Softwood Forest Products Buyer - November/December 2023

SEC COLUMN – Continued from page 46
SEC held seminars about U.S. Softwood species and grades during its May
2023 Mexico mission.
In May, a group of 13 U.S. Softwood lumber suppliers and trade association
members participated in a week-long SEC trade mission to Monterrey
and Tijuana. The group met with wooden pallet and packaging producers and
importer-distributors and toured their facilities and distribution yards. Over 65
importers and end-users also attended seminars where presenters spoke about U.S.
Softwood lumber grades and trends affecting U.S. Softwood lumber availability
and competitiveness in Mexico. Sales reported within one month of the mission
totaled $670,000 and U.S. participants project $4.16 million in sales by the end of
2023. SEC is working on a follow up mission to Mexico in April 2024.
SEC members and U.S. suppliers also reported great success at the August
Tecnomueble show, Mexico’s largest furniture supply trade event. SEC organized
a day of visits with manufacturers and importers prior to the four day show, which
led to over $300,000 in reported sales by SEC participants.
National Wooden Pallet and Container Association (NWPCA) Holds Second
Annual Mexico Pallet Conference
From webinars to conferences, educational activities consistently attract large
numbers of industry representatives from across Mexico. In September, the National
Wooden Pallet and Container Association, an SEC member, held its second
annual Mexico pallet conference in Guadalajara. The event drew a sell-out crowd
and nearly doubled attendance from the year prior. Pallet producers and traders
from 13 countries attended the event, including a delegation from the Softwood
Export Council who reported making a number of very solid business contacts.
The conference included speakers on topics including nearshoring and strategic
planning, Mexico’s economy and political situation, sustainability trends, and
design software to improve pallet manufacturing. Next year’s seminar will be held
in Queretaro, Mexico in September (dates TBD).
Opportunities to increase the use of U.S. Softwoods and demand for higher
grades through continued education and promotion are excellent. SEC has seen
interest from Mexican producers in sustainability has increased dramatically over
the past several years, and demand for higher grades of lumber for pallet production
has increased as specifiers have learned that higher grades result in better
performance and better yields.
The Softwood Export Council is a trade association whose membership includes
U.S. Softwood lumber grading associations, wood products associations, state
trade agencies, and universities. Members work together to address international
codes and standards and to educate international buyers about the benefits of
using U.S. Softwood lumber. More information is available at www.softwood.org.
n
LANDMARK LUMBER – Continued from page 4
from 4 to 12 inches, siding and flooring profiles, decking and timbers, purchasing
6 million board feet of Pine, Cedar, Cypress, Fir and Spruce domestically, along
with imported Pine and Cedar and thermally modified Southern Yellow Pine. They
also distribute Appalachian and imported hardwoods, thermally modified hardwoods,
and stair parts purchasing more than 2 million board feet annually in hard
and soft maple, red and white oak, walnut, cherry, poplar, and 14 other species in
4/4, 5/4, 6/4 and 8/4 lumber thicknesses in all grades Common and Better.
Landmark Lumber Group’s Softwood Division began as Specialty Lumber
Company which was founded in 2001 as a Softwood wholesale supplier located
in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Specialty Lumber Company focused on supplying
domestic and imported Softwoods including Pine, Fir, Spruce, Cedar and
Cypress to retail lumber yards and Amish-owned businesses throughout Pennsylvania,
Maryland and Delaware. Their offices, warehouses and distribution
yard operation was located in Manheim, Pennsylvania. In 2020, the business was
purchased by Albright, who continued existing operations.
In September of 2021, Mann and Parker Lumber Company, a hardwood wholesale
supplier, was also purchased by Albright. The Mann and Parker Lumber
Company was founded in 1902 and has served the hardwood industry for over 120
years. The company began in Baltimore, MD, as a lumber wholesaler. Robert R.
Bushman Sr. purchased The Mann and Parker Lumber Company from the Mann
and Parker family estate in 1956 and became President and General Manager. The
company continued to operate as a wholesale hardwood distribution center and
became recognized as a leader in the hardwood lumber industry. In 1964, the company
started a dry kiln operation in Cockeysville, MD. On New Year’s Eve, 1969
the entire Baltimore plant located on the Baltimore waterfront was destroyed by
fire. Headquarters were moved to the company’s dry kiln center in Cockeysville,
MD as of January 1, 1970.
That same year Mann and Parker purchased land in New Freedom, PA, and
began construction of a new distribution facility with dry kilns. Since 1972, the
company headquarters and distribution center has been located in New Freedom,
PA. The Cockeysville Dry Kiln Center was severely damaged by a flood caused
by Hurricane Agnes in June 1972. By July 1974 the entire operation had been
moved from Cockeysville to the New Freedom location.
In 2022, Specialty Lumber Company operations and offices were moved to
Landmark Lumber, hardwood warehouse B
New Freedom, PA sharing the Mann and Parker 27-acre campus. In October 2023,
Albright merged both companies into a new entity, Landmark Lumber Group to
better serve their customers with a broader product line and streamlined service
offering. Albright and the entire team remain committed to providing quality
products and customer service throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and has
strengthened this commitment through the Mann and Parker and Specialty Lumber
merger.
“Our distribution center includes our offices, warehouse buildings, millwork
facilities, kilns, lumber inspection with automatic stacking and unstacking equipment
and maintenance,” Purchasing Manager Eddie Deavers said. “Softwoods are
purchased from small, locally-owned sawmills that focus on quality over quantity.
Our Eastern White Pine is sourced from New Hampshire and Vermont, Fir and
Cedar come from Oregon and Canada and Southern Yellow Pine and Cypress
is sourced from North Carolina. We have full millwork facilities for surfacing,
straight-line-ripping, moulding and any profile needs.” Deavers also said delivery
is handled by truck or container.
He continued, “We maintain approximately 1 million board feet of inventory
in our primary Softwood species which are Eastern White Pine, Southern Yellow
Pine, Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar. We also inventory thermally modified
Southern Yellow Pine for decking and outdoor siding, European Pine and Japanese
Continued on page 48
SKANA
FOREST PRODUCTS LTD.
Lumber wholesalers of SPF, Douglas Fir, Pine, Plywood and Western Red Cedar
Skana is both a manufacturer and distributor of quality forest products. At our remanufacturing facility in Vernon, BC, we
produce a full program of high-grade specialty Western Red Cedar products while the Herbert, Saskatchewan plant’s primary
focus is specialty SPF products. If we don’t manufacture what you’re looking for, our experienced Wholesale Distribution
Division will help you find it.
604.273.5441 Skana.com
Toll Free: 800.665.4213
We can ship all kinds of trees.
Formerly Ally Global Logistics
781.544.3970 sales@theAGLgroup.com www.theAGLgroup.com
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