by Web Editor | Feb 24, 2015 | News
From: Panel World Staff
Martco L.L.C. announced the selection of Corrigan, Texas as the location for a new, state-of-the-art oriented strandboard (OSB) facility. The facility is expected to employ 165. Construction is scheduled to begin this summer, with startup anticipated by fall 2017. Corrigan OSB, L.L.C. will complement Martco L.L.C.’s existing wood products manufacturing plants in Oakdale, La. (OSB); Chopin, La. (plywood); and Mexia, Ala. (lumber and timbers).
According to Martin Companies, L.L.C. Chairman and CEO Jonathan Martin, “Ever since my grandfather started out in the wood product industry more than 90 years ago, our family has taken pride in utilizing raw materials to the fullest extent possible. This business model has led to Martco’s growth as a leading supplier in the wood products industry. The timing is right for us to position ourselves to more effectively meet the increasing demand for building products into the foreseeable future.”
“We believe that East Texans have a tremendous amount of community passion, experience and knowledge, and we look forward to becoming a proactive community partner,” adds Roy O. Martin III, president. “Martco will extend its philosophy of being ‘employer of choice’ and ‘vendor of choice’ to this region, while maintaining the stability of a well-established, family-owned, professionally managed company committed to its stakeholders.”
Martco’s commitment to this region reaches beyond its future workforce. Senior Vice President and COO Scott Poole explains, “We look forward to extending our pride and dedication to sustainable forestry practices through additional foresters and loggers. With this expansion, we will continue to be good stewards of our forests, while delivering a full line of wood products across the country and world.”
Based in Alexandria, La., Martco L.L.C.’s existing manufacturing facilities employ 1,100. All of Martco L.L.C.’s wood products are available Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified.
by Web Editor | Feb 20, 2015 | News
From: Panel World Staff
Oregon State University has begun an initiative to build a $60 million complex to accelerate its forestry education programs and research on advanced wood products at Corvallis, Ore. The Oregon Forest Science Complex will encompass renovation of existing OSU campus facilities as well as new construction; showcase innovative uses of wood in building design; and allow the College of Forestry to help meet the world’s growing demand for energy efficient, tall buildings made from sustainable building products.
The project includes a $30 million fundraising goal. Once philanthropic commitments are secured, OSU will seek matching bonds from the state. Bonding for the project was included in the governor’s capital budget for consideration in the upcoming legislative session.
The initiative was announced in Portland at the Oregon Leadership Summit of the Oregon Business Plan by Thomas Maness, the Cheryl Ramberg Ford and Allyn C. Ford Dean of the College of Forestry.
“We are excited about leading a new national effort to advance the science and technology necessary to primarily use wood in the construction of 5- to 20-story buildings,” Maness says. “Developing these new, competitively priced, environmentally friendly products will not only increase the value of Oregon’s natural resources, but also grow jobs in our rural communities, with substantial benefits for our state.”
Seeking new methods to reduce the carbon footprint of high-rise construction, architects and engineers from Austria to Canada, Norway and New Zealand have begun constructing buildings with exceptionally strong wood products. This cross-laminated timber is made of strips of wood glued together across the grain, and panels can be more than 1 foot thick and 80 feet long.
Read more on this story in the March issue of Panel World…
by Web Editor | Feb 18, 2015 | News
From: Panel World Staff
Washington State University is establishing the Thomas M. Maloney Graduate Scholarship through the Voiland College of Engineering & Architecture.
Maloney, who died June 18 in Pullman, Wash. at age 83, was prominent in the development of many facets of the wood based panel industry, especially composite board, through his long association with WSU as professor of Mechanical & Materials Engineering and director of the Wood Materials & Engineering Lab.
“After consulting with Tom’s family, we all agreed that an endowed scholarship would be a fitting tribute to honor Tom’s commitment to education as we know he would be pleased to help deserving graduate students working in the field of wood composites and engineering,” the university stated.
The university has established a goal of $100,000 for this endowment. All donations will be acknowledged by the WSU Foundation and communicated to the Maloney family.
Any questions or for assistance in making a donation contact Bridget Pilcher at [email protected] or call 509-335-0144. Make checks payable to “WSU Foundation” and note “Maloney Scholarship.” Mail to WSU Foundation, Box 641925, Pullman, WA 99164-1925.
by Web Editor | Feb 16, 2015 | Update
Structural Panel Production Rose
North American structural panel production increased 2.6% to 30.68 billion SF in 2014 compared to 2013.
OSB production was up 6% to 19.88 billion SF, with U.S. production increasing 4.1% to 13.008 billion SF and Canadian production increasing 9.7% to 6.877 billion SF.
Plywood production was down 3.1% to 10.795 billion SF, with U.S. output falling off 3.9% to 8.985 billion SF while Canadian production increased 1% to 1.810 billion SF.
North American glulam production was up 1.4% to 254.8 million board feet. I-joist production was up 7.4% to 672.2 million linear feet, and LVL production increased 11.7% to 63.9 million cubic feet.
U.S. plywood exports to Mexico and the offshore markets totaled 358MMSF, down 15% from 2013, including a 33% decline in exports to China.
U.S. plywood imports from offshore totaled 424MMSF, up 3.2%, while Canadian plywood imports from non-U.S. sources were 50MMSF, up 22%.
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by Web Editor | Feb 13, 2015 | Update
U.S. housing starts in 2014 totaled 1,005,800 million units, up 9% from 2013, marking the first time housing starts have surpassed 1 million since 2007 when starts exceeded 1.4 million units, according to a report by APA—The Engineered Wood Assn. Beginning with 2008 and running through 2014, housing starts averaged 776,000 units per year.
Single family starts in 2014 were 648,000, up 4.9% from 2013, while multifamily starts came in at 357,800 units, up 16.4% from 2013.
Regionally, housing starts in the Northeast were 110,700, up 14.3% from 2013; in the Midwest were 162,800, up 8.8%; in the South were 497,700, up 7.4%; and in the West were 234,600, up 9.2% from 2013.
Actual number of new homes sold in the U.S. were up 1% to 433,000. The median price of new homes sold in 2014 was $279,500, up 4% from 2013.
The number of new homes (inventory) either completed or under construction was 178,000 late in 2014, compared for example to 420,000 in 2008.
Sustained increases in home values drove down the share of homeowners that are in a negative equity position on their mortgage to 16.9%. About half of those who are underwater owe at least 20% more on their mortgage than the current estimated value of their home.
Early this year the rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage fell below 3.7%; at that rate, the monthly payment on a $200,000 mortgage is about $100 less than in January 2014 when the mortgage rate was 4.5%.
For the year, the number of homeowners that started the foreclosure process totaled 1.2 million, down 18% from 2013 and down 61% from the peak of 2.87 million reached in 2010.
APA notes that the U.S. economy entered 2015 with considerable momentum. The mix of healthy job gains and gas prices below $2/gallon throughout much of the nation has driven consumer confidence to the highest levels since the middle of the previous decade.
APA forecasts 1,210,000 housing starts in the U.S. in 2015 and 1,365,000 in 2016. The APA report also lists forecasts from six other banking and housing concerns, which range from 1.1 million to 1.3 million for 2015 and 1.28 million to 1.65 million for 2016.
Housing starts in Canada in 2014 were 189,400, a gain of 0.7% from 2013.
