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Hardwood Blog
Perspectives and insights on the hardwood lumber industry.
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Thursday, 01 February 2018 18:04
5 Tips for Being a Better Resource for your Customers
Generally speaking, in the hardwood lumber industry, relationships mean everything! The act of buying and selling lumber usually happens with suppliers and companies you know, trust and depend on. That is why we find it is important for us to constantly be focused on developing strong, long lasting relationships. One way to do that is by trying to become a more valuable business resource for our customers. From our experience, we have found that these…
Thursday, 11 January 2018 14:18
Are you considering yellow birch?
For most of us in the hardwood lumber industry we typically think of yellow birch when we think of plywood. But there are many other applications birch can be an excellent choice for! Yellow birch is one of those species commonly harvested throughout the New England States, New York and Pennsylvania. You will also find it in parts of Appalachian region as well. In general birch represents about 5% of the overall hardwood lumber production…
Friday, 08 December 2017 14:06
Four Tips for Touring a Sawmill
In the hardwood lumber industry, sawmill tours are the norm. When customers can visit a sawmill, they can get a better idea of the suppliers capabilities, products and ability to service them. Many times, especially for someone new to the industry, customers find it interesting to see firsthand how a log is processed from a round log to a bundle of random width and length boards. However, not all sawmill visits are the same. We…
Tuesday, 21 November 2017 16:43
Using Customer Feedback for Improvement
We know how competitive the hardwood lumber business is. From firsthand experience, we have learned there is no room for complacency when it comes to meeting the needs of your customers. It is important to think of each interaction with your customers as an opportunity for your team to provide significant value and further enhance your customer’s overall experience. These interactions can also be of great value to your any your organization and lead to…
Tuesday, 24 October 2017 14:38
Would More Effective Delegation Help Your Team?
Many business leaders understand the importance of delegation. But delegation isn’t always easy. Some contend it’s in the psychological makeup of business leaders to insist on doing (or trying to do) everything themselves - or at least insist on overseeing how others get things done. Here at American Lumber, we are constantly reminding ourselves f the importance and value of proper delegation. We work hard to leverage best practices in this area and constantly monitor…
Monday, 09 October 2017 15:55
5 Reasons to Consider Ripped-to-Width Hardwood Lumber
Manufacturers that use hardwood lumber to produce their products typically order lumber is random width and length bundles. However, some request their hardwood lumber suppliers to provider them products in special width sorts or even SLR2E ripped-to-width lumber they can use as moulder ready blanks. From our experience, we find the manufacturers that request ripped-to-width blanks are using this type of hardwood lumber product to manufacture specific cabinet parts, face frame, mouldings, custom flooring and…
Wednesday, 20 September 2017 14:09
Is Rustic Grade Hickory for Flooring on the Rise?
Rustic grade lumber has been a popular request for some time now. We often receive inquiries for rustic white oak, cherry and even walnut. But recently requests for rustic hickory have been on the rise. People define rustic grade lumber in numerous ways. In general, it is boards described as having all of its natural characteristics present. The lumber is structurally sound with tight knots, color variation, and a general natural appeal included. We find…
Wednesday, 06 September 2017 21:07
Focusing on Teamwork Can Pay Dividends
Sometimes bringing individual employees together to transform business practices and work as a high-performing team can be one of the more difficult decisions for a leader. At American Lumber, we know firsthand how important, and how difficult, building and maintaining a culture of teamwork can be. We promote it constantly because we recognize it is one of the best ways to make the organization better. From green hardwood lumber buyers and kiln drying supervisors to…
Tuesday, 22 August 2017 16:22
Does American Beech Receive Enough Consideration?
One of the less requested North American hardwood lumber species is American beech. This species, (fagus grandifolia), which is sometimes alrso referred to as red beech, white beech and gray beech, grows throughout the hardwood forests in the eastern United States. It is found mostly in the States of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Kentucky and grows side by side with more popular species such as soft maple, hard maple and cherry in most…
Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:44
How is your hardwood lumber product line these days?
Besides the basic species, grades and thicknesses everyone thinks about when they discuss hardwood lumber, what other products or services do you include in your hardwood product line? When was the last time you added something to your product offerings? If you are a hardwood distributor it is important to keep your offerings fresh and in line with the needs of your target market. Since the hardwood industry is usually a rapidly changing marketplace, it’s…
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Tuesday, 25 July 2017 17:52
Is Walnut Hardwood Lumber Usage Growing in Demand?
North American Black Walnut, (Juglans nigra ), been one of the most valuable hardwoods in the industry for generations. Consumers have regularly chosen walnut as the species of choice for everything from fine furniture to doors. This year it seems there has been a steady increase in demand in walnut. Inquiries from many of our customers in various regions of the world have been on the uptick. One example of an increase in demand we…
Monday, 26 June 2017 19:22
Things to look for when choosing a cherry hardwood supplier
Cherry is one of the most popular North American hardwoods. For generations, woodworkers have chosen cherry as one of their preferred species for quality manufacturing. Cherry, (Prunus serotina), is commonly used in everything from cabinets to fine furniture. But, as with any hardwood species, not all cherry lumber is the same. Besides the standard differences in grade, thickness, length and color, there are other issues that you will need to understand when ordering cherry lumber.…
Thursday, 15 June 2017 18:38
A Few Alternatives to Rosewood
Recently, many hardwood distributors have been inquiring about suitable alternatives to Dalbergia, (a.k.a. Rosewood). In the beginning of 2017, at a Convention of International Trade of Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna, (CITES), the genus of Dalbergia was added to protected species list. In general, Dalbergia Rosewood can be categorized as a small to medium sized tree native to many tropical areas including Africa and Central and South America. This species of lumber has been…
Tuesday, 23 May 2017 15:38
How to reduce the creation of unusable hardwood lumber inventory
If you manufacturer with hardwoods how do you stop creating unwanted lumber inventory? It is not always an easy answer, but it is usually rooted in ordering hardwood lumber products specifically designed to maximize your lumber yields. Most companies that manufacture products with hardwood lumber still usually order their materials as bundles of random widths and lengths. What this means is each bundle can therefore have a different combination of boards that range in widths…