National Hardwood Magazine - October 2022

WHA PHOTOS Continued
Jeff Maguire, Maguire Machinery Group LLC, Aurora, OR;
and Zach Miller, National Hardwood Magazine, Memphis,
TN
Erin Keyser, Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance
Co. (PLMI), Ephrata, WA; Tripp Pryor, American Hardwood
Export Council, Sterling, VA; and Renee Miles, PLMI, Bakersfield,
CA
LAKE STATES Continued from page 10
Asked if the market is better or worse than six months
earlier, he replied, “That’s kind of tough; that’s subjective.
I wouldn’t call it worse. I wouldn’t say better. I wouldn’t
call it the same. I’d call it different. What’s different is,
we’re having to stay on top of the market, stay in touch
with customers to gauge where the market’s at. Certain
prices are coming down with increased supply. A lot of
communication has to be done with every aspect of the
industry. Our monthly sales are about the same as they
were six months ago, but the monthly profits might be a
little down – but not much.”
He sells Red and White Oak, Hard and Soft Maple,
Cherry, Poplar, Walnut, Hickory and Basswood, all
grades, 4/4 through 8/4 and 10/4 and 12/4.
He sells lumber to distribution yards and end users.
“The distribution yards are facing some of the same issues
we are: their customers are working through their
inventory with prices coming down. However, distribution
yards need to keep lumber on their shelves. Also, lumber
is still selling; people are buying it.”
As for transportation, he observed, “Higher freight and
fuel costs have been an issue, but it’s getting a little bit
better.”
An Indiana lumberwoman stated, “Things are slow. We
specialize in the thicker stock – 8/4, 10/4, 12/4 and 16/4
thickness – and sales of those seem to be OK. We’re
getting a lot of inquiries on that and moving some of that.
But 4/4, 5/4 and 6/4 seem very slow in terms of sales.”
The market, she said, is worse than it was several
months ago.
She sells all Hardwood species in 4/4 through 16/4, in
all grades.
Her customers include distribution yards, end users
and to export markets. “The exporting people are saying
nobody’s buying, especially in China,” she said. “It’s very
slow. Price is not even an object now; they’re just not
buying. Their sales to their customers are slow. I think all
aspects of the business are slow: domestic, export, end
users – it doesn’t make any difference.
“I think transportation is better than it was a few months
ago,” she noted. “We’re not holding loads waiting on containers
or for the customers to find a truck to pick up the
load. That may be because there’s not as much business
out there as there was. So, that’s why there is trucking
available. The prices for transportation are coming down,
too.”
Please turn to page 40
Michael Reutman, Brad Michael and Joey Nelson, JoeScan
Inc., Vancouver, WA
Dana Lee Cole, The Hardwood Federation, Washington,
DC; Patrick Kenan, Combilift USA, Greensboro, NC; Steve
Zambo, Ally Global Logistics LLC, Jacksonville, FL; and
Dana Spessert, NHLA, Memphis, TN
PREMIUM
NORTHERN
HARDWOODS
from Wisconsin
& Michigan
. . . .
available for export worldwide
Steve Anderson, Contechem/U-C Coatings LLC, Portland,
OR; and James Russell, U-C Coatings LLC, Lebanon,
OR
Mike Lipke, Trillium Pacific Millwork Inc., Hubbard, OR;
Marlin Langworthy, Cascade Hardwood LLC, Chehalis,
WA; and Adam Duplisea, Nyle Dry Kilns, Brewer, ME
Contact Mike Schulke today!
715.535.2181 • mike@tigertonlumber.com
www.tigertonlumber.com
34 OCTOBER 2022 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE
www.RealAmericanHardwood.org
www.RealAmericanHardwood.org
OCTOBER 2022 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 35