. . .And Back In The U.S.
Article by Rich Donnell, Editor-in-Chief, Panel World July 2023
As has often been the case in my previous trips there, perhaps the leading topic of conversation at the Ligna show in Hannover, Germany in mid-May was the status of multiple new projects back in the United States, such as Roseburg’s new MDF plant in Oregon, Kronospan’s new OSB plant in Alabama, Hood Industries’ new softwood plywood mill in Mississippi and the discussion landed on some rumors that had been percolating.
I ran into a friend from the U.S. who is, how I can put this, “involved” in the panel industry. This person asked me if I had heard that Huber had selected a new location to build its next OSB facility. I told this person I hadn’t heard and asked where it was. “I can’t tell you,” this person answered. “Why not?” I asked. “Because the person who told me swore me to secrecy,” this person said. “I shouldn’t have even told you they had selected a location.” We laughed at the exchange. I mean, why not tell your most confidential information to the editor of a panel industry magazine?
“What letter does the state start with?” I asked with a chuckle. This person thought a moment, “Okay, it’s M.” In grade school I had learned a song in which you sang the names of the states in alphabetical order. “Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas…” It was usually good for winning a beer in college when I pretended I didn’t know any such song but was just trying to recite the states in alphabetical order, purposefully stumbling over a state along the way as if I couldn’t quite remember it until miraculously coming up with it, much to the groans of my easily impressed peers.
My mind and memory quickly raced through the song: “Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska…”
It wouldn’t be Maine. Huber already had one there. Maryland, Massachusetts, nope. Michigan, possible, but unlikely. Minnesota, are you kidding me after what Huber just went through there? Mississippi, very possible, the state had come on like gangbusters with sawmills and plywood mills and apparently has timberland to spare. Missouri, negative. Montana, don’t think so.
“Mississippi,” I said. “Don’t say you heard it from me,” this person said. “I’ll never identify you,” I said, “except maybe by your initials…just kidding.”
Bernstein, Woodward and Watergate it wasn’t, but a couple of days later I did a Google search for Huber Mississippi. Lo and behold. There it was, not an official announcement from Huber, but a joint public notice from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi Dept. of Environmental Quality Control that Huber wanted to build an OSB plant in Shuqualak, Noxubee County, Mississippi, and the purpose of the public notice was to inform the public, I guess, that Huber wanted a permit in order to discharge fill material into some wetlands. It got much more specific than that, but my initial thought was didn’t Huber didn’t get enough of the wetlands thing during its effort to build an OSB plant in Minnesota before saying goodbye? I’m guessing the circumstances are much different this time.
I was able to pull together this information and get it on our news site online. About two weeks later, after I returned to the U.S. from Germany, Huber officially announced it was building its next OSB plant in Shuqualak, Miss. I owe my friend a beer.
Latest News
Engineered Lumber Industry Sees A Positive Boost
Like much of the industry, engineered wood producers are still navigating a fickle recovery in which builders are challenged by supply constraints, tight lending, and hard-to-come-by lots. Though the market is emerging from the recession, it’s still on the slow side....
Universal Forest Products Will Expand Internationally
Michael Mordell, a senior executive of Universal Forest Products, Inc., was named Executive VP of International Operations to lead a new international division, UFP Global Holdings, Ltd., based in the United Kingdom. Mordell will be responsible for sales, production,...
Canadian Veneer Mill Thrives Amid Market Uncertainty
The log yard is filled with two months’ worth of inventory and activity is humming at Columbia Forest Products’ veneer plant, east of North Bay. After being mothballed for five years, operations at the hardwood veneer mill in Rutherglen resumed April 18 running one...
SOM Tests Its Latest In Timber Tower Technology
Working with Oregon State University (OSU), Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has been busy testing its design for a timber tower. The time-lapse video shows a section of the wood tower being submitted to 82,000 pounds of pressure. SOM has been working on the...
World’s Tallest Timber Building Topped Off Ahead Of Schedule
In Vancouver, Canada, the towering timber Brock Commons just had its final panel installed, making the dream of the world’s tallest timber building a reality, reports the website Inhabitat. In just 66 days – ahead of the original scheduled timeframe – the exterior of...
Find Us On Social
Newsletter
The monthly Panel World Industry Newsletter reaches over 3,000 who represent primary panel production operations.
Subscribe/Renew
Panel World is delivered six times per year to North American and international professionals, who represent primary panel production operations. Subscriptions are FREE to qualified individuals.
Advertise
Complete the online form so we can direct you to the appropriate Sales Representative. Contact us today!