Spring is in the air and that means it’s time to register for MSRLPC’s annual MSR Workshop! Join attendees from across North America as they convene on April 17 in beautiful downtown Charlotte, NC, for three days of valuable learning and networking opportunities with an incredible lineup of speakers and activities. Let’s take a closer look at a couple of Workshop attendee favorites.
Component Manufacturer Panel
Designed to put seasoned manufacturers front and center to share knowledge with their fellow CMs, as well as open dialogue with lumber manufacturers, the addition of a CM Panel was a clear highlight of last year’s Workshop in San Antonio. This year’s panel will present a closer look at the positive results of ongoing advancements in manufacturing automation. The group will also discuss how new technologies and improved processes invite continued collaboration in the supply chain and new opportunities for the use of MSR Lumber.
- Sean Kelly, Owner/President of Automated Building Products in Marshfield, WI, will be discussing how automation has helped his plant with labor retention, growing personnel from 70 to 180 in six years with exceptional retention. Sean has more than 31 years in the industry and is a long-time attendee of the Workshop. He says there are many reasons he keeps coming back: “Lumber is your #1 used item – you need to know what you’re buying and using. The knowledge I gain about the lumber market and the forecast for the coming year is invaluable to my business.”
- Mike Momb, Technical Director for Hansen Pole Buildings in Browns Valley, MN, has owned or managed wood truss plants for over two decades and served five terms on MSRLPC’s Board of Directors during the course of his career. He agrees that the MSR Workshop is a great place for new users to learn about the product, for seasoned users to develop and foster relationships with their suppliers, and for everyone in the supply chain to learn from one another. “Sometimes we don’t know what we don’t know,” says Mike. “Getting together at an event like the Workshop gives everyone a chance to keep their ears open for new opportunities and ways to become more efficient.”
- Ross Harter, General Manager of Drexel Building Supply’s brand new truss manufacturing facility in Wrightstown, WI, has more than 20 years of experience in the industry, specializing primarily in offsite construction and component manufacturing. He is new to the Workshop, but says the process of building a new plant helped him see why it would be advantageous to spend time with lumber suppliers in this way. “We need to talk about the future because it’s changing so quickly,” says Ross. “Both CMs and lumber suppliers need to hear both sides of the story from an automation perspective as it relates to lumber. CMs will start having different needs as a result of increased automation. Coming together for productive conversations will help everyone better understand ‘the WHY.’”
Plant Tours
Tours have always been a mainstay of the Workshop, and we were fortunate to have not one but two forest products companies agree to welcome us into their facilities this year. Attendees will spend the afternoon of April 18 touring both Boise Cascade and Roseburg Forest Products in Chester, SC, where they will witness the art and science of forest products manufacturing.
Opened in October 2019, Roseburg’s engineered wood products plant is the most technologically advanced manufacturing facility of its kind, featuring the highest-capacity laminated veneer lumber (LVL) press in the world. Boise Cascade’s Chester Plywood has a long history of producing SYP plywood – a meticulous, hands-on process that makes for an interesting tour.
“Tours have always been an important aspect of the Workshop because it’s beneficial for CMs to tour other types of facilities where they can see the use of automation, labor, and other manufacturing processes they potentially haven’t seen before,” explains MSRLPC Board Member George Hamilton of Roseburg Forest Products. “Sometimes the tour is related to the forest products industry and sometimes it’s not, like last year’s Toyota tour. Regardless, it’s interesting and helpful to watch technology advancement in the world of manufacturing. I’ve also heard people say they see and learn about safety protocols they’ve never thought of before.”
That’s Not All
In addition to these fan favorites, the 2024 MSR Workshop will include a golf outing at Verdict Ridge Golf & Country Club, a hosted dinner outing to Bowlero Charlotte, and more stellar educational sessions:
- At the Crossroads of MSR Lumber and Mass Timber: Gain a better understanding of where MSR Lumber and mass timber intersect, with a specific look at where the glulam industry and engineered wood products that use MSR lumber went down separate paths. Russ Vaagen, founder and CEO of Vaagen Timbers, will explain how the Europeans use E ratings to provide grades of glulams and how North America is still using visual grades to produce the same products from 30 to 40 years ago. Russ will also give an overview of the current mass timber market and what is developing for the future.
- Analyzing Trends in the 2023 MSR Production Survey: Take a deep dive into the most recent MSR Production Survey with Crystal Gauvin from Forest Economic Advisors (FEA). Since the MSR Lumber Producers Council (MSRLPC) began tracking data in 1994, this annual production survey has become a valuable tool for both monitoring the progress of the industry in North America and promoting the use of MSR lumber worldwide.
- Growing Timber for MSR: An opportunity to see the forest for the trees, this session will introduce how the art and science of silviculture affects solid wood strength. Jesse Moore, Lumber Production Manager for Charles Ingram Lumber Company, will provide a brief history of forest management as well as explain how plant spacing, fertilization and herbicide applications, and thinning methods are all important to growing timber that is well suited to become MSR lumber.
- MSR and MEL – A Testing Primer: From the Southern Pine Inspection Bureau, Linda Brown will provide attendees with a valuable overview of how machine graded lumber is produced with special emphasis on the testing that is performed by producing mills. A great session for those still learning about machine-graded lumber, she will cover how it is produced as well as the similarities and differences between it and visually graded lumber. The session will include videos of lumber being tested.
- North American Timber Outlook: Join FEA’s Crystal Gauvin to explore timber supply in North America and get FEA’s near-term forecast for log pricing. She will take a look at which regions are facing the greatest constraints to softwood log supply, where the market is seeing the largest shifts in log demand, and how the record-breaking wildfire season affected logging and mill operation in Canada.
The Workshop will once again wrap up with a lively discussion on the most relevant topics covered at the Workshop. Led by Dan Uskoski from Metriguard Technologies, this roundtable session is a great way to assimilate all of the valuable content from other sessions as well as participate in conversations on other significant issues affecting the industry.
Full details and registration information are available on the MSRLPC website. The Early Bird Deadline is March 15, so register today and SAVE! To see a list of MSRLPC members or to join, visit the MSRLPC members page.