837 800.669.5613 • bdevane7@hotmail.com
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Advertising Sales Representatives: Southern USA
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Randy Reagor P.O. Box 2268 Montgomery, AL 36102-2268 904.393.7968 • FAX: 334.834.4525 E-mail: reagor@bellsouth.net
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NEWSFEED
Sierra Pacific Grows Bigger In Northwest
NO SLOWING DOWN COLLUM’S
Doing The Impossible Is A Way Of Life
SFPA EXPO TAKES PLACE
Photos Prove In-Person Is Possible
GOING DOWNSTREAM Don’t Start Wasting Fiber Now
MISSISSIPPI STEPS UP
Lumber Industry Leads New Growth
PRODUCT SCANNER 10
USNR Teams With Cortex Knives
MACHINERY ROW
Raw Material Handling With Style
COVER: Collum’s Lumber Products continues to push the envelope
at its high production SYP sawmill in Allendale, SC, thanks to the family ownership that includes veteran lumberman Micky Scott. Story begins on PAGE 14. (Patrick Dunning photo)
Midwest USA, Eastern Canada John Simmons 32 Foster Cres. Whitby, Ontario, Canada L1R 1W1 905.666.0258 • FAX: 905.666.0778 E-mail: jsimmons@idirect.com
VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www.timberprocessing.com Member Verified Audit Circulation
Western USA, Western Canada Tim Shaddick 4056 West 10th Avenue Vancouver BC Canada V6L 1Z1 604.910.1826 • FAX: 604.264.1367 E-mail: tootall1@shaw.ca Kevin Cook 604.619.1777 E-mail: lordkevincook@gmail.com
International Murray Brett 58 Aldea de las Cuevas, Buzon 60 03759 Benidoleig (Alicante), Spain Tel: +34 96 640 4165 • + 34 96 640 4048 E-mail: murray.brett@abasol.net
Timber Processing (ISSN 0885-906X, USPS 395-850) is published 11 times annually (monthly except Jan./Feb.) by Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc., 225 Hanrick St., Montgomery, AL 36104. Subscription Information—TP is free to qualified owners, operators, managers, purchasing agents, supervisors, foremen and other key personnel at sawmills, pallet plants, chip mills, treating plants, specialty plants, lumber finishing operations, corporate industrial woodlands officials and machinery manufacturers and distributors in the U.S. All non-qualified U.S. Subscriptions are $55 annually: $65 in Canada; $95 (Airmail) in all other countries (U.S. Funds). Single copies, $5 each; special issues, $20 (U.S. funds). Subscription Inquiries— TOLL-FREE: 800-6695613; Fax 888-611-4525. Go to www.timberprocessing.com and click on the subscribe button to subscribe/renew via the web. All advertisements for Timber Processing magazine are accepted and published by Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. with the understanding that the advertiser and/or advertising agency are authorized to publish the entire contents and subject matter thereof. The advertiser and/or advertising agency will defend, indemnify and hold any claims or lawsuits for libel violations or right of privacy or publicity, plagiarism, copyright or trademark infringement and any other claims or lawsuits that may arise out of publication of such advertisement. Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. neither endorse nor makes any representation or guarantee as to the quality of goods and services advertised in Timber Processing. Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc. reserves the right to reject any advertisement which it deems inappropriate. Copyright ® 2021. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited. Periodicals postage paid at Montgomery, Ala. and at additional mailing offices. Printed in U.S.A.
Postmaster: Please send address changes to Timber Processing, P.O. Box 2419, Montgomery, Alabama 36102-2419 Other Hatton-Brown publications: Timber Harvesting • Southern Loggin’ Times Wood Bioenergy • Panel World • Power Equipment Trade
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THEISSUES
Rich Donnell Editor-In-Chief
SFPA EXPO GETS IT DONE, TP&EE 2022 NEXT UP 14
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tip of the cap goes to Eric Gee, executive director of Southern Forest Products Assn., and his SFPA team for producing an excellent machinery exposition in mid-August at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The in-person trade show world has taken a severe hit since the onslaught of the pandemic. Cancellations and altered dates have become the norm. But SFPA Expo was held right on schedule, and when you think back to when the last SFPA Expo was held in summer 2019, before the virus, and all that has transpired since then, it’s really a marvel that it stayed true to form. As for Eric, who has been the exposition director since 1997, he also became executive director of the association this past spring, in case he didn’t have enough on his plate leading up to the Expo. Masks were recommended, not required, and safe distancing was emphasized. Also, every attendee before entering the show had to complete a short questionnaire on his or her’s current health situation, which if nothing else made everyone feel a little better that everyone else on the show floor at least said they were feeling okay. I would be shocked if absolutely no one who attended contracted the virus, given the bizarre behavior of the Delta variant. But my feeling was that the people in attendance really wanted to be there and had probably prepared themselves as best as they could going into it. Shortly before the show, the rumor was that a few of the larger corporations had advised their ranks not to attend and perhaps I did see fewer of those personnel. But I did see personnel from the likes of Charles Ingram Lumber, McShan Lumber, Westervelt, Sierra Pacific Industries, Dempsey Wood Products, Cross City Lumber, Jordan Lumber, Culp Lumber, Varn Wood Products and many others. It was great to see them in person. While we have always exhibited our magazines at SFPA Expo, we had a little more involvement in the show this time. On the first afternoon we presented our 2021 Person of the Year award on the show floor, which created some buzz on the grounds. And on the second day we produced the Productivity & Efficiency Conference, which covered three subjects, featured a dozen speakers, and had good attendance. We had presented our Person of the Year at the Timber Processing & Energy Expo in Portland, Ore. a couple of years ago and it went over quite well, and we asked Eric Gee if SFPA would be open to us doing it in Atlanta and he obliged. Speaking of the Portland show, our 2022 Person of the Year award will be presented there, September 28-30, at the Portland Exposition Center. Following the cancellation of the 2020 event in Portland due to the pandemic, and because of the civil unrest in Portland, we took a serious look at other venues in the West. But none of them quite fit our expo—either the venues were oddly shaped, or too small, or in locations that were too far off the beaten path. So in the end the Portland Expo Center won out again because obviously it can handle our expo and is an easy access for many lumbermen in the West. Who knows, maybe by the next Portland show, the virus will be gone. Now TP that would be worth seeing.
Contact Rich Donnell, ph: 334-834-1170; fax 334-834-4525; e-mail: rich@hattonbrown.com TIMBER PROCESSING
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NEWSFEED SIERRA PACIFIC BUYS SENECA Sierra Pacific Industries (SPI) is acquiring Oregonbased Seneca and its affiliates, combining two familyowned forest products businesses with strong historical roots on the West Coast. Founded in 1953, Seneca operates a 175,000 acre sustainably managed tree farm, sawmills, and a biomass plant in Oregon. SPI is a leading lumber producer that manages
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more than 2.1 million acres of timberland in California and Washington. “Aaron Jones (Seneca) and Red Emmerson (SPI) are both icons of the wood products industry. They were also friends and had a deep mutual respect for each other as industry leaders,” says Seneca CEO Todd Payne in reference to the founders of the respective companies. “This proposed transfer makes so much sense given the companies provide complementary products, and have shared family values and company culture.” Both SPI and Seneca have a strong focus on sustainable tree management, also managing their timberland for wildlife, healthy water-
sheds and soils, and worldclass recreation. The companies also share a company culture that recognizes employees as their most valuable asset, values the support of the communities they operate in and serve, and gives back by being dedicated to education and administering scholarship programs. Seneca has been co-owned by Becky Jones, Kathy JonesMcCann and Jody Jones. In addition to sawmill operations, the company operates Seneca Sustainable Energy biomass plant.
MERCER PURCHASES KATERRA CLT Mercer International Inc., a global forest products company based in Vancouver, BC, reported it received approval from the applicable Bankrupt-
cy Court for the purchase by its subsidiary, Blue Varsity, of the cross-laminated timber manufacturing facility in Spokane, Wash. formerly owned by Katerra for $50 million through a bidding process. Katerra, a mass timber and modular turnkey construction business founded in 2015, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in early June. The $150 million CLT plant, which was commissioned in May 2019, was subsequently shut down. The facility is located on 54 acres and is equipped with extensive automation technolo-
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NEWSFEED gies including one of the largest CLT presses in the world. The plant has capacity of approximately 13MMSF of 5-ply panels annually or 140,000 m3 of annual production. David Gandossi, CEO of Mercer, states, “We are very pleased with our impending acquisition of the facility. It represents an attractive entry point for us into the CLT business with a near new state-ofthe-art facility. It fits well with our strategy to expand in the solid wood products space and aligns with a core value to provide sustainable and carbon reducing alternatives for a warming planet.” Mercer was reportedly securing employees in anticipation of starting up the plant, requiring about 40 per shift. Mercer International has operations in Germany and Canada and reports a consolidated annual production ca-
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SFPA SAWMILL SAFETY AWARDS Four southern pine sawmills received the 2020 Sawmill Safety Award from Southern Forest Products Assn. SFPA members are considered for the award based on information submitted regarding occupational injuries and illnesses. Safety performance is judged by how each mill’s safety record stacks up against facilities with comparable lumber output throughout the year. The results for 2020 included reports from 43 mills that recorded nearly 14 million employee hours. Division I includes sawmills that produce 50MMBF or less; Division II covers facilities that produce 51-150MMBF; Division III includes mills that produce more than 150MMBF annually. Division I recipient is Almond Brothers Lumber Co., Coushatta, La.; Division II is West Fraser Inc., Mansfield, Ark.; Division III is Weyerhaeuser Co., Millport, Ala., and West Fraser Inc., Opelika, Ala. The awards were presented at the SFPA Expo in Atlanta on August 12. Left to right, Chuck Watkins, Vice President of Capital and Technology, West Fraser Inc.; Vince Almond, President of Almond Brothers Lumber Co.; Eric Gee, Executive Director of SFPA; Craig Forbes, Director of Lumber Sales, Weyerhaeuser Co., and Board Chairman of SFPA. (Robb Cohen Photography & Video)
pacity of 2.2 million tonnes of pulp and 550MMBF of lumber. Another new facility for-
merly owned by Katerra, a component manufacturing plant in Tracy, Calif., was acquired through a bidding pro-
cess by Philadelphia-based Volumetric Building Companies (VAC). The company defines itself as a “volumetric
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NEWSFEED modular business that simplifies complex issues by integrating architecture, logistics, manufacturing, and construction into a single package to produce multifamily housing solutions in less time at a greater return.” Katerra went through $3 billion in equity investments since its founding. In the bankruptcy filing Katerra estimated liabilities of $1 billion to $10 billion Katerra wasn’t shy about wanting to
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shake up the conventional construction industry. In addition to building manufacturing plants, it bought everything from architectural firms, to construction firms to dirt contractors. But many of the projects it entered into appeared to experience the same hiccups and cost overruns that conventional on-site construction projects sometimes encounter, and perhaps with less quality, as Katerra tacked on substantial costs related to re-work issues.
Katerra experienced nearly $2.8 billion in financial losses in 2018, 2019 and 2020. Both Mercer and VAC were stalkinghorse bidders whose original bids prevailed for their respective acquisitions.
MARTCO ANNOUNCES CORRIGAN “TWO” Sawmill projects in the South are making headlines, but other sectors in the wood products industry are getting into the act as well. Martco L.L.C. (RoyOMartin) announced that its Texas subsidiary, Corrigan OSB, L.L.C., will invest $211 million and construct a standalone oriented strandboard (OSB) manufacturing facility near its current OSB plant located in Corrigan on U.S. Highway 287 between Lufkin and Livingston. Construction is scheduled to begin this year, with startup anticipated in 2023. The new facility is expected to significantly increase production capacity at Corrigan, while focusing on existing and new value-added OSB products. RoyOMartin CEO Roy O. Martin III points to a population surge of more than 4 million residents in the state in the past decade, and more families and companies relocating to the Lone Star state. The increase in home prices and rising costs of building materials, appliances, and labor in the past year indicate a severe shortage of OSB supply, Martin notes. Corrigan OSB is stepping up to meet this increased demand with the addition of the new facility. “We recognize the trend, and we believe most families want to eventually own their own home in America,” Martin says, noting the ongoing increase in housing starts. As the country and the world make their way out of an historic pandemic, home starts are on the rise, and a growing number of millennials and their families are entering the housing market. RoyOMartin started up the first Corrigan OSB plant in 2018, and also operates an OSB plant in Oakdale, La., which started up in 2007. The company also operates a plywood mill and timbers mill in Chopin, La. “With this new OSB plant, we will be well positioned to meet the backlog of demand for quality building products, produced from renewable, sustainable resources abundant in our region,” adds Scott Poole, RoyOMartin President and COO. “Our growth in East Texas has given us an influx of talent with a tremen-
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NEWSFEED dous work ethic, a long-term, sustainable, raw-material base, and access to a growing and vibrant residential market.”
SECOND QUARTER KIND TO CANFOR Reflecting record-high lumber segment earnings and improved pulp and paper segment results, Canfor
reported operating income of $1.04 billion for the second quarter of 2021, $438.7 million higher than the first quarter. For the lumber segment, earnings increased $393.8 million quarter-overquarter, to an all-time high of just more than $1 billion. Second quarter sales reached a record $2.5 billion. Global lumber market conditions remained very strong in the second quarter of 2021, as tight supply coupled with
significant demand drove global benchmark lumber prices to new unprecedented highs. This record pricing, combined with moderately higher shipment volumes, substantially outweighed the impact of modestly higher log costs in Western Canada. The North American Random Lengths Western Spruce/Pine/Fir 2x4 #2&Btr price posted significant gains early in the second quarter of 2021, reaching a new record high of US$1,630 per MBF in early May before declining through the balance of the quarter to end the period at US$875. The Southern Yellow Pine East 2x4 #2 price followed similar trends to Western SPF, climbing to a record of US$1,400 per MBF mid-May and ending the quarter at US$755 per MBF.
HANCOCK LUMBER ANNOUNCES CHANGES Following the retirement of Kevin Hynes, Maine-based Hancock Lumber has promoted Aaron Schulte to Sawmill Division Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Matt Duprey to Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). Schulte assumes responsibility for all sawmill operations, employee engagement, safety, and overall P&L results, while Duprey oversees all customer relationships and programs, product research and development, and bringing the portfolio of Hancock Pine products to market. Another internal advancement is Keith Trask promoted to Bethel Sawmill General Manager (GM), and the hiring of John Cole as Bethel Finished Products Manager. Hynes spent the final 16 years of his career at Hancock Lumber, retiring as Sawmill Division COO. “We are a very different company today than we were before Kevin Hynes started and he is a huge part of the reason why,” commented CEO Kevin Hancock at Hynes’ retirement gathering. Hynes commented, “As part of my journey, I worked at different companies across North America. When I came to work at Hancock Lumber, it felt like coming home. This culture at Hancock Lumber you’ve all helped to create under Kevin’s leadership and vision is one that is very, very rare. I think we’re all extremely lucky and fortunate to be a part of it. I leave happy, energized, and excited to take on the new chapter of my life.” 12
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SOUTHERN
STAND By Patrick Dunning
Collum’s Lumber stays on the leading edge of technology and their numbers show it.
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ALLENDALE, SC. ongstanding SYP independent sawmill operation, Collum’s Lumber Products, has long been a leader in technology and optimization, and big production numbers. Brothers Bill, Hank and Micky Scott continue to direct day-to-day operations—Bill oversees the planer mill, dry end and trucking; Hank manages the company’s financials and administrative duties; and Micky directs wood procurement, the green end and planned acquisition.
“If you’re not spending money on your mill every year you’re backing up,” Micky says. “In a sawmill, especially one that runs as hard as ours, if we spend less than one million dollars a year on upkeep we’re backing up.” Micky says they spent around $5 million every year for the past five years to keep their facility updated. Collum’s Lumber is one of the South14
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east’s leading single-site SYP volume producers, surpassing 5MMBF the first week of May to break their weekly board feet production record and are in stride to exceed 220MMBF in 2021 after recent installations to its sawmill and planer mill. “We’ve kept this mill modern and efficient since we rebuilt it and basically tore it down to the dirt inside that building in 2001,” Micky says. “We’re not
going to let it get back to where it was. That’s one reason why you see these older mills sell out because they got behind the curve. Our equipment stays updated, period.” Three D Metal Works, Inc., Andrews, provides all outside contracting for Collum’s sawmill installations and worked with the Scotts on the 2001 rebuild. Recent upgrades include a USNR verti-
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Inside the canter are two 28 in. conical chip heads on each side and 16 knives in the chip head. The 12 in. double arbor gang runs 19 in. saws. 48 saws total are fitted in the gang, 24 on top and 24 on bottom, with eight knives. Hutto says their operators have the ability to go online and delete or add saws from their network. “If our guy in the cab sees a saw that has a bad shoulder, mismatch or is sticking, they can disable or avoid it,” he says. There’s an ongoing joke among the folks at Collum’s Lumber that their throughput is never fast enough for Micky. Every time someone tells him he can’t increase production he finds a way to prove them wrong, just like he did some years ago with the McGehee curvesawing gang that close-couples the profiler. “You’re not going to see a gang running as fast as ours. We run at speeds supposedly you can’t do. Mathematically, the guys who know more than me say ‘no you can’t do that,’” Micky explains. “Well, bull crap. You can. We have an excellent saw shop that stays on their game. You can run a 2x12 through our gang at the same speed as a 2x6 and we do it. That’s why we get the throughput we do 14-34 in. DBH logs are targeted, and those crazy production numproducing a high percentage of bers per hour.” Another addition, #1 and prime select. in 2019, was an ElectraTong lug loader, new unscrambler and BioVision scanner installed at the USNR trimmer. The planer mill received a facelift in July 2020, replacing a ’99 Yates A95 model with an eight-roll Miller planer. After adding two pineapples to the infeed table, lumber travels 2,000 FPM to the planer. Mickey Faircloth, planer mill manager, can now view the planer’s temperature and vibration trends through the network’s online interface. “Yesterday I noticed a spike in this bottom head motor shaft bearing. Come to find out I had an issue with the drive line and some bearings,” he explains. “This purple line had spiked which is outside the realm of normalcy. I’m able leviated bottlenecks at the edger. to see temperatures in the planer head, “We eliminated the three man rotaguides and plates.” tion, added 100,000 board feet a day to The entire front end of the planer mill this line,” Greg Hutto, sawmill manager, was replaced, upgrading the feed table, says. “All the side boards were coming infeed bridge and installing a new back to the edger and these fellas were USNR tilt hoist in January 2021. Inrunning the edger from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 stead of having to continuously watch at night. Now the deck is almost comand adjust packs of lumber with foot pletely empty and everything coming out pedals and switches, lasers and cameras the gang goes straight to the trimmer.” can measure how much higher one side
NDARD
cal arbor profiler in July 2020, increasing production 20MBF per hour. The turnkey project took only two weeks to complete. “Just by putting that profiler in we got rid of bottlenecks galore throughout the mill. Our edger was getting bogged down and giving us fits,” Micky says. “It’s helped us tremendously with flow and speed.” The profiler installation eliminated three physical jobs from the sort station and al-
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A USNR tilt hoist was among several upgrades made to the planer mill’s front end. The USNR profiler installation increased production 20MBF per hour while taking heat off the edger.
Lucidyne grader collects information through color-coded sensors and uses algorithms to detect knots. Faircloth explains: “When lasers hit a cell in a board the light travels to each end of it. It looks black or white depending on fiber’s direction. Looking at these images you see a lighter area running parallel with the board and the darker area coming closer to the camera. Normally the fiber cells are going up the tree but if you have a knot they grow the opposite direction of the fibers and its image looks darker. This lets you know how big a defect in the wood is and combines information to come up with the best option based on knot sizing for a number one, two, even a number three.” Before the Lucidyne installation, eight to nine lumber graders sorted boards one by one. Only one to two graders are needed now to ensure boards are valued accurately, and can override the scanner’s decision with a fluorescent crayon when necessary. Kirk Odermatt, scanner technician, compares the Lucidyne grader to machine learning through facial recognition. “It’s a great, big library of data continuously updated in the Lucidyne network. It starts to recognize and learn and just gets better,” he says. “There’s so much software in those 40 computers. If you want to go back one thousand boards and look at the details of each board you can analyze it for hours.” A Signode printing system labels each board’s grade and identification number with a barcode that correlates with the Lucidyne grader. “We can pull that board ID number and look at all the data of that board. Where the defect was, how many knots, how wide, it’s really something else,” Faircloth says. “I started in 1995 as a lumber grader. If you would have told me back then we would be grading lumber like this I would of said you were nuts.”
LUMBER END
The eight-roll planer’s temperature and vibration trends are tracked through Collum’s network interface.
is than the other and adjust the height of the let down table so packs slide off even and smooth. Collum’s Lumber contracts Brian Beard, Southern Millwright & Supply Co. Inc., Estill, for all planer mill installations. 16
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A Lucidyne GradeScan automated lumber grading system was installed nine years ago at the planer’s outfeed and five new image processers were added in November 2019 to grade lumber faster. Now with 30IPs (image processors), the
At 68 years old, Micky says he’s experienced quite a few profitable years of lumber markets but this year reached unprecedented heights. Skimming through a Random Lengths weekly report and pointing to the inflated lumber prices, Micky explains why they decided to retire their treating business started in the 1970s at the end of June 2021. “We supplied treated lumber to two Lowes districts and were only running (the treating plant) four days a week because big box stores’ demand for it is half what it ought to be right now. Customers walk in the store and see treated
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2x12s for $120 a piece, get sticker shock and walk out the door with nothing. We couldn’t have picked a better time to stop our treating facility.” Producing 60% prime or better Micky believes 90% of their white lumber will be sold to third-party treating plants. “We knock heads on sales with those guys in the treating business but they all want to buy our lumber because they know the quality we produce,” he says. “They’re our best customers. Whatever we aren’t treating they want to buy.” The Allendale site also comprises a reman facility and pole mill. Larger logs can be merchandised as barn and utility poles. Utility poles are dried, framed and predrilled to ensure when it leaves the yard it’s ready to be treated and put into the ground. Micky says the Port of Savannah is the hub of log exports on the eastern seaboard right now with approximately 250 containers transported to China per day. “Logging exports are killing us right now,” he says, adding that Collum’s does some as well. Micky has seen Savannah’s port start and stop half a dozen times in the last 10 years but believes this time is different. “Since the Russians quit exporting logs
Kirk Odermatt, scanner technician, oversees the Lucidyne GradeScan automated lumber grader.
to China, and Australia and New Zealand, they’ve just opened the doors wide open here,” he says. “China has the pedal to the metal and aren’t even acting like they want to slow down.”
MILL FLOW Collum’s Lumber owns approximately 50,000 acres of timberland in the surrounding area and buys stumpage for 15
contract loggers to control the quality of logs received. The sawmill accepts 160 trucks daily. Logs 14-34 in. DBH are targeted to produce a high percentage of #1 and prime select lumber. Micky says their loggers move 300 loads to their own mill and several others daily. Smaller logs are hauled to Elliot Sawmilling Co., Inc., Estill, and Dempsey Wood Products, Inc. in Orangeburg. Collum’s owns two in-woods
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Five Wellons batch kilns dry lumber in 20 hours, targeting 17% moisture content. Taylor forklifts transport lumber stacks to and from the site’s new storage distribution center.
chipping operations and two grinding operations. The bulk of their fuel chips are hauled to Atlantic Power, a biomass plant located one mile down the road from Collum’s Lumber. Clean chips are hauled to IP in Savannah by truck, WestRock in Charleston by rail and truck, GP in Brunswick by rail, Swiss Krono in Barnwell by truck, and Oldcastle Mulch Products, Walterboro. Anything less than 900MSF produced per shift Micky considers inefficient. Collum’s Lumber runs 68 hours including 12-hour super shifts five days a week and one Saturday every month. The mill has two infeed decks, the west deck for smaller logs and the east deck for larger logs. A Fulghum crane supplies both decks and all logs run through a 36 in.
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The sawmill features two infeeds, the east deck for smaller logs and the west deck for larger logs.
Valon-Kone Kodiak debarker and MDI metal detector. The PSI (now Endurance) merchandiser’s first two saws are 84 in. to accommodate larger butts and the last three 72 in. Logs are scanned by an MPM scanner and an alarm alerts
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the operator if the log meets the parameters of a pole. A set of drop-down arms direct logs to a holding bay below the mill if they meet the requirements of a pole. Larger logs run through the Corley carriage side and then a McDonough
horizontal resaw. Smaller logs proceed through a USNR log gap scanning system and into an optimized USNR DLI line, including the side chipping heads and twin bandmill. Pieces from both the DLI and carriage
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an Alabama native, and mother both graduated from the University of South Carolina. M. L. Scott was a three-year letterman at USC and was drafted professionally but a bad knee steered him out of football and led him to Collum’s Lumber. The operation, which is now in its fourth generation, was incorporated in 1936 with Micky’s grandfather, U. W. Collum. Their lumber history goes back even further, to 1928, as Collum and Shealy, who was Micky’s great uncle. Collum sold the company to M.L. Scott
who became president in 1951. Today Hank serves as CEO, Micky and Bill are vice presidents. The business employs 225 including in-woods operations and the sawmill. A few of their children, the fourth generation, are working for the sawmill business. “Some of our kids have been willing to come back,” Micky says. “But knowing some of the mills that have sold, their kids didn’t want to do what it takes to run a sawmill. We’ve been approached here but it’s just now becomTP ing really fun.”
Mickey Faircloth, planer mill manager
side pass through a two-zone log optimizer to generate ideal profile and cant recovery. The edger is CAE and trimmer station is USNR. In the planer mill a USNR tilt hoist indexes boards and feeds the new eightroll Miller planer. The outfeed consists of the Lucidyne automated grader. In 2018 they added a second Hogue stacker and Signode strapper line. Packs of lumber are secured with three Signode strappers then transported with three Taylor forklifts and jockey trucks to a new and large $7 million storage distribution center, installed last year. “In case there’s a problem I want every opportunity to get that wood out,” Faircloth says. “Started out with the second strapper line in case I needed to do maintenance and didn’t think this (Moco) stacker could keep up.” On site are five Wellons batch kilns. Three 70 ft. steam kilns have a 68MBF capacity each and are powered by green sawdust and dry planer shavings from the sawmill and planer mill. Kilns four and five are natural gas fired and Micky’s preferred method of drying. Across the street, kiln number four has a 157MBF capacity and is used to dry poles which can take up to four days depending on length. The fifth kiln is the largest at 173MBF. Lumber takes on average 20 hours to reach 17% moisture content. Band saws are outsourced locally and head filer, James Ashby, focuses on circle saws, working primarily with Vollmer equipment.
BACKGROUND Micky and his brothers have been working at Collum’s Lumber for as long as they can remember. In high school when a load needed to be hauled Micky would hop in the cab and help. His dad, TIMBER PROCESSING
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SIDE-BY-SIDE A strong representation of sawmill owners and supervisory personnel—many of them from independent lumber companies—combed the aisles of the Southern Forest Products Assn. Machinery & Equipment Exposition held August 11-13 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. A strong lineup of equipment and technology exhibitors were on hand to greet them. Some new concerns with regard to the virus didn’t damper any spirits, not with lumber markets still booming and machinery orders piling up. While marveling at the wave of greenfield, brownfield and piecemeal project startups, the unanimous consent seemed to be that a lot more are on the way, and that machinery orders taken at the show were plentiful. The photos shown here provide a glimpse at one of the first large, indoor sawmill machinery expos held in the world since the outbreak of the pandemic.
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Productivity & Efficiency Huey Long spoke on the use of data to improve your bottom line.
Mike Steele honed in on the different avenues to reach better lumber recovery.
Parker Dempsey talked about his sawmill’s capital projects implementation.
Doug Tinsley focused on recent advancements in dual path continuous dry kilns.
Timber Processing produced the Productivity & Efficiency Conference as sponsored by Southern Forest Products Assn. during the second day of the SFPA Expo. In addition to the above speakers, participants included Furman Brodie of Charles Ingram Lumber, Bernie Pahlke of BEP Engineering, Kerry Wilson of Greg F Smith Co., Joey Nelson of JoeScan, Dave Purinton of The Wood Fiber Group, Ingo Wallocha of Valutec, and Floyd Vocque with American Wood Dryers. Three sessions covered Continuous Dry Kilns, Project Implementation, and Lumber Recovery. Approximately 100 lumbermen, consultants and equipment representatives signed on for the sessions.
Person of the Year
Jordan Family of Companies brought a lot of the house from its sawmill operations to support Timber Processing’s 33rd Annual Person of the Year award presentation. Jessica Johnson, TP senior associate editor, presented the plaque to Robert Jordan, IV, President and CEO of Jordan, in recognition of his longstanding leadership and innovation. BID Group hosted a reception following the presentation. 24
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DOWNSTREAM EDITOR’S NOTE: The following companies submitted these editorial profiles and images to complement their advertisements placed elsewhere in this issue. Please refer to those advertisements for web site and contact information. All statements and claims are attributable to the companies.
BID GROUP Certain sawmill operations can be maximized using artificial intelligence (AI). That’s the case for wood species and wood defect detection. BID Group’s AI platform offers unmatched accuracy, speed and high performance. The SpecPro offers the most accurate wood species detection in the industry. Its efficiency is not affected by any level of moisture content in the wood, and it also works very well with frozen wood. This system is based on Deep Learning (AI). It was designed to optimize wood drying but it can also detect species once the wood is dry. The SpecPro uses color vision then analyzes boards of different widths/thickness. There are no maximum board dimensions. The SpecPro is low maintenance, and the system can detect multiple species simultaneously with consistent results over 98%. Note that the SpecPro can also detect and process crayon marks (grade marks, trim marks, cut-in-two marks, etc.) on boards. The SpecPro can be integrated to an existing Comact transverse EdgExpert or TrimExpert in the sawmill, a GradExpert in the planer mill, or installed independently. It is also possible to add it to another manufacturer’s scanner. The upgrade and commissioning are simple to execute, and excellent results are obtained quickly. Wood defect detection with AI was developed extensively for the Comact GradExpert and all detections are available on the TrimExpert and transverse EdgExpert, namely the detection of wood species, knots, rot, water pockets, and crayon marks. Note that it is also possible to integrate rot detection on a Comact trimmer without vision, using the SpecPro. In the short and medium term, our complete range of machines will benefit from developments in applications that go beyond optimization. BID Group’s objective is to meet the client’s current and future needs in an outstanding manner with its brand portfolio and offer a return on investment unparalleled by competition. All of this is supported by BID Group’s renowned 24/7 service.
CLEEREMAN INDUSTRIES
Cleereman Industries unveils optimized edger 28
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Cleereman Industries offers the latest addition to a now complete lineup of log and lumber breakdown machinery. Building upon a long-term reputation for superior customer service and long-lasting machinery that includes all types of material handling, debarkers, carriages, trim saws and the revolutionary LumberPro, Cleereman Industries is approaching optimized edging the same way. Company Vice-President Paul Cleereman states that with the successful addition of Cleereman Controls, a division of Cleereman Industries that provides setworks, scanning, optimization and flow control systems, adding a line of optimized edgers is the next logical step. The new Cleereman edger line was produced following an extensive review of all major edgers currently available to locate fail-points and recurring maintenance issues with the goal of building the most efficient, durable and affordable optimized edger available today. Poly belt drive system to eliminate chains and sprockets, huge 3 15⁄16 in. mandrels, full 1 in. thick main frames, revolutionary preliminary placement infeed table design, ductile saw collars, 8 in. chromed, knurled driven rolls, remote greasing and standalone oils system are just a few examples of how that is accomplished. The new line of Cleereman optimized edgers utilizes JoeScan heads and is available in many standard configurations including: optimized and non-optimized, 2 or 3
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DOWNSTREAM saw, 4 in. and 6 in. depth of cut, 42-54 in. wide options and even combination gang models. In addition, every Cleereman edger comes with Cleereman Controls so you never deal with multiple vendors, providing a single point of contact for any unforeseen challenges for the life of your machine.
CONE OMEGA
Cone Omega, LLC., well known for its innovative primary breakdown equipment systems, also offers a full line of secondary breakdown equipment that includes horizontal and vertical gang saw systems and high-speed edger systems. Gang saw options include conventional straight sawing in both horizontal and vertical configurations as well as our unique Curve Canting and Linebar Curve sawing system. Both straight and curve sawing systems are offered with or without profiling. The edger product line includes 2, 3, 4 and 5 saw all with or without a reman option. Both the Cone Omega downstream lumber sawing and handling gang and edger lines utilize a rugged and reliable feed table design. Our vertical gangs are for use with our four-sided canter lines. The vertical gangs are offered in a single (VSA) or double (VDA) arbor configuration depending on log size and product mix. Our vertical gangs all feature a unitized main frame with heavy duty components and simple but accurate adjustment for many years of service. The arbor on the linebar side is offered as a bank of fixed saws or a split shifting rack, that allows the user to produce 5⁄4 lumber, 7⁄4 lumber and 4 in. and 6 in. timbers in combination all on the fly. The curve canter chips around the curve to prepare cants for the linebar curve gang that is out of line from the canter. We offer multiple shifting timbers pockets and multiple banks of saws for various board thicknesses all in the same guide configuration. Since the gang is a versa gang style machine it can shift relative to the linebar as needed and the guide banks shift independently of the main box. The infeed roll module in front of the gang includes the patented variable pitch, variable lead linebar system for super accurate sawing around the curve. The edger line features precision adjustment of all components and simplicity of design for maximum reliability. We are now offering our super fetcher feed table with our edger systems. The super fetcher design uses linear bearings and rails for maximum reliability. We have many units in operation capable of averaging 35-40 ppm and up to 45 ppm.
MCDONOUGH McDonough’s complete line of board edgers ranges from some of the fastest optimized edger systems in the world to manual edgers and combination edgers for smaller sawmills. The OptiFit linear edger has become the most popular edger system for modern hardwood sawmills based on its ability to deliver exceptional yield, short payback and longterm durability based on the proven McDonough linear edger sawbox. Recently, McDonough launched a whole new class of edger system, the Sterling YieldBoss Hybrid Edger, which is made for mills looking for a combination of affordability and performance. l Optimized Edgers OptiFit Linear Edger—Designed to McDonough edger systems—optimized, hybrid and manual 30
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DOWNSTREAM fit in every hardwood sawmill, the McDonough OptiFit linear board edger maximizes yield without having to expand your sawmill, resulting in huge gains in yield and profitability. Optimized Linear Board Edger—McDonough has established itself as the industry leader in the optimized board edger market with all the unique design features of our linear board edger systems. Field experience and customer consultation, combined with careful engineering, ensure our board edger is the most accurate and easiest to maintain board edger. Optimized Transverse Board Edger—Available as a dedicated board edger or gang, this machine can also be configured to handle both boards and cants to maximize the return on your investment in optimization and machinery at the one highly efficient machine center. With board edger piece counts of up to 40 pieces per minute, this machine is designed to drop right into your existing edger footprint with our unique short coupled outfeed system. Dramatic increases in yield over conventional board and gang edgers make this machine a quick payback candidate for any sawmill. l Hybrid Edgers Sterling YieldBoss Hybrid Edger—Revolutionary new approach to edging that combines the benefits of optimized saw placement with the simplicity of a manual edger system. l Manual Edgers Manual and combination edgers—McDonough’s complete line of manual 2 saw, 3 saw and combination board/gang edgers are designed with durability and accuracy in mind.
MELLOTT
Gessner Sawmill, located in Lykens, Pa., recently installed a Mellott custom designed mill system. The drop saw trimmer and grading station line create an integrated flow to maximize efficiency and trimming accuracy along with grade recovery. The system includes a Mellott 6 ft. 17° slant band headrig, 42 in. bar turner, drop belt, rollcases, transfers and vibrating conveyor systems. The installation included a Cleereman LP42 tilted carriage. Gessner Sawmill opted to rebuild its fire damaged Mellott 48 in. debarker, converting it to hydro-electric, to be used as a butt reducer ahead of a Nicholson R2 ring debarker, then is followed by a Mellott belt conveyor with a MDI TWA-2000-HD surround metal detector system. The Mellott ruggedly built trimmer is designed with the ability to be used for production of crane mat material, trims up to 8 in. and will pass 12 in. New Mellott drop saw trimmer at Gessner sawmill cants. Not only is this trimmer heavily built, the innovative saw ladder design allows for quick belt replacement without loss of saw alignment. The trimmer features dual assists springs to raise saws quickly and stacked cylinders for three saw positions (trimming, partially raised to pass boards and small cants, fully raised to pass thru ties and large cants). The trimmer system is made of modular components and the controls packages are easily designed to fit each particular application. To make installation as seamless as possible Mellott Manufacturing fully tests the trimmer system before shipping. The Mellott grading station line creates a conveyor network of chains and belt tipples to control the flow of material as it exits the drop saw trimmer. At that time the destination of the material is predetermined by the drop saw trimmer operator. From the grading station platform, the grader with the flipper and tipples has a clear view of both faces for grading and can easily turn to relook at a face. The board can then be transferred to a belt conveyor for rework or onto a green chain for final sorting. Mellott provides inhouse controls engineering and PLC programing creating smooth flowing systems. Mellott systems are custom designed as required. Customers benefit by having manufacturing along with in-house engineering and design capabilities and a willingness to work together to provide the best options for each project. 32
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DOWNSTREAM PROGRESS ENGINEERING Progress Engineering, LLC specializes in designing and implementing innovative process automation and control solutions for manufacturing facilities. We provide electrical engineering services to the forest products industry throughout the United States. Our extensive experience covers all sawmill operations from the log yard to the warehouse. Board yield (recovery) is vital to a mill’s success. However, achieving the most efficient cutting solutions—whether at your primary log breakdown, edger or trimmer— may prove difficult and expensive, especially in a manual feed system. To address this challenge, Progress Engineering has developed the PRO Suite of optimization systems, providing solutions that are very cost-effective, efficient and precise. EdgePRO, TrimPRO and LogPRO use advanced scanning technology and our custom software to max- Progress Engineering transverse scanner optimization imize board products and decrease waste, and include a wide selection of features to guarantee your success, including: —Analyzing either linear or transverse 3-D scans from your preferred scanner provider —Processing of multiple grades, allowing for operator selection prior to scanning —Multiple products per grade, configurable by size and wane rules, including individual product wane rules for thickness, width (face), and length —Configurable 3D “Cloud” views and configurable scan recording —Online and offline modes —System diagnostic view and logging —Solutions stored in Microsoft SQL-Server for easy connectivity to other applications —EdgePRO allows a variety of value-optimized solutions including: single-board, random width edger solutions; single and multi-board nominal width edger solutions; and multi-product gang edger solutions Founded in 2000 and located in Maine, Progress Engineering’s licensed professionals bring extensive industrial automation experience to our clients’ projects. The PRO Suite of optimization systems is just one of the thoughtfully designed, common sense controls solutions on which we’ve built our reputation.
TS MANUFACTURING
TS Manufacturing gang edger nearing shipment 34
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TS Manufacturing has become a sought out supplier for our trimming-sorting-stacking-automatic stick placing lines due to our continual improvement of products—such as our electric servo stacker and our automatic stick placer. “The innovation in our automatic stick placer allows us to use sticks that are extremely curved compared to our competition needing to have straighter sticks,” states Riley Smith, Sales Manager at TS. “This means customers do not have to buy sticks as often with our machine, greatly affecting the payback of a stick placer.” Adding electric servos to the stacker forks cycle and lift has also been very well received by customers. The servo control allows for almost infinite adjustment on the PLC programming for different settings when doing 1 in. boards or 6x6 cants. TS also has a long history of building edgers dating back to the mid/late 1970s. Lineal and transverse optimized board edgers, lineal combination edgers, thin-kerf gangs, combination edgers, manual board edgers, etc. are some machines they have done over the years. Our latest gang edger project was a new development, which
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DOWNSTREAM is a thin-kerf 8 in. gang with curve sawing capability and side chipping heads. This machine comes with an automatic positioning infeed table in which the optimized solution is tracked from the upstream twin saw optimizer eliminating the need for a gang optimizer. “This new edger allows TS to provide a high production machine for medium to large sawmills,” Smith adds. “It will complement our downstream trimmer sorting systems that run up to 120 LPM. This new edger is installed and was being commissioned at press time.” The new gang installation features an Automation & Electronics optimizer on the upstream twin saw line that hands off the gang solution to the gang PLC. This project further expands the A&E offering of optimizers, which also include lineal and transverse edger optimization, as well as trimmer, carriage and merchandizing/log bucking optimizers. TS Manufacturing offers a complete line of machinery, controls and software to fit your mill and have been for more than 49 years.
WEINIG In modern wood processing, simple and fully automatic optimization is the key to efficient and high-performance production. The EasyScan Smart is the new addition to the innovative and completely redeveloped product portfolio of the Weinig scanners. The scanner features state-of-the-art sensor technology at an affordable price level. High quality, industrial-grade sensors and modern construction methods make EasyScan Smart the ideal platform for stable and efficient production performance. The scanner has been designed to operate in combination with one or two crosscut saws but is available for other applications as well. Together with the OptiCore software, the EasyScan Smart not only brings your production completely new optimization possibilities, but also offers the maximum production control and transparency of your manufacturing process at an affordable cost. Thanks to a small footprint, it is the perfect solution for upgrading existing lines, but also a useful addition in new optimizing lines. The new EasyScan Smart has been deWeinig EasyScan Smart for crosscutting and sorting signed for two applications: cross-cutting (Easyscan Smart C) and sorting (Easyscan Smart S). From small entry-level production to large manufacturing facilities, the EasyScan Smart is a reliable partner. Some key features and benefits: —Laser and color sensors to identify all types of defects: knots, pith, cracks, 3D surface defects, such as holes, wane and edge defects —Sealed climate control system to protect the sensors and their accuracy —Artificial intelligence-based defect detection that uses Deep Learning to automatically analyze and identify wood defects and to get continually better at detecting them. —Dual Scatter technology (one dot and one line laser) for improved cutting —Automatic camera positioning for best resolution and image quality —Shape Scan technology for a maximum allowed bend, bow or twist. —You choose your application: l Cross-cutting: The EasyScan Smart C is your way to go. l Sorting: The EasyScan Smart S is your best bet. —Optional marking station when direct data connection or complex machination aren’t possible. The EasyScan Smart detects the relevant timber defects (knots, wane, holes etc.) on all sides in the blink of an eye on softwood as well as hardwood and supplies this data to one or two crosscut saws downstream at full production speed. 36
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DOWNSTREAM USNR SAM (Self-Adjusting Machines) technology scans each piece before and after every cutting device, effectively replacing many quality control functions typically performed manually. Scanning before the cutting device enables the optimizer to develop a breakdown solution, identify the current position of the piece, and set the machine’s cutting devices to optimally break it down. Scanning afterwards identifies how the piece was actually cut. Using data trends from this second scan, SAM feeds corrections to the PLC. Automated quality control systems have been available for years from third parties, but to fully close the loop requires the original optimization data. For example, to automatically adjust the edger system it is necessary to know how the flitch was positioned before the saws, as well as the measurements of the resulting piece. If the piece is not on size or was not cut at the target location, it’s important to know which saw is out of position, and the amount and direction that it needs to be adjusted. This is where USNR’s SAM technology closes the loop, providing complete data to automatically adjust the saws. SAM technology is already operating in several mills, measuring the size, shape and position of logs, cants and flitches before each processing step—then measuring again after cutting using Flitch Matching technology. SAM combines the before-and-after measurements with the optimizer’s solution to determine the differences between what was intended to be cut, and what was actually cut, as well as identify which saws, chippers and positioners were used to process each piece. After collecting a statistically significant set of samples, SAM calculates how to bias the PLC to minimize those errors, making recommendations for each saw, chipper and positioner. QC staff can manually approve and implement these recommendations, or SAM can automatically implement the adjustments. The mill is always in control of which approval mode they choose. Imagine a mill where products are quality controlled through technology and QC staff is deployed for higher level analytical work. Manual quality control measurement for PLC correction is seldom required. Now it’s possible to operate at peak efficiency, value recovery, throughput performance, and safety.
Now Taking Nominations for the Timber Processing
PERSON OF THE YEAR
Timber Processing is taking nominations for its 2022 Person of the Year, which will be the 34th year the award has been given. Please send nominations and a quick paragraph of support to rich@hattonbrown.com. Timber Processing will announce the award in the January 2022 issue and will present it during the Timber Processing & Energy Expo scheduled for September 28-30, 2022 at the Portland Exposition Center in Oregon. 38
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MISSISSIPPI
GROWING By Patrick Dunning
All of the Southern U.S. has become a hotbed of sawmill projects in the past half dozen years, and Mississippi is one of the leaders.
“T
here is no better place to grow the business than the fiber-rich state of Mississippi,” commented Tim Biewer, President & CEO of Biewer Lumber, upon the company’s announcement earlier this year to construct a $130 million green-
field SYP sawmill in Winona, Miss. What made Biewer’s comment unique is that Biewer Lumber is headquartered in Clair, Mich. and has made a name for itself through its four red pine sawmills in Michigan and Wisconsin. The Winona facility started construction in June and is expected to be operational early next year and employ 150. It’s modeled after Biewer’s sawmill in Newton, Miss., which started up in early 2017 and added a second line in 2019, increasing production capacity to 350MMBF. Michigan-based Biewer’s migration to Mississippi is but one example of ongoing sawmill and wood products industry projects in the Magnolia State, which brings 20 million acres of timberland to the table. In other words, Mississippi is open for wood products business and companies aren’t hesitating to walk through the door. The state’s lumber manufacturing land-
scape looked different just a little over a decade ago. Hurricane Katrina diminished market opportunities along the Gulf Coast in 2005 and the Great Recession shuttered mills throughout the state beginning in 2008, resulting in lost capacity. Private landowners, who collectively own 77% of Mississippi’s forestland, held onto their investments during the slowdown, letting standing timber keep growing. “We lost several independent mills through the recession,” reflects Tedrick Ratcliff, Jr., Executive Vice President of Mississippi Forestry Assn. (MFA). “When the housing downturn happened, some mills that were struggling didn’t make it. There was an outcry among landowners. They wanted more market opportunity. Even if the mill in their community didn’t shut down, the price fell dramatically so landowners decided to wait and their timber continued to grow.”
Biewer Lumber started the greenfield wave in the South at Newton, Miss. 40
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As the economy gradually turned around, not only did upgrade projects in sawmills began picking up but there came a surge of “huge” projects, many of them greenfield, beginning with Biewer Lumber’s announcement in late 2016 that it would build one in Newton for $85 million and create 125 jobs. “I met with Biewer Lumber’s business development team five years ago and helped introduce them to economic developers,” Ratcliff says. “That project was fun to work on and showed us as a state we can do this. That (Newton) mill was the first of its kind built in the South and was the first one people paid attention to.” 25-year reserves of underutilized wood supply were ripe for the harvest. In 2018 Vicksburg Forest Products was formed by the VanDevender family ownership from the Southeastern Timber Products sawmill in Ackerman upon the purchase of the former Anderson-Tully sawmill in Vicksburg. The initial plan was to convert the longstanding hardwood lumber mill to softwood, but not long after that was done the company announced an additional $40 million investment to expand annual production capacity to 180MMBF. Shortly after that, Blue Wolf Capital Partners equity firm announced an investment in Vicksburg Forest Products and the mill is currently completing a log sawing line in addition to dry kiln enhancements. Meanwhile, the Ackerman sawmill is now a joint venture with Tolko Industries, and a large expansion is under way, beginning with a just completed new trimmer line. In September 2020, Mission Forest Products, a subsidiary of Timberland Investment Resources, announced it would build a $160 million, 250MMBF sawmill in Corinth, bringing with it 130 direct jobs. Financing would be through capital provided by investors that TIR represents. Two months later Idaho Forest Group, headquartered in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, announced an investment of $120 million to build a sawmill in Lumberton and create up to 135 jobs in Lamar County. IFG operates multiple sawmills in Idaho and Montana. Mission Forest Products, on the other hand, brings a timberland management and investment background to the table. Christopher Mathis, President of Mission Forest Products and managing director of real estate and corporate development at Timberland Investment Resources, says TIR manages 650,000 acres of timberland and when they took over timberland in this market, the gap between pulpwood and saw timber wasn’t significant.
A plentiful sawlog resource continues to entice sawmill projects to the state. (Photo of log deck at Shuqualak Lumber)
“We looked at the mill market from a timber perspective and said it’s really underserved,” Mathis says. “If we can buy our wood significantly cheaper than our competitors in a commodity-based business, if the product market is good, then with a new sawmill with newer technology, we would be in a good position from a cost perspective. Low cost wins.” He adds that an area paper mill closure and another paper mill reduction in capacity contributed to the positive sawlog timber resource situation. In addition to the timber supply, Mission Forest Products identified Corinth because of its northern-most-south location, railroad access and logistical advantages to growing markets and infrastructure in Nashville, Memphis and the Midwest. “The community is super excited about it,” he says. “The longevity of what we’re proposing, when you look at putting in a new facility that’s super competitive and has good paying jobs, that’s not going to go away. It’s going to be there for generations to come.” MFP will create 130 direct jobs and run two 10-hour shifts. As of mid-August, the sawmill site land had been scraped, and machinery orders were in motion. Marc Brinkmeyer, owner of Idaho Forest Group, says he’s pleased with how well they have been treated by the Area Development Partnership, Lamar County officials, as well as area engineers and contractors, including the quality of work and “thoughtfulness with respect to our way of doing things.” “For our company we continue to grow in the industry and we see great opportunity in the South,” he says. “There’s an abundance of fiber, great
workforce, solid logging operation support, good outlets for residual fiber and it’s closer to Eastern markets.” With assistance from the local community college and the county, Brinkmeyer says, “We want to build a team of people in the South and turn them loose. We are here to stay. But we are earning our stripes. We are coming into the business community, we are not part of the business community. We have to earn our way.” Through July, the mill had nearly completed site preparation, concrete work was ahead of schedule, made good progress on structural steel, while wrapping up the canter line building’s footings and flat slab among other advancements. The Lumberton mill, as with Biewer’s Newton and Winona mills, are primarily BID Group projects, as are numerous other sawmills that have started up in the South in recent years. These Mississippi projects have started up and are coming to fruition through various arrangements with Mississippi Development Authority, area development partnerships, county boards of supervisors, economic development groups, community colleges, local mayors, city councils and the governor’s office. While the large greenfield and brownfield projects capture the headlines, not to be forgotten are the “smaller” projects, if you can call $12.5 million smaller, which is what Grenada-based Hankins Lumber invested to build and start up a timbers mill this past April at a former LP site. Shuqualak Lumber in Shuqualak completed a major installation in its green end, in time to take advantage of the tremendous lumber market of the past year. The list goes on. TP TIMBER PROCESSING
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PRODUCTSCANNER10 LOG MERCHANDISER LogPro from Timber Automation has been the leader in innovation of high speed merchandiser systems for more than two decades. With those years of experience, they have refined their system for safety, performance and durability. More mills continue to choose the LogPro log bucking system because it is the most accurate and highest producing system. Ensuring the safety of both your operators and your investment, the LogPro design incorporates redundant positioning measuring systems, a safety gate
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(All statements and claims are attributable to the companies.)
system, balanced saw arms to naturally retract in a power failure emergency and electro mechanical safety brakes on travel drives. These improvements eliminate historical concerns with hydraulic linear cylinders. Electric powered designs offer smooth and accurate bucking at high piece rates of up to 16 stems per minute, and the allelectric design reduces energy consumption by at least 40% over previous systems. With saws positioned via flux vector electronic drives with encoder feedback, merchandised length accuracy is reliable and consistent. If needed, the infinite travel of electric saw module positioning allows most mills to easily expand for higher throughput by adding additional shifting saws. Specifications: —Designed for stems up to 36" diameter and 70' length —Per minute throughput of up to 45 logs or 16 treelength stems —Run speed up to 700 FPM linearly —Consistent saw positioning within +/- ¼" Visit timberna.com.
USNR OFFERS CORTEX USNR now offers the Cortex knife system, a cost effective, long life solution featuring chip heads and disposable knives. Cortex knives are known for superior quality and long life, while maintaining the convenience, low maintenance, and cost effectiveness of disposable chipper knives. This is a direct replacement for your existing knife system. Chip heads are available in both conical and drum design. Cortex knives offer a smooth surface finish that is ground across the grain to improve the edge. Cortex knives are the highest quality alloy with refined grain structure for durability and wear resistance. They typically last twice as long. Conical and drum style chipper heads are applicable to slabbers, canters, profilers, and reman heads on edgers. Knives and parts are a direct replacement for existing units. Benefits include: —Increased production: Longer knife life allows mills to eliminate knife changes between and during shifts.
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PRODUCTSCANNER10 —Improved board finish: The Cortex knife is accurately positioned and stable compared to other systems. —Safety: Eliminating knife changes provides a safer operating environment, while the smaller knife is easier to handle —Reduced operating cost: lower cost of parts and knives, and longer part and knife life Cortex knives can bolt onto any existing conical or drum style head for a low cost conversion. Existing conical head fitted with Cortex parts and knives results in 20% reduction in operating cost. Existing drum top head fitted with Cortex parts and knives results in 40% reduction in operating cost, wear parts last 12 months instead of four, knife life extends to two shifts from one, and significant improvement in board finish. Visit usnr.com.
BOARD PROFILER The LIMAB BoardProfiler has been sold for more than 30 years with more than 250 supplied to customers worldwide The system measures dimension and shape of boards on existing or new longitudinal or transverse board conveyor. The fourth version, BoardProfiler 3D with Classifier, is now upgraded and on the market. The Classifier calculates
which product a board is and delivers product type. Perfect for applications such as block control, shape measurement, glulam production. All BoardProfiler 3D versions use the same Limab sensors. Visit limab.se.
LIGNA.INNOVATION
September 27 marks the launch of the LIGNA.Innovation Network (LIGNA.IN)—a new digital format for the international woodworking and wood processing industry in the face of the ongoing challenges posed by the global COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the expo and networking segments of the event, the LIGNA.Innovation Network’s two-day conference program offers new formats for learning about the latest trends and making new contacts—for example, a series of interactive conferences will be broadcast live from the two H’Up stages in Hall 18 at the Hannover Exhibition Center. These events will replicate the well-known LIGNA Wood Industry Summit for the primary industry as well as the LIGNA.Forum for the secondary industry. The Wood Industry Summit Digital will focus on “Process Technologies of the Bioeconomy,” highlighting the economic and technical innovations resulting from new ways of working and processing wood as a key renewable resource. The LIGNA.Forum Digital will feature recognized experts on the focal topics of transformation in woodworking and prefabrication processes in timber construction. The agenda will include presentations on robotics in the wood and furniture industry and the production of a sample piece of furniture using RFID technology. Visitors will also be able to see how digitalization can be used to carry out project business, commercial business and contract work. TIMBER PROCESSING
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MACHINERYROW
LOG HANDLER SUPPORTS GELO MILL The sawmilling industry has continued its meteoric rise despite the strained economic situation in many other industries. In response to this surge in demand, one of Germany’s largest wood processing companies, GELO Holzwerke, decided in 2020 to make a far-reaching investment in
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Sennebogen 835 E manages the log yard.
a new small diameter log sawmill. And a featured machine in the sawmill is a Sennebogen 835 E electric material handler, which is now responsible for all log handling duties. At the end of 2020 and after 11 months of construction, the plant in the Wunsiedel Energy Park, Weißenstadt, went into operation exactly as scheduled. GELO Holzwerke along with a strategic partner combined to invest almost 40 million euros into the new site, where 50,000 solid cubic ft. (1400 cubic m) per day will be processed in a two-shift operation. To make this project a reality, an electrically driven Senneobgen 835 E with a unique rail gantry was imagined, designed and engineered. Built with precision, the track is 105 ft. (32 m) wide and travels a distance of 368 ft. (112 m) and fits seamlessly into the operation of the new plant. Matched to a Sennebogen 730 E, the pick & carry machine with all-wheel drive and a Tier 4 Final engine was also selected to unload incoming trucks as well as stocking the new infeed deck. GELO Holzwerke is committed to the major goal of sustainable management. This is achieved in three ways: 1) by the processing of renewable wood raw material; 2) by increased regional value through the neighboring, densely wooded Fichtelgebirge; 3) by using low-emission systems and machines that allow the large demand of the market to be well served. The decision to go with an electric machine was a significant step forward for Managing Director Wolf-Christian Küspert as he built a sustainable business while leading by example. A Sennebogen material handler with a 271 HP (200 kW) electric motor is used to transfer the logs from the sorting boxes to the stackers as well as to feed the sawmill. This eliminates exhaust emissions. Another advantage of an electric operation is that there are enormous savings in operating and service costs that are achieved through longer service intervals. In addition to the cost and emission savings, having built-in flexibility also played a major role in the purchase decision. The gantry design gives the operator the ability to move in all directions at the
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MACHINERYROW same time. This means that the material handler can be rotated 360 degrees while at the same time moving forward, reverse and sideways. These movements are possible due to an integrated trolley, which means that the gantry covers a very expansive working area. Thanks to the 30 ft. (8.9 m) long and curved banana boom and a loading stick with a length of 26 ft. (7.9 m), the 835 E achieves a reach of 50 ft. (15 m). For increased efficiency, attached to it is a Sennebogen hydraulic timber grab, which allows logs up to 20 ft. (6 m) in length to be easily moved. An excellent all-round view is provided by the Sennebogen Mastercab, which impresses drivers with various features such as a large-area floor window and an air-
suspension comfort driver’s station with heated seating. Manuel Wildgans, one of four machine operators at GELO Holzwerke, is thrilled with the new sawmill and the material handler. “The Sennebogen 835 E is the first machine of this size that I have been able to operate. In the meantime, all of us drivers have become accustomed to it and are pleased with the simple controls using the joysticks. At a height of over 33 ft. (10 m), we can now enjoy the best view over the entire site every day.” Article and image provided by Sennebogen. Visit sennebogen-na.com.
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MACHINERYROW Skeen Sawmills Buys GradeScan System Skeena Sawmills has purchased a GradeScan with Perceptive Sight 2.0 from Lucidyne and Wolftek (Lucidyne’s Canadian distributor) for installation in the Terrace, BC planer mill. After closely watching the performance of Lucidyne’s GradeScan at other Canadian mills, particularly those with the deep learning AI platform, Skeena recognized that GradeScan was the right application for its mill. All new Lucidyne GradeScans come
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standard with Lucidyne’s patented Intelligent Grading platform, using deep learning artificial intelligence for unmatched defect detection and grading results. Skeena also purchased Lucidyne’s Grade-VU Projector System, WarpScan, and EndScan to integrate with the GradeScan system. This project is scheduled for installation in October 2021. “We evaluated all the grade scanning systems available and chose the Lucidyne because it fit our facilities perfectly and is the most advanced system on the market. We are looking forward to see-
ing the improvements it will bring to our business,” comments Roger Keery, Skeena President.
Hurst Sales Manager Coffee Passes Charlie Emory Coffee, Jr., of Thomasville, Ga., solid fuel sales manager for Hurst Boiler and well respected throughout the wood products industry, died August 3. He was 65. Coffee worked for Hurst Boiler for 41 years. He was a member of Coolidge Baptist Church where he served as ➤ 50
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MACHINERYROW 46 ➤ deacon and taught the men’s Sunday school class. He enjoyed golfing and sailing. He would have been married to Connie Wilson Coffee for 47 years in August. Other survivors include three sons, Brandon, Seth and Jesse, and their spouses, his mother, Marjorie, a nephew, Zac Wilson, and numerous grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, a brother, two sisters, his prize goldfish, Wilber V,
and his loyal dog, Honey. Jeff Hurst commented, “His shining personality was second to none, his wisdom and knowledge of all things never surprised me.”
Andrew Pitts Led Pitts Trailer Growth Pitts Enterprises founder and former CEO, Andrew Pitts, Jr., who led the
company’s tremendous growth in the log trailer manufacturing business based in his hometown of Pittsview, Ala., died July 16. He was 90. Pitts grew up in Pittsview and attended Auburn University. He worked in his family’s businesses for several years, and formed East Alabama Trucks for hauling byproducts for sawmills in the area. He built his first logging trailer in 1976 and it turned out so well that the company soon found itself building a couple of trailers per month and by 1981 the trailer business was producing 100 trailers annually and was soon up to 300 per year while expanding its dealer network, and bringing in Andrew’s son, Jeff, into the business. Pitts will continue as a family business with Jeff Pitts, who has led the company as CEO since 2002. “My father never forgot his roots,” Pitts says. “He invested in people—from his family and friends to his employees and customers. He built this business on innovation, quality and value. He instilled those ideals in Pitts Enterprises, and they will live on.”
BE&E Continues To Build Up Team Jeff Niewedde has joined Biomass Engineering & Equipment as Chief Financial Officer. Before joining BE&E full time, Niewedde served as the company’s interim CFO and served in similar roles with two prior companies in streamlining processes and process improvement. Niewedde holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Information Systems from the University of Indianapolis and has 18 years of experience. “Jeff brings another level of maturity to our growing company,” says Dane Floyd, owner and CEO. “We’re more confident than ever about our position and ability to meet the ever-increasing demand for our products and services.”
COMING IN OCTOBER
GLOBAL SAWMILL MACHINERY
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ATLARGE
HAMILTON WAS KEY MAN FOR SCOTCH Marion Charles (Charlie) Hamilton, of Grove Hill, Ala., who devoted his career to Alabama-based Scotch Lumber and Scotch Plywood while also establishing other wood products business ventures, died July 18 following an illness. He was 83. Born and raised in a logging environment near Fulton, the son of longtime logger and legendary Scotch logging superintendent M.C. Hamilton, Charlie served in a range of positions for Scotch and was always encouraged by Scotch owner Billy Harrigan. Hamilton had graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1956 and continued his education at From logging to plywood, Charlie Hamilton loved all Auburn University, graduating in aspects of the southern pine industry. 1961 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry. Hamilton started at its three facilities, becoming mill managScotch Lumber and became responsible er and general manager. for land management and timber proIn the mid-1960s, the third generation curement, and was soon instrumental in of Scotch ownership, the Harrigan and the establishment of Scotch Plywood and O’Melia families, began looking into
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the possibilities of softwood plywood. Billy Harrigan put Hamilton on the task. “Charlie followed a train load of logs to Oregon and learned to do the impossible,” reflects Montgomery Woods, coowner of Scotch Plywood and former business partner of Hamilton’s. “He returned to Fulton to build and operate the first pine plywood mill east of the Mississippi. Charlie and his cohorts had no idea what they were doing, but through hard work and ingenuity, they created a business that has gone on to employs thousands of people and provide for countless associated businesses.” Scotch constructed the plywood mill just north of the Scotch Lumber Co. sawmill in Fulton. They produced their first plywood in August 1965. As demand increased for plywood, they expanded their timber procurement area by constructing a veneer mill with a log yard 60 miles west in
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ATLARGE Waynesboro, Miss. in 1969. In 1979 Scotch looked east to expand and a veneer mill with a log yard and dryer came online in Beatrice, Ala. In 1985, Hamilton co-formed Hamilton Timber Co. and in 1996 Hamilton and Woods opened the Hamilton Woods Veneer mill in Grove Hill. Hamilton served on the Alabama State Forestry Commission as Vice Chairman for 12 years. He retired from Scotch Plywood in 2012. A year later he sold his interest in Hamilton Timber Co. Hamilton was known as a man of his word, a person of honesty and integrity, and he expected likewise from his staff and co-workers. He had a giving nature and showed kindness to others. He loved to hunt, fish, camp and socialize with his buddies. He cherished the time he spent with his wife, children and grandchildren. Early in life Hamilton enlisted in the Federal Reserve and then joined the Alabama National Guard serving as an MP for 10 years. For 15 years, Hamilton was married to Sandra Nuss of Pine Hill, Ala. They had three daughters: Melissa Hamilton (Jill), Kate Huggins (Robby), and Meg Copeland (Todd). In 1979, Hamilton married Sherry Clark of Waynesboro. They were happily married for 43 years and have two daughters: Suzanne Howell (Steve) and Jessica Pierce (Loren). Hamilton was preceded in death by his parents, Millard Calvin Hamilton and Thelma Green Hamilton; M. C. Hamilton (brother) and Betty Hamilton Bradford (sister). He is survived by his wife, Sherry, his children and numerous grandchil- ➤ 57
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54 ➤ dren, brothers Bill and Jack Hamilton and a sister, Nita Hamilton Skellie. Funeral Services were held July 21 at Grove Hill United Methodist Church followed by entombment at Serenity Gardens Cemetery in Waynesboro. In lieu of flowers memorial donations can be given to the Grove Hill United Methodist Church or the Child Advocacy Center in Grove Hill, Ala.
Search NA Announces New President/Owner
ATLARGE ables like distance to the nearest mill, harvest costs and management practices will affect the timber supply, so forest market players can make informed decisions.” The team aims to design a model that is user-friendly and freely available. Once the finishing touches are made to the model’s programming, the app will be available for download in QGIS, or open source GIS software, as well as in python. See https://www.qgis.org/en/site/
or https://www.python.org/ for more information. “The model functions through mass amounts of regional data, both past and present, to predict future trends in the timber supply. Its output is dynamic and inherently linked to the needs of its user,” da Silva explains. Shaun Tanger, assistant professor at MSU’s Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi, is also on the project and
Search North America is pleased to announce that Richard Poindexter will be succeeding Carl Jansen as the new President, Owner, and Senior Recruiter of Search North America. Search North America is a search, recruiting and placement firm with a proven 39-year track record in the wood products industry, working with companies and individuals with their employment needs across the U.S. and Canada. Carl Jansen, Search North America’s founder, will stay on with the company as a Senior Recruiter and focus his efforts on the Western U.S. and Western Canada. Poindexter joined Search North America in 2020 after a 23-year career at Columbia Forest Products in multiple marketing and sales roles. For more information on Search North America, go to www.searchna.com or contact Richard at 336-456-8657 or email richardp@searchna.com.
MSU Model Depicts Market Variables An assistant research professor in Mississippi State’s Dept. of Forestry, Starkville, is leading a collaborative team in creating a precision tool to help increase profits for timber producers and wood-mill consumers. Bruno da Silva, also a scientist in the university’s Forest and Wildlife Research Center, is studying timber supply modeling as part of a $100,000 grant awarded by International Paper. The team is working on a model to aid timber producers in better understanding the impact of market variables and streamlining decision making for forest sector stakeholders. “Our forestry market has become increasingly fragmented over the years,” da Silva says. “What we’re seeing is less room for error and the need for a more precise approach. Our goal is to make a model that can show how different variTIMBER PROCESSING
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ATLARGE looks forward to seeing how the model will help him as a forestry specialist. “Part of my job with the MSU Extension Service is to make sure small forest landowners are able to keep a position in the market that remains sustainable and profitable. This model will show landowners how variables impact profitability based on their specific circumstances. This is precision timber production,” Tanger says. The team is collaborating with several faculty from North Carolina State University including Frederick Cubbage, Robert Abt and Rajan Parajuli. Jesse Henderson with the U.S. Forest Service also is a collaborator.
Huber Acquires Consulting Firm Huber Resources Corp. announced the acquisition of certain assets of Sewall Forestry & Natural Resource Consulting LLC, which will grow and expand its capabilities globally in timberland ap-
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praisals, forest inventory management and forest modeling. J.M. Huber Corp., parent company of HRC, has a long history of timberland management dating back to the 1940s. Today, HRC continues JMHC’s legacy of forestry management through the stewardship of more than 800,000 acres for clients throughout the U.S. HRC’s full suite of forestry services include forest management plans, sustainable harvest modeling, road building and maintenance, full service administrative and accounting services and timber harvesting and marketing.
Land, Timber Operations Shine For RoyOMartin RoyOMartin’s land and timber operations reached a significant safety milestone: 14 years without an OSHArecordable injury. Given the statistics surrounding logging and forestry injuries, and the vast amount of companyowned timberland managed by Roy-
OMartin foresters—approximately 550,000 acres—this accomplishment is especially noteworthy. In a message to the entire organization, RoyOMartin Vice President of Land and Timber, Cade Young, states, “If you look at the number of hours spent in the woods, or the number of miles driven in a year’s time by this group, you begin to really appreciate what a statistical marvel this accomplishment really is.” The land and timber division’s achievement follows RoyOMartin’s perseverance of its IBiZ (I Believe in Zero) safety program. President and COO E. Scott Poole adds, “Our land and timber team are the example of what we can all achieve with a sustaining, dedicated focus on safety. Their practice of being each other’s ‘brother’s keeper’ is demonstrated in their team spirit, work ethic, and accountability to one another. This culture is renewed on a daily basis and emphasizes how important safety is in our daily lives.”
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WOOD PRODUCTS MARKETPLACE NORTH AMERICA
■ Minnesota
■ North Carolina
■ Canada ■ Ontario Buyers & Wholesalers We produce quality 4/4 - 8/4 Appalachian hardwoods • Red Oak, White Oak, Poplar •
Green Lumber: Air Dried, Kiln Dried Timbers & Crossties
• Hickory, Sycamore, Beech, Gum & Elm • Custom Cut Timbers: Long lengths and wide widths
Sales/Service: 336-746-5419
336-746-6177 (Fax) • www.kepleyfrank.us
■ Tennessee
STACKING STICKS
FOR SALE
Next closing: January 5, 2022
AIR-O-FLOW profiled & FLAT sticks available Imported & Domestic
■ United States
DHM Company - Troy, TN 38260 731-446-4069 Fax: 707-982-7689 email: kelvin@kilnsticks.com www.KILNSTICKS.com
■ Georgia Beasley Forest Products, Inc. P.O. Box 788 Hazlehurst, GA 31539
beasleyforestproducts.com Manufactures Kiln-Dried 4/4 Red and White Oak, Poplar, Ash and Cypress Contact: Linwood Truitt Phone (912) 253-9000 / Fax: (912) 375-9541 linwood.truitt@beasleyforestproducts.com
Pallet components, X-ties, Timbers and Crane Mats Contact: Ray Turner Phone (912) 253-9001 / Fax: (912) 375-9541 ray.turner@beasleyforestproducts.com
■ Kentucky HAROLD WHITE LUMBER, INC. MANUFACTURER OF FINE APPALACHIAN HARDWOODS
(606) 784-7573 • Fax: (606) 784-2624 www.haroldwhitelumber.com
Ray White
Domestic & Export Sales rwhite@haroldwhitelumber.com Cell: (606) 462-0318
Green & Kiln Dried, On-Site Export Prep & Loading Complete millworks facility, molding, milling & fingerjoint line
WANT TO GET YOUR AD IN OUR NEXT MARKETPLACE? Call or email Melissa McKenzie 334-834-1170 melissa@hattonbrown.com 08/21
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Call Toll-Free: 1-800-669-5613
EMPLOYENTOPPORTUNITIES Recruiting Services
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Executive – Managerial – Technical - Sales
JOHN GANDEE
& ASSOCIATES, INC Contingency or Retained Search Depending on Circumstances / Needs
“Your Success Is Our Business” Serving the Wood Products and Building Materials Industries For more than 26 years.
Top Wood Jobs
512-795-4244
Recruiting and Staffing George Meek
Call or Email me anytime! john@johngandee.com www.johngandee.com
Austin, Texas
geo@TopWoodJobs.com www.TopWoodJobs.com (360) 263-3371
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LUMBERWORKS n LUMBERWORKS GREENWOOD KILN STICKS Importers and Distributors of Tropical Hardwood Kiln Sticks GW Industries www.gwi.us.com
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“The lowest cost per cycle”
Dennis Krueger 866-771-5040
Jackie Paolo 866-504-9095
greenwoodimportsllc@gmail.com
jackie@gwi.us.com
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MAINEVENTS SEPTEMBER 8-10—Tennessee Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Westin Hotel, Chattanooga, Tenn. Call 615-883-3832; visit tnforestry.com. 9-11—Great Lakes Logging & Heavy Equipment Expo, UP State Fairground, Escanaba, Mich. Call 715-282-5828; visit gltpa.org. 12-14—Alabama Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Perdido Beach Resort, Orange Beach, Ala. Call 334-265-8733; visit alaforestry.org. 14—Pennsylvania Forest Products Assn. annual meeting, Wyndham Garden State College, Boalsburg, Pa. Call 717-901-0420; visit paforestproducts.org. 15-17—National Wooden Pallet & Container Assn. Annual Leadership Conference, Loews Sapphire Falls Resort, Orlando, Fla. Call 703-519-6104; visit palletcentral.com. 17-18—Kentucky Wood Expo, Masterson Station Park, Lexington, Ky. Call 502-695-3979; visit kfia.org. 24-25—Loggers’ Expo, Cross Insurance Center, Bangor, Maine. Call 315-369-3078; visit northernlogger.com. 25-28—WMF: Shanghai International Furniture Machinery & Woodworking Machinery Fair, National Exhibition and Convention Center, Shanghai, China. Call (852) 2516 3518; visit woodworkfair.com. 27-29—American Wood Protection Assn. Technical Committee meeting, Eldorado Hotel, Santa Fe, N.M. Call 205-733-4077; visit awpa.com. 29-October 1—North Carolina Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Grandover Resort & Conference Center, Greensboro, NC. Call 800-231-7723; visit ncforestry.org.
OCTOBER 1-3—Paul Bunyan Show, Guernsey County Fairgrounds, Cambridge, Ohio. Call 888-388-7337; visit ohioforest.org. 5-7—Arkansas Forestry Assn. annual meeting, Embassy Suites, Rogers, Ark. Call 501-374-2441; visit arkforests.org. 19-21—Texas Forestry Assn. annual meeting, The Fredonia Hotel & Conference Center, Nacogdoches, Tex. Call 936-6328733; visit texasforestry.org. 20-22—Alaska Forest Assn. Fall Convention, The Landing Hotel, Ketchikan, Alaska. Call 907-225-6114; visit akforest.org.
NOVEMBER 8-9—Lumber Quality and Process Control Workshop, Scottish Rite Center, Salem, Ore. Call 541-752-2751; visit lumberquality.com. 62
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10-11—Lumber Quality Leadership Workshop. Lumber Quality Institute, Scottish Rite Center, Salem, Ore. Call 541752-2751; visit lumberquality.com. 30-December 3—Woodex, 17th International Exhibition of Equipment and Technologies for Woodworking and Furniture Production, Crocus Expo, Moscow, Russia. Visit woodexpo.ru. Listings are submitted months in advance. Always verify dates and locations with contacts prior to making plans to attend.
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This issue of Timber Processing is brought to you in part by the following companies, which will gladly supply additional information about their products. ADVERTISER A W Stiles Contractors Andritz Iggesund Tools Arrow Speed Controls Autolog Automated Industrial Technologies BID Group BM&M Screening Solutions Calibre Equipment Cardinal Sawquip Equipment Cleereman Industries Cone Omega Corley Manufacturing Easy-Laser Ernst Reiner GmbH FiberPro G F Smith Halco Software Systems Holtec USA JoeScan John King Chains Johnson & Pace Linck Linden Fabricating Lucidyne-Microtec McDonough Manufacturing Mebor Mellott Manufacturing Metal Detectors Mid-South Engineering MPM Engineering Nelson Bros Engineering Oleson Saw Technology Opticom Tech Piche Premier Bandwheel Progress Engineering Redwood Plastics and Rubber Samuel Coding & Labeling Group Samuel Packaging Systems Group Saw Add Sering Sawmill Machinery Signode Springer Maschinenfabrik GmbH T S Manufacturing Telco Sensors Terex Deutschland Gmbh Timber Automation Ultra Air Systems USNR Valutec Vecoplan Weinig Group Wood Fiber Group Wood-Mizer
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PH.NO. 931.668.8768 813.855.6902 604.321.4033 450.434.8389 434.525.2292 843.563.7070 800.663.0323 +64 21 586 453 819.949.2281 715.674.2700 229.228.9213 423.698.0284 +46 31 708 63 00 +49 7723 657 0 501.463.9876 971.865.2981 604.731.9311 800.346.5832 360.993.0069 +44 1977 681 910 903.753.0663 936.676.4958 250.561.1181 541.753.5111 715.834.7755 +386 4 510 3200 717.369.3125 541.345.7454 501.321.2276 604.574.1397 888.623.2882 800.256.8259 800.578.1853 833.574.4333 604.591.2080 207.623.0110 833.381.1195 800.667.1264 800.323.4424 360.459.9163 360.687.2667 800.323.2464 +43 4268 2581 0 705.324.3762 800.253.0111 +49 0 7253 84 0 501.617.5130 615.647.6110 800.289.8767 +46 0 910 879 50 336.793.5143 +49 9341 86 1229 800.426.6226 866.477.9268
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