National Hardwood Magazine - December 2023

HOUSTON HARDWOODS

HOUSTON HARDWOODS Continued Houston Hardwoods’ mill area. Houston Hardwoods purchases more than 600,000 board feet of Hardwoods annually in Alder, Ash, Cherry, Maple, Red and White Oak, Walnut, Birch, Pecan, Poplar and many more species. Houston Hardwoods is a full-blown manufacturing facility that specializes in planing wood and producing custom moulding. Houston Hardwoods, located in Houston, TX, operates from a 50,000-square-foot facility with about 18 employees. ment lineup. That’s become a big part of our business.” Recently adding a new Powermatic planer to its equipment list, McCoy said using its two SCMI moulders, they’ve been able to streamline the production process and designate specific machines to certain tasks. “We use one of the machines to run patterns that we change up several times a day,” said McCoy, “and then we leave the other machine set up for S4S lumber. That saves us a lot of time and makes us much more efficient than if we were just using one machine for everything.” Houston Hardwoods procures its kiln-dried domestic lumber from sawmills all over the country. “We try to get some of our species like Oak and Poplar from sources that are closer to home to avoid high freight/transportation costs,” said McCoy. “Some of the other species like Maple and Walnut we usually try to get from sources further north due to the higher quality of those woods in that area of the country.” The company has maintained its focus on one of its biggest strengths: being able to turnaround orders in one to two days. Its customers – most of which are located within 100 miles of Houston – appreciate the quick turnaround time and the fact that quality is never sacrificed in lieu of speed. While most of its customers are in Texas, Houston Hardwoods does ship orders to clients in other parts of the country. “We are often surprised by where people call from, but we don’t argue. We get the order done and ship it out.” According to McCoy, most of the firm’s customers during the week are professionals, cabinet shops, contractors, furniture builders and other lumber yards that do not deal in Hardwoods. The company also caters to a number of DIY hobbyists and woodworkers. “We call them weekend warriors; they go crazy when they come in here and see our extensive selection,” said McCoy. “This is a customer segment that helps to round out our client base and gives us the opportunity to work with smaller, locally-based wood workers.” Houston Hardwoods is a member of the Lumbermen’s Association of Texas & Greater Louisiana and the Greater Houston Lumber & Building Materials Association. McCoy added, “We’re constantly exploring new ways to have the best product and service possible because keeping our customers happy has definitely been the key to our success.” n For more information, visit www.houstonhardwoods.com. 28 DECEMBER 2023 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry DECEMBER 2023 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 29