From the President's Desk

I had an interesting month touring two very different operations: Precision Hardwoods’ new HewSaw mill in Onaway, Michigan, and the Timber Professionals Cooperative Enterprises (TPCE) chip mill in Tilleda, Wisconsin. Both mills process small-diameter wood and are impressive for different reasons. One for cutting-edge automation, the other for a resilient, owner-driven cooperative model.

Precision Hardwoods operates a HewSaw chip-in-saw system similar in concept to the Red Pine mills run by Biewer and Potlatch in the region, but it’s cutting hardwood instead of straight pine. As far as I know, Precision is one of only a handful of HewSaws processing hardwood in the United States. I watched the mill run for several hours and was struck by how efficiently logs are debarked, scanned, and converted into dimensional lumber — at speeds up to six board feet per second.

The mill is highly automated, but it still depends on a skilled operator. Owner Mike Sturgill monitors the system and overrides automation when needed; a flared butt or other misshapen log that reaches the machine without being rejected can jam the system and shut down production. That intensity of operator involvement reminded me a lot of running a harvester. Full automation is possible, but production gains often come from timely manual intervention.

Probably the most impressive thing was how few people are needed to operate the mill. It’s not yet at full production, but productivity gains are already noticeable. Early on the mill nearly faced being disassembled and sold because of production problems traced to feed rollers wired to spin the wrong direction at the factory. That defect went unnoticed because the mill won’t run unless all safety guards are installed, which masked the issue during initial production.

TPCE recently held a ribbon-cutting at their newly acquired chip mill. The mill will initially produce the same product it has long supplied to regional paper mills: paper-quality wood chips cut to varying lengths. The equipment and the product are not novel; the mill relies on well-established, proven processes. What sets this operation apart is the ownership model.  It is owned and operated by loggers and truckers.

TPCE formed about five years ago after the Wisconsin Rapids pulp mill closed, with the goal of developing new markets for loggers and truckers across the Great Lakes region. Raising capital was the biggest early obstacle. Opportunities to acquire assets arose, but the cooperative struggled to meet fundraising targets because it was the first effort of its kind in the area.

A little over two years ago I attended a cooperative meeting at their spring celebration during a low point: fundraising shortfalls had been announced and the director was leaving. The mood was bleak until one person stood up and asked what was needed — Laura Delaney. I don’t know every detail behind the scenes, but Laura’s willingness to step in and drive fundraising turned the vision into reality. The board had the concept and Laura provided the time, energy, and momentum to make the chip mill happen.

Over the last decade economic pressures have made ventures like these harder to launch and sustain. Equipment and parts costs on the logging and trucking side have jumped dramatically, often by fifty percent or more. Fuel and lubricants are up by thirty percent or more. Labor and healthcare costs have also risen. Many pointed to COVID as the cause, but prices have not returned to pre-pandemic levels. At the same time pulp prices have been stagnant for several years. In northern lower Michigan, where I live, pulp prices held steady partly because Arauco came online during this period, but in other regions pulp prices have generally stayed flat or fallen.

With stagnant prices and rising costs, the industry cannot rely on a few large pulp mills alone. We need more businesses driven by people who understand the supply chain from stump to mill companies like TPCE and Precision Hardwoods. Those enterprises diversify local markets, add value close to the resource, and keep more of the revenue in the hands of loggers and truckers.

Both the precision-technology approach at Precision Hardwoods and the cooperative, owner-operated model at TPCE point to complementary strategies for a resilient forest economy. Precision Hardwood offers a path to higher productivity with fewer people, provided skilled operators manage and refine the automation. TPCE demonstrates how collective ownership and local leadership can create market access and stability when traditional buyers disappear.

We need more of both technology investments that increase yield and efficiency, and locally grounded business models that expand markets and stabilize revenue for operators. The future of small-diameter wood utilization will depend on harnessing both innovation and community-driven ownership to keep forestry operations viable and competitive.

Mike Elenz

GLTPA President