Crown Pacific is selling its sawmill at Bonners Ferry, Id. to LP, and will provide LP mills in northern Idaho with a long-term log supply commitment from Crown Pacific’s 250,000 acre Idaho tree farm. LP operates sawmills in northern Idaho at Chilco and Moyie Springs. Crown Pacific also announced the pending closures of its sawmills at Coeur d’Alene, Id. and Prineville, Ore.

It seems everyone in industry is asking the same question: When are softwood lumber markets going to turn around? The answer has eluded even the most savvy of sawmillers. Meanwhile, managers at Willamette Industries’ southern yellow pine lumber mill here have retooled their operation toward more efficiency, versatility, quality and production, which should pay dividends when markets do strengthen.

Disaster struck Southern Indiana Hardwoods December 11, 1999 when fire wiped out the sawmill before daylight on a Saturday morning. When the smoke cleared, the only thing salvageable was a chipper. The best inspectors could do was to narrow the cause to a general area and declare a strong suspicion that it was something electrical.

After more than 20 years of transacting middle market acquisitions, I know the factors that affect the attainment of premium prices. Middle market acquisitions are transactions ranging in price from $1 million to $200 million. Many middle market executives mistakenly believe that external economic conditions significantly impact the timing and pricing of these deals.

Labor trends across many industries in the U.S. have changed in the last decade. In the lumber industry, observers looking over the production line see more women beneath those hardhats and safety glasses, and also more minorities and foreign-born workers. There are several factors that have impacted this demographic shift in the labor force. In many areas, labor competition is intense, and it’s essential to turn to a new population of workers.

In the lumber manufacturing business, leaders are constantly seeking opportunities to make incremental changes in their businesses to improve performance levels. New technology is one of the most widely used primary methods to achieve process improvement, and most lumber manufacturers have at least one eye focused on the latest technology that may help them “raise the bar” in their organizations.

Jacobsen introduces the JM-5500 tooth geometry inspection station for circles and bands. Precision, high-resolution camera and monitor give magnified visual inspection of kerf, side clearance, radial and tangential angles. Jacobsen supplies graduated template overlays that mount to monitor to verify geometry specification. Light ring illuminates tooth in any filing room light conditions.