BMATWT 352 - Building Materials and Forest Products Marketing

Western Lumber

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Source: Presentation by Robert Bernhardt, Western Wood Products Association

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Lumber Manufacturing Steps

1. Logging
2. Transport to mill
3. Decking (sorting logs species, size, grade)
4. Debarking
5. Cut-off saw
6. Head rig
7. Edging
8. Trimming
9. Rough lumber sorting
10. Stickering
11. Drying
12. Planing
13. Grading
14. Shipping

 

Number of Sawmills Declining

Consolidation is occuring in the Western softwood lumber industry.

1) We're harvesting less lumber from our National Forest lands.

2) Economies of scale are encouraging firms to invest in larger plant sizes and more modern equipment which squeezes the

smaller mills out of business.

Total Demand for Softwood Lumber

Total US Consumption of softwood lumber is about 53 BILLION Bd-ft. annually.

Western mills had historically supplied up to 50% of this demand.

Today this has fallen to about 31%.

Another 1/3 comes from Canada.

Another 1/3 comes from Southeastern US.

Role of Standards

The development of standards for light frame construction, structural lumber 2x4s, 2x6s has driven this market to commodity

status.

Major markets for Western Softwood lumber

1) New Single-family residential construction (40%)

2) Repair and remodeling market (31%)

3) Non-residential - light commercial construction. (14%)

4) Pallets, crates (9%)

5) Furniture, other (7%)

Geographic Markets (for Western Lumber)

 1) West - 70% (?)

2) Midwest - 18%

3) Northeast - 6%

4) South - 4%

5) Export - 2%

Produced and maintained by David T. Damery
Building Materials and Wood Technology
Department of Natural Resources Conservation
College of Natural Resources and the Environment
University of Massachusetts, Amherst.