WWPA/NAWLA - Continued
WWPA/NAWLA - Continued from page 1 as well as other networking opportunities. Additionally, NAWLA held its annual Leadership Summit. This included a board of director and committee meetings, as well as multiple guest speakers. Those speakers included the following. Adrian Blocker, of Weyerhaeuser, who hosted a session that focused on Weyerhaeuser’s strategic focus on “People Development.” He was followed by Eric Grandeen of Idaho Pacific and later Brad Conlon of DR Horton Inc., who spoke about “What Makes A Builder Tick.” This topic focused on the general purchasing structure of a big builder and how they make decisions on products and trades. “From Crisis To Opportunity To Service” was the next topic, as presented by Brian McCoy, of McCoy’s Building Supply. The final day of the Leadership Summit featured keynote speaker Rear Admiral Scott Moore who shared his stories of teamwork and focused on how to transform individuals into a cohesive team, how to select talent that complements each other’s strengths and compensates for their weaknesses, and the qualities to look for in team members and leaders. Laurie McCabe PhD, and marketing manager for TradeTec Computer Systems Ltd., facilitated an education session on “Maintaining a Modern Sawmill: Embracing the 4th Industrial Revolution and Leveraging the Internet-of-Things (IoT).” This education session reflected on maintenance as a critical aspect of culture; and how IoT technologies allow for preventative maintenance, a progression beyond the sometimes costly instances of corrective maintenance and related outages. A panel discussion followed featuring long-time lumber industry leaders who shared their history, knowledge, insights and experience with attendees. Moderator for this panel was Grant Phillips, of Collins. Guest speakers were Rick Ekstein, of Weston Forest, and Mike Phillips, of Hampton Affiliates. NAWLA held a Regional Meeting in Vancouver last month, and upcoming Regional Meetings are as follows: •May 10, Birmingham, AL •June 26, San Francisco, CA •Aug. 23, Minneapolis, MN NAWLA was founded in 1893 and represents the best interests of wholesalers, manufacturers and service provider companies from the planting of seedlings to the selling of building materials and wood in all forms. Learn more at www.nawla.org. The WWPA represents Softwood lumber manufacturers in 12 Western states and Alaska. Learn more at www.wwpa.org. ■ (Editor’s Note: For more details about this joint meeting, see NAWLA’s column, page 2.) MWC EXPO - Continued from page 1 lumber and building materials distribution industries was discussed as well as an address about structural framing. Leading the discussion on these topics were the following industry experts: Paul Quinn, a paper and forest products analyst, RBC Capital Markets; Francois Robichaud, a partner with Forest Economic Advisors, and Kirk Grundahl, executive director of the Structural Building Components Association. The moderator for this was Scott Jamieson, of Annex Business Media. Topics covered in other seminars during MWC included: •“The Transportation And Logistics Challenge” •“The Human Resources Challenge In The Manufacturing Industry” •“Canadian Wood Products In The Growing Chinese Economy” •“Attractive Jobs Through The Introduction Of New Technologies” •“SM2 Initiative Of FPInnovations” •And a hardwood seminar was held in which an overview of the market was presented by Rupert Oliver, of Forest Industries Intelligence. Serving as keynote speaker at MWC was Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, which provides strategic advice to clients within the public, corporate and not-for-profit sectors. Among the organizers of MWC this year were the following: the Quebec Wood Export Bureau, the Maritime Lumber Bureau, the Quebec Forest Industry Council and the Ontario Forest Industries Association. To learn more about this event, visit www.montrealwoodconvention. com. ■ Page 46 Softwood Forest Products Buyer ■ May/June 2018
LMC EXPO - Continued from page 1 our LMC team is something I look forward to each year.” LMC is a leading forest products and building materials group whose membership tops 370. LMC is owned by independent lumber and building material dealers. More than 1,400 LMC dealer locations are situated in the U.S., plus the Bahamas. “Building Business Together” is LMC’s philosophy, which has stood the test of time since 1935. The multi-day event not only included exhibitor booths and ample networking opportunities, but on the first full day of the meeting, numerous educational seminars were available to registered attendees. The variety of topics presented included employee training, PCI compliance, credit card processing, increasing sales levels, digital marketing strategies and big designs for small spaces. The show floor featured a number of special exhibits, including: New Products area, ModernView Exhibit, Capital Equipment Showcase, and a brand new Kitchen & Bath Showcase. The New Products area featured over 90 products from more than 70 LMC suppliers. Taking home the top prize, as voted by the annual attendees, was the Endura-Thane Faux Wood Beams from Ekena Millwork. LMC’s Annual Meeting is not just a time to gather and take advantage of show-special buys, it is also an event with a strong focus on education. This year, three National Kitchen & Bath Association accredited courses were offered as part of the Kitchen & Bath Showcase. There was also a Marketing Idea Exchange where marketers from dealer companies gathered for an intensive session featuring two round tables. Serving as keynote speaker was Rory Vaden, co-founder of Southwestern Consulting and a best-selling author. Vaden is regarded as a leading expert on self-discipline, overcoming procrastination and taking action to create exponential results. There was an extra level of enthusiasm at this year’s event. The room was abuzz with talk of the .3 billion in purchases LMC saw last year. To learn more about LMC, visit www.lmc.net. ■ WEST COAST BUSINESS TRENDS - Continued from page 22 Additionally, we have had uncontrollable delays with railcars arriving much later than the ordered date further holding up shipments at times. All in all the slower winter take away combined with tight Cedar log supply has actually produced a good balance between supply and demand for Q1.” Garofano continued, “Logs will start flowing more while demand peaks this April/May/June but Cedar log supply constraints are far from over. First Nation bands are severely impacting Cedar harvesting in some areas while they work with the government towards a solution and many loggers are anxiously waiting for a resolution. Meanwhile with several desperate buyers for every Cedar log available, prices continue to appreciate. Both customers and sawmills are very concerned about this trend as inventory dollars surge, substitutes take more market share and more consumers get priced out of the Cedar market. With little to no chatter around Duty talks, tight Cedar supply and steady demand for Cedar products, it seems in the short term the best we can hope is for prices to hold steady.” Scott Boates of The Teal-Jones Group, Surrey, BC said, “Supply is meeting demand, but prices were stagnant, and customers were being careful with purchases.” Boates continued, “Log supply and quality is the main issue and will continue to be.” On the topic of tariffs, Boates said, “Clients have taken the Duty issue mostly in stride, but the real effect will not show up until later in the second quarter. We feel that the Duty may be removed in the coming months, but it is not likely any monies will be returned to manufacturers.” Archie Rafter of Andersen Pacific Forest Products, Maple Ridge, BC had this to say about supply and demand: “Logs are still tight in supply and on the lumber side both clears and appearance WRC is in short supply. Log prices are at a record high like lumber.” When asked about customer mood, Rafter responded, “Seems quiet but when you have wood it sells.” And the new shake and shingle tariffs “have limited our customer base as we are only selling FOB mill. Therefore, transportation and Duties are for customers/risk accounts.” Leslie Southwick of C&D Lumber, Riddle, OR had the following to say about supply and demand: “We are still seeing a pretty good balance in supply versus demand in most Doug Fir products. Cedar demand continues to outpace our supply and I think that will continue throughout the rest of the year. Over the last month Doug Fir 2” No. 2/Btr S4S product prices rapidly declined, which put the brakes on customers purchasing these products, but in the last week sales have started to pick back up as prices Continued on page 48 THE PRODUCTS YOU NEED, WHEN YOU NEED THEM Wholesale Distribution • 800.942.7776 Learn more at www.midstatelumber.com NEW JERSEY 200 Industrial Parkway Branchburg, NJ 08876 NEW YORK 270 Kings Highway Warwick, NY 10990 PENNSYLVANIA 181 Pringle Street Kingston, PA 18704 MASSACHUSETTS 225 Cedar Hill Street Marlborough, MA 01752 Softwood Forest Products Buyer ■ May/June 2018 Page 47
