OCTOBER 2023
Cover: Besse FP Updates Goodman Sawmill
GOODMAN, Wisconsin – In the years immediately after Besse Forest Products Group’s purchase of the old Goodman Veneer & Lumber operation in 2000, the company upgraded its kilns to better dry the hardwoods common to the region, added a lumber handling system, did some sawmill modifications and certified under FSC, but owner Greg Besse knew it had a long way to go to take the sawmill and truly bring it up to date, while also expanding the company’s product offering.
Inside This Issue
THE ISSUES: The Portland Show Keeps On Keepin’ On
The conclusion of the SFPA Expo held in Nashville in August can only mean one thing. It’s time to move on to the next major sawmill machinery show: the Timber Processing & Energy Expo (TP&EE) to be held September 25-27, 2024 at the Portland Exposition Center in Portland, Oregon. Our affiliate, Hatton-Brown Expositions, produces the event, while Timber Processing serves as the primary media host.
Article by Rich Donnell, Editor-in-Chief, Timber Processing
NEWSfeed
- Canfor Commits To New BC Mill
- Labor Department Slaps Sawmill Operator
- Equity Firm Buys Buse Timber
- West Fraser Will Buy Spray Lake
- Georgia-Pacific Closure Of Foley Facility
- Weyerhaeuser Goes After Carbon Credits
GLOBAL MACHINERY
EDITOR’S NOTE: The following companies submitted editorial profiles to complement their advertisements in Timber Processing October 2023.
- BID Group
- Brunner Hildebrand
- Carbotech
- Delmhorst
- Gilbert
- JoeScan
- Ledinek
- LIMAB
- Linck
- Mebor
- MiCROTEC
- MINDA
- PRINZ
- Signode
- Springer
- USNR
SFPA Expo Rearview Mirror
Southern Forest Products Association hosted its machinery expo in Nashville on August 23-25, and by all accounts there was plenty to sing about.
Waste Not
MANCOS, Colorado – Operating in remote southwest Colorado, Aspen Wood Products is diversifying its business base while expanding its capacity to handle green material with its new Mesa Verde Pellets operation.
Article by Dan Shell, Senior Editor, Timber Processing
Quantitative Review
This brief white paper and a new interactive dashboard provides a quantitative review of the U.S. and Canadian forest products sector. There are about 1,850 operating mills in North America (U.S. and Canada) that use wood as their primary input. North America’s managed forests supply more than half a billion metric tons per year to produce products that many of us take for granted.
Article by William Strauss, president of FutureMetrics
MACHINERY ROW
- Austria’s Theurl Takes On CLT (Article submitted by Weing)
- Sennebogen Opens Steel Plant In Hungary
- Automated Control Solutions Services Sawmills From Coast To Coast
- Pape Group Opens Fremont Dealership
AT LARGE
- Hancock Celebrates With Sea Dogs
- Metsa Wood Names Construction Partner
- Roseburg Truck Tests Hybrid Technology
- Conference Returns To St. Simons Island
- Georgia-Pacific On Board With Fire Department
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Besse FP Updates Goodman Sawmill
Article by Jessica Johnson, Senior Editor, Timber Processing
GOODMAN, Wisconsin – In the years immediately after Besse Forest Products Group’s purchase of the old Goodman Veneer & Lumber operation in 2000, the company upgraded its kilns to better dry the hardwoods common to the region, added a lumber handling system, did some sawmill modifications and certified under FSC, but owner Greg Besse knew it had a long way to go to take the sawmill and truly bring it up to date, while also expanding the company’s product offering.
Based in Gladstone, Michigan, where John Besse founded Northern Michigan Veneers in 1966, Besse Forest Products Group is one of the largest privately owned producers of hardwood lumber, veneer and specialty plywood in North America. It now consists of multiple operating facilities and sites, including sawmills located at Baraga, Michigan and Ladysmith and Mattoon, Wisconsin in addition to the Goodman sawmill, as well as four veneer mills, plywood mills, export log yards and concentration yards.
The Goodman sawmill was the fourth sawmill to be added to the roster but the first with kiln drying capabilities, enabling Besse to truck in green lumber from its affiliated facilities. That the purchase also included a veneer mill was typical for the Besse way of doing business, operating complementary veneer and sawmills at the same site and taking advantage of raw material and other synergies.
“You either improve or you continue to make Model-T Fords, and soon you will be out of business. So, we’re always looking to continue to improve,” Greg Besse says.
Today the site operates 12 package kilns, including two new American Wood Dryers units, two rebuilt Hildebrand units and eight SII kilns. This lets the site scale up its production to an efficient level, with an estimated 15MMBF annual drying capacity.
It took a while, but the Goodman sawmill is now meeting expectations.
Left to right, Greg Besse, Cain Besse, and Tyson Stuck, GM of GVL
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