National Hardwood Magazine - January 2024

National 

Forest to Finish to Future 

Your sustainable source for quality hardwoods. 

Visit midwesthardwood.com/forest-to-finish to learn more. 

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JANUARY 2024 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 1 

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9540 83rd Avenue North, Maple Grove, MN 55369 | midwesthardwood.com | 763-425-8700 

About The Cover 

Contents 

National Hardwood Magazine JANUARY 2024 Volume 97 No. 13 

MIDWEST HARDWOOD 

CORPORATION 

Midwest Hardwood is a complete forest-to-finish 

hardwood lumber manufacturer. 

All eyes are on sustainability, 

whether it’s carbon neutrality (choose 

hardwood), supply chain reliability and 

risk mitigation (forest to finish), or forest 


management (FSC Certified since 1995). 

Take the random out of your hardwood 

sourcing and start with us. Success in 

today’s world can’t be left up to chance. Our sales reps can consult 

with you on ripped-to-width or special sorts and programs 

to ensure a sustainable supply. Truly Forest to Finish to Future. 

www.midwesthardwood.com/forest-to-finish 

Features & Industry Events 

18 

Just-In-Time At 

Jackel Enterprises Inc. 

Appalachian Lumbermen Learn 

34 About Energy Grants 

Founded in 1927 by: O.L. Miller – 1894-1963 

Publisher: Paul J. Miller – 1963-2010 

• Forest Products Export Directory • Imported Wood Purchasing Guide 

• Import/Export Wood Purchasing News • Hardwood Purchasing Handbook 

• Green Books’s Hardwood Marketing Directory 

• Green Books’s Softwood Marketing Directory 

• The Softwood Forest Products Buyer 

21 

22 

24 

Class 204 Graduates From NHLA 

Inspector Training School 

New Year, New Business: 

How The Hardwood Industry 

Can Continue Growing In 2024 

Equipment And Services Providers 

Accept The Challenges That The 

Market Brings 

Departments 

37 

NELA Members Remain Optimistic 

Despite Challenging Lumber Markets 

19 

Terry Miller – President 

Paul J. Miller Jr. – Co-owner 

Zach Miller – Sales Executive 

Chris Fehr – Sales Executive 

Sue Putnam – Editor 

Cadance Hanson - Staff Writer 

Graham Sweeney - Staff Writer 

Dolores Buchanan - Who’s Who Coordinator 

Rachael Stokes – Graphic Artist 

Camille Campbell – Graphic Artist 

Tammy Daugherty – Production Manager 

Jennifer Trentman – Green Book Market Sales 

Lisa Carpenter – Circulation Manager 

Lexi Hardin – Subscription & List Services 

ADVERTISING OFFICES: 

5175 Elmore Rd., Suite 23, Memphis, TN 38134 

901-372-8280 FAX: 901-373-6180 

Reach us via the Internet at: www.nationalhardwoodmag.com 

E-mail addresses: 

ADVERTISING: tammy@millerwoodtradepub.com 

EDITORIAL: editor@millerwoodtradepub.com 

SUBSCRIPTIONS: circ@millerwoodtradepub.com 

EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENTS: 

Chicago, Los Angeles, High Point, Grand Rapids, Portland, Toronto 

Controlled circulation postage paid at Memphis, TN 

(USPS #917-760) 

5 Hardwood Calendar 

6 U.S.A. Trends 

8 Canadian Trends 

10 Industry News 

12 HMA Update 

14 AHEC Report 

15 Hardwood Federation 

Info 

16 WCMA Insights 

17 NHLA: Why Knot... 

46 In Memoriam 

52 Who’s Who 

58 Classified Profit 

Opportunities 

60 Advertisers Index 

The NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE (ISSN 0194-0910) is published 

monthly, except for two issues in December, for $55.00 per year and 

$65.00 (U.S. dollars) per year for Canada by National Hardwood Magazine, Inc., 

5175 Elmore Rd., Suite 23, Memphis, TN 38134. Periodicals Postage paid at 

Memphis, TN, and at additional mailing offices. 

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to National Hardwood Magazine, 

P.O. Box 34908, Memphis, TN 38184. 

Publications mail agreement No. 40739074. 

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: 

P.O. Box 503, RPO W. Beaver Cre., Rich-Hill, ON L4B 4R6. 

The publisher reserves the right to accept or reject editorial 

content and Ads at the staff’s discretion. 




HARDWOOD CALENDAR 

January 

Appalachian Lumbermen’s Club, Meeting, 

Embassy Suites, Greensboro, NC. 

www.lumberclub.org. Jan. 9. 

Lake States Lumber Assoc., Annual Winter Mtg., 

Hilton Appleton Paper Valley Hotel, Appleton, WI. 

www.lsla.com. Jan. 17-19. 

February 

Indiana Hardwood Lumbermen’s Assoc., 

Convention, Indianapolis Marriott Downtown, 

Indianapolis, IN. www.ihla.org. Feb. 5-7. 

Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers Inc., 

Annual Meeting, The Hammock Beach Resort, 

Palm Coast, FL. www.appalachianhardwood.org. 

Feb. 21-25. 

National Association of Home Builders, 

International Builders’ Show, Las Vegas Convention 

Center, Las Vegas, NV. www.buildersshow.com. 

Feb. 27-29. n 

Hardwood marketIng dIrectory 

online will give you access to over 6,000 buyers! 

Green Book’s 

Hardwood 

Marketing 

directory 

“The World’s Leading Information Source on Hardwood Markets!” 

71st Edition/2023 

The HARDWOOD PRODUCTS SALES GUIDE that te ls you the species, grades, thicknesses and quantities of 

HARDWOOD LUMBER, IMPORTED WOODS, PLYWOOD, DIMENSION, ETC. purchased by woodworking 

plants in the United States and Canada. 

FEBRUARY COVERS 2023.in d 1 1/16/23 10:40 AM 

You can get your share of this market 

quicker when these buyers know who you are 

and where you’re located! 

Advertising Sparks Sales! 

These are high grade & low grade 

buyers listed with their buying 

specifications including distribution/ 

concentration yards that buy 100,000 

board feet or more throughout North 

America! 

LEASE ONLINE NOW 

FOR $2,100.00! 

Imported Buyers 

Red Oak .........................2535 

White Oak .......................1692 

Poplar .............................1644 

Ash .................................788 

Hard Maple .....................1810 

Soft Maple ......................1451 

Walnut ............................1203 

Cherry .............................1673 

TRUE. DEPENDABLE. RELIABLE. 

Consistently Exceeding Expectations 

and Adding Value. 

Mahogany .................... 746 

Sapele ......................... 221 

Teak ............................. 125 

These are the BIG THREE species in our Imported section 

of the Hardwood Marketing Directory online! 

Proud Manufacturer of 

The Hardwood Marketing Directory has 68 years of research helping firms discover new 

buying opportunities and contains all North American species and also Imported Woods. 

GREEN BOOK, INC. 

P.O. Box 34908 Memphis, TN 38184 

Phone: (901) 372-8280 FAX: (901) 373-6180 

4 JANUARY 2024 n NATIONAL 

www.millerwoodtradepub.com 

HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 

E-mail: greenbook@millerwoodtradepub.com 





NOVEMBER 2023 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 

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OCTOBER 2023 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry 

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lewismilling.com

U.S.A. TRENDS 

Supplier news about 

sales, labor, prices, trends, 

expansions and inventories 

LAKE STATES 

NORTHEAST 

SOUTHEAST 

WEST COAST 

From mill fires to a diminishing pulp market, one Michigan 

lumberman recently emphasized that he has “never 

seen the industry this bad.” 

However, a source from Minnesota called the market 

“stable,” and added that things aren’t as “crazy as they 

were the last couple of years.” 

At the time of this writing, a third source from Wisconsin 

took the middle ground and noted that the market was 

usually “slow” during this time of year. 

“This is an annual trend,” she noted. “A lot of it is just 

our distributors who have year-end inventory coming up 

and don’t want to bring new inventory in,” said the Wisconsin 

source. “It is a trickle-down effect. So, the manufacturing 

plants, their customers are pushing them off 

orders because they want to bring new materials in. 

“That comes back to us,” continued the lumberwoman 

who primarily handles Poplar, Red Oak and Hard Maple 

with thickness going up to 8/4. “People really don’t want 

to place orders now. We’ll get going at the beginning of 

2024, after the holidays.” 

The Michigan source, who primarily handles Red Oak 

and Maple, acknowledged that the market was slow while 

emphasizing that he was also dealing with other factors. 

The lumber supplier said a local mill caught fire a few 

months ago. 

“So, that screwed up the local market,” he added. 

He also stated that the “elephant in the room is the pulp 

market.” 

“That has slowed down, too,” he said. “We have a couple 

of large pulp manufacturers here. They have both 

slowed up. That leaves a big hole in the pulp market.” 

He added that “loggers can’t stay profitable in the 

woods, and it rolls down-hill.” 

“The market is slow right now in all sectors,” he said. “It 

seems like there is less demand. Plus, interest rates are 

up and everything seems to be up.” 

At the time of this writing, the source noted that the 

current state of the market would further be “disrupted by 

the holiday season.” 

Lumber suppliers across the Northeast region had 

varied responses when asked how their sales were faring 

at the time of this writing. 

In Maryland a lumber provider noted that while his 

sales aren’t what they have been the past several years, 

he hasn’t had any trouble moving his products. “Prices 

aren’t what they were in 2021 or 2022, but those were 

radically different years.” 

When asked if his sales were better or worse than 

they were six months ago he said, “Six months ago our 

customers weren’t building up an inventory because we 

were headed into the summer, now we have customers 

that are willing to build up their inventories.” 

His company offers Poplar in 5/4, 10/4 and 12/4 thicknesses 

and Red and White Oak in 5/4 thickness. “We 

aim for Face and Better but we also cut No. 1 and 2 

Common and some lower grades,” he mentioned. 

He sells to distribution yards and pallet manufacturers. 

He also has some export customers. 

He noted that his biggest struggle has been his expenses, 

stating that while his prices have remained 

steady his bottom line has been affected. 

A Maine lumberman said, “We are starting to see the 

market tighten up on the green side. We have also seen 

that start to trickle into the kiln-dried side, although not 

with the same horsepower.” 

He noted that while his sales are better than they were 

six months ago that he expects that they will start to 

slow down over the next few months. “We typically see 

a slowdown after the holidays,” he said. “So, with the 

housing numbers being off and our order files are off 

that we have with our customers, we are going to have 

a pretty tough winter.” 

His company handles all species that are native to the 

Northeast region. “We have sawmills that produce Red 

Oak, Hard and Soft Maple, Yellow Birch and Ash. We also 

have a white pine mill,” he said. His company offers these 

species in grades Select and Better, No. 1, 2 and 3 Common 

in thicknesses of 4/4, 5/4, 6/4 and 8/4. His company 

Please turn to page 40 Please turn to page 41 

Throughout the Southeast region lumber suppliers 

agreed that while the market has slowed down, they are 

still able to move their products. 

In Tennessee a lumber spokesperson said that his 

company’s sales were doing OK at the time of this 

writing, noting that, “A lot of what we are shipping 

is specie dependent. White Oak is continuing to be a 

strong item and the majority of what we are shipping, 

overall, however sales have slowed down.” 

He added that his sales are doing worse than they 

were six months ago, but that is expected this time of 

year. 

His company offers Red and White Oak, Poplar, 

Walnut, Ash, Hard and Soft Maple, Basswood, Hickory 

and Cherry in grades No. 2 and Better and in thicknesses 

4/4 through 8/4. “We offer grades No. 2 and Better but 

we are heavier to FAS,” he remarked. 

When asked if any of his customers have offered any 

comments as to how their sales are doing, he said that 

they all seem to be in the same boat with their sales 

having slowed down some. 

A sawmill representative in Arkansas said that his 

market seems to have slowed down a bit but not much. 

“We haven’t seen too many of our products sales 

slowdown,” he said. “Our sales are down about 10 

percent from where they were six months ago.” 

His company offers Birch, Maple, Red and White Oak, 

Cherry, Ash, Hickory, Poplar and Mahogany in a variety 

of thicknesses and grades. “Poplar is our best seller,” he 

noted. “We sell more of it than anything else.” 

His company sells to cabinet manufacturers. “Some of 

my customers have noted that their sales are starting 

to slow down as well,” he said. “People are just building 

less.” 

In North Carolina a lumberman said that his Red and 

White Oak sales have been stable, while his Poplar 

sales have not. “Whether you are selling into Asia or any 

other country, it’s all about the price on Poplar. You can 

always sell it but in a lot of cases it is going to have to be 

cheap,” he stated. 

While West Coast lumber providers fluctuated on the 

current state of Hardwoods, one source summed up the 

market in one word – “mediocre.” 

“We are doing OK,” he noted. “There is still some money 

out here from the tech industries. 

“But things are worse than they were six months ago,” 

he added. 

The Washington based buyer and seller handles “the 

usual suspects,” like Cherry, White Oak, and Maple, 

most of which are from Appalachia and the upper Mid- 

West. He noted that the company uses all thicknesses of 

wood, like 10/4, 12/4 and 16/4. 

“Everybody had a full order file a year ago,” he reflected. 

“That’s just not the case now.” 

At the time of this writing, a California lumber source 

reported that the market for cabinets, moulding and 

floors has been a “little quiet.” 

“Anything going into a new home is slow,” he noted. 

“I’d like to say that our sales are half off but it almost 

feels like it’s a little more than half. 

“The first of 2023 was good,” he continued, “but the 

last half was a struggle.” 

The lumber source said the sale of first and second 

grade (FAS) lumber has “been good,” along with FAS 

wides and rustics. 

The company has also been doing well with 8”-and-wider 

and 9”-and-wider lumber. 

“We’ve been doing some Walnut on the high-end stuff,” 

he said. “We’re doing NHLA Oak Grade Rule Walnut.” 

While some woods like Red Oak and Cherry are not 

currently being sought by buyers, the lumber provider 

said that White Oak sales are up. 

“We have been fortunate with White Oak,” he acknowledged. 

“That seems to be pretty dominant, except 

the low-grade stuff.” 

With the soaring demand of White Oak, the distributor 

said it is becoming challenging to find. 

The Washington lumber source echoed these sentiments. 





CANADIAN TRENDS 

News from suppliers about prices, trends, sales and inventories 

Learn More 

 

ONTARIO 

QUEBEC 

Heading into a new year, we wonder how businesses 

will fare in the Hardwood sector and elsewhere. Production 

and demand of Hardwoods is changing, and is 

keeping one on their toes to make a profit, or stay afloat. 

As statistics have reported both in the U.S. and Canada, 

production has been in a downward trend since 2022 

and continued throughout 2023. Those producing Red 

and White Oak, and Hard and Soft Maple are struggling 

to get logs, and buyers’ needs for many grades and 

thicknesses are not being met. Also, secondary manufacturers 

who use these species are controlling their inventories 

as consumers curb their purchases for finished 

goods, and due to inflation and higher interest rates. 

Some contacts noted having ample supplies, however, 

such as for Basswood and Aspen. 

Certain areas contacted stated that Ash supplies are 

barely adequate to meet demand. Prices are firm. Some 

say that kiln-dried business is not strong but is keeping 

inventories down for many grades and thicknesses. 

Demand is reported as slow but steady for kiln-dried 

Aspen. Inventories are sufficient to meet the market’s 

demand for most grades and thicknesses. Green production, 

noted some contacts, is not very high, but demand 

is on the slow side as well. Some sawmills struggle 

to find customers for total Aspen production. 

It was commented that certain sawmills limited Basswood 

log purchases and so production for this species 

was down. Green Basswood supplies outpaced needs 

for most grades and thicknesses. 

Birch demand, a species often used in Hardwood 

products such as furniture, millwork and moulding, flooring 

and cabinets, has been down due to slower housing 

construction and renovation markets. Activity has slowed 

for businesses in these sectors and so it has affected 

Birch sales. Green lumber markets are not strong either. 

Mill output is controlled, and is closely balanced between 

developing supplies and market needs. Contacts noted 

that kiln-dried Birch inventories are sufficient to meet demand. 

Prices have also gone down for most grades. 

The U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, hunting season and 

Christmas holiday disrupted production and business 

activity for those in the Hardwood industry. Businesses 

were busy preparing their log decks and making operational 

plans as to production schedules, and planning 

orders of supplies needed for their particular business 

needs. Several contacts were seeking new sources of 

supply to work around species shortages of various 

grades and thicknesses. Items identified in short supply 

were Hard and Soft Maple, White Oak and upper grade 

Red Oak for green stocks. Some end users stated they 

had ample supplies of Basswood and Aspen for their 

needs. 

It is customary at this time of year for markets to soften. 

Wholesalers and secondary manufacturers reported 

weak sales as we come out of the holiday period. Their 

inventories were sufficient to meet current and shortterm 

needs. Pallet manufacturers expect sales to decline 

for finished goods at this time. 

Production was lower for Ash, but decent. Thus, demand 

held up well with mills shipping developing supplies. 

Prices edged higher for the No. 1 Common and 

Better grades. Kiln-dried business was also decent, but 

inventories were not high, with pricing steady. 

Depending on regions contacted, Aspen was getting 

mixed reviews. For some it was not doing so well with 

demand being weak for some time with prices responding 

accordingly. Sawmills processed Aspen at a reduced 

rate, thus prices eased pressure on green stocks to a 

certain extent. 

Basswood sales were down as this species is in less 

demand from secondary manufacturers whose business 

has also seen a slowdown, and also due to competition 

of other wood species and non-wood material products 

being substituted in finished goods rather than using 

Basswood. Contacts say it is hard to find new orders for 

this species. Sawmills are also limiting their production, 

however, in certain areas, supplies are outpacing market 

demand. 

The regionally important species Hard Maple is see- 

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INDUSTRY NEWS 

AN UPDATE COVERING THE LATEST NEWS ABOUT 

HARDWOOD SUPPLIERS/VENDORS 

Clark Hardwoods LLC Makes Capital 

Improvements 

Clark Hardwoods LLC, located in Erin, TN, recently 

put in a Cleereman combination optimized edger. The 

mill is undergoing some other capital improvements regarding 

material handling that should be complete late 

spring/early summer 2024, according to Brandon Clark, 

Vice-President of Clark Lumber Company. 

The mill’s annual production is 10 million board feet, 

producing Red and White Oak, Hard Maple, Poplar, Ash, 

Cherry, Hickory and Walnut. The operation provides 

planing services and has 125,000 board feet of drying 

Brandon Clark 

capacity. The company, headquartered 

in Red Boiling Springs, TN, 

produces 50 million board feet of Appalachian 

Hardwoods in thicknesses 

ranging from 4/4-8/4. 

For more information, visit 

www.clarklumbercompany.com. 

link’s system while remaining with Robinson as Vice 

President. Tradelink is pleased to welcome Jacqueline 

Monteilh, a dedicated nine-year Robinson employee, 

who has joined the Tradelink Sales Team and is now part 

of the Tradelink family. 

Robinson Lumber Company and Tradelink Wood 

Products are both family-owned businesses with extensive 

histories in the wood products 

industry. The two companies have 

shared numerous professional relationships 

since the 1980s, serving 

as customers, suppliers and competitors 

across various markets. 

Through years of collaboration, 

mutual admiration has grown within 

both organizations and among the 

individuals who drive them. 

This strategic transaction stands 

as a mutually beneficial step forward 

for both companies and their customers 

and suppliers. 

For more information visit, 

www.roblumco.com. 

Dura Supreme’s New 

Manufacturing Facility 

Begins Production 

Production has officially begun 

at Dura Supreme Cabinetry’s new 

manufacturing facility in Statesville, 

NC. 

In March of this year, the company 

announced its plans to expand its 

manufacturing operations with a new 

multi-million dollar manufacturing facility 

to accommodate the increasing 

demand for its cabinetry products. 

Over the last few months, the 

company has been hard at work 

setting up all the new state-of-theart 

equipment, fine-tuning the layout 

of the building, as well as recruiting 

and training the first of the new North 

Carolina production team. The new 

facility is designed to mirror the same 

state-of-the-art cabinet-making processes 

and quality craftsmanship 

practices that are already in action at 

Robinson Lumber Finalizes 

Sale of U.S. Flooring 

Business to Tradelink Wood 

Products 

Robinson Lumber Company 

and Tradelink Wood Products are 

pleased to announce they have 

completed a transaction to sell 

Robinson’s U.S. Flooring Business 

to Tradelink including Robinson’s 

U.S. flooring inventory, their flooring 

brand, associated Goodwill and the 

transfer of related supplier, customer 

and service provider relationships. 

Under the terms of the agreement, 

Robinson will provide Transition Services 

to Tradelink Wood Products. 

Guiding the transition of Robinson’s 

flooring business is Dan Lennon who 

will ensure the integration of Robinson’s 

valued customers, suppliers 

and service providers into Tradetheir 

headquarters in Howard Lake, MN, while providing 

the ability to increase their manufacturing capabilities to 

keep up with the demand for their highly requested cabinets, 

which they offer in Cherry, Maple, Red Oak, Quarter-sawn 

White Oak, Knotty Alder and Hickory in grades 

Please turn to page 47 




HMA UPDATE 

What Are Your Company’s Pathways To Success? 

What’s in store for your business in 

2024? Are you looking to improve your operations 

with new equipment? How are you 

going to pay for it? Is there a generational 

gap in your workforce making communication 

difficult? And what’s going on with the 

economy this year? 

If you’re asking yourself any of these 

questions, then you’ll want to make plans 

to attend HMA’s 2024 National Conference and Expo, 

Monday–Wednesday, March 25–27, at The Charleston 

Place Hotel in Charleston, SC. This year’s theme 

is Pathways to Success and the agenda is filled with 

learning sessions that will help your company navigate 

the challenges ahead. Here’s a brief overview of a few 

sessions. 

•Funding Improvements: 

Grant Opportunities 

What exactly is the USDA Forest Service’s Wood Innovations 

Grant (WIG) Program? How can a grant help 

your company make equipment and operational upgrades? 

What companies are eligible? How do you apply 

for a grant? Marcus Taylor, Wood Innovations coordinator 

for the Southern Region, will be with us to provide 

all the details and answer questions. 

•Effective Communication Panel 

Times have changed and communicating with workers 

from different generations can be challenging and frustrating 

for all involved. This panel discussion, 

moderated by Steve James—president and 

CEO of Frank Miller Lumber Company and 

a certified John C. Maxwell coach, trainer, 

and speaker—will bring together a Millennial, 

a Gen Xer, and a Boomer to provide insight 

into how to overcome communication 

issues and improve your company’s culture. 

•Economic Predictions: Hits and Misses 

Every year, attendees get to hear from an experienced 

economist who gives an update on the U.S. economy. 

HMA members have asked, “What did they get right 

and where were they wrong?” This year, we’re welcoming 

back our 2023 presenter, Dr. Christopher Kuehl, 

co-founder of Armada Corporate Intelligence. His presentation 

will give an honest critique of his assessment 

last year, as well as a current look at the U.S. economy 

and a forward-looking analysis of trends to watch. We’re 

looking forward to what he has to say! 

As a reminder, this event is open to all Hardwood industry 

stakeholders—members, non-members, industry 

suppliers, etc. All of the Conference details can be found 

online at www.HMAmembers.org. And while you’re there, 

take care of your registration, book your hotel room, see 

the full schedule, browse the list of exhibitors, and consider 

adding on a sponsorship! We’re looking forward to 

seeing you in Charleston! n 

BY IAN FAIGHT, 

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, 

HARDWOOD MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION 

WARRENDALE, PA 

412.244.0440 

www.HMAmembers.org 

Our industry has 

stories to tell. 

We’re telling them. 

Contribute Now to Build Your World 



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campaign The Real American in partnership Hardwood with Magnolia Coalition Network. has launched The ads its Build are inspiring Your World a national 

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Real American Hardwood is a registered trademark, and Build Your World is a trademark of the Real American Hardwood Coalition. 

Real American Hardwood is a registered trademark, and Build Your World is a trademark of the Real American Hardwood Coalition.

AHEC REPORT 

AHEC Hosts European Journalists For 

Tour Of American Hardwood Forest 

HARDWOOD FEDERATION INFO 

Federation Advocacy 2023 – 

Key Federal Initiatives Impacting The Hardwood Industry 

American Hardwood forests stand as a 

compelling example of global reforestation 

in action, showcasing nature’s extraordinary 

capacity for regeneration. Over the 

last 50 years, the volume of standing timber 

in these forests has more than doubled, 

but unfortunately the success of forestry in 

America isn’t widely known outside of our 

industry. The American Hardwood Export 

Council (AHEC) hosted a week-long press 

trip to Pennsylvania in October 2023 to 

explore the relationship between the forest 

products industry and a healthy forest. 

The journalists from Germany, the UK, and 

Italy had an opportunity to engage directly 

with modern forest management and the production of 

Hardwood products and understand how our practices 

are continually evolving to ensure the future of this incredible 

resource. This collaborative project with support 

from local companies and the Pennsylvania Department 

of Agriculture has served to educate European writers, 

many of whom are focused on environmental policy and 

climate action, about the benefits of the American Hardwood 

industry from a green perspective. 

Pennsylvania is recognized today as one of the most 

forested states in the Eastern US, but that’s not always 

been the case. The state was the focal point for timber 

extraction during the industrial development of the 

1800s, and in fact, Williamsport was the center of the 

global lumber industry during this time. By the beginning 

of the 1900s, most of the state and others along the 

eastern seaboard had been heavily deforested. However, 

120 years later those forests have grown back naturally 

and are now largely healthy and well managed. 

That’s not to say that there are no challenges. PA is an 

excellent example of how the Hardwood forests of the 

Eastern USA have regenerated with the help of a long- 

term strategy to ensure that they are protected 

for future generations. Rural communities 

and the people that live and work in these 

forests have played a central role in what 

they are today - a rich source of wildlife, biodiversity, 

clean water, food, recreation, and 

of course, timber. 

This short and intense trip across PA from 

Pittsburgh to Philadelphia explored the National 

Forest, state forest, and private timberlands, 

all of which make up the composition 

of this resource. AHEC was able to introduce 

the journalists to private and state foresters, 

scientists, educators and researchers, loggers 

and sawmillers, and artisans who explained 

their work and gave insight into the complexity 

and resilience of these forests. 

The first stop for our team of journalists was the Kane 

Experimental Research Forest to meet with the US Forest 

Service and learn about forest regeneration, management 

strategies like natural selection, and how they 

address the challenges of invasive species and climate 

change. With this knowledge in mind, the group visited 

a Hardwood logging site to see these management 

strategies in action. The second day itinerary focused on 

carbon sequestration, and featured presentations from 

Penn State University on how using wood products is an 

active way to meet human needs while fighting climate 

change. In the afternoon the group visited a multigenerational 

sawmill team who talked about the history of 

the area as the “lumber capital of the world” in the late 

1800s and how things have changed since then. The 

next morning had an early start with a sawmill and logging 

site tour, then in the afternoon the group met with a 

local educator, forester, and musician, Van Wagner, for 


Approaching the end of a calendar 

year is always a good time for 

reflection. The Hardwood Federation 

team did just that as we look back 

on an eventful legislative year where 

lawmakers have addressed many of 

the industry’s top issues. This has 

also helped us look forward to 2024, 

which promises to be equally action packed. Below are 

highlights of key developments to help you track where 

industry has focused its advocacy in 2023…and an indication 

of where we will go in the new year. 

Farm Bill 2023 

Front and center in this year’s advocacy has been inclusion 

of Hardwood-friendly provisions within the context 

of Farm Bill legislation. Political turmoil in the House 

squashed hopes for an on-time for 2023 Farm Bill reauthorization, 

but on November 15, Congress finally 

passed an extension on the expired bill through September 

30, 2024. The one-year extension will guarantee 

funding for key Hardwood initiatives such as the Market 

Access and Foreign Market Development programs. It 

is unclear what the exact language of current Farm Bill 

draft language looks like as House Ag Chair GT Thompson 

(R-PA) has indicated that he won’t release legislative 

text on the Farm Bill until leadership schedules floor 

time. But we are confident that as the Farm Bill moves 

forward in 2024, it will serve as a vehicle to capture other 

priorities for the industry. In addition to authorizing resources 

that promote Hardwood exports, the Federation 

is also leveraging the debate to promote related industry 

objectives: 

Hardwood Access Program – In an important milestone 

for the Hardwood sector, Reps. Tom Tiffany (R- 

WI) and Annie Kuster (D-NH) have 

agreed to sponsor the Hardwood 

Access Program (HAP) bill for introduction 

in the House. Although fiscal 

constraints will make it very difficult 

to move HAP as part of the Farm 

Bill, the legislation will serve as a 

high-profile vehicle to educate Congress 

on the benefits of Hardwood products, laying the 

groundwork for enactment in future years. Stay tuned 

for updates as the industry bill moves forward. 

Timber Innovation for Building Rural Communities Act 

– This bipartisan, bicameral bill, sponsored by Senators 

Wyden (D-OR) and Senator Crapo (R-ID) and Reps. 

Salinas (D-OR), Glusenkamp-Perez (D-WA) and Duarte 

(R-CA) could be folded into a final Farm Bill. The 

proposal includes several positive provisions for the 

industry including establishing a USDA platform measuring, 

collecting and sharing data related to the carbon 

benefits of wood products, and recognizing the value of 

carbon reduction and environmental benefits of wood 

in building design and furnishings in USDA grant programs. 

Through the Federation’s work with the Forest in 

the Farm Bill Coalition, several recommended changes 

to ensure that Hardwoods are eligible for the programs 

were incorporated into the bill language. 

Jobs In the Woods Act – This fall, Senate and House 

members introduced the bipartisan “Jobs in the Woods 

Act.” (H.R. 5344, S. 3063), a bill that would provide education 

grants ranging in size from $500,000 to $2 million 

to promote jobs in the understaffed timber industry 

and U.S. Forest Service. Legislative champions include 

Reps. Chavez-Deremer (R-OR) and Gluesenkamp-Perez 

(D-WA) on the House side and Sens. King (I-ME) 


BY MICHAEL SNOW, 

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, 

AMERICAN HARDWOOD EXPORT COUNCIL, 

STERLING, VA 

703-435-2900 

WWW.AHEC.ORG 

BY DANA LEE COLE, 


HARDWOOD FEDERATION, 

WASHINGTON, DC 

202-463-5186 

WWW.HARDWOODFEDERATION.WILDAPRICOT.ORG 




WCMA INSIGHTS 

NHLA: Why Knot... 

WCMA Looking Ahead To A Successful New Year 

Looking back on 2023, I am very 

proud of what the WCMA accomplished. 

We hosted our third European 

Plant Tour Event in northern Italy, and 

the individuals that attended had very 

positive things to say about the event, 

with one saying “I will remember this 

one as one of WCMA’s best events 

and encourage everyone to consider 

this opportunity when it comes around 

again. The camaraderie that grew 

amongst the group was special, and we all appreciated 

the opportunity to see state-of-the-art manufacturing 

plants.” Our two sponsors were exceptionally gracious 

and supportive, and they were very pleased with the 

turnout. 

The association also hosted an excellent Fall Conference 

event in the Canton, Ohio area. We were thrilled to 

have a full lineup of plant tours, with an excellent mix of 

manufacturing facilities. The companies that we toured 

included wood product manufacturing, lumber processing, 

and machinery technology. Attendees also enjoyed 

the opportunity to network with their colleagues in the 

Hardwood industry. 

And now, I am excited to look forward to 2024 and the 

variety of benefits WCMA has to offer. 

Educational and Networking Opportunities 

We’ve already started planning our 2024 Fall Conference 

which will be held in Iowa in the fall. There are 

many excellent manufacturing facilities 

that are open for tours, and we are excited 

to see the advancements made since 

we last visited in 2008. 

In addition, we are exploring opportunities 

to host one-day events that will 

allow us to see state-of-the-art facilities 

in locations that are not amenable to a 

fall conference. If your company is interested 

in hosting a tour, or you know of 

a company that you would love to visit, 

please let us know. 

You will also see us at the International Woodworking 

Fair in Atlanta, where we will help buyers of wood components 

find the perfect manufacturing company for their 

needs. 

Real Industry Promotion 

As a founding contributor to the Real American Hardwood 

Coalition (RAHC), WCMA is invested in real promotion 

for domestic Hardwood manufacturers. The RAHC’s 

mission: “With widespread support, the Real American 

Hardwood Coalition (RAHC) unites the collective efforts 

and resources of the industry to advance American Hardwoods 

as the Naturally Authentic choice.” 

Because of the WCMA’s financial support, WCMA 

members are able and encouraged to download and 

use the RAH logo on all products that qualify, and help 

consumers start recognizing the brand and spread the 

word. This exciting program helps our members’ products 

stand out! 


Proselytize Employees, Family & Friends 

For Forestry & Wood Careers 

My dad was an engineer. I 

wanted to be an engineer. I applied 

to the University of British 

Columbia and put forestry as 

a backup at the last minute. I 

moved my family to Vancouver 

and started locksmithing before 

I knew if I was accepted. However, I ended up getting 

accepted to forestry but not engineering. It didn’t matter 

because I took prerequisites for engineering courses 

anyway. I wouldn’t be where I am today if a college 

counselor hadn’t told me there was a wood engineering 

program within forestry. All my credits transferred over, 

and I picked up Wood Products Processing like a grizzly 

picks up spawning salmon. 

Very few college students know and choose wood science 

and technology career paths. Very few universities 

offer forestry degrees and even fewer with wood tracks. 

Here are the university acronyms for North America: AU, 

CU, Laval, LSU, MSU, NCST, OSU, Purdue, UBC, UI, 

UK, UM, UNB, UT, UW, VT, WSU, WVU, and I am sure 

there are others. Some have complete wood programs; 

others have classes or other renewable material specialties. 

But no matter the studies, the point is all the same. 

They need more students. 

At the NHLA Inspector Training 

School graduation ceremony 

in November, a student’s parents 

asked me what was next 

for their teenage son. I offered 

two tracks. Work hard and take 

initiative at the plant to improve 

production and learn the process. A production supervisor 

and other roles would be available if he wants them. 

Apply for university, get a wood (processing, science, or 

engineering) degree, and advance into production supervisor 

and management roles. Both options are great 

careers. 

After I graduated with my Wood degree, I worked for 

Sauder Molding and was the production supervisor on 

the night shift for four months. I told them I was interested 

in a master’s degree, and they told me they would 

rather I worked there for two years. I told them I wanted 

them to guarantee me a day job within one year, but they 

didn’t want to put it in writing. I had seen sales guys get 

promoted over production guys and didn’t want to get 

stuck in 4 concrete walls, so I returned to school and 

received a master’s at UBC in Forests and Society. That 

opened even more career opportunities and put me on a 

course to NHLA. 


BY AMY K. SNELL, CAE, 


WOOD COMPONENT MANUFACTURERS ASSOC., 

LINDSTROM, MN 

651-332-6332 

WWW.WCMA.COM 

BY DALLIN BROOKS, 


NATIONAL HARDWOOD LUMBER ASSOCIATION, 

MEMPHIS, TN 

901-377-1082 

WWW.NHLA.COM 




“As a lumberyard and mill, we are part of a collective stewardship in a unique supply chain, 

from forest to finished product. We source quality lumber, wood products and services 

providing a palette of materials to fulfill residential and commercial project needs catering to 

architects, designers, builders and craftsmen.” 

– Steve Jackel, owner and president of Jackel Enterprises Inc. 

This home received a deck made of Teak from Jackel Enterprises. 

Just-In-Time At Jackel Enterprises Inc. 

Jackel Enterprises Inc., headquartered in Watsonville, 

CA, distributes Hardwoods, softwoods and imported 

woods. The operation also handles reclaimed woods, 

live edge slabs, urban woods and offers milled products 

such as box beams, sidings, ceiling treatments, flooring, 

moulding and trim packages. 

Jackel Enterprises Inc. purchases 150,000 board feet 

in Hardwoods, 100,000 board feet of imported lumber 

and 250,000 board feet in softwoods annually. Hardwood 

species include Alder, Cherry, Maple, Red and 

Jackel Enterprises Inc., in Watsonville, CA, close to San Francisco, 

distributes Hardwoods, softwoods and imported woods. “The 

key word in our business is serve; we serve our customers,” said 

Owner and President Steve Jackel. 

By Michelle Keller 

White Oak, Poplar and Walnut (4/4, 8/4, 10/4, 20/4 FAS, 

Select and Better). In softwoods the operation carries 

and manufactures from western red cedar, redwood, 

Alaskan yellow cedar, ponderosa pine, sugar pine, hemlock 

and douglas fir (4/4, 6/4, 8/4, 10/4, Moulding and 

Better). Species available in imported woods include 

African Mahogany, Ipe, Sapele, Jatoba and Teak (FEQ, 

Select and Better). 

Owner and President Steve Jackel became involved 

in the forest products industry by making dulcimer instruments 

from Claro Walnut. The dulcimer is a fretted string 

instrument made from wood. It typically has three or four 

strings and was originally played in the Appalachian region 

of the United States. Jackel said after selling the instruments 

he began to get lumber requests. He sold both 

lumber and dulcimers for about 16 years before deciding 

to focus solely on selling lumber and manufacturing 

products. “I was a partner in what could only be called 

a folk business. We were in a barn and made dulcimers 

which we distributed around the United States. We were 

selling them mainly to music stores and, because of the 

nature of the wood we were purchasing, I got into selling 

From left, are Steve Jackel and his son Noah Jackel with 

live edge slabs. 

Sapele is one species of exotic woods handled by 

Jackel Enterprises. 

extra wood to the public. As time went on, I discovered 

my archetype was a merchant as opposed to an artisan.” 

Today the operation encompasses a two-acre, 

40,000-square-foot shop, mill and lumberyard purchased 

and expanded in 2016. 

“As a lumberyard and mill, we are part of a collective 

stewardship in a unique supply chain, from forest to finished 

product,” Jackel explained. “We source quality 

lumber, wood products and services providing a palette 

of materials to fulfill residential and commercial project 

needs catering to architects, designers, builders and 

craftsmen. 

“Our focus is on value-added production,” he continued. 

“We have two L200 Nyle dry kilns. So, if we have 

a job where we are using bigger timbers for smaller 

boards, we have the capacity to resaw, sticker and dry. 

The selling of lumber is greatly influenced by trends as 

opposed to actual functionality. As a consequence, western 

red cedar is in high demand worldwide. There is a 

limited supply. Our clients want it, although there might 

be woods that are similar in function but not in appearance. 

Alaskan yellow cedar is just as functional, but the 

appearance is significantly different along with the pricing.” 

Jackel Enterprises’ products and lumber have appeared 

in some high-profile and interesting places. However, 

Jackel said he’s not able to release any details. 

“We’ve signed non-disclosure agreements for most of 

these jobs. We aren’t allowed to take photos in some 

instances. Once we had a project that had 12,000 feet 

of color-selected hemlock and 25,000 square-feet of engineered 

8-inch wide, rift White Oak flooring in just one 

house.” 

He continued, “We did a fence that was hand-split redwood 

from salvaged trees for an equestrian horse ranch. 

That job required a lot of reclaimed redwood bridge timbers. 

That was also for a high-profile client. So, we get 

engaged in high-end projects that are architecturally demanding 

in the Bay Area.” 

When asked what sets Jackel Enterprises apart from 

his friendly competitors he indicated experience, quality 

and value-added services are at the top of the list. “I’ve 

been in the woodworking industry for 50 years. The primary 

goal at Jackel Enterprises is to supply lumber and 

value-added products at the highest standard. We place 

importance on our customers, meeting all of their needs. 

Please turn the page 




Jackel Enterprises encompasses a two-acre, 40,000-square-foot shop, mill and lumberyard purchased and expanded in 2016. 

JACKEL ENTERPRISES INC. Continued 

We’re not car salesmen; we’re wood people. We want 

the job, but we want to be sure it’s the right material for 

the job. We have a significant ability to assure this because 

of our experience. The key word in our business 

is serve; we serve our customers.” 

He also noted that while the company is small with 

only 12 employees, it has the ability to compete on a 

larger scale. “For a small company, we have capacity for 

high volume. We can compete with anybody in terms of 

capacity.” 

Jackel Enterprises responded to the global pandemic 

by growing its just-in-time operations. “We’re very 

nimble,” Jackel said. “We’ve lowered our inventory and 

strengthened our trading partnerships where we can buy 

and sell per job. The jobs are of a size that enables us 

to do that even when the supply chain has been difficult. 

There was a period when we were selling projects and 

the price of inventory doubled in a period of a year. It 

would take 90 days to get a smaller purchasing number 

than we would normally buy. At one point a full truckload 

of Cedar went from $90,000 to $180,000. That wasn’t 

practical and it was difficult to operate under those circumstances. 

With our trading partners, we’ve been able 

to make adjustments and meet the needs faster.” 

Jackel initially set up shop in his own home. “It was 

just me, a pickup truck and a phone,” he recalled. Two 

years into his new venture, Jackel moved the company 

into a warehouse, then relocated again in 1998. The 

company finally moved into its new location in 2016. 

Jackel, who runs the company with his son, Noah 

(vice president), sells about 95 percent of the company’s 

products to other businesses. “We sell to cabinet shops, 

product manufacturers and high-end residential and 

commercial contractors,” said Jackel, whose firm also 

encompasses an urban forestry division (West Coast 

Woods) and a manufacturing firm dedicated to making 

real wood box beams. Through the former, the company 

salvages street trees, urban fall-downs and institutional 

tree removals, and converts the logs into lumber and 

live-edge slabs. 

Jackel Enterprises Inc. is Forestry Stewardship Council 

(FSC)-certified. n 

For more information visit www.JackelEnterprises.com. 

Class 204 Graduates From 

NHLA Inspector Training School 

Left to Right Standing: Jeremy Prosser, Billy Joe Blackburn, Eric 

Osborne, Dylan Maggert, Michael Janjigian 

Seated: Lucian Gratz, Roman Matyushchenko (Instructor), Freddy 

Guevara 

The National Hardwood Lumber Association, headquartered 

in Memphis, TN, celebrated the graduation of 

Class 204 from the Inspector Training School (ITS) recently. 

Geoff Webb, Dean of NHLA Inspector Training School, 

kicked off the celebration, saying, “It’s an honor to welcome 

this class into the ranks of lumber inspectors. This 

is just the start of your career, and it is essential to re- 

Roman Matyushchenko presented the individual achievement awards. 

Outstanding individual awards recipients were as follows: 

•Jeremy R. Prosser, ITS Educational Foundation Award for Highest Overall Average 

•Lucian H. Gratz, Howard Hanlon Award for Second Highest Overall Average 

•Jeremy R. Prosser, Westside Hardwood Club Award for Highest Board Run Average 

•Billy Joe Blackburn IV, Milt Cole Award for Best Attitude/Citizenship 

Enrollment is now open for Class 205 in Memphis, TN, 

beginning on January 8, 2024. To enroll or learn more 

about the Program, please visit www.nhla.com. 

The NHLA Inspector Training School has a proud and 

rich 70-year history, graduating more than 7,500 students 

since its conception. The Program teaches the 

rules and applications of the NHLA grading system and 

prepares students for a career in the Hardwood industry. 

This unique Program has earned worldwide respect, 

attracting students from throughout the United States, 

member that the lumber inspector is a key employee and 

a vital part of the team at the sawmill, the concentration 

yard and the entire Hardwood lumber operation.” 

Nick Thompson, President and Co-Owner of Thompson 

Appalachian Hardwoods, gave the graduates an 

energizing keynote address. As a graduate of the NHLA 

Inspector Training School (Class 166), he told students, 

“I’m emotional about this School; it has been a cornerstone 

of my life since childhood; graduating from Inspector 

Training School was a foundational point for my career 

and allowed me to preserve my family’s legacy.” 

Thompson continued, “We sent our employee, Freddy 

Guevara, to the school. He graduates today. We paid 

for Freddy’s education because we know it’s essential to 

continue to develop quality talent, especially talent that is 

part of the next generation. Trust me, you will look back 

when you are my age and realize this was the best eight 

weeks you ever spent.” 

Class President Jeremy R. Prosser of Ontario Hardwood 

Products spoke to his fellow students, saying, 

“This class has been a great experience for all of us; we 

all gained valuable knowledge to further our careers and 

have formed priceless memories at the school that will 

stay with us for the rest of our lives.” 

Graduates of the 204 class were: 

•Billy Joe Blackburn IV, D & T Sawmill, LLC 

•Lucian H. Gratz, Midwest Hardwood Company LLC 

•Freddy Guevara, Thompson Appalachian Hardwoods, Inc. 

•Dylan J. Maggert, Hartzell Hardwoods, Inc. 

•Jeremy R. Prosser, Ontario Hardwood Products, Ltd. 

•Eric V. Osborne, Connor Sports 

•Michael A. Janjigian, Independent 

Canada, Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. 

The world’s largest and oldest Hardwood industry association, 

NHLA represents companies and individuals 

that produce, use, and sell North American Hardwood 

lumber or provide equipment, supplies, or services to the 

Hardwood industry. It was founded in 1898 to establish 

a uniform system of grading rules for the measurement 

and inspection of Hardwood lumber. Since 1979, its 

headquarters have been in Memphis. n 

To learn more about NHLA, please visit www.nhla.com. 




New Year, New Business: 

How The Hardwood Industry 

Can Continue Growing In 2024 

The remodel and repair segment of the lumber niche 

has boomed in recent years. This portion of the Hardwood 

space has not always been sizable, but in the past 

few years, the industry has seen rapid growth in the remodel 

and repair segment. 

What is driving this growth? During the pandemic, we 

experienced a massive societal reconsideration of home 

and office spaces. Remodeling became commonplace 

as people sought new ways to use and, in some cases, 

show off their homes and commercial buildings. As 

we have moved past the pandemic and interest rates 

have continued to rise, we have seen this trend continue 

as homeowners look to add value to their homes with 

wood-based products. 

While there is much to celebrate in the Hardwood 

space today, as we head into 2024, there are a few 

headwinds to consider. Supply chain shortages, talent 

challenges and inflation still loom large as threats to 

business. Weather-related claims, auto claims and insure-to-value 

issues are rising in frequency. Heading 

into the new year, Hardwood businesses should take 

time to examine the obstacles ahead and properly prepare 

for the risks on the horizon. 

Examining The Challenges In The New Year 

As has been the case for several years, supply chain 

shortages remain. Whether renovating or replacing 

By Sean Briscoe, 

assistant vice president of underwriting at PLM 

equipment, the downtime to find new parts and machinery 

is much more extreme. What used to be a one-year 

turnaround now can take around two to three years. 

Hardwood businesses used to be able to turn to the 

refurbished market for additional options, but those resources 

have been largely exhausted in the wake of the 

pandemic. 

Inflation and employment issues have raised additional 

challenges. Due to the supply chain and talent crises, 

it is more expensive today to rebuild a structure than two 

years ago, or even six months ago. This has created 

some significant gaps in insurance to value. Hardwood 

businesses are finding their buildings and equipment are 

not valued at the proper level. This has caused some 

sticker shock, where insureds are often unprepared for 

the significant cost to replace and rebuild in the event of 

a loss. 

Talent has also impacted the claims side. We are 

seeing more auto claims caused by staffing issues. 

Hardwood businesses have had a hard time hiring and 

maintaining good drivers, leading to an increase in costly 

claims. Hot works safety protocols continue to be a 

concern in the niche too. Though the number of fire losses 

are down this year, ensuring that staff are properly 

trained and practicing sound hot works/welding safety 

controls is imperative to avoiding fires and other costly 

losses. 

Perhaps the largest rise in claims we have seen has 

involved weather-related losses. We are seeing a major 

uptick, most notably in areas where we do not traditionally 

see storms. For example, this year, a hurricane hit 

the coast of California while wildfires spread in New Jersey. 

Areas inexperienced in these types of catastrophes 

have suffered major losses with long rebuild times as a 

result. 

Addressing Business And Safety Concerns 

While these are certainly major challenges for Hardwood 

businesses, there are several safety and business 

planning practices business owners can take to prepare 

and maintain safe operations. These include: 

•Plan ahead: Planning equipment and part purchases 

far ahead of necessity is an important step to ensure 

downtimes are not too long in the event of an equipment 

breakdown. Whenever possible, staying ahead 

of supply chain shortages is critical. 

•Establish a hot works program: Hardwood businesses 

are a frequent source of fire related incidents with 

the high amount of sawdust and wood present. Establishing 

a comprehensive hot works program similar 

to what PLM requires, with strict requirements 

for regular cleaning, fire watch, fire extinguish placement 

and management of potentially combustible 

and flammable materials is critical. Staff should be 

trained regularly regarding these requirements too. 

•Housekeeping: Routine housekeeping is critical to 

limiting losses. Management should enforce a written 

program with routine equipment and machinery 

maintenance. Staff should be trained to perform daily 

dust clean ups across all surfaces and supervisors 

should conduct a weekly dust inspection to confirm 

staff is following the program. 

•Look at your coverage: Business owners should review 

the amount of coverage they have and ensure 

they have adequate limits. Consider worst case scenarios 

with longer wait times for replacing equipment 

and plan your limits accordingly. Make sure inventory 

and equipment have the right value as of today to 

avoid sticker shock when a loss occurs. 

•Pay attention to driver safety: Hiring the right staff and 

continuously monitoring their behavior behind the 

wheel is critical to driver safety. Thoroughly vet potential 

staff and implement continuous motor vehicle 

record (MVR) monitoring program to confirm they are 

practicing safe driver behavior. Consider implementing 

telematic devices in all vehicles to best ensure 

drivers are performing to the company’s standards of 

care behind the wheel. Using forward and rear facing 

cameras within that suite of telemetric controls can 

also help determine fault in the event of an incident. 

•Get back to weather basics: With claims on the 

rise, going back to the basics is important. Examine 

your roof and make sure you have practiced proper 

roof maintenance and upkeep. Clean any shrubs 

or growth on buildings as well. Keep an emergency 

supply kit on site as well and develop an emergency 

response plan in the event of a weather incident. 

2024 could be another year of major growth for the 

Hardwood industry, provided these businesses take the 

right steps forward. Implementing comprehensive safety 

practices, considering your current coverage portfolio, 

and following basic housekeeping and training schedules 

can make a major difference. n 

About The Author 

Sean Briscoe, Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company, is assistant vice president of 

underwriting. Sean can be reached at sbriscoe@plmins.com or by phone at (267) 825-9262 




Equipment And Services Providers 

Accept The Challenges That 

The Market Brings 

Across the forest products industry, equipment and 

services providers that accommodate the Hardwood industry 

came to a general consensus that while budgets 

have begun to tighten, there is a growing need for advances 

in AI and automation technologies to meet the 

demand that sawmills have with the changing work force. 

One company leader noted, “The current trend in the 

sawmill industry both in Hardwood and softwood mills is 

to be as efficient as possible.” 

Casey Miller 

A.W. Stiles Contractors Inc. 

McMinnville, TN 

At A.W. Stiles we work with 

both the Hardwood and softwood 

industries. 

We have noticed that 

the Hardwood industry has 

slowed down some as far as 

needing repairs, while the 

softwood industry seemed to 

still need repairs and new builds on a regular basis. 

I anticipate that in 2024 both industries will be tightening 

their budgets even more. 

By Cadance Hanson 

Another company leader spoke to the concerns of the 

supply chain and the time frame in which his company 

is able to deliver equipment. “Lead times for delivery of 

support parts have shot out to three months or more. 

This obviously affects the uptime of a manufacturing operation. 

So, we have added stock and advanced orders 

to accommodate the problem,” he stated. 

. 

We offer new kilns for both Hardwood and softwood, 

as well as kiln reskins, kiln repair, kiln parts and chief 

prefabbed metal buildings. 

We haven’t had any real issues with parts, or any issues 

with transportation or labor. A lot of our customers 

are struggling with labor. 

In my opinion I believe that technology is making up 

for very little of the shortage of labor in the sawmills. I 

believe it will be hard pressed to replace the human eye 

and still supply a good quality product. b 

Kirk Forbes 

Brunette Machinery Co. Inc. 

Surrey, BC 

We work with both Hardwood 

and softwood lumber 

companies. Our wood processing 

machines can be 

configured to handle various 

materials, including Hardwood, 

softwood and wastewood. 

We saw an increase in capital sales in 2023. The first 

half of 2024 looks likely to continue this trend. We expect 

to see positive growth in the demand for size-reduction 

machinery as the bioenergy/biomass sector advances. 

While supply chain issues, transportation costs and 

a diminishing labor force was challenging in 2023, the 

impact of those concerns was lessened by diversifying 

our transportation providers, widening our vendor pool, 

increasing inventory and securing long term purchase 

agreements. 

With the global biomass power market continuing to 

gain momentum, we expect to see a heightened interest 

in products such as our Brunette BioSizer, SmartVIBE 

and Whole Log Chipper as demand for wood pellets and 

other biomass materials see an increase worldwide. 

Products such as our Volumetric Optical Belt Scale 

with Bluetooth handsets have given mills the power of 

accurate data. This scanner has a 99.8 percent accuracy 

reading, so mills will be able to definitively measure chips 

and hog fuel for improved returns. 

Advanced computer programming, software applications 

and the increasing development of AI processes 

that are aimed at automating and streamlining wood processing 

plants are becoming more important in the industry 

for maximizing profits and improving the execution 

of maintenance work as well as minimizing the effects of 

labor shortages. 

We are exploring new ways of implementing modern 

technology to complement our machinery such as AR 

(augmented reality) software to provide real-time 3D assistance 

in performing maintenance tasks and training. 

Other innovative trends that are making inroads in the 

industry in both Hardwood and softwood sectors are advances 

in wireless PLC controls that remotely attach to 

systems for remote monitoring, troubleshooting and upgrades. 

Brunette Machinery specializes in wood processing 

and material handling systems for the sawmill and biomass 

industries. Our machines can be configured for 

either Hardwood or softwood. Our experienced technicians 

provide on-site service for our machines, and we 

offer machine repairs in our facilities in Surrey, BC and 

Prince George, BC. 

As automation technology advances, the need for 

some people onsite in sawmills and machine shops will 

be reduced. With the implementation of AI and automated 

systems, the industries’ labor requirements will see 

a shift to workers who can complement this automation 

including remote operators, IT personnel, as well as machinists, 

advanced welders and other technicians who 

can maintain facility machines. b 





2024 EQUIPMENT/SERVICES FORECASTS Continued 

Dan Mathews 

SII Dry Kilns 

Lexington, NC 

We provide equipment 

for Hardwood and softwood 

companies. Also, many industrial 

wood sectors, pallets, 

poles, firewood, ties, 

etc. 

As we noticed last year, 

Hardwood companies in 

the southern states, we have seen Hardwood mills purchasing 

equipment for drying yellow pine and/or utilizing 

Hardwood kilns for drying pine. In northern states, 

where that option doesn’t exist, we have seen projects 

that are replacements of antiquated kilns with modern 

energy efficient kilns. As the cost of energy rises in the 

future, many companies are finding that running older 

equipment with poor energy efficiency will become too 

costly to operate. With the volatile market this year, more 

and more customers are needing kilns that have extra 

airflow, heat and venting to have more flexibility for drying 

all species to take advantage of changes in the market. 

For softwood companies we are continuing to see 

strong sales in softwood kilns, Dual Path Kilns, adding 

Extensions to existing kilns to modify them to Dual Path 

from Batch Kilns. Additionally, we have seen a larger interest 

in Pole and “after (pressure) treatment” kilns as 

well. 

Pallet kiln sales in 2023 were strong because of the 

ever-increasing demand for dried pallets versus green. 

In 2024, we expect to see the number of new Hardwood 

kilns reduce due to market demand and the availability 

of used kilns on the market. It would be surprising 

to see capital equipment purchases continue at the same 

rate as 2022 and 2023. 

We are fortunate to have gotten through most of 2023 

without major material or labor shortages however various 

electrical, gas fired burners and steam components 

are beginning to impact our ability to complete some new 

kiln orders and our parts sales are being affected as well. 

For kiln operations using gas or oil boilers, we offer 

our SII-HX heat exchanger for new or retrofit projects. 

According to our supplier’s data, these units can save up 

to 70 percent of the latent heat that is exhausted while 

moving all the moist air out of the kiln. SII is conducting 

tests to validate those efficiency numbers by utilizing 

these heat exchangers on actual Hardwood kilns. In conjunction 

with RAM Forest Products, in Shinglehouse, PA, 

we are testing actual steam usage in two identical kilns. 

The SII-HX heat exchangers are designed specifically for 

Hardwood kilns and are compatible with other dry kiln 

manufacturer’s controls. 

For Walnut producers, we have a new line of “fully 

welded” stainless steel steamers available in both track 

and package loaded models. The major benefits to the 

customer are the following: 1) ability to steam without 

using steam “spray” versus a closed loop steam system 

that boils a pool of water contained in a “vat” and returns 

all condensate to the boiler and 2) the fully welded interior 

keeps the “Walnut juice” inside the unit and avoids 

leaking out into the ground or storm water sewer. 

The SII Computerized Control System provides our 

customers with the tools for real-time kiln management 

utilizing in-kiln moisture measurement with “Sample 

Watch” our integrated weight-based platforms and/or 

moisture probes. “Utility Watch” as a part of the control 

system is a powerful tool to help manage energy loads 

when approaching “peak load” thereby reducing electrical 

costs. Operating in the background, the SII “Steam 

Management” system prioritizes the steam load for kilns 

which in turn allows for maximum drying operations when 

available steam drops below normal operating range. 

These systems combined with the support offered by SII 

Dry Kilns provides customers with the tools they need to 

improve their profitability and maximize product quality. 

For over 53 years we have put our experience to work 

for our customers while building long-term relationships. 

SII is a full-service dry kiln manufacturer offering custom 

designed kilns for all North American species. 

For our Hardwood customers we offer package kilns 

track kilns, large capacity center fan wall package kilns, 

cross flow and down-draft pre-dryers, fan sheds, Walnut 

steamers, pallet, and firewood kilns. 

For our softwood customers we offer Dual Path kilns 

and Batch track kilns. Our controls department is second 

to none period. The design of our control systems is 

based on the idea that our customers know what is best 

for their operation rather than assuming that we know 

your lumber better than you do. We utilize Wonderware 

software to create the “KILN DRY” system that is recognized 

throughout the industry. From manual to semi-automatic 

to fully automatic control options, we provide 

them all. 

Thermally modified wood is finally beginning to take 

hold in the U.S. and Canada. SII Dry Kilns have been 

involved with Thermal Modification since 2008 and have 

been representing WDE Maspell’s Thermal Vacuum kilns 

since 2015. WDE Maspell is the world’s most respected 

Eric Michaud 

Carbotech Group 

Plessisville, QC 

name in vacuum drying. Through a unique technology 

that combines attributes of vacuum drying with accelerated 

heating for thermal modification, WDE Maspell 

has developed a superior system to any other on the 

market. Not only does the vacuum allow the remaining 

moisture in the wood to be removed very quickly but also 

removes the odor causing “by-products” from the wood 

during modification and produces an odor free product. 

As thermally modified wood becomes more popular, 

the opportunities for many of our customers to produce 

these products for a fraction of the cost that custom treaters 

charge becomes a considerable improvement in their 

bottom line. 

We are selling more of our Sample Watch & Moisture 

Probe control systems primarily because of the automation 

that it provides for the kiln operators. By providing 

real time monitoring based either by samples or probes 

it allows the kiln operators a much quicker glimpse at kiln 

charge moisture content percentage vs. selecting and 

weighing a large volume of samples. b 

We do business in both industries, 

softwood and Hardwood. 

We have seen a decrease in requests 

from both industries mainly 

due to the poor lumber prices over 

the past several months now. If 

the prices don’t go up, 2024 may 

become a difficult year for some 

equipment manufacturers. The situation that the supply 

chain was in and the ability to get parts has improved 

over the last 12 months. It can be complicated sometimes 

with some electronic components still, but it is not 

as bad as it was during COVID. Transportation and labor 

is acceptable at this point. 

Discussions with customers about artificial intelligence 

and robotics are still hot these days. I’m convinced that 

we will see new developments and new offers to the market 

in those areas in 2024. There is so much potential for 

sawmills. 

Autolog, part of the Carbotech Group, is presently 

working on transverse scanners with visions, using artificial 

intelligence, for Hardwood and softwood sawmills. 

We started offering this product for softwood at the end of 

2023 while the one for Hardwood should be ready at the 

end of 2024. These products will have the power to grade 

softwood and Hardwood lumber on edger and trimmer 

lines. 

Carbotech manufactures material handling equipment 

for softwood and Hardwood mills that has a focus mainly 

on log and lumber handling for sawmills and planer mills. 

Autolog provides automation and optimization solutions 

for both wood types, logs, cants and lumber. We also 

provide installation services when our customers don’t 

have the resources or time to take care of the whole 

project. Of course, all of our equipment is installed and 

started up by our technicians in order to help you run the 

equipment at its maximum capacity, as soon as possible. 

We can see the elimination of at least 50 percent of 

workplaces in many projects as most of these workplaces 

are ones in which it is hard to find employees that 

enjoy these jobs, as they’re physically demanding and 

are less attractive to young people. b 






Henry German 

DMSi 

Omaha, NE 

Frances Cooper 

Cooper Machine Company Inc. 

Wadley, GA 

We work with both Hardwood 

and softwood companies. 

The industry is still struggling 

to get people to come 

to work and we are selling 

more sorters/stacking systems 

to prove it. We expect 

the trend of mills automating to continue into 2024. We 

are also seeing labor has had inflationary pressures, especially 

for skilled personnel. 

Parts have stabilized a bit in being able to get them in 

a more timely fashion, but prices remain high. Electrical 

parts, specifically Allen-Bradley still have long lead 

times. Importing/Exporting is getting a little better and 

we are not seeing the delays due to lack of trucks and 

drivers, like we were, but prices have remained more 

costly than previous years. 

Cooper Machine has been busy doing a good bit of 

work with the post and pole industry to set up new merchandising 

and sorting mills to get the posts and poles 

ready to go into a perfect peeler or through the mill with 

Morbark peelers. We are now offering a five saw chop 

saw option with or without optimization for our customers. 

We are also offering a pole grading system. 

For the pallet industry, we are offering an optimized 

Tandem with a special second saw to get the most out of 

each log. This system works well with our inline splitter. 

Adding a VSA and pallet trimmer to process the slabs 

adds the cherry on top. We’ve teamed up with Brewer 

and Precision Husky on a project here recently to provide 

a complete pallet mill. 

Cooper Machine has been teaming up with Automation 

& Electronics for a lot of our PLC controls, and it’s 

been a great partnership. We have found more customers 

wanting to optimize their equipment to get the best 

yield. We have an updated ultrasonic board that we are 

starting to roll out to our customers. We will announce 

when we are finished developing the updated controls 

system to be rolled out to our existing customers. We 

are also offering a simple PLC on some of our smaller 

machines that we are doing in house. 

Cooper Machine is best known for our long lasting 

Scraggs. These are good for both Hardwood and softwood 

customers and have different options to assist in 

making pallet boards, chips, lumber, cants, mats and 

crossties. Whether it be for small or large logs, we have 

options. We also build merchandising and debarking 

systems as well as sorting systems for both the Hardwood 

and softwood industries. We have a new version of 

our pole/post merchandiser/sorter system for softwood 

mills that is more high production, which merchandises 

up to six tree length logs per minute and sorts 24 posts/ 

poles a minute. We are also adding a classifying line 

option to our offerings. 

We are seeing that even smaller mills are wanting to 

do more optimizing to help reduce the amount of labor 

needed. This is why we continue to develop and offer 

options for our customers to make this a reality. Merchandising 

and sorting lines continue to be a popular buy 

these days. b 

Arianna Giudiceandrea and Norvin Laudon 

MiCROTEC 

Corvallis, OR and Vancouver, BC 

We service both Hardwood and softwood 

companies. 

For Hardwood we observed high interest 

in value-based log optimization with 

the CT Log and expect this interest to increase 

in 2024. 

For softwood, we developed our own 

hardware and production (e.g. cameras 

and critical parts.) For the next 10 years, 

we guarantee spare parts without any major 

difficulties expected. 

In the coming year we will offer the 

Goldeneye lumber scanner for green, dry 

and planer mills, and Lucidyne scanner 

upgrades to softwood companies, and for 

Hardwood companies we will offer value-based 

log optimization with CT Log. 

A new technology that we have introduced 

to the Hardwood and softwood 

DMSi offers a range of 

software products to support 

the building products industry, 

from timber to consumer. 

This includes a full ERP 

solution with an integrated 

CRM, log and lumber inventory 

products, AI Hardwood 

end tally system and a grading system. 

Developed specifically for Hardwoods and softwoods, 

our log and lumber solutions allow you to do more with 

less. Workers can save time searching for material or 

pallets when an automated system is presenting the information 

right away. Full ERP systems make inventory 

data considerably easier to track. Costing, inside sales, 

and other administrative tasks can be automated to eliminate 

manual efforts for your team. This means hours of 

manual work can be cut down to the click of a button. 

The DMSi product team is working towards incorporating 

AI technology to provide information that will support 

even faster and easier decision making to support your 

day-to-day operations. There’s no question that technology 

can ease the strain of labor shortages. For instance, 

our computer vision grading system uses industrial cameras 

and artificial intelligence to identify defects and automatically 

assign grades to lumber. You would no longer 

depend on someone to visually inspect the grade. Your 

work will keep flowing through a staffing crisis. 

At DMSi, we partner with customers to provide onsite, 

customized utilization reviews. Our team improves 

the efficiency of customers’ businesses and makes their 

lives easier. b 

industries is MiCROTEC Connect, a fingerprint 

system based on CT-scanned 

logs. Through the integrated scanner and 

software solutions and MiCROTEC Ai 

platform, logs can be traced from virtual 

to real boards. We also have our MiCRO- 

TEC Customer Care Center, a customer 

support service that we are working to put 

into place in 2024. 

MiCROTEC offers scanning and optimization 

solutions for the complete wood 

processing industry, from logyard to secondary 

processing, for Hardwood and 

softwood - always committed to providing 

our customers with the most economical 

and sustainable wood utilization. 

We see technology making up for the 

shortage of labor through automation, digitization 

and optimization. b 






Jerry Johnson 

Paw Taw John Services, Inc. 

Rathdrum, ID 

Paw Taw John Services 

(PTJ) is fortunate to work 

with both the Hardwood and 

softwood industries providing 

effective machine control 

systems for manufacturing 

equipment and distribution of 

high-tech measuring devices 

for positioning machine components. We’ve seen a continued 

movement toward more machine automation and 

technology upgrades for existing and new equipment in 

present manufacturing operations. 

Many key forces are at play right now that put pressure 

on mill operations capabilities. One is the challenge 

with work force. As many know, it’s been difficult to find 

qualified or motivated personnel to work in manufacturing 

positions and support companies. We really don’t see 

this changing in 2024 except for certain regions in the 

country. PTJ has secured qualified personnel that negates 

this. 

Two is the supply chain problem of parts and materials 

for maintaining machine centers and new machine 

design opportunities. Lead times for delivery of support 

parts have shot out to three months or more. This obviously 

affects the uptime of a manufacturing operation. 

PTJ has added stock and advanced orders to accommodate 

the problem. While procurement is better since 

2022, it still remains a factor in development and delivery 

of equipment and parts. We encourage our customers to 

add operation essential spares or materials. 

Third is the pressure on housing starts. With inflation 

and interest rates at highs and going higher, the demand 

for services and products will probably decline. Since the 

industry is so big and tied to other industries, some sections 

of wood products will do well. 

PTJ continues to add capabilities to primary and secondary 

log breakdown systems that enable wood products 

manufacturers to meet their goals. Examples are 

saw guide control, vertical edger closed-loop control and 

saw deviation monitoring. We continue to specialize in 

retrofitting existing equipment. Customers are surprised 

to see the benefits of increased fiber yield, product quality, 

and production by adding a more effective motion control 

system to their present machine. We expect this side 

of the business to continue to be robust. 

PTJ wants customers to be comfortable using the 

technology, so these systems are designed and manufactured 

with the idea of simple use and maintainability. 

Systems from PTJ can be accessed through the Internet 

per user request. By using an interface to a cloudbased 

station, PTJ can set up, change operational parameters, 

calibrate scanning systems, provide program 

upgrades and changes, and troubleshoot remotely via 

smart phones or computers. This provides the user with 

an effective umbrella of support and service. Old sawmill 

machinery and equipment, if mechanically sound, 

can be improved to enhance performance. PTJ systems 

are used on many OEM manufactured trimmers, sorters, 

carriages, edgers, horizontal and vertical resaws, and 

other special equipment in the wood products industry. 

They range from vision optimizing systems on head-rigs 

and edgers to simple setworks for line shaft carriages 

and single-axis controls. 

PTJ also has a variety of other products offered for 

both Hardwood and softwood forest products industry. 

PTJ has the largest stock of Temposonics in the U.S. 

as well as other PTJ systems parts. PTJ also is the largest 

distributor of Temposonics sensors in the U.S. with 

its territory in the Pacific Northwest. PTJ distributes robust 

encoders from Encoder Products, laser line generators 

for manual vision from CONNEXUS and it also offers 

hydraulic valve repair, all at affordable prices. PTJ is the 

only authorized repair center for Temposonics in the 

U.S. and will repair Temposonics legacy products as 

parts inventory allows. 

For troubleshooting a hydraulic valve problem on a 

machine, the PVT-02 (proportional valve tester) from 

PTJ is very popular, too. The user can test and troubleshoot 

a proportional valve in the field. This eliminates the 

need to swap units around in order to isolate problems. 

Although servo valves are less used in the industry, PTJ 

still provides a servo valve tester; these were commonly 

referred to as Diddle Boxes. 

PTJ gives the user a great advantage when upgrading 

existing machines that have old motion control setworks. 

Provided the machine is capable, new controls 

will change setting accuracies to 0.005-inch or better. Old 

school sawmill recovery analysis consistently shows that 

improving board size by 1/32-inch will yield 1.5 percent in 

fiber recovery, which equates to recovering dollars of the 

chipper and quicker return on investment. PTJ systems 

are affordable by today’s standards and give users an 

added edge in supplying quality product to their customers 

and establishing new clients. 

Some of the key features of these control systems are: 

• The systems have a very low electrical power 

requirement. 

• The user can purchase most system hardware 

directly online from product suppliers. 

• A cloud-based Internet access to all major sub-assemblies 

allows PTJ to calibrate scanning systems 

remotely when the user needs support. Cloud access 

give PTJ the ability to calibrate the position of 

the knees to the saw, edger saws, or resaws remotely. 

This gives the user a high degree of technical support. 

Stacy Mellott 

Mellott Mfg. Co. Inc. 

Mercersburg, PA 

Ease of use, weekend installation, reliable operation, 

cost-effectiveness, and cloud-based Internet support 

give sawmill operators the advantages and support they 

need to operate in an increasingly competitive environment. 

Paw Taw John Services continues to design new systems 

with mill owners in mind. Feedback from customers 

shows that its systems continue to prove their worth to 

the wood products industry. 

For more information about Paw Taw John Services, 

visit www.PawTaw.com, email info@pawtaw.com or 

call (208) 687-1478. b 

We provide equipment 

primarily for the Hardwood 

industry. 

New equipment sales held 

steady through the 1st and 

2nd quarter 2023 then moderating 

the 3rd and 4th quarter, 

which is understandable 

with the backlog of orders through 2024, the higher interest 

rates and with an upcoming election year. Current 

scheduled projects are holding strong with timely deliveries. 

We anticipate 2024 inquiries will remain strong with 

smaller projects and retrofits. We are seeing some interest 

in specialized custom projects in the forest industry. 

The affects related to inflation and high transportation 

costs are slowly stabilizing. Surcharges in most cases 

have been incorporated into the new normal base prices. 

Suppliers are returning to implementing moderate increases. 

We continue to find some challenges in sourcing, 

in particular hydraulic and electronic components but 

overall we are able to find alternative sources. Expect 

purchasing power to improve as supply catches up with 

demand. 

Industrial labor is in high demand in our industry, it continues 

to be challenging to find and retain qualified people 

to fill positions, both labor and middle management 

type positions. 

Since 1965, Mellott Manufacturing has been designing 

and manufacturing quality log and lumber handling 

equipment for primarily Hardwood but will also work for 

softwood applications. Mellott has an onsite engineering 

and design team available to provide solutions for your 

next project and will consult and work with you to present 

the best options for your application. We offer material 

handling integration with new and existing systems. Mellott 

offers a full line of log and lumber handling equipment 

along with debarkers, log flare butt reducer, bandsaws, 

linebars, drop saw trimmers, tilt hoists, crane mat drilling 

and a full line of tie handling equipment (sorting, stacking, 

dapping, end plating). 

There has been a steady increase of machine automation 

replacing labor in sawmills. Some of the smaller 

sawmills struggle with the costs involved with the newer 

technologies. As the implementation of the newer automation 

becomes more widespread the costs of using that 

technology is reduced, making it affordable to smaller 

sawmills. b 






Claus Staalner 

American Wood Technology LLC 

Jefferson, GA 

We work with both the Hardwood 

and softwood industries 

by importing and selling wood 

protection equipment exclusively 

from IWT-MOLDRUP in Denmark 

and Singapore. We have 

seen that on the softwood side 

there have been strong investment 

trends, while we are seeing the opposite on the 

Hardwood side, with them investing very little. I believe 

that this trend will continue throughout 2024 with strong 

investments from the softwood industry and cautious attitudes 

from the Hardwood industry. 

Our strengths for the Hardwood industry are thermal 

modification equipment and creosote impregnation 

Paul Cleereman 

Cleereman Industries and Cleereman Controls 

Newald, WI 

Most equipment purchases 

in 2023 have been for 

improving yield at each machine 

center and/or improving 

the workers work area itself. 

If you can reduce some 

of the mental and physical 

aspects of each work area, it 

may help keep employees and may make it work for less 

qualified workers. I think this trend is going to continue for 

years to come as the Hardwood and softwood industries 

struggle to hang on to their workforce. 

Cleereman Industries will be coming out with an optimized 

8-inch semi-combination Edger for both Hardwood 

and softwood sawmills. This will be a fixed-box unit with 

overhead scanning capability. 

Cleereman Controls offers optimization and controls 

packages for many different lines of equipment. Our controls 

company also builds custom controls packages to fit 

customers’ individual needs. By using different types of 

Moldrup 

Lerbaek Moellevej 2 

DK 7100 Vejle 

plants for railroad ties. We also offer thermal modification 

equipment to the softwood industry; although our heaviest 

business in 2023 and in 2024 are CCA and CA-C 

vacuum/pressure impregnation plants developed and 

manufactured by IWT-MOLDRUP based in Denmark and 

Singapore. CCA and CA-C are liquid wood preservatives 

that are pressed into the wood to make it last longer and 

are used in certain quantities and measurements, adhering 

to U.S. standards. IWT-MOLDRUP has developed 

some turnkey operations that are very low labor intensive 

treating plants, often able to be run by one man only, for 

pressure treating up to more than 40 million board feet 

annually, which allows us to deliver fully automatic treating 

plants to the industry as it is today. b 

automization we have been able to eliminate employees 

and save labor costs. 

Cleereman Industries offers complete sawmill solutions 

for both grade Hardwood and softwood sawmills. 

Whether it is a completely new sawmill or an addition to 

an existing sawmill, Cleereman can offer to sit down and 

work closely with customers to determine which equipment 

will be the best solution for their production goals. 

Cleereman can also offer controls packages for existing 

carriages, resaws and edgers, not to mention that we 

work with a wide spectrum of other equipment manufacturers 

like Nicholson Debarkers. 

The current trend in the sawmill industry both in Hardwood 

and softwood mills is to be as efficient as possible. 

In the last few years, we see more optimization packages 

being put on our equipment. Mills are having equipment 

manufacturers and controls companies automate different 

lines to replace employees. Cleereman Industries 

and Cleereman Controls have been focused on reducing 

labor costs and increasing yield for their customers. b 

Neill Gibson 

USNR 

Woodland, WA 

USNR caters to all aspects 

of the wood processing industry; 

Hardwood, softwood, engineered 

wood, mass timber, 

as well as the pellet industry. 

USNR has manufacturing facilities 

located in: Eugene, OR, Hot 

Springs, AR, Baxley, GA, Jacksonville, 

FL, Plessisville and Levis, QC, Painesville, OH, 

Parksville & Salmon Arm, BC, as well as Soderhamn, 

Sweden. 

From Hardwood mills, we are seeing a need to automate. 

Because of the smaller nature of many of these 

mills, investments in automation have been hard to justify. 

The post-pandemic situation has changed the economics 

and the need to automate has become a priority. 

In terms of softwood mills, the cost of round wood is still 

high from price increases during the pandemic and high 

mortgage rates are impacting the profitability of commodity 

lumber. This is negatively impacting capacity to 

invest. Mills have long lists of investments needed and 

those lists are being prioritized quarterly as mill management 

waits for indicators to show some market positivity 

before moving forward. 

After recent acquisitions, USNR is focused on integrating 

new product lines. We have added a complete line 

of heavy-duty woodyard equipment including log cranes 

and drum debarkers, as well as merchandizing systems 

previously identified as Timber Automation, Baxley and 

LogPro. Working closely with our customers, we have 

also developed solutions for some specific needs. We 

recently launched a hybrid lineal optimizer acquired from 

VAB that is designed to grade both softwood and Hardwood. 

The first of its kind has been installed in Virginia 

and the results are very promising. We are also working 

on automated round table management for block recovery 

and our engineers are working to deliver this solution 

to the market in 2024. 

For Hardwood mills with the goal of increasing quality 

and productivity at sites equipped with band saws, USNR 

has launched a USNR SawAdd solution along with our 

BMS (Bandsaw Monitoring System). Our team is continuously 

developing expertise in fine-tuned grading with 

USNR optimization specifically for the Hardwood industry, 

as well as the addition of new service team members 

and support staff. Softwood mills benefit from USNR’s 

MillGenius, the next level of optimization software that 

brings together all the data from sensors and optimizers 

throughout the mill with the goal of (a) producing the 

highest quality material as efficiently as is possible and, 

in time (b) using the data accumulated to identify trends 

and upstream events that impact production. This has 

the potential to guide maintenance teams in the pursuit 

of issues as they happen, not after catastrophic failure. 

USNR is an integral part of a much bigger picture: 

Wood Technologies International (WTI). WTI is the No. 1 

source for all products and services needed in both the 

Hardwood and softwood manufacturing industry. WTI 

is comprised of four related divisions: Mid-South Engineering, 

with offices located throughout North America 

providing engineering services to new and existing mills. 

USNR, the largest global supplier of all machines associated 

with sawmills, from log yards through debarking 

and primary breakdown, to lumber handling, kiln drying 

and planer mills. This includes industry-leading scanning 

and optimization technology for every stage of the process. 

USNR also supplies machinery to the Engineered 

Wood Products industries, including lathes lines, dryers, 

presses, RF generators, continuous lumber edge gluers, 

crowders, proof loaders and all aspects of controls associated 

with OSB and plywood manufacturing as well as 

glulam beams and cross laminated timber (CLT). Burton 

Mill Solutions and Global Tooling & Supply are components 

No. 3 and 4 in the WTI portfolio and here the focus 

is on cutting tools and the filing room. Burton supplies 

saw blades, knives, sharpening services and filing room 

equipment to sawmills in both Hardwood and softwood 

and Global Tooling & Supply is a leading millwork tooling 

provider creating knives, cutter heads and grinding room 

supplies. These four groups bring together the widest 

variety of products and services for the wood manufacturing 

industry. 

At USNR, we are constantly being reminded of the 

growing need to automate the process of manufacturing 

lumber. In the world of commodities, ie. high volume, this 

is justifiable, and investments are made accordingly. The 

challenge going forward is being able to bring automation 

and optimization to production facilities in both the 

softwood and Hardwood industry where volume is not 

the primary goal. We focus on ways that increases quality 

and work with customers to develop niche processes 

for the years to come. In other words, technologies such 

as robotics will absolutely help in the manufacturing process 

as human resources are evolving away from manual 

labor towards highly technical positions. b 




Appalachian Lumbermen Learn 

About Energy Grants 

The Rural Energy for America Program provides grant 

funding and guaranteed loan financing to rural small 

businesses with money available to Appalachian Lumbermen’s 

Club members. 

The program was presented at the recent ALC meeting, 

held at the Carnegie Hotel in Johnson City, TN. The 

presentation was by Chase Lamb, US Department of 

Agriculture REAP specialist in Tennessee. He said the 

goal of the program is to help reduce energy costs overall 

for agricultural and rural small businesses. 

In order to be considered, the USDA REAP Grant applicants 

must: 

•Be financially solvent 

•Not be delinquent or have outstanding federal taxes 

•Be the owner of the business 

•Have no judgment, or debarment in order to be 

considered. 

Lamb said small businesses must be located in rural 

development areas, defined as an area not a city 

or town with 50,000 or more inhabitants as well as the 

urbanized areas surrounding the city or town. 

By Tom Inman 

Learn more at www.lumberclub.org. 

The grant terms are: 

•$1,500 minimum and $250,000 maximum 

•Projects costing more than $200,000 must have 

a technical report completed 

•Energy efficiency improvement projects require either 

an energy audit or assessment before the project 

begins. 

•Applicants are required to provide at least 75 percent 

of the cost if they are applying for a grant, or 25 percent 

of the project cost if they are applying for a loan or a 

loan/grant combination. 

REAP offers grants and loans for energy audits, the 

creation of renewable energy systems, and energy efficiency 

improvements. It serves farmers, rural businesses, 

state and local governments, tribal governments, 

universities, rural electric cooperatives, resource conservation 

and development councils, and electricity providers 

and transmitters. 

The application is submitted through regional offices 

in each state. Funds may be used for the purchase, installation 

and construction of renewable energy systems 

or energy efficiency improvements. n 

Anthony Hammond, Roy Anderson Lumber Co. Inc., Tompkinsville, 

KY; Brian Ballard, Tioga Hardwoods, Claremont, NC; Anthony 

Moody, Missouri Walnut, Neosha, MO; and Joseph Hobbs, 

Ohio Valley Veneer, Piketon, OH 

Jacob Bevins, Farrow Lumber, Cairo, IN; Marty Cope, Associated 

Hardwoods, Granite Falls, NC; Roger Watterson, Watterson 

Parts, Spartanburg, SC; and Rodney Lawing, Conover Lumber, 

Conover, NC 

Steve Leonard, Lawrence Lumber, Maiden, NC; Terry Robbins, 

TM Hardwoods, Helenwood, TN; and Tony Honeycutt, Mullican 

Flooring, Johnson City, TN 

Ken Matthews, SII Dry Kilns, Lexington, NC; Andy Nuffer, RAM 

Forest Products Inc., Kernersville, NC; and Logan Josey, Josey 

Lumber Co. Inc., Scotland Neck, NC 

Rick McCreary and Nathan Hascher, ETT Fine Woods, Belton, SC; 

Bill Graban, Prime Lumber Co., Lexington, NC; and Erin Cox, GTL 

Lumber Inc., Ironton, OH 

Jay Reese, Penn-Sylvan Inc., Spartansburg, PA; Curtis Struyk, 

TMX Shipping, Morehead City, NC; and Steve Counts, BPM Lumber, 

London, KY 

Clark Delabar, Graf Custom Hardwoods, Portsmouth, OH; Steven 

Hamer, Jim C. Hamer Lumber, Kenova, WV; Mark Pierce, New 

River Hardwoods, Mountain City, TN; and Jack Hatfield, Jim C. 

Hamer Lumber 

Bud Griffith, Griffith Lumber, Woolwine, VA; and Danny Arnold, 

Little River Lumber, Asheville, NC 

Additional photos on next page 

34 JANUARY 2024 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry 


ALC PHOTOS Continued 

NELA Members Remain Optimistic 

Despite Challenging Lumber Markets 

Photos By Leslie Brienza 

Barry Hodges, H&H Hardwoods, Morganton, NC; Eric Boyd, Parton 

Lumber, Rutherfordton, NC; Doyle Kitchings, Corley Manufacturing, 

Chattanooga, TN; and Skipper Beal, Beal Lumber, Little 

Mountain, SC 

Jesse LaSon, Rossi Group, Emporium, PA; Tony Summerow, 

New River Hardwoods, Mountain City, TN; Wayne Law, retired, 

Abingdon, VA; and Andy Nuffer, RAM Forest Products, Kernersville, 

NC 

Members of the New England Lumbermen’s Association 

(NELA) recently gathered in Fairlee, VT, for their 

annual fall meeting. Over 90 members attended the 

event at the Lake Morey Resort on the border of New 

Hampshire and Vermont. 

The day began with a coffee and registration period 

where members gathered to connect to new contacts 

and renew old acquaintances. At noon, members were 

treated to a sit-down buffet lunch overlooking the beautiful 

Lake Morey with its fall foliage in peak display. 

Next up, the members sat down for their popular “Business 

Discussion” moderated by President Bob Chase of 

Quabbin Timber Inc. Members shared their current market 

conditions experiences and made predictions about 

markets going forward. The mood was somber as most 

members have seen better times, but most remained 

optimistic for the future trying to find a silver lining where 

markets were concerned. 

After the spirited discussion the members listened to 

guest speaker Charlie Levesque of Innovative Natural 

Resources Solution LLC, who spoke about the current 

atmosphere with Carbon Sequestration and its potential 

impact on timber harvesting in the region. He also 

touched on the current biomass playing field and the potential 

for several plants in the region to close and the 

impact this would have on businesses. 

After a long period of business discussion, the members 

welcomed the planned happy hour and dinner portion 

of the day. 

After dinner some of the members retreated to the 

tavern to watch the Texas Rangers win their first World 

Series! 

For interest in the NELA, please reach out to Chris 

Castano, Secretary/Treasurer at ccastano@maine 

woods.net. n 

Justin Laws, Jeff Gowder and Jordan Amos, Southern Forest 

Products, Appalachia, VA; and Mark Pierce, New River Hardwoods, 

Mountain City, TN 

Seth Riggio, Prime Max Group, Greer, SC; Allison and Cliff McKittrick, 

McKittrick Lumber, Camden SC; and Brian Ballard, Tioga 

Hardwoods, Claremont, NC 

Rob Hill, Holt & Bugbee, Tewksbury, MA; Loren Voyer, Kennebec 

Lumber, Solon, ME; and Anthony Raspa, Quality Hardwoods, 

Powassan, ON 

Peter Irish, Woodline Lumber Co., Alburg, VT; Guy Dollinger, DZD 

Hardwood, Saint-Jérôme, QC; Bruce Dahn, HHP, Inc., Henniker, 

NH; and Hunter Dickenson, Stella-Jones, Cortland, NY 

Greg Pappas, Ten Oaks Flooring, Stuart, VA; Stan Jones, Koppers, 

Creedmoor, NC; Rick McCreary, ETT Fine Woods, Belton, 

SC; and Craig Albright, Messersmith Biomass Boilers, South 

Bloomingville, OH 

Shannon Garland, AHI, Waynesboro, VA; Jimmy Clay, Parton Lumber, 

Rutherfordton, NC; and Jay Reese, Penn-Sylvan Inc., Spartansburg, 

PA 

Mario Chicoine, Sciere Arbotek, Saint-Just-de-Bretenieres, QC; 

Yvon Millette, Vexco, Plessisville, QC; and Peter Veilleux, Multibois, 

Woburn, QC 

Jack English, Clear Choice Hardwood, Northville, NY; Andrew 

Brown, Abenaki Timber Corp., Kingston, NH; and Bob Pope, SII 

Dry Kilns, Montpelier, VT 

Additional photos on next page 




NELA PHOTOS Continued 

Sylvain Poirier, Stella-Jones, Delson, QC; Denis Dubé, J.D. Irving 

Limited, Clair, NB; and J.F Audet, Primewood, Drummondville, 

QC 

Bob Chase Jr., Quabbin Timber, Rutland, MA; Natalie Crane, HHP 

Inc., Henniker, NH; Eric Porter, Abenaki Timber Corp., Kingston, 

NH; and Brin Langmuir, Falcon Lumber, Toronto, ON 

David Hubbard, GMC Hardwoods, Medfield, MA; Yvon Millette, 

Vexco, Plessisville, QC; and Marc-Andre Gaboury, Boa-Franc, St. 

George, QC 

Rémy Caron, Groupe Savoie, Saint-Quentin, NB; Sylvain Larose, 

Nordam Hardwoods, Drummondville, QC; Peter Lovett, King City 

Forwarding, Montreal, QC; and Vincent Caron, Groupe Savoie 

Jean Blondeau, Goodfellow Inc., Delson, QC; Eric Desjardins, 

J.D. Irving Limited, Clair, NB; Paul-Eric Tremblay, Scierie GVL 

Sawmill, Wotton, QC; and Chris Dunn, Wickham Hardwood, Wickham, 

QC 

Dan Warnett and Colin Lindsay, Husky Lumber, Montreal, QC; 

Chris Castano, Maine Woods Company, Portage Lake, ME; Geoff 

Gannon, TS Manufacturing, Plymouth, NH; and Cliff Clune, Clune 

Lumber, Elkin, NC 

Bob Cafiero, Meadow River Lumber, Wassaic, NY; Russell Shamblen, 

Premier Hardwood Products, Syracuse, NY; Dave Williams, 

retired, Champlain Hardwoods, Essex Junction, VT; and Roger 

Feltner, Atlantic Plywood Corp., Rochester, NY 

Rob Hill, Holt & Bugbee, Tewksbury, MA; Chad Johnson, Baillie 

Lumber Company, Hamburg, NY; and Andy Godzinski, Rex Lumber, 

Acton, MA 

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LAKE STATES Continued from page 6 

“So, there probably won’t be too much more business 

until the first of 2024,” he noted. 

The source said that many members of his trade “saw 

the trend coming.” 

“But it was really accelerating here two or three weeks 

ago,” he noted. 

The Minnesota lumberman said that the market was 

“crazy” for the last few years but has “stabilized” in the 

past few months. 

“The housing market slowed down,” he said, noting 

that his main clients are builders specializing in moulding, 

cabinets, Hardwood floors and trims. 

“It is good now,” he noted, “because certain woods got 

crazy expensive and then when it slowed down it went 

ridiculously too low. So, now they’ve come back to where 

they should be.” 

Specializing in all grades of lumber species native to 

southeast Minnesota, the source said he could go up to 

8/4 in thickness. 

The Michigan lumberman said that Red Oak and Maple 

are still selling, primarily in 4/4 and 5/4. However, he 

added that Aspen and Basswood have “been in the tank 

for several months now” and that Maple “is hard to get.” 

“Red Oak is still good,” he continued, “and is in good 

demand but the price still isn’t great. At least they’ve got 

demand again.” 

While the three sources from the Lake States had different 

experiences regarding the current market, they all 

agreed that the competition for White Oak has gotten “unreal.” 

“White Oak is a challenge,” said the Minnesota source. 

“Nobody has good White Oak and it is in such high demand.” 

He believes that architects and designers have 

“specked it out.” 

“Then it must be rift cut because you can only get so 

much when you quarter (the wood). That is by far the 

toughest one on the market for anybody.” 

The Wisconsin source agreed. 

“White Oak is the hardest to get because it is in such 

high demand,” she added. “The stave mills use it for bourbon 

barrels. No matter what the economy is doing, bourbon 

is still being produced and consumed.” n 

nationalhardwoodmag.com 

NORTHEAST Continued from page 6 

also offers crane mats and railroad ties and has a flooring 

plant. 

He noted that his company sells to distributors and 

cabinet, flooring and moulding manufacturers. 

In Pennsylvania, a lumber spokesperson said that 

his sales are doing OK. “We aren’t doing any better or 

worse than we were six months ago,” he said. “Until the 

global economy can improve sales will stay flat.” 

His company offers Ash, Cherry, Red and White Oak, 

Poplar, Hickory and Soft and Hard Maple. “We mainly 

offer FAS and Common grades in thicknesses of 4/4- 

8/4,” he added, noting that he doesn’t have one species 

that is selling better than the others. 

He sells to distributors and manufacturers. “Their 

sales are OK, they aren’t great. A lot of our customers, 

especially the cabinet manufacturers have been up 

against competition where a lot of their customers are 

using competing products compared to Hardwood. They 

are bound to make what the customers are asking for, 

so they are making cheaper products.” 

He went on to say that one of the largest issues that 

the Hardwood industry is continuing to face is substitute 

wood products. “We are losing out in the flooring and 

cabinetry industries. There aren’t enough quality craftsmen 

that are able to make products from the materials 

that we produce.” n 

SOUTHEAST Continued from page 7 

When asked if he was doing better or worse than he 

was six months ago, he mentioned that he was doing a 

little worse. “Everybody is trying to survive until there is a 

swing in the market.” 

He said that his company offers Red and White Oak 

and Poplar in all NHLA grades and in thicknesses of 4/4 

through 10/4. 

“We sell to moulding, millwork, furniture and flooring 

manufacturers,” he said, adding that any of his customers 

that are exporting into the Asian markets are working 

with tight margins where it seems as if they are buying 

their orders as opposed to selling their products. 

He went on to say that the economy and the direction 

that it is heading is affecting business in a negative way, 

and the housing market continues to slow. n 

P.O. Box 16767 

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AARON FOUTS afouts@beardhardwoods.com 




WEST COAST Continued from page 7 

“The trend in White Oak is that they have a narrower 

diameter,” he said. “So, it is more difficult to get.” 

The lumber provider said jokingly that he hopes “these 

architects and designers will stop using White Oak for a 

bit.” 

“It would be nice to get away from it,” he acknowledged. 

Another California source said the market is “still order-to-order.” 

“There are orders out there you just have to wait longer 

to get them,” he noted. “Guys just don’t want to pull the 

trigger until they really want it. I try to keep my customers 

up-to-date as to where the market is going.” 

He added that the market teeters from “not really busy 

to not too slow.” 

Specializing in flooring, he noted that everything the 

lumber company gets is “pulled to width.” 

He also said that the company sells all grades, FAS 1 

and 2. 

Regarding transportation, all three of the men acknowledged 

that it wasn’t much of an issue on the bottom line. 

Because there are no Hardwood forests to speak of 

in the west, these lumber providers must have all Hard- 

Church 14_Layout 1 4/17/18 3:43 PM Page 1 

woods shipped to the western states and provinces. 

“But we have so many trucking companies out here,” 

one source noted. “So, transportation isn’t an issue.” 

Another source stated that he doesn’t “have a hard 

time getting our inner modal containers out of the east.” 

“We’ve dealt with the same trucking company for about 

20 years,” he added. 

A California source said that transportation rates have 

been dropping. 

“We’re getting better rates,” he said. “There is too 

much capacity in the market. It’s not that the fuel is dropping, 

it’s the fact that the trucking companies have trucks 

sitting and they have to move them.” 

When asked for some trends that could improve the 

West Coast market, the Washington lumber provider 

simply said, “I wish I knew.” 

At the time of publication, an Oregon source agreed 

and called the market “unpredictable.” 

“Business is spotty,” he said. “People are buying just 

in time, and everybody is trying to pare their inventories 

down. It happens every year, but this year is a little bit 

more than usual. 

“We have come off some good years of COVID,” he 

continued, “so that kind of distorts things a little bit.” 

Specializing in Alder, the lumberman acknowledged 

that the market should improve by the first quarter of 

2024. 

“Everybody is in a holding pattern and trying to get 

through the year and start fresh.” n 

ONTARIO Continued from page 8 

Contacts reported that market conditions were versatile 

for kiln-dried Hard Maple, with some noting shortages 

for many grades and thicknesses which drove prices. Inventories 

were reported as not having increased for most 

in-demand items, and demand had slowed. Wholesalers 

and secondary manufacturers noted changes in their 

businesses compared to a short time ago. Those who 

are buying say they have adequate supplies on hand 

and only purchasing for their short-term needs, causing 

competition for orders. Green Hard Maple demand, on 

the other hand, appears to be doing well, with production 

noted as low relative to buyers’ needs. 

Soft Maple demand has been up and down these past 

years, and sawmill output is down, at low levels. However, 

there does not appear to be shortages, noted contacts. 

Domestic and export markets are rather quiet for 

orders of this species. 

Red Oak business appears to be fair, but not strong 

either on domestic or international markets. Inventories 

were noted to have grown in the recent past which stabilized 

prices. 

Contacts noted that upper grade White Oak is doing 

better, and for this species overall than other species. 

Relative to demand, supplies are still noted as low. 

The Bank of Canada (BoC) Governor Tiff Macklem 

stated in mid-November interest rates might be at their 

peak, given that excess demand had vanished and weak 

growth was expected to persist for many months. 

To control inflation, the BoC raised rates 10 times between 

March 2022 and July 2023, pushing them to a 22- 

year high of 5.00 percent. The inflation rate rose to more 

than 8 percent in 2022, eased to 3.1 percent in October 

2023, still above the bank’s 2 percent target. 

“This tightening of monetary policy is working, and interest 

rates may now be restrictive enough to get us back 

to price stability,” Macklem told the Saint John Region 

Chamber of Commerce in New Brunswick. 

“We expect the economy to remain weak for the next 

few quarters,” he added. “The excess demand in the 

economy that made it too easy to raise prices is now 


We at Bryant Church Hardwoods, Inc., located in Wilkesboro, NC, are proud of our modern Hardwood 

concentration yard facility that we constantly update to better serve our customers with the finest 

Appalachian Hardwood and Eastern White Pine lumber available. Call us at (336) 973-3691 when we can 

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Some facts about our company are, we: 

•Have a 30 acre Hardwood and Eastern White Pine lumber concentration yard 

that exclusively represents one sawmill. 

•Specialize in all thicknesses of kiln dried Eastern White Pine lumber. 

•Deal in Appalachian Hardwood species such as Red and White Oak, Poplar, 

Ash, Hard and Soft Maple, Steamed Walnut, Cherry, Basswood, Beech and 

mixed Hardwoods. 

•Market our Appalachian Hardwood lumber in 4/4 through 8/4 thicknesses that 

is green, air dried and/or kiln dried. 

•Specialize in mixed truck loads. 

This is an aerial view of our modern 

Hardwood concentration yard where we 

process quality Appalachian Hardwood 

and Eastern White Pine lumber. 

•Have 9 steam dry kilns that have a combined dry kiln capacity of 630,000 bd. 

ft. per charge. 

•Own a Newman 382 planer. 

•Usually carry about 4,000,000 bd. ft. on our air drying yard. 

•Usually carry about 1,500,000 bd. ft. of kiln dried lumber in inventory. 

•Offer export preparation, container loading and package tally. 

•Offer the service of sorting lumber at special lengths, widths and grades 

according to customer specifications. 

•Use our own trucks and contract trucks for prompt delivery of your orders. 

•Have over 75 years of combined experience in the lumber business. 

Tim Church 

Mason Church 

Bus.: (336) 973-3691 

FAX: (336) 973-7993 

(800) 973-3380 

Web site: http://BCHI.com 

P.O. Box 995 • Wilkesboro, NC 28697 

Distribution Yard: 683 Buck Road • Wilkesboro, NC 28697 

Because we’ve been in business since 1953, we have many years of experience that helps us to ship your orders right the first time. 

• Top Quality Kiln Dried Hardwood Lumber Rough/S2S 

• Specializing in: 4/4 thru 8/4 Red Oak 

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• Shipping Mixed Trucks/Containers Worldwide 

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Telephone: (607) 962-4688 

Fax: (607) 936-6237 

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sales@siriannihardwoods.com 

Purchasing - Andy Dickinson 

andy@siriannihardwoods.com 




ONTARIO Continued 

gone.” Macklem reiterated that the bank was prepared 

to raise rates again if needed. 

While Macklem stated in a late October interview rates 

may have peaked, his remarks of November marked the 

first time he said formally that borrowing costs could be 

high enough. 

His dovish comments were in line with predictions from 

analysts and money markets that the bank’s next move 

will be to cut rates by the middle of next year. 

In his speech of November, Macklem recognized the 

impact of restrictive monetary policy, “Higher interest 

rates are squeezing many Canadians, but these rates 

are relieving price pressures.” 

“To return to low inflation and stable growth in the 

years ahead, we need these higher interest rates and 

slow growth in the short term,” he added. 

On November 9, the bank said the era of super-low 

interest rates was likely over and warned businesses 

and households to plan for higher borrowing costs than 

they were used to in recent years. Some 60 percent of 

mortgage holders have yet to renew their home loans at 

higher rates, the BoC said. n 

QUEBEC Continued from page 8 

ing reasonable activity due to an improved U.S. and 

Canadian housing market that is showing decent levels 

of demand for this species. Housing starts that were 

completed and remodeling activity were holding steady. 

Consumers are preferring wood imitations or look alike 

products, and imported goods have invaded the market 

share of Hard and Soft Maple. Sawmills are limiting production 

which is keeping supplies down and prices firm 

to upward, therefore, many grades and thicknesses of 

kiln-dried inventories are not high. 

Activity for Soft Maple in Ontario and Quebec appears 

to have softened, while contacts say the U.S. border 

states seem to be more active. Production was noted as 

limited in Quebec with demand being better south of the 

border. Contacts noted Sap and Better and good quality 

Unselected Soft Maple business is good. Certain areas 

note green Soft Maple availability is low relative to buyers’ 

needs. 

Cherry sales levels vary depending on areas contacted, 

as do sales to China. Businesses selling to domestic 

markets state business is weak for this species. Those 

purchasing this species were taking cautious approaches 

to increase their Cherry inventories. 

# 

1 

Kiln-dried Red Oak markets slowed for both domestic 

and exports to China. Prices were noted as having gone 

from firm to soft in a short time. Some contacts noted 

domestic demand was decent while export markets were 

slow. Inventories are low and continue to cause prices to 

be firm for certain items. 

White Oak producers are receiving more domestic 

orders and inquiries than they can supply, with upper 

grades being shortest in supply, according to certain 

areas contacted. Prices for green No. 1 Common and 

Better were rising, as were kiln-dried prices. Export sales 

for 2023 were noted as off compared to 2022 for certain 

areas. 

Contacts stated Poplar is moving at a decent pace, 

with prices for certain grades showing signs of downward 

pressure. Supplies of kiln-dried Poplar are meeting 

demand, and some contacts state they are exceeding 

demand. 

Walnut appears to remain a constant with steady interest 

on both domestic and international markets. As production 

levels were low over the past several months, 

kiln-dried inventories were thin due to low green Walnut 

production during this time. Sales and prices for various 

grades and thicknesses of this species vary according to 

areas contacted. 

Quebec’s forest fire prevention agency said the area 

burned by wildfires in 2023 was greater than the previous 

20 years combined. 

SOPFEU director general Eric Rousseau told reporters 

that some 45,000 square kilometers of land burned 

during 2023’s record-breaking fire season, including 

more than 11,000 in the bottom half of the province, 

where most people live. 

This was a record for all time in Quebec. The previous 

record for the habitable zone was under 3,900 square kilometers 

in 2005. Rousseau said a very dry spring meant 

fire indicators were near maximum level in many parts of 

the province by May 2023. The province, which can fight 

about 30 fires at a time, was already overwhelmed by 

the end of that month. Then on June 1 came the string 

of lightning storms across the province that lit 182 fires 

in a single day. 

In total, there were more than 700 fires across the 

province in 2023, and some 27,000 people from 27 communities 

were forced from their homes. 

With wildfires raging across Canada, other provinces 

were also unable to lend workers to assist Quebec. 

About 1,000 Canadian Armed Forces personnel and 


Manufacturers and Exporters of Quality Pennsylvania Hardwoods 

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escott@ramforestproducts.com 

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anuffer@ramforestproducts.com 

Forest Products, Inc. 

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Lumber Sales - Rus Gustin 

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In Memoriam 

Don Meyer 

HMA recently announced the 

passing of Don Meyer of Orchard 

Park, New York, on November 28, 

2023. 

Beloved husband of 66 years to 

Doris C. Meyer (née Maurer); dearest 

father of Jeffrey (Debbie) Meyer (and late daughter-in-law 

Karin Meyer), Jill Meyer and Joelle (Mark) 

Herskind; dearest grandfather of Benjamin (Rebecca) 

Meyer, Jacob (Heather) Herskind, Jenna (Tyler) Heath, 

Seth (Kristina) Meyer, Micah Herskind, Luke Meyer, Caleb 

Herskind and eight great-grandchildren; dear brother 

of Cheryl (Dennis) Carew and the late Kenneth (late Carol) 

Meyer; also survived by loving nieces and nephews. 

The son of Kenneth and Lorraine Meyer, Don was born 

and raised in Chicago with his siblings, Ken and Cheryl. 

Growing up, Don enjoyed fast cars, baseball and stylish 

clothes. Don and Doris met at church and began dating 

in their teens. They attended Wheaton College together, 

where Don majored in business and played catcher for 

the Wheaton baseball team. They graduated, married 

and moved to Hamburg, NY, in 1957, when Don joined 

Baillie Lumber, then a three-person company. After purchasing 

Baillie five years later, Don grew the business 

into the largest North American Hardwood company, 

while raising three children with Doris, and later enjoying 

seven grandchildren & eight great-grandchildren. 

The funeral was held at the F.E. Brown Sons Funeral 

Home. Family and friends were invited to attend the funeral 

service. 

In lieu of flowers, donations in Don’s memory may be 

made to Jericho Road Community Health Center (184 

Barton Street, Buffalo, New York 14213) or www.jrchc. 

org/donate-form. n 

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9540 83rd Avenue North, Maple Grove, MN 55369 | midwesthardwood.com | 763-425-8700 

INDUSTRY NEWS Continued from page 11 

No. 1 and 2 Common and Select and Better. 

The North Carolina factory is now officially open and 

production has commenced. Recently, the Dura Supreme 

team celebrated their first cabinet produced at 

the new location. This milestone marks the beginning of 

a new era in Dura Supreme Cabinetry’s 70 years of history 

and establishes the company’s position as a leader 

in the American cabinetry industry. 

For more information, visit www.durasupreme.com. 

An IWT-MOLDRUP turn-key thermal modification plant with an 

annual capacity of more than 2 million board feet. 

IWT-MOLDRUP Seeks To Bring Thermal 

Wood Modification To The Forefront Of 

The Industry 

Thermal wood modification is moving to the next stage 

in the U.S. with the MOLDRUP process. “The MOL- 

DRUP plants, which is in a closed process, as opposed 

to the Finnish and Italian plants on the market, is a controlable 

process. This means that you do not have the 

same problems with the final piece of wood, such as 

brittleness etc. This is also better for the environment, 

as the energy consumption is half of that of other plants 

and is very easy to operate,” said Lone Moldrup, CEO of 

IWT-MOLDRUP. 

Thermal wood modification as a supplement and 

sometimes an alternative to biocide based chemical 

wood impregnation has been available for almost 30 

years around the globe. The demand and production of 

thermally modified wood has increased rapidly in Europe 

and Oceania over the past few years. 

The price of thermally modified timber is substantially 

higher than that of treatment with CCA and MCA, but 

with a new series of plants from IWT-MOLDRUP, the 

production costs have been reduced to be similar to 

those for biocide wood impregnation. 

According to a company representative, thermal modification 

is still being done by specialist companies, but 


For 30 years, Thompson 

Appalachian Hardwoods, Inc. 

has manufactured and exported 

the highest-quality Appalachian 

hardwood lumber and logs. 

We have a firm commitment 

to steward our forests as well 

as our customers, employees, 

and families—and it is in this 

commitment that we are 

deeply rooted. 

Rooted In Commitment 




Sales 

Todd Nelson 

todd@thompsonappalachian.com 

Chip Underwood 

chip@thompsonappalachian.com 

Juan Quintanilla 

juan@thompsonappalachian.com 

100 Harless Drive 

Huntland, Tennessee 37345 USA 

Office 931 469 7272 

thompsonappalachian.com

INDUSTRY NEWS Continued 

with the development of IWT-MOLDRUP’s new series of 

plants, it is moving towards being integrated into sawmill 

operations. 

More production capacity in the U.S. with these plants 

that have a potential annual capacity of 2 – 2.5 million 

board feet, is a natural development as many American 

wood species are very suitable for thermal modification. 

It is important to understand the benefits and limitations 

of thermal modification. The major advantage is the 

SYSTEMS & 

SOLUTIONS 

Mellott Solves Your 

Debarking Systems 

Log Trough with Metal Detection 

Lumber Conveyor Systems 

Mat Drilling, Tie Dapper, 

Sorting & Stacking Systems 

Mellott Manufacturing Co., Inc. 

13156 Long Lane 

Mercersburg, PA 17236 

FAX: 717-369-2800 

sales@mellottmfg.com 

LOG & 

LUMBER 

From Concept 

to Blueprint, 

Manufacturing 

to Production 

Handling Challenge! 

Band Headrig and Resaws 

Resaw Run-Around Systems 

Trimmer and Grading Systems 

drastically improved dimensional stability (50-80 percent 

improvement), the uniform brown color even through the 

heartwood and enhanced durability against rot and fungi 

use area occasionally wetted like cladding, whereas 

thermally modified wood for frequently wetted applications 

like decking will require an extra layer of protection 

against fungi and insects. 

For more information please contact the Moldrups at 

www.moldrup.com or our North American import- and 

selling agent at www.americanwoodtechnology.com. 

Tilt Hoist Systems 

717-369-3125 

www.mellottmfg.com 

Middle Tennessee Lumber 

Co., Inc. Hosts Hardwood 

Grading Course 

Middle Tennessee Lumber Co., 

Inc. (MTL), headquartered in Dickson, 

TN, is set to host a Hardwood 

lumber grading short course with 

the Tennessee Forestry Association 

(TFA) and the National Hardwood 

Lumber Association (NHLA), January 

29-31. 

Bill Joyce 

This short course will be a great 

place for lumber graders, log buyers, 

yardmen, sawyers, edgermen and 

management to learn the fundamentals 

of measuring and grading Hardwood 

lumber. 

While this is the first Hardwood 

lumber grading short course that 

MTL has hosted, they are not new 

to bringing in people throughout 

the industry to glean a better understanding 

on specialty skills that 

are required throughout the forest 

products industry. “We have a replica 

of a model home built inside our 

MTL Clarksville Distribution Lumber 

and Flooring warehouse specifically 

designed for training, primarily for 

proper Hardwood flooring installation, 

sanding and finishing, as well 

as demonstrating the newest flooring equipment, stains 

and finishes. The TFA has chosen this location to host 

their lumber grading short course. The facility is right on 

the banks of the Cumberland River and is a very scenic 

location,” said Bill Joyce, founder of MTL. 

For more information contact the TFA at 615-883-3832, 

or Larry Pitts at 931-572-8592 or email him at lpitts@tn 

forestry.com. 

NWFA Completes 72nd Home 

With Gary Sinise Foundation 

The National Wood Flooring Association 

(NWFA), located in Chesterfield, 

MO, has provided flooring for 

its 72nd home in support of the Gary 

Sinise Foundation R.I.S.E. program 

(Restoring Independence Supporting 

Empowerment). The R.I.S.E. 

program builds mortgage-free, custom, 

specially adapted smart homes 

for severely wounded veterans and 

first responders. The home dedication 

for United States Army Sergeant 

First Class (Ret.) Ryan Davis took 

place recently in Savannah, GA. 

Flooring for the project was donated 

by NWFA member Allegheny Mountain 

Hardwood Flooring. Sanding 

and finishing products were donated 

by NWFA member companies 

Norton Abrasives and Uzin-Utz/Pallmann. 

Installation services were donated 

by NWFA members MSC Inc./ 

Roswell Floor Refinishing, Southern 

Woods Flooring and Davidson Wood 

Flooring. 

Throughout his five deployments 

to Afghanistan and Syria, SFC Davis 

was invested in leading servicemen 

and women on missions and enjoyed 

finding ways to inspire younger soldiers. 

In 2019, while on deployment 

in Afghanistan, he and his team were 

conducting a raid when an explosion 

was triggered. The blast caused severe 

injury, resulting in the loss of his 

right arm above the elbow, his right 

leg above the knee and his left leg 

below the knee. 

“Sergeant First Class Davis underwent 

28 life-saving surgeries as a result 

of his injuries,” says NWFA President 

and CEO, Michael Martin, “and 

continues his recovery at Brooke 

TELL US WHAT 

HARDWOOD YOU NEED 

AND WE’LL BRING IT 

TO THE TABLE. 

It’s essential to deliver a 

wide variety of the highestgrade 

hardwood to the entire 

architectural millwork, hardwood 

flooring, cabinetry, furniture, and 

dimension industries. Centrally 

located within the United States, 

our transportation network 

ensures quick and efficient delivery 

of fine Appalachian hardwood 

from wherever the call may 

arise. Extensive improvements in 

technology, coupled with a sharp 

eye for attention to detail and 

customer needs, has given us a 

reputation for quality and choice in 

the hardwood market. 

• Premier Global Provider 

• Wide Variety of Hardwood 

• Excellent Value 

• Superb Service 

• Ready to Deliver 

Army Medical Center in San Antonio. He hopes to return 

to the 75th Ranger Regiment following his recovery 

to inspire and motivate other soldiers. We’re honored 

to partner with Allegheny Mountain Hardwood Flooring, 

Norton Abrasives, Uzin-Utz/Pallmann, MSC Inc./Roswell 

Floor Refinishing, Southern Woods Flooring and Davidson 

Wood Flooring to provide beautiful wood floors for 

his new home.” 

In addition to the 72 homes already completed, NWFA 

currently is working with its members to source wood 

Fine Appalachian Hardwood Since 1979 

hermitagehardwood.com | 931.526.6832 





INDUSTRY NEWS Continued 

flooring for 14 additional R.I.S.E. homes in various stages 

of planning and construction. Currently, 153 NWFA 

member companies have donated product, logistics and 

installation services in locations throughout the United 

States, with a total value of more than $6.9 million. A 

list of all NWFA R.I.S.E. participating companies can be 

found at http://www.nwfa.org/giving-back.aspx. 

To learn more about the program, and how you and/ 

or your company can get involved, contact the NWFA 

Quality Appalachian Hardwood Lumber 

1,200,000 B.F. Kiln Capacity 

Quentin Moss, KD-Lumber Sales/ 

GR-Lumber Sales/Purchasing 

quentin@gfhardwoods.com 

9880 Clay County Hwy. Moss, TN 38575-6332 

PHONE: 1-800-844-3944 FAX: 1-931-258-3517 

www.gfhardwoods.com 

United States Army Sergeant First Class (Ret.) Ryan Davis and 

family 

at 800.422.4556, or e-mail them at 

anita.howard@nwfa.org. 

The National Wood Flooring Association 

is a not-for-profit trade 

organization, with more than 3,200 

member companies world-wide, 

dedicated to educating consumers, 

architects, designers, specifiers, and 

builders in the uses and benefits of 

wood flooring. The NWFA is located 

at 111 Chesterfield Industrial Boulevard, 

Chesterfield, MO 63005, and 

can be contacted at 800.422.4556 

(USA & Canada), 636.519.9663 (local 

and international), or at www. 

nwfa.org. 

National Hardwood Lumber 

Association Gears Up For 

The Year 

The National Hardwood Lumber 

Association, headquartered in Memphis, 

TN, gears up for the year with 

their Inspector Traning School’s 

205th class and a four-day introduction 

into Hardwood Lumber Grading. 

Their 8-week Inspector Training 

School program, which will be held 

January 8 though March 1 at their 

headquarters, is a mix of hands-on 

training, testing, in-class lecturing, 

sawmill site visits, one-on-one training 

with the instructor and more. 

Students who successfully fulfill all 

of the program requirements will receive 

a certificate of completion. 

Prospective students must have a 

high school diploma, GED, or pass 

an ‘Ability to Benefits’ test administered 

on the first day of class. Students 

must supply an official copy of 

their high school transcript(s) or equivalency certificate 

with scores that meet the state’s minimum standards for 

passing. 

Their four-day introduction into Hardwood Lumber 

Grading will be held January 9 through January 12, at 

Glenville State University, located in Glenville, WV. 

This 4-day workshop will be led by Mark Depp, NHLA 

Inspector and will include a thorough study and explanation 

of the NHLA Lumber Grading Rules, emphasizing 

the basics of Hardwood lumber inspection. It will give 

yardmen, sawyers, edgermen, sales and office staff and 

management level personnel an introduction 

to lumber inspection. 

For more information visit 

www.nhla.com. n 

QUEBEC Continued from page 45 

more than 1,100 firefighters from 

the United States, France, Portugal, 

South Korea and Spain helped 

Quebec. Fortunately, there were no 

deaths and no primary residences 

or critical infrastructure destroyed in 

that province. 

Forest Minister Maïté Blanchette 

Vézina said the province is providing 

an additional $16 million to SOP- 

FEU. The money will purchase new 

equipment like vehicles and telecommunications 

material, as well as fire 

prevention initiatives and strategies 

to make communities more resilient 

to extreme weather events. 

She added “major reflections” 

were also underway as the province 

reviews its forest management practices 

and strategies to prevent fires. 

Rousseau said the agency is in 

discussion with the province to replace 

some of the older water bombers 

of their fleet. n 

Scan this QR Code to Receive a 

Free Digital Copy of National 

Hardwood Magazine - All 13 Issues! 

Check out our blog! 

nationalhardwoodmag.com 

Lowery Anderson 

landerson@ralumber.com 

EXPORT 

14.4 

million 

board feet 

Warehouse & Shed Capactiy 

1.1 

million 

board feet 

Kiln Capacity 


Continued from page15 

and Risch (R-ID). The bill’s champions are determined 

to fold this bill into Farm Bill reauthorization in 2024. 

USDA Funding and Authorizations 

Although not part of Farm Bill reauthorization, the Federation 

also advocates for bills that directly fund USDA 

initiatives that will boost the sector as well as steer agency 

authorities toward industry priorities: 

More than 

70 Years 

of Producing Appalachian Hardwoods 

Ling Walker 

lwalker@ralumber.com 

50 

million 

board feet 

Annual Production 

14 

countries 

Lumber Shipped 

Anthony Hammond 

ahammond@ralumber.com 

“Our relationship with Roy Anderson Lumber has grown 

into a strong partnership. Because of their quality 

and pricing, we have certain categories we exclusively 

source from their operations. We always receive 

timely service and communication from their team.” 

Joe Alcathie, Branch Manager Hood Distribution – Mobile 


DOMESTIC 

Rusty Hawkins 

rhawkins@ralumber.com 

1.800.577.5576 | INFO@RALUMBER.COM 

FACEBOOK.COM/ROYANDERSONLUMBER 




WHO’S WHO 

IN HARDWOOD PURCHASING 

A BRIEF SKETCH OF THE LEADING 

PURCHASING EXECUTIVES IN 

THE HARDWOOD INDUSTRY 

EXPERIENCE QUALITY DEPENDABILITY 

975 Conrad Hill Mine Rd. ~ Lexington, NC 27292 

Phone 336-746-5419 ~ Fax 336-746-6177 

www.kepleyfrank.us 

Facilities: 

3 Sawmills Processing 50 Million' • 750,000' Dry Kiln 

Capacity • 600,000' Fan Shed Capacity 

2 382 Newman Planer Mills • 50 Bay Bin Sorter 

Products Available: 

4/4-8/4 Appalachian Lumber • 6/4-8/4 Ship Dry Capacity 

Crossties (100,000 BF per week) • Timbers up to 18' 

1,000,000+ Average KD Inventory • 12,000,000+ 

Average AD Inventory 

Species: 

White Oak • Red Oak • Poplar • Ash • Hickory 

Elm • Beech • Gum • Hackberry • Pecan 

Jimmy Kepley, owner, and Bart 

Jenkins, lumber sales 

Sales: 

Bart Jenkins 

bjenkins@kepleyfrank.us 

Jimmy Kepley 

jkepley@kepleyfrank.us 

CHRIS NORRIS is the Director 

of Operations at Hood Distribution, 

located in Hattiesburg, 

MS. Hood Distribution is a distribution 

yard with 15 locations, 

where they buy 12 million board 

feet annually. They carry Poplar 

in FAS and No. 1 Common, Hard 

and Soft Maple in Select and 

Chris Norris Better and No. 1 Common, Red 

and White Oak in FAS, Alder in 

superior and premium frame, a variety of other domestic 

Hardwood species and imported Hardwoods in FAS and 

Select and Better, all in 4/4-12/4 thicknesses. 

Hood Distribution continues to add value to their operations 

with S2S lumber and SLR lumber, and a gang 

rip for lumber and moulders for running trim. Five of their 

locations offer custom laid-up panels, custom thickness 

S2S lumber, gang rip Hardwood blanks for their millwork 

customers and running trim that helps relieve the staff 

shortages in their customers’ fabrication facilities. Hood 

Distribution also offers a company wide internal transfer 

system that delivers customers products from any of 

their locations within two weeks. 

Norris has been with Hood Distribution for 17 and a 

half years and has been the Director of Operations for 

four years, and among his duties is lumber purchasing. 

He first started in the forest products industry 37 years 

ago in general labor for a moulding operation. Throughout 

his time in the industry he has also worked as a warehouse 

order picker, a machine operator, inside and outside 

sales, branch manager and regional manager. 

Norris graduated from Ruston (LA) High School, and 

then went on to receive his bachelor’s degree in marketing 

from Louisiana Tech University. 

Norris enjoys duck hunting and watching LSU football. 

He has three sons, two of which are in college and one 

in high school. 

Hood Distribution is a member of the National Hardwood 

Lumber Association, Florida Building Material Alliance, 

North American Building Distribution Association, 

Northeastern Retail Lumber Association and the American 

Institute of Architects of Mississippi. 

For more information, call 601-296-4816, email cnor 

ris@hooddistribution.com or visit www.hooddistri 

bution.com. 

JOSH KAHLE owns Hardwoods 

of Wisconsin, a flooring 

manufacturer based in Elkhorn, 

WI, that sells domestically and 

internationally. 

The company purchases 

300,000 board feet annually in 

White Oak (No. 1 and 2 Common, 

Select and Better) 4/4 thickness, 

kiln-dried and surfaced as 

Josh Kahle 

well as Black Locust, 4x4 green 

cant material. The firm also offers UV finishing, UV curing, 

wire brushing and cutting. 

Kahle has been with Hardwoods of Wisconsin for 12 

years and in his current position for five years. His first 

job in the forest products industry was as a laborer in 

a flooring warehouse. He also has been a kiln operator 

and worked in flooring sales. He and his wife, Jamie, 

have two sons. In his spare time, Kahle enjoys playing 

the guitar. 

Hardwoods of Wisconsin is a member of the National 

Wood Flooring Association. 

Please see www.hardwoodsofwisconsin.com for 

more information. 

LEVI SCHROCK is the lumber buyer for Lake Area 

Designs, which manufactures recreational vehicle furnishings 

in LaGrange, IN. Lake Area Designs focuses on 

providing furnishings for the luxury fifth-wheel and motor 

coach industry in the LaGrange and Elkhart County RV 

belt as well as some customers outside of this area. 

The company annually purchases 1 million board feet 

of Soft Maple, Cherry, Ash and Poplar in 4/4 through 8/4 

thicknesses (Select and Better). All staining and finishing 

is done in-house for better quality control and shorter 

turn-around times. 

Schrock, who has over 15 years of Hardwood lumber 

buying experience, joined Lake Area Designs a little over 

seven years ago. He has been in the forest products industry 

for almost 24 years, with most of his career having 

been involved in overseeing production of dimensional 

products such as edge-glued panels and moulded trims 

as well as cut to length furniture components. 

Schrock and his wife of 11 years, Clara, have three 

sons and two daughters. In his spare time, he likes to 

work on mechanical projects including servicing con- 

RED OAK 

ANOTHER SPECIES OFFERED 

IN A VARIETY OF WAYS 

PLAINSAWN 

4/4, 5/4, 6/4, 8/4, 10/4 AND 12/4 

NORTHERN REGION 

COLOR SORTED 

70% 9’ AND LONGER 

DISTRIBUTION YARD QUALITY 

RIFT AND QUARTERED 

4/4, 5/4, 6/4 AND 8/4 

sales@devereauxsawmill.com 

989-593-2552 

devereauxsawmill.com 

The firm manufactures 4/4 through 8/4 thicknesses. 





“Looking for Premium Appalachian Hardwood? 

Harold White Lumber, Inc. is the supplier 

you can trust!” 

HAROLD WHITE 2016-2.indd 5 

HWL 

HAROLD WHITE LUMBER 

Founded in 1968 by Harold White, we offer: 

• Bandsawn lumber 

• Excellent color and texture 

• 500,000 b.f. kiln capacity 

• Planing mill facility 

• On-site container loading 

• Dimension plant specializing in paneling, flooring, 

casing, doors and finger-joints 

For lumber and prompt worldwide shipping, 

contact Ray White: rwhite@haroldwhitelumber.com 

For dimension and/or millwork requests, 

contact Lee White: lwhite@haroldwhitelumber.com. 

Harold White Lumber, Inc. 

2920 Flemingsburg Road 

Morehead, KY 40351 

(606) 784-7573 phone 

(606) 784-2624 fax 

www.haroldwhitelumber.com 

6/6/16 2:40 PM 

WHO’S WHO Continued 

struction equipment etc. He enjoys fishing, deer hunting 

and the great outdoors. 

Please see www.lakeareadesigns.com for more information. 

n 

AHEC REPORT Continued from page 14 

a performance and guided tour of his land. The last stop 

on our tour was the headquarters of the world-renowned 

Nakashima Woodworkers for a private tour and Q&A. 

Healthy forests are essential to our very existence. 

The better we can understand them and be more informed 

on how we can restore them, protect them, and 

use them, the better we all will be not just as an industry, 

but as humans. This trip educated a key group of 

journalists who can reach millions through their writing. 

As timber regulations, environmental policy, and climate 

action becomes a larger part of the global picture for 

our Hardwood export markets, having writers who can 

clearly communicate this message is extremely important. 

This press mission was a strong step in the right 

direction, and we look forward to planning similar press 

missions in 2024. n 


Continued from page 51 

Promoting Effective Forest Management Act of 2023 

– On September 22, Senate Energy & Natural Resources 

(SENR) Committee heads, Chairman Joe Manchin 

(D-WV) and Ranking Member John Barrasso (R-WY), 

introduced the “Promoting Effective Forest Management 

Act of 2023,” (S. 2867), a bill to direct USDA’s National 

Forest Service to reduce wildfire risks and create a career 

pipeline for loggers. 

Transportation 

Transportation is another major issue on which the 

Federation has been active. Notably, industry supports 

bills, known as the “supply chain package,” that passed 

out of the House Transportation Committee earlier this 

year. The package includes: 

Licensing Individual Commercial Exam-takers Now 

Safely and Efficiently (LICENSE) Act of 2023 (H.R. 

3013) - Codifies two waivers issued during the pandemic 

to make the process of obtaining a commercial driver’s 

license more streamlined and efficient. 

Ocean Shipping Reform Implementation Act of 2023 

(H.R. 1836) - Builds upon the Ocean Shipping Reform 

Act of 2022, including by allowing the Federal Maritime 

Commission to review complaints about market manipulation 

and anti-competitive operations of maritime exchanges. 

H.R. 3372, legislation that authorizes a pilot program 

whereby states may opt in to allowing 91,000-pound rigs 

equipped with a sixth axle to travel on their portion of the 

federal interstate highway system. 

H.R. 3318, which establishes a 10 percent axle weight 

variance for dry bulk materials, which we read as including 

wood chips. 

Taxes, Treasury Regs 

Although advocacy on USDA programs and supply 

chain initiatives have been especially active this year, 

tax policy and business disclosures continue to present 

opportunities and challenges for the industry: 

Business Tax Package – On November 2, the Federation 

joined the National Association of Manufacturers 

and allies in a letter to Capitol Hill urging action on 

a package of business tax benefit extensions that is 

currently pending on the House floor. It would extend 

through 2025 the 100 percent bonus depreciation benefit 

which began scaling down in 2023. It would also 

retroactively extend the research and development tax 

credit which was phased out in 2022 and restore more 

generous interest deductibility provisions. Following the 

election of a new Speaker of the House, we hope that 

Congress will act on this package by year’s end. 

Main Street Tax Certainty Act of 2023 – The Federation 

also supports H.R. 4721, making permanent the 20 

percent deduction for qualified business income (QBI) to 

benefit small businesses. 

Corporate Transparency Act – HF has joined allies 

in the small to medium sized business community to 

urge Congress to delay implementation of the Corporate 

Transparency Act (CTA), a little-known federal 

anti-corruption law enacted in 2021 that takes effect 

January 1, 2024. The law will impose multiple reporting 

requirements on “beneficial owners” and trigger fines up 

to $10,000 for non-compliance. The Federation has 

signed a letter to congressional leaders urging Congress 

to delay its implementation. 

Federal Agency Actions 

EPA, Air Quality Rules – On November 16, 2023, the 

Federation and U.S. Chamber of Commerce met with 

the White House Office of Management and Budget to 

urge the Administration to reject EPA’s proposal to tighten 

standards for fine Particulate Matter (PM 2.5). This 

follows up on formal comments submitted in the spring 

advocating against EPA’s plans and includes references 

to a study by the American Forest & Paper Association 

showing that EPA’s proposal would impose up to $900 

million in compliance costs on the wood products sector. 

EPA, Low Carbon Construction Materials - On September 

14, EPA announced that it would make grants 


MacbeathREV 12-2018.indd 1 

A 60+ Year Tradition of Excellence 

Serving architectural woodworkers, cabinet and fixture 

manufacturers with vast inventories of premium quality 

domestic and imported hardwoods, from Alder to 

Zebrawood, 4/4 through 16/4 in many species. When you 

need Hardwood, think MacBeath. . . a name synonymous 

with fine quality and prompt, reliable service. 

Corporate Office & 

Concentration Yard: 

Edinburgh, Indiana 

800-322-9743 

Arizona: 

Phoenix: 602-504-1931 

Tempe: 480-355-5090 

Tucson: 520-745-8301 

Reload: 

Northern California: 

Golden State Reload Berkeley: 800-479-9907 

Perris, California 

Stockton: 844-490-5051 

800-322-9743 

Utah: Salt Lake City: 800-255-3743 

macbeath.com 

JOSEY (JOCO) 2018 Christmas REV .qxp_Layout 1 11/19/18 2:42 PM Page 1 

JoCo Lumber, Inc. is a division of 

Josey Lumber Company, Inc. 

Tripp, Logan, and Joey Josey 

Our company offers: 

• 10,000,000 BF of annual production from 

our 6’ band headrig and 6’ band resaw. 

• Red and White Oak, Soft Maple, Ash, 

Poplar and Cypress in 4/4 through 8/4 

thickness. 

• rough, surfaced, air-dried and kiln-dried 

lumber in random widths and lengths. 

• export prepping, container loading of logs and lumber, 

anti-stain dipping and end coating lumber. 

• 500,000 BF of dry kiln capacity. 

• 65,000 SF of enclosed warehouse for storage and loading of 

kiln-dried lumber. 

For Quality Appalachian Lumber Contact: 

JOsey Lumber COmpany, InC. 

JoCo Lumber, InC. 

476 Lees meadow rd. • p.O. Drawer 447 

scotland neck, nC 27874 

TeL: (252) 826-5614 • FaX: (252) 826-3461 

COnTaCT: 

emaIL: joseylbr3@gmail.com 

saLes: Logan Josey 




6/21/19 10:13 AM

Connecting North American 

Forest Products Globally 

LIKE AND FOLLOW US ON: 

@millerwoodtradepub 



Continued 

available to parties to develop Environment Product 

Declarations (EPD’s) for low carbon construction materials, 

beginning after October 1 of this year. EPA’s action 

is consistent with HF comments filed in May arguing that 

any low-carbon construction materials program should 

take into account the carbon storage value of wood 

products. 

European Union Deforestation Regulations: The 

American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) and the 

Federation have been leading the charge the past 18 

months to blunt the impacts of the EU’s now final deforestation 

rules to require geo-location of fiber included in 

the manufacture of wood products. HF and AHEC have 

met with Administration officials, including a meeting 

with the U.S. Trade Representative on November 28, to 

urge a work-around that will minimize additional red tape 

for Hardwood exporters to EU markets. HF and AHEC 

have established a working group of forest industry allies, 

including the AF&PA, to share information related to 

the rule’s implementation. n 

WCMA INSIGHTS Continued from page 16 

You can also see our advertisements on the Magnolia 

network, the lifestyle channel owned by household 

names Chip and Joanna Gaines, and entertainment 

conglomerate Warner Bros., to promote Real American 

Hardwood® flooring, cabinetry, furniture, millwork, and 

more. 

WCMA Membership – If you are NOT a 

member, you are missing out! 

Below are several of the key benefits of being a member 

with the WCMA: 

•Networking/Information Exchange – One of the main 

reasons that members join and stay with the WCMA is 

because of the access that it provides to a wide range 

of industry experts. Your colleagues are often your 

best source for in-depth insight and ideas. WCMA 

gives you the opportunity to connect with industry professionals 

across the United States and into Canada. 

•Get New Business – Through the Member Match program, 

the WCMA acts as a clearing house for sales 

inquiries from component and dimension buyers. Inquires 

come in through our website, email, and calls 

to the office, and these are shared with all members. 

•Unique Events – The WCMA hosts one-of-a-kind 

events each year. As you can see by the outline for 

2024 above, these events offer members a great 

chance to improve your knowledge of your industry 

and to connect with your peers. 

•National and International Promotion – The WCMA 

exhibits at trade shows on behalf of its members to 

promote component and dimension purchasing and 

generate sales leads. At these events, we distribute 

the Wood Component Buyer’s Guide with information 

on Tech Partners and Members capabilities and contact 

information. 

I would love an opportunity to discuss membership in 

more detail with you. Please call me at 651-332-6332 

or email me directly at amy@wcma.com. You can also 

see more about membership and all the activities that 

the WCMA is working on at our website, www.wcma. 

com. I look forward to hearing from you! 

MARS HILL JUNE 2014_Layout 1 5/19/14 2:24 PM Page 1 

Working with WCMA Members 

The benefits of working with WCMA member companies 

are clear. Manufacturers that outsource components 

are more profitable than those that don’t, period. 

All independent studies since 1970 prove it. It’s just good 

business to outsource. 

Finding a supplier that can consistently produce quality 

components and be responsive to your needs is easier 

than ever before. Just give us a call at 651-332-6332 

or visit our source guide at www.wcma.com/source_ 

guide.html. You will be provided with a list of WCMA 

Member Companies that will meet your exact requirements 

for dimension and component products made 

from Hardwoods, softwoods, and engineered wood materials. 

It’s that easy! n 

NHLA: WHY KNOT... Continued from page 17 

The Hardwood industry needs more talented employees 

coming up through our ranks. I hear it whenever 

someone says they need an inspector and someone 

to send to the School. Many of the talented people we 

have in our industry today stumbled upon it somewhere 

in their schooling or career, as I did. For me, it was a 

backup that became a better reality. I am so glad I am 

not an engineer today. Many others will be glad of the 

opportunity that our industry can give them if only we can 

find them or help them choose this path. 

We all know that more people need to learn about the 

NHLA Inspector Training School, and the same goes for 

wood and forestry degrees. If we wait for others to solve 

this problem, we will wait in vain. We all need to start 

telling everyone about the opportunities within the Hardwood 

Industry, either through the ITS or university programs. 

We need to develop our workforce and not hope 

they will stumble into our industry. Put up posters at your 

facilities, invite connections and tours. Share it online 

and on social media. Why Knot proselytize employees, 

family, and friends for forestry and wood careers. n 

Wood: The Natural Choice 

Stay on track: www.rta.org or 

Mars Hill, Inc. 

at (866) 629-9089 for obtaining the 

best looking White Poplar 

you’ve ever seen. 

We like to say “It’s so white, it’ll blind you!” 

We offer our White Poplar in 4/4 through 8/4 thicknesses 

in Sap 1F & Btr, 1 Com and/or FAS/1F grades in truck 

load or container load quantities only. 

ATT: PALLET - STAKE - INDUSTRIAL MFRS! 

Hardwood Lumber Rough Green 

4/4xRWxRL • 4/4x6xRL • 8/4xRWxRL • 6/4xRWxRL 

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2x4x48 • 1x2x12”-36” SYP KD Stakes 

Other sizes from can to cant! All inquiries welcome! 

Dense HDWD Stakes, Chisel Point 

1 1/8x1 1/8 

Truckload lots available, quoted F.O.B. your yard. 

(866) 629-9089 

Fax: 601-671-0736 

e-mail: mwood@marshillinc.com 

www.marshillinc.com 

We accept major credit cards 




Contact

CLASSIFIED 

PROFIT OPPORTUNITIES 

To: Anyone involved in the sawmill controls industry 

SEEKING AN eLIMBS SPECIALIST 

DMSi is currently seeking a candidate to implement and support the eLIMBS inventory 

system. This person will use their industry and product knowledge to help customers 

improve their business processes with the software. 

Duties include 

-Manage implementation projects, including system set up and configuration 

-Train customers and other DMSi personnel on use of the system 

-Help resolve client cases by gathering information and researching issues 

-Create documentation to improve eLIMBS training resources 

Qualifications 

-Knowledge of the hardwood lumber industry and supply chain processes 

-Experience with training end-users (virtual and in-person) on new software procedures 

-Strong logical and problem-solving skills 

-The ability to positively represent DMSi/eLIMBS 

Position Details 

-Full-time position 

-Ability to work from home or Omaha office 

-Travel to customer locations required 

-Medical, dental, vision, 401(K) with match, PTO, and other benefits provided 

Reply to Kevin Peterson (kpeterson@dmsi.com) 

To: Anyone involved in the sawmill controls industry 

FOR SALE 

Dry Kiln Concentration Yard with 470,000 bdft Kiln Capacity 

and 400,00 bdft Predryer Capacity 

LOT – Western Pennsylvania 

26.47 – acre industrial site 

26.31 – acre wooded lot 

70,000 sqft asphalt lot 

100 x 80 vehicle lot 

Enough sq footage to openly store 2,000,000 bdft lumber. 

BUILDINGS: 

80 x 212 Steel storage building concrete floor (blue lumber storage) 

65 x 140 Wood frame equipment building concrete floor (green chain) 

60 x 130 Wood frame equipment building (stacker) 

60 x 80 Steel building high storage (sawdust) 

60 x 60 Wood frame equipment building (grading shed) 

130 x 80 Coe steel building (predryer) 

5 – 50,000 ft SII Kiln Building 

2 – 40,000 ft Irvington Moore Kilns 

2 – 80,000 ft Nardi Kilns 

25 x 160 Garage w/small office and wash area. Parts storage rooms. 

Block and wood structure. 

25 x 160 Open face wood storage shed, gravel floor. 

25 x 160 Open face steel storage shed with a 50 x 60 high overhang roof, 

gravel floor. 

104,000 sqft Asphalt lot 

OFFICE – Roughly 2,000 sqft working space. 

11 Individual offices 

2 large clerical offices 

1 large conference room 

Small kitchen 

2 Restrooms 

Reply to: nhm@millerwoodtradepub.com, put CMP #3578 in subject line. 

ALL CLASSIFIED 

ADS MUST BE PAID 

IN ADVANCE 

$45.00 PER INCH • 

Blind Box Number Fee: 

$10.00 

DEADLINE: 

30 Days Preceding 

Publication Month 

Classified advertising will not be 

accepted for Hardwood products such 

as lumber, dimension, turnings, veneer, 

carvings, new dry kilns or dry kiln 

equipment, etc. 

USED MACHINERY FOR SALE 

●USNR 4TA30 Top Arbor Three Shifting 

Saw Edger 

●Infeed Landing Deck 

●USNR – Lunden Cam Unscrambler 

S/N 41419 

●Even Ending Rolls 

●Queuing Hooks (2) ahead of Scanner 

●Queuing Hooks (2) after Scanner 

●Edger Infeed Model 600 Maximizer 

S/N 2951-A 

●USNR 4TA30 Edger with 200 HP Arbor 

Drive Motor 

●Outfeed Belt with Shifting Edging Shears 

●Specs – Hardwood 1” to 4” Thick x 4” to 24” 

Wide x 6’ to 16’ Long 

●Saw Kerf .160” x Saw Plate .120” 

●Two Hydraulic Units 

●Water Mizer Oil Mist Guide System 

●Set of Babbitt Guide Tools 

Contact: James Robbins 

Cell: (207) 322-3162 

Email: jarobbins@rlco.com 

Certified Lumber Grader – Job Description 

Cardin Forest Products is a family owned sawmill and kiln drying operation located in South 

Pittsburg, Tennessee. We are currently seeking a candidate to fill a hardwood lumber grading 

position in our kiln drying operation. 

The ideal candidate will have: 

•Been NHLA certified 

•2 to 3 years of experience grading kiln dried hardwoods 

Duties will include, but not be limited to the following: 

•Grade and mark all lumber to be sorted according to NHLA rules/guidelines 

and industry standards 

•Communicate effectively with your team and other departments 

•Adhere to all safety policies and perform tasks in a safe and responsible 

manner 

Required Qualifications: 

•Minimum of one (1) year experience grading green and/or kiln dried domestic 

lumber 

•Must be NHLA trained or have equivalent knowledge. 

•Must be physically capable of performing all duties of the job and any other 

duties assigned by Crew Leader 

Position 

•Full time position 

•Company offers medical, dental, 401(k), and other benefit offerings 

We are an equal opportunity employer. Employment selection and related decisions are 

made without regard to sexual orientation, race, color, age, disability, religion, national origin, 

citizenship status and creed. 

Salary Negotiable 

Reply to: Jeremy Ball 

Cell: (423) 619-8056 

Email: jball@cardinfp.com 

SALESMAN WANTED 

We’re looking to add a salesman 

to our team to grow our U.S. sales, 

and our Ontario, Canada westward 

sales. 

Knowledge of the Hardwood industry, 

logistics and supply chain 

process are important. Strong sales 

qualities and solutions oriented. 

Full-time and exclusive to our service. 

Location is not an issue – work 

remote from U.S. or in Ontario, Canada. 

Reply to: 

nhm@millerwoodtradepub.com 

Put CMP #3579 in subject line. 

national 

hardwood 

mag.com 

HELP WANTED 

SERVICES 

901.767.9126 

or visit us at 

www.hmr.com 

Benchmark pricing and market 

commentary on the North American 

hardwood lumber industry. 

Go online at hmr.com for a sample copy. 

Our Classified 

Advertising 

Works! 

FOR INFORMATION CALL: 

800-844-1280 

Connecting North American Forest Products Globally 

National Hardwood Magazine 

www.nationalhardwoodmag.com 

Hardwood Purchasing Handbook 

www.hardwoodpurchasinghdbk.com 

Greenbook’s Hardwood 

Marketing Directory 


Greenbook’s Softwood 

Marketing Directory (on-line only) 


Forest Products Export Directory 

www.forestproductsexport.com 

P.O. Box 34908, Memphis, TN 38184-0908 

(800) 844-1280 or (901) 372-8280 

Imported Wood Purchasing Guide 

www.importedwoodpurchasing.com 

Import/Export Wood Purchasing News 

www.woodpurchasingnews.com 

The Softwood Forest Products Buyer 

www.softwoodbuyer.com 

The Softwood Forest Products Buyer 

Special NAWLA Edition 

www.softwoodbuyer.com 

Forest Products Stock Exchange 

(on-line only) 


PLEASE VISIT US ONLINE FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT OUR PUBLICATIONS 


info@millerwoodtradepub.com 




ADVERTISERS 

INDEX 

INDUSTRIES 

CONTROLS 

CLEEREMAN LUMBER COMPANY 1930’s CLEEREMAN INDUSTRIES 1955 CLEEREMAN CONTROLS 2019 

Abenaki Timber Corporation...................... 

AGL Group, The.......................................... 

AHC Hardwood Group................................ 

Air Systems Mfg. of Lenoir, Inc.................. 

Anderson, Roy, Lumber Company, Inc...51 

Atlanta Hardwood Corporation.................. 

Automation & Electronics USA..............11 

Bailey’s Inc................................................. 

Baillie Lumber Co....................................... 

Beard Hardwoods...................................40 

BID Group.................................................... 

Bingaman & Son Lumber, Inc..................... 

BioLube, Inc................................................ 

Breeze Dried Inc......................................... 

Brunner-Hildebrand Lumber 

Dry Kiln Co.................................................. 

Carbotech-Autolog...................................... 

Cardin Forest Products LLC....................... 

Church, Bryant, Hardwoods, Inc............42 

Clark Lumber Co......................................... 

Classic American Hardwoods, Inc............. 

Cleereman Controls..............................IBC 

Cleereman Industries...........................IBC 

Cole Hardwood, Inc.................................... 

Collins......................................................... 

Continental Underwriters, Inc...............38 

Cooper Machine Co., Inc............................ 

Corley Manufacturing Co............................ 

Cramer, W.M., Lumber Co........................... 

Cummings Lumber Co., Inc......................3 

Deer Park Lumber, Inc................................ 

Devereaux Sawmill, Inc..........................53 

DMSi Software...................................... IFC 

Eagle Machinery & Supply, Inc.................. 

EXPO Richmond.......................................... 

EZLOG Company, Inc.................................. 

Farm Credit Mid-America........................... 

Fitzpatrick & Weller Inc.............................. 

Forcey Lumber Company, Inc..................... 

Frank Miller Lumber Co., Inc...................... 

GF Hardwoods, Inc.................................50 

Graf Bros. Flooring & Lumber..................1 

Granite Valley Forest Products............. BC 

GTL Lumber Inc.......................................... 

Hardwood Forestry Fund........................56 

Hardwood Manufacturers Assoc .............. 

Hartzell Hardwoods, Inc............................. 

Hermitage Hardwood 

Lumber Sales, Inc...................................49 

HHP, Inc....................................................... 

Hurdle Machine Works Inc......................... 

Industrial Vision Systems, Inc................... 

Irving, J.D., Limited.................................... 

ISK Biocides, Inc........................................ 

JoCo Lumber, Inc....................................55 

JoeScan...................................................... 

Jones, Ron, Hardwood Sales, Inc.............. 

Josey Lumber Co., Inc............................55 

Kentucky Forest Industries Assoc............. 

Kendrick Forest Products......................41 

Kepley-Frank Hardwood Co., Inc...........52 

King City Forwarding USA, Inc................... 

King City/Northway Forwarding Ltd........... 

Kop-Coat Protection Products................... 

Kretz Lumber Co., Inc................................. 

Lawrence Lumber Company Inc................ 

Lewis Controls, Inc..................................... 

Lewis, Dwight, Lumber Co., Inc................. 

Lewis Lumber & Milling............................5 

Limbo.......................................................... 

Lumber Resources Inc............................... 

Lussier, Simon, Ltd..................................... 

MacBeath Hardwood Company..............55 

Maine Woods Company.............................. 

Mars Hill, Inc...........................................57 

Matson Lumber Company........................... 

Maxwell Hardwood Flooring...................... 

McDonough Manufacturing Company........ 

Mellott Manufacturing Co., Inc...............48 

Meridien Hardwoods of PA., Inc.............39 

Merrick Hardwoods.................................... 

Messersmith Manufacturing, Inc............... 

MiCROTEC................................................... 

Middle Tennessee Lumber Co., Inc........45 

Midwest Hardwood Company............... FC 

MO PAC Lumber Company.......................... 

Montreal Wood Convention........................ 

Mueller Bros. Timber, Inc........................... 

Note: Advertisers with no page number carry an alternating Ad schedule. 

Neff Lumber Mills, Inc................................ 

New River Hardwoods, Inc......................... 

North American Forest Foundation............ 

Northern Hardwoods.................................. 

NWH............................................................ 

Nyle Dry Kilns...........................................9 

Oakcrest Lumber, Inc................................. 

OHC | Overseas Hardwoods Company....... 

O’Shea Lumber Co...................................... 

Patrick Lumber Company........................... 

Paw Taw John Services, Inc...................... 

Pennsylvania Hardwoods Co...................... 

Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual 

Insurance Company.................................... 

Peterson, Keith D., & Co., Inc................54 

Pike Lumber Co., Inc.................................. 

Prime Lumber Company............................. 

Primewood.................................................. 

Quality Hardwoods Ltd............................... 

Railway Tie Association.........................57 

RAM Forest Products, Inc......................44 

Real American Hardwood Coalition.......13 

Robinson Lumber Company........................ 

Rosenberry, Carl, & Sons, Lumber, Inc...... 

Sawmill MD................................................. 

SII Dry Kilns................................................ 

Sirianni Hardwoods, Inc.........................43 

Snowbelt Hardwoods, Inc.......................... 

Southern Forest Products Assoc............... 

Stiles, A.W., Contractors, Inc..................... 

Stoltzfus Forest Products, LLC.................. 

Taylor Machine Works, Inc......................... 

Thompson Appalachian 

Hardwoods, Inc.......................................47 

Tigerton Lumber Co.................................... 

TMX Shipping Co., Inc................................ 

TS Manufacturing...................................10 

U-C Coatings, LLC....................................... 

USNR........................................................... 

Western Hardwood Association................. 

Wheeland Lumber Co., Inc......................... 

White, Harold, Lumber, Inc.....................54 

Williams, R.J., Inc....................................... 

Wolverine Hardwoods, Inc......................... 

CLEEREMAN The most trusted name in carriages 

n Over 1240 Carriages sold 

n Lowest cost of ownership 

n All parts in stock and reasonably priced 

n In-house engineering department 

n Everything from single piece equipment to 

turn-key mills 


RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry Sales 


STEFAN DRACOBLY 

President Of 

Controls 

Now, TWO ENTITIES TO SERVE YOU BETTER! 

PAUL CLEEREMAN 

VP Cleereman 

Industries & Controls 

DAN TOOKE 

Senior Optimization 

& Controls Engineer 

TODAY 

For optimal efficiency. . . 

knows what a sawmill needs: 

CLEEREMAN the newest name in sawmill controls and optimization 

n Simple easy to use touch 

screen with additional 

tactile buttons 

n Remote access for 

troubleshooting 

n No custom electrical 

hardware, all parts are 

off-the-shelf components 

n Industry JoeScan 

JS-50X6 Heads 

n 3D data used for 

opening the log and 

estimating the back of 

log profile 

n Realistic views of the log 

n Sure Grip Joystick 

handles 

n Operational statistics and 

reports 

n Over 170 systems sold 

Cleereman Industries 

and Cleereman Controls 

715-674-2700 

www.cleereman.com 

info@cleereman.com

The The Granite Valley Difference 

The Granite Valley Difference 

Our Sawmills 

Our sawmills in 

Wisconsin prepare 

raw timber for delivery 

to our finishing mills. 

Quality 

Processing 

We “rough grade” our kiln-dried 

woods to ensure the best appearance. 

Quality assurance on every load. 

Custom 

Work 

To help you streamline your 

production process, we 

can supply custom-cut 

pre-production blanks 

to your specs. 

Ready 

Inventory 

Our average on-hand 

kiln-dried supply is 

10 million board feet. 

Get the wood you need, 

with quick turnaround. 

Granite Valley Forest Products keeps growing as a single-source supplier to 

better serve you. We sell rough, S2S, straight-line ripping, and offer 

NHLA grades and customer-proprietary grading based on NHLA guidelines. 

Our Sawmills 

Our Sawmills 


Our Wisconsin 

Sawmills 

in prepare 


Our raw Our timber sawmills for in in delivery 

Wisconsin prepare 

raw to Wisconsin our for 

finishing 

Offices prepare mills. 

in Wisconsin, Indiana 

raw timber for delivery 

to our 

raw raw timber timber for to our finishing mills. & for Colorado 

delivery 

to to our our finishing mills. mills. Quality 

sales@granitevalley.com Quality 

Processing 

Quality 

Custom products are available to your exact specs for width, length and color. 

Visit our website to learn more or email us at sales@granitevalley.com. 

To help you streamline your 

granitevalley.com We “rough Work 

Processing 

grade” our kiln-dried 

production process, we 

To help you woods to ensure the best appearance. To help To can To help help you supply you you streamline custom-cut streamline your 

your 

We We “rough we 

We Quality We “rough “rough grade” assurance grade” grade” our our kiln-dried 

our our on every kiln-dried load. production pre-production production process, process, blanks we we we 

Alder | Aromatic woods Cedar can woods woods to | to Black ensure to to & 

ensure ensure the White the best best 

the the Ash 

best appearance. 

best | Aspen appearance. | Basswood can can to supply can your supply specs. 

custom-cut 

Beech | White & Quality Yellow Quality Quality assurance Birch assurance | Bitternut on on every every 

on on | every Butternut every load. load. 

load. load. | Cherry 

pre-production blanks 

blanks 

Grey & Red Elm | Hard Maple | Hickory | Red Oak | White Oak to to your to your to your your specs. 

specs. 

Norway 

Granite 

Pine 

Valley 

| White 

Forest 

Pine 

Products 

| Poplar 

keeps 

| Red & 

growing 

Silver Soft 

as a 

Maple 

single-source 

| Walnut 

supplier to 

Granite White better 

Granite Granite Valley Valley 

Cedar serve 

Valley Forest Valley | Rift you. 

Forest Forest 

& 

Products We Quartered sell 

Products Products 

rough, 

keeps Red 

keeps keeps 

S2S, & 

growing White straight-line growing 

Oak 

as as a as a single-source as a a 

ripping, single-source 

and 

supplier offer 

supplier to 

to to to 

NHLA 

better better better serve better 

grades serve serve you. serve you. you. We We you. 

and 

sell We sell We 

customer-proprietary 

rough, sell sell rough, rough, S2S, S2S, S2S, straight-line S2S, straight-line 

grading based 

ripping, ripping, ripping, 

on NHLA 

and and and and offer 

offer offer offer 

guidelines. 

Custom 

NHLA NHLA NHLA grades 

NHLA grades grades grades 

products 

and and customer-proprietary and and 

are customer-proprietary 

available to your exact 

grading grading grading 

specs 

based based based 

for width, 

on on NHLA on on NHLA NHLA 

length 

guidelines. 

guidelines. 

and color. 

Visit 

Custom Custom Custom Custom 

our 

products products products 

website to 

are are available are are 

learn 

available available 

more or 

to to your your to to 

email 

your your 

exact exact exact exact 

us at 

specs specs specs specs 

sales@granitevalley.com. 

for for width, for width, for width, width, 

length length length 

and and and and 

color. 

color. 

color. 

Visit Visit our Visit our Visit 

website website our 

Offices our website website 

to to learn learn to 

in to learn learn 

more more Wisconsin, 

more more email email or or email email 

us us at us at Indiana us 

sales@granitevalley.com. 

at at sales@granitevalley.com. 

& Offices Colorado 

in in in Wisconsin, Indiana 

Offices in Wisconsin, Indiana 

& Colorado 

& sales@granitevalley.com 

& Colorado 

sales@granitevalley.com 

sales@granitevalley.com 

granitevalley.com 


Custom 

Work Custom 

Work 

Work 

Ready 

Inventory 

Ready 

Inventory 

Our average on-hand 

kiln-dried supply is 

Our 10 Our average million average board on-hand 

on-hand feet. 

kiln-dried Get is 

kiln-dried the supply wood supply you is 

isneed, 

10 10 10 with 10 million million quick board board turnaround. feet. 

feet. 

Get Get the Get the the wood wood you you need, 

with with quick quick turnaround. 

Alder | Aromatic Cedar | Black & White Ash | Aspen | Basswood 


Beech | White & Yellow Birch | Bitternut | Butternut | Cherry 

Alder Grey Alder | Aromatic & | Aromatic Red Elm Cedar | Cedar Hard | Black Maple | Black & | Hickory & White 

White Ash | Ash Red | | Aspen Oak Aspen | | White | Basswood 

Basswood Oak 

Alder 

Alder 

| Aromatic 

| Aromatic Cedar | Black & White Ash Aspen | Basswood 

Beech Norway Beech | | White Pine White Cedar & | White & | Yellow Black 

Yellow Pine Birch & Birch | White Poplar | Bitternut Ash | Bitternut | Red | Aspen | Butternut & | Butternut Silver | Basswood Soft | Cherry 

Beech | White & Yellow Birch | Bitternut | Butternut | Cherry | Cherry Maple | Walnut 

Beech | Grey 

Grey White Grey & & Red 

& Red Cedar & Red Yellow Elm Elm 

Elm | Rift Birch | Hard | Hard 

| Hard & Quartered | Maple Bitternut | Maple 

Maple | Hickory 

| Hickory Red Hickory | Butternut & | Cherry 

| White | Red 

Red Oak 

Oak Oak Oak | White Oak 

| White 

| White Oak 

Oak 

Grey & Norway 

Norway 

Red Norway Elm Pine Pine 

Pine 

| Hard | White | White 

| White 

Maple Pine Pine 

Pine 

| | Poplar 

| 

Hickory | Poplar 

Poplar | | 

| 

Red | Red Silver 

& 

Oak & Silver 

Silver 

| White Soft Soft 

Soft Maple 

Maple 

Oak Maple | Walnut 

| Walnut 

| Walnut 

Norway White 62 White Pine 

JANUARY Cedar | Cedar White | 2024 | Rift Pine Rift & n NATIONAL & Quartered | Poplar Quartered | Red Red 

HARDWOOD Red & & Silver White MAGAZINE White Oak Soft OakMaple | Walnut 

White Cedar | Rift & Quartered Red & White Oak 


White Cedar | Rift & Quartered Red & White Oak

National Hardwood Magazine - January 2024

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