The Softwood Forest Products Buyer - July/August 2024

James Mortimer is an account manager-sales for Idaho
Forest Group, located in Coeur d’Alene, ID.
Idaho Forest Group is an annual producer of 1 billion
board feet of White Fir, Douglas Fir/Larch, Idaho White
Pine, Ponderosa Pine, Engelmann Spruce/Lodgepole Pine
and Inland Red Cedar lumber. Dimension is offered in 2x3
through 2x12 widths. Boards are available in 1x4 through
1x12, 5/4 and 6/4 thicknesses. Premium products are
marketed under the Idaho Forest Gold name.
James Mortimer
Products are offered to local and regional domestic
markets, as well as to international customers.
Who’s Who in Softwoods
Continued on page 38
Nyle Dry Kilns, located in Brewer, ME, a manufacturer
known for its high-quality and efficient dry kilns, recently
announced the hiring of Mark Metzger as their new Sales
Manager in the United States. Metzger joins the team with
an extensive background in the forest products industry, accumulating
over 30 years of experience.
Throughout his career, Metzger has garnered extensive
experience as an account manager and sales representative
Mark Metzger for a variety of esteemed hardwood lumber companies,
including Northwest Hardwoods, Weyerhaeuser, Legacy
Lumber and American Lumber. His most recent role involved wood protection
products, where he served as the Northeast representative for U-C Coatings. His
Continued on page 38
SLB Partnerships Make The Industry Stronger
Kelly Matthews is a senior sales representative for RoyO-
Martin in Alexandria, LA. Matthews joined the RoyOMartin
team almost 18 years ago as a member of the sales support
staff before becoming a dedicated sales representative in
2011.
RoyOMartin has been an industry production leader for
more than a century, specializing in plywood and OSB and
offering a variety of American solid wood products.
As the largest plywood plant in North America, RoyOMartin’s
Chopin, LA, plant produces approximately 510 million
Kelly Matthews
square feet per year. The organization also operates OSB plants in Oakdale, LA,
Continued on page 38
Rick Harris is the Director of Strategic Development at
Delta Forestry Group located in Pitt Meadows, BC, and is
managing and growing the Hemlock program as well as performing
some executive functions. Delta Forestry Group has
two sawmills that produce 120 million board feet annually
and distributes lumber worldwide. Delta Cedar Specialties
offers Western Red Cedar, Alaskan Yellow Cedar, Douglas
Fir and Hemlock in low grades through clears, dry or green
and rough or surfaced.
Rick Harris
Delta Cedar Specialties offers a full line of products milled
to their customers specification, whether rough sawn, rougher headed or S1S2E or
S4S. Their sawmills are capable of cutting timbers up to 32-feet in length.
Continued on page 38
Transparency In The Wood Products
Industry: AWC Receives Multiple
Grants To Continue Its Sustainability
And Transparency Efforts
Table of Contents
FEATURES
WRCLA Celebrates 70 Years ........................1
NAWLA Regional Meeting, Portland.............1
WWPA-Master Lumberman............................1
Richardson Timbers.......................................4
Safety Culture Blueprint................................5
Jazz Forest Products.....................................6
NAFF-Closing the Skills Gap ........................7
Culpeper Wood Preservers...........................8
Gobble-Fite Lumber Co..................................9
NAWLA Regional Meeting, Vancouver.......10
Old West Invitational Turkey Shoot............11
DEPARTMENTS
Who's Who in Softwoods.........................2
AWC News..................................................2
APA News...................................................2
NAWLA News.............................................2
SLB News...................................................2
Washington Report.................................24
Retail Review...........................................26
Northeast Bus. Trends............................28
Inland West Bus. Trends.........................28
Midwest Bus. Trends....................................30
West Coast Bus. Trends...........................30
Southeast Bus.Trends............................... 32
Ont./Quebec Bus. Trends.......................32
In Memoriam............................................70
Stock Exchange................................. 72-75
Industry News..........................................76
Calendar...................................................81
Classified Opportunities.........................82
Index of Advertisers................................82
By: Jackson Morrill
President & CEO of the American Wood Council
Through a diverse array of partnerships with both public agencies and private
organizations, the Softwood Lumber Board and its funded programs have proven
that the industry is stronger and produces greater results when we work collaboratively.
The SLB has a focused mandate—to increase demand and expand markets for
Softwood lumber products—but the reality is that achieving that goal of increas-
Continued on page 40
APA Members Win Safety And Health Awards
Manufacturers Recognized for Dedication to Workplace Safety
APA – The Engineered Wood Association has announced the winners of its
2023 Safety and Health Awards – the premier safety award program for North
America's engineered wood products industry. The program promotes and recognizes
operational excellence with the goal of reducing injury and illness rates.
The Safest Company Award went to two members. Canfor won in the category
of three or fewer mills, while West Fraser took the title for companies with four
or more mills. There were also two winners in the coveted Innovation in Safety
Award category. PotlatchDeltic’s St. Maries, Idaho, mill won the Equipment-
Based Innovation Award with its “Automatic Hot Press Panel Feeders.” RoyO-
Martin’s Chopin, Louisiana, mill won the Jeff Wagner Process-Based Innovation
Award for its “The IBIZ Now Safety Show.”
Seventy-three APA member engineered wood product facilities participated in
Continued on page 45
Jackson Morrill The American Wood Council (AWC) has been
a leader and strong supporter of the wood product
industry’s environmental data collection efforts and commitment to transparency.
To that end, AWC recently pursued and has been awarded multiple grants that
will support more robust data collection and analysis, helping us to better tell the
industry’s remarkable and truly unmatched sustainability story.
Last year, AWC received a Wood Innovations Grant (WIG) from the U.S. Forest
Service (USFS) to expand AWC’s Lifecycle Assessment database. The database
currently includes data from AWC member companies and is available only
to AWC members. However, the expansion will now allow non-member mills
and manufacturers to input data without an additional cost burden. The Lifecycle
Assessment database collects data related to sourcing and product manufacturing
that is analyzed and used to produce the industry’s Environmental Product
Continued on page 42
NAWLA’s Regional Meetings: A Platform for
Local Industry Connection
By The NAWLA Editor
NAWLA’s Regional Meetings are in full swing this summer following successful
events in Montréal, Vancouver, and Portland which collectively drew a little
more than 500 attendees. Curated by the NAWLA Regional Meetings Committee,
these one-day events take place throughout the United States and Canada
and offer peer-to-peer networking and educational opportunities on a local level.
Regional Meetings serve two important purposes — to educate and connect local
members, and to connect with members of other regions. Members from different
regions are encouraged to register for Regionals to connect with potential customers
or suppliers in these different markets.
Continued on page 44
A Bi-Monthly newspaper serving
North America’s Softwood Forest Products Buyers
Published by
Softwood Trade Publications, Inc.
P. O. Box 34908
Memphis, Tenn. 38134
Tel. (901) 372-8280 FAX (901) 373-6180
Web Site: www.softwoodbuyer.com
E-Mail Addresses:
Advertising: apryll@millerwoodtradepub.com
Editorial: editor@millerwoodtradepub.com
Subscriptions: circ@millerwoodtradepub.com
Terry Miller - President/Publisher
Zachary Miller - Sales Representative
Paul J. Miller Jr. - Vice President
Apryll Cosby - Advertising Manager
Sue Putnam - Editorial Director
Cadance Johnson - Associate Editor
Jeremiah C. Hall - Multi-Media Coordinator
Lara Stearsman - Staff Writer
Camille Campbell - Graphic Artist
Felicia Phillips - Graphic Artist
Lisa Carpenter - Circulation Manager
Canadian Correspondents: Toronto, Ontario, Vancouver,
B.C.
The Softwood Forest Products Buyer is the product
of a company and its affiliates that have been in the
publishing business for over 94 years.
Other publications edited for specialized markets and
distributed worldwide include:
National Hardwood Magazine • Hardwood Purchasing
Handbook • Import/Export Wood Purchasing News
• North American Forest Products Export Directory
• Imported Wood Purchasing Guide • Green Book’s
Hardwood Marketing Directory • Green Book’s Softwood
Marketing Directory
Subscriptions: U.S. and Canada: $65 (U.S. dollars)
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orders must be paid by check drawn on U.S. bank or by
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Send address changes to:
Softwood Forest Products Buyer
P.O. Box 34908, Memphis, TN 38184-0908
The Publisher reserves the right to
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