Seneca Sawmill in Eugene is more than halfway through a $60 million equipment upgrade to its complex off Highway 99. The improvements should be complete this September, Chief Executive Todd Payne said on Tuesday. The investment by the family-owned company allows Seneca to adjust to a changing lumber market while increasing efficiency. “This is all designed for the future,” he said.
In many parts of the country, builders are buying more dry lumber, which has been dried in a kiln, than green lumber, which has not been dried. The upgrade, including new, larger kilns, will allow Seneca to dry more of the lumber it produces. “Right now, we have certain segments of the market that we don’t sell to because we don’t have the dry dimension product,” Payne said.
Dimension product is what builders use often, such as 2-by-4s and 2-by-6s. The numbers refer to inches and Payne said Seneca produces 2-by boards ranging from 4 to 14 inches wide and 8 to 28 feet long.
Seneca has 430 total employees, most of whom work in Eugene, Payne said. The 140-acre complex includes three sawmills packed with automated technology, including computers that draw information from laser scanners to determine the best cuts for each log. “I think what a lot of people don’t understand is how much we have evolved as an industry, utilizing technology to improve efficiency,” Payne said. The upgrade includes new scanners in the dimension lumber mill.
Seneca has hired local contracting firms, including O & S Contractors and Olsson Electric, both of Springfield, and Wildish of Eugene, for the upgrade. The firms have employed more than 100 workers on the job, which began last summer.
From The Register-Guard: http://registerguard.com/rg/news/local/34192305-75/seneca-60-percent-done-with-60-million-upgrade-in-eugene.html.csp