ATLANTA, Ga.
Sixty-five speakers and moderators, 440 industry professionals and 58 exhibitors participated in the Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE) held February 4-6 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in downtown Atlanta.

Panel World magazine and Georgia Research Institute sponsored the event.

Many of the attendees also participated in the Bio-Energy Symposia & Expo held immediately preceding PELICE at the Omni Hotel, which was also sponsored by Panel World and GRI. Twenty PELICE exhibitors also exhibited at the Bio-Energy event, which in itself featured 30 speakers and moderators and 48 exhibitors.

Clockwise, beginning upper left, John Godfrey of ForesTech, Zach Sufrin of Atlas Holdings, Scott Wiles of Arauco, and Claudio D’Ambrosio of Arclin spoke during the opening morning general session.

This was the second PELICE, which is held every other year, and the first Bio-Energy Symposia. PELICE was held in the Grand Ballroom, while Bio-Energy took place at the Atrium Terrace of the Omni.

“I think most people probably left feeling like they deserved a diploma,” says Rich Donnell, co-chairman of the event and editor of Panel World. “I’ve never seen so many great minds from the panel industry converge on one place and deliver the variety of presentations on technology and issues as I saw in Atlanta.”

Donnell says the show sponsors always conduct a survey of attendees immediately following the event, and the one question they pay especially close attention to is if the attendees felt they found something in the presentations or in the exhibits that could be useful to their business. “Ninety-six percent said they may have or definitely did find something they can take back home,” Donnell says. “That’s really the whole point of PELICE.”

Not surprisingly, given the economy, the crowd was down slightly from the event held in early 2008, but as USNR-Coe VP Alan Knokey commented, “If PELICE can do this now, think about what it will be like in a strong market in two years.”

Donnell says one aspect of PELICE that the organizers worked on was pulling in more international participants, and as a result industry personnel were on hand from Austria, Germany, France, Belgium, Malaysia, South Africa, Sweden, India, Italy, the United Kingdom, as well as Canada and the U.S.

Over two days PELICE provided three concurrent sessions on Resins & Adhesives, Energy to Emissions, Emerging Issues for Engineered Wood Products, and Structural and Non-Structural Products, Technologies and Issues.The event also featured eight primary speakers as part of the opening keynote session, two general sessions and a luncheon session. Those speakers were John Godfrey, principal with ForesTech; Zach Sufrin, VP and principal with Atlas Holdings; Scott Wiles, Business Unit Manager/Panels Div., Arauco Wood Products; Claudio D’Ambrosio, President and CEO of Arclin; Anders Gustafson, CEO, BRUKS AB; Art Schmon, Partner, Forest Economic Advisors; Tom Julia, President of Composite Panel Assn.; and Roger Tutterow, Professor of Economics at Mercer University.

Godfrey, who has started up several panel plants, spoke on financing an independent wood-to-energy plant, referring to lessons learned from his OSB ventures.

He said a pellet plant for example has a “scary” cost curve compared to OSB.

He also noted that OSB always has some demand and a new mill has the lowest operating costs, while pellets demand could disappear with reduced oil prices and an older mill has the lowest costs. Also, the raw material availability and sourcing for a wood-to-energy plant is potentially more volatile with international factors coming into play, compared to the North American nature of the OSB raw material competition.

He did note that sales contracts for pellets could possibly make demand more stable than OSB demand.

Godfrey concluded that wood-to-energy financing is more difficult and has a larger collection of risks than OSB. “Nonetheless, some mills will be built, with the degree of success to be told in time.”

Sufrin of Atlas Holdings spoke on “Managing through the Recession and into the Recovery.” He noted that Atlas Holdings has built seven “platform” companies in industrial sectors including wood products, building materials, pulp and paper, capital equipment, packaging, steel mill services and metal products, and they employ more than 3,000 and generate $1 billion in revenue annually.

He emphasized the “culture and capital” performance of the business. “Long-term productivity of a business is only as good as its culture,” he said. He added that they capitalize their businesses for the long-term to comfortably withstand the inherent cyclicality of most basic industries.

With regard to capital, he relayed these rules:

• Don’t let your businesses start life with insufficient capital.
• In difficult times, stay “razor-sharp-focused” on liquidity.

Sufrin defined the Atlas culture: “By creating an environment where employees can reach their full potential, our employees succeed, and so do our businesses.” Thusly Atlas emphasizes continuous improvement, employee engagement and empowerment.

Anders Gustafson, CEO of BRUKS AB, delivered one of the keynote talks.

One success story Sufrin pointed to concerns the company’s Wood Resources LLC business, and specifically Chester Wood Products in South ­Carolina.
“This plywood mill went through significant cultural change that led to incredible operational improvement,” Sufrin said. When Atlas purchased it, Sufrin said it suffered from a “dysfunctional” culture due to ambivalent corporate ownership. The operation proceeded to reduce unit production costs by more than 15% by increasing output, on-grade percentage and yield and keeping costs in check. They ran more than 1 million hours without a lost time incident. A culture change at the operation was driven by a focus on communication between management and labor, focus on safety and hygiene and cash payments for performance.

D’Ambrosio of Arclin spoke on the company’s experience with and emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. He said the resins and adhesives company was created in summer 2007 based on a capital structure consistent with the most previous economic peak. Two years later, following the banking crisis, Arclin filed for Chapter 11 and subsequently emerged 173 days later.

The tactical plan to come out of bankruptcy focused not only on the tremendous financial and restructuring concerns, but also on Arclin’s continued emphasis on new product development, customer satisfaction and manufacturing sites upgrade. He said “not one customer order was missed during the bankruptcy process.”

One of the Structural Products & Technologies panels included, left to right, Brian Luoma of LP, Dr. Al Landers of Huber Engineered Woods,  Walter Jarck of TimTek, and (standing) David Parker of StrongWood Technologies.

When Arclin emerged from bankruptcy on January 15 of this year, it had reduced debt from $234 million to $60 million, while showing excellent liquidity and had retained nearly 100% of employees.

“We were all bankruptcy virgins,” D’Ambrosio said. “We were advised, but we put common sense into our ­business.”

During a luncheon presentation, Tom Julia, Composite Panel Assn. (CPA) president, addressed the formaldehyde emissions issue in which industry has worked closely with normally opposition interest groups to come up with national legislation that avoids a long, protracted EPA rule-making process.

“Our industry has credibility that we have developed with environmental groups as a result of our interaction on the formaldehyde issue, and they now understand our supply chain,” Julia said. “We came from 100-0 behind when we started, but on every position we prevailed.”

Julia remembered that when the Sierra Club called for a national formaldehyde standard two years ago and CPA agreed, “Many thought we were off-track.” Yet by working with the Sierra Club and other key groups in low-pressure negotiations outside the public eye, the opposing sides were able get what they wanted: restrictions on formaldehyde for environmental groups, and a less onerous and more consistent regulatory effort for industry.

Fifty-eight companies exhibited at PELICE in the Omni Hotel Grand Ballroom.

According to Julia, the process is resulting in “critical legislation that in effect ‘fences off’ EPA from going on a fishing expedition with regulation board emissions, and it’s all possible because we thought outside the box.”

He added, “By seeking unconventional alliances, you grow your credibility and effectiveness to actually get things done.”

Roger Tutterow, Mercer University economics professor, informed those in attendance that the recession had technically ended in July ’09.

“If the recession is over, why doesn’t it feel better?” Tutterow asked, noting that such an economic contraction in so short of a time requires serious turnaround before all segments of the economy feel the upturn.

Tutterow added that may be a while, since he doesn’t see any major improvements until 2012 or 2013. “The big reason is the economy is not adding jobs, and until we see payrolls come back and jobs are added on Main Street, things aren’t going to feel much better.”

The economist noted that two of industry’s prime drivers—housing starts and building permits, have showed an 80% drop from peak to trough (and a 94% drop in the Atlanta area where PELICE was held). “When we get back to normal—we’re going to find the new normal is about 30% below the highs of 2003-4-5,” Tutterow said.

Brian Luoma, VP, Engineered Wood Products, Louisiana-Pacific Corp., spoke on LP’s launch of its SolidStart LSL (laminated strand lumber) product for beams & headers, wall framing, rim board, truss chords and other applications.

The OSB mill in Houlton, Me. has converted to LSL production and is running well. The company has completed several product code approvals.

Luoma noted that the product launch ran smack into the housing bust. He added, however, “If the product is right for the market and your customers, don’t let up, stay the course.” He emphasized the importance, especially during recessed markets, of keeping your sales force committed and motivated.
“Nothing in business is easy,” Luoma said. “Expect adversity. Adjust accordingly.”

David Harmon, North American Technical Manager with Hexion Specialty Chemicals, addressed how complying with CARB formaldehyde emission regulations impacts composite wood efficiency and costs. He noted that as recently as 2008, it was estimated that to reach CARB 2 emissions levels while maintaining acceptable panel properties might require up to 15% increased resin dosage and might also require up to a 15% decrease in production rate. It was also acknowledged that differences in available wood furnish and processing/manufacturing parameters from mill to mill would become both more critical and pronounced as newer technology products were being utilized to achieve CARB 2.

PELICE organizers presented Composite Panel Association an award in recognition of  CPA’s 50th anniversary. Left to right, PELICE Co-Chairman Dr. Fred Kurpiel, CPA President Tom Julia, and former CPA chairmen T. J. Rosengarth of Flakeboard and Darrell Keeling of Roseburg Forest Products.

While the issue of increased criticality due to differences in wood furnish and manufacturing parameters has been found to be generally true, Harmon said, based on preliminary information about advances in the use of amino-formaldehyde based resin systems, as independently reported by Hexion technical services teams, that it is possible to mitigate this scenario by using the newer technology CARB 2 resin products that best fit in with the specific circumstances at each mill. He showed that preliminary information shows that the ranges of resin usage for particleboard and MDF has actually been under the 15% increase, and has been found to actually decrease the amount of resin being applied, while not impacting production.

He concluded that overall estimated manufacturing cost ranges using the new generations of CARB 2 type amino-based resin systems, with continued optimization of the new technology resin systems in the mills, one can project that the final costs will most likely trend to only slightly higher than that of historic manufacturing costs on a relative basis.

In one of the Energy To Emissions sessions, Aimee Andrews, managing consultant for Trinity Consultants, provided an overview of the EPA Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases, which points to March 2011 as the due date for the first annual GHG report for certain 2010 operations.

Andrew said this represents the first major EPA regulatory action affecting GHG reporting for industrial sectors and will form the basis for developing GHG policy, and this effort encompasses a large number of sectors and industries, up to 10,000 facilities representing 85% of GHG emissions in the U.S. She said EPA continues to refine the reporting requirements.

Exhibit floor was located immediately outside of the three conference rooms.

David Jesseau and Scott Manion of Pöyry Forest Industry Consulting spoke on the “The Execution Gap,” which they defined as the difference between the current realities of performance and what is achievable on a sustained basis with the same assets and strategy.

“Opportunity exists in all operations,” Jesseau said, citing typical gains of 5% to 10% of revenue. He said the keys in this effort are understanding asset potential, developing management systems, implementing these systems and sustaining the culture of the operation. A mill must target specific operational improvements, focus on what is controllable and identify the associated financial impact, while developing easy evaluation and reporting tools. Everyone must be trained and held accountable to make it work, he said.

Darrell Keeling, VP-Composite Manufacturing, Roseburg Forest Products, spoke on the industry’s effort to get the USDA to refine its Biomass Crop Assistance Program. He noted that as originally implemented, BCAP paid to eligible material owners who deliver eligible materials to a Biomass Conversion Facility a matching payment up to $45/ton. The eligible materials have included sawdust, shavings and mill wood waste, the lifeblood raw material for the composite panel industry. This “subsidized” diversion of material in essence promotes the development of another industry at the cost of an existing one, the composite panel industry, as well as the downstream users of composite panels.

Keeling said BCAP was originally intended to develop new sources of biomass, but instead is redirecting fully utilized materials already in the stream of commerce to lower value uses. He called for BCAP to exclude from its eligible materials list those residues used by the composite panel industry and to specifically list them as excluded.

Look for additional coverage of PELICE in future issues of Panel World

The BCAP put forward by the USDA has some dire unintended consequences for the domestic composite panel industry, according to Keeling, including the diversion of tax dollars to subsidize alternative uses of material already fully utilized, and the subsequent shrinking of an already limited raw materials basket.

Long-time panel industry entrepreneur John Godfrey, who independently developed, financed and then sold four OSB projects over a span of 25 years, will address the current financing task for energy related projects in the forest products sector. He will touch on “what it may take” to put together a successful financing proposal in today’s climate and to then to execute a project that will be ultimately rewarding to the original developer.

Meanwhile Louisiana-Pacific VP-Engineered Wood Products Brian Luoma will speak on LP’s launch of its SolidStart laminated strand lumber product line, and reflect on the lessons learned in introducing a new engineered wood product during the worst housing market since before World War II.

Keeling, Godfrey and Luoma are but three of 65 speakers and moderators participating in PELICE. The event is co-sponsored by Panel World magazine and Georgia Research Institute. The first PELICE was held in 2008 in Atlanta.

The event kicks off on Thursday evening, February 4, as Anders Gustafson, CEO of BRUKS AB, addresses “How Energy is Driving the Global Forest Products Equipment Market.” He’ll be followed by Art Schmon, principal with Forest Economic Advisors and a veteran of the engineered wood products business, who speaks on “The Way Forward: The Outlook for Engineered Lumber Products in 2010 and Beyond.”

Among the many speakrs, Daniel Cromie, principal with Atlas Holdings, will speak on “Capital–Human and Financial Are Key to Private Company Success in a Challenging Economy.” Arauco Business Unit Manager, Scott Wiles, will touch on “Arauco’s Environmental Commitment.”

Simultaneous sessions Friday focus on Resins & Adhesives, Emerging Issues, Structural Products & Technologies, and Energy to Emissions, and continue to Saturday afternoon.

Dr. Al Landers, VP of Research and Development, Huber Engineered Woods, will address “Wood Products: Giving Builders What They Need.” Muhammad Ridzuan, CEO, Blue Mountain Resources, and two representatives from the Forest Research Institute Malaysia will speak on “Challenges and Opportunities in Bringing Engineered Lumber Technologies in Malaysia.” Pete Walker, Product Manager, Grant Forest Products, will address “Benefits and Applications of OSB with Radiant Barrier Coating.

Michael Blosser, VP, Environment, Louisiana-Pacific Corp., will talk about “Building Sustainability” and how operating upon a sustainable business foundation remains core to LP’s success.

Roger Tutterow, Professor of Economics, Mercer University, as one of the luncheon speakers will address “Economic Factors Impacting A Housing and Non-Res Recovery.”

Other issues to be addressed during PELICE include the nationalization of the CARB formaldehyde emission standards, green building and certification programs, air emissions control regulations and technologies and many others.

Immediately preceding PELICE, on Thursday, February 4, is the Bio-Energy Fuels and Products Symposia & Expo, also to be at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center.

To view the PELICE agenda, click on this link.

Three well established companies in the panel industries have joined as sponsors of the Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo (PELICE) to be held February 4-6, 2010 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia.

M-E-C and TSI have joined as Silver Sponsors. M-E-C designs, manufactures and installs drying systems for a range of wet materials, including forest and biomass. M-E-C’s affiliate company, Pro-Environmental Inc., is a leading provider of air pollution control equipment and systems.

TSI offers single pass rotary dryers, finishing lines and green/dry bins. The systems are customized for specific applications, whether updating aging equipment, adding to an existing line or creating a greenfield production plant.

Coe Manufacturing, a division of USNR, joins PELICE as a Bronze Sponsor. Established in 1852, Coe Manufacturing supplies press systems, peeling lines, veneer dryers and a range of other machinery for the panel and engineered wood products industries.

Recent additions as Silver sponsors include CECO Abatement, one of the industry’s leading equipment manufacturers, specializing in clean air solutions for the oxidation and abatement marketplace; WPS Industries, fabrication, construction and materials handling specialists; Matthews International, known for its marking and brand recognition technologies; Pöyry Forest Industry Consulting, offering a range of consultation and project relationships; and Sud Chemie, a leading provider of catalysts for air emissions systems.

Click this link for the current sponsorship list.

PELICE is scheduled for February 4-6, 2010 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia.

Altec Integrated Solutions has a long and successful history in the international veneer industry, providing design and technical solutions. The company is a leader in the control and optimization of veneer and plywood manufacturing, and specializes in increasing production, quality and recovery levels not only of new installations but of existing veneer lines as well.

Scheuch supplies solutions and systems for air extraction and dust filtration application. The company emphasizes a precise analysis of each customer’s needs and an individual plant concept. The company recently startup its Saba Bioscrubber at the Langboard MDF plant in Georgia and has a similar installation going in at Masonite in Laurel, Miss.

Georgia-Pacific Chemicals supplies an extensive line of wood adhesives to the wood composite products industry. It manufactures high-quality products that have been developed to offer the greatest utility for its customers’ individual applications. It emphasizes technical support including troubleshooting, training and on-site production trials.

Earlier this year. Dieffenbacher assumed majority ownership of Shanghai Wood Based Panel Machinery, and most recently Dieffenbacher acquired B. Maier, a manufacturer of chips and particle preparation systems.

Also, Dieffenbacher announced it would supply a turnkey OSB plant to Hubei Baoyuan Group of China. In addition, Dieffenbacher is emphasizing its turnkey capabilities to supply wood pellet plants.

The Panel & Engineered Lumber International Conference & Expo is scheduled for February 4-6, 2010 at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The first PELICE was held in 2008 and attracted 90 speakers, 90 exhibitors and 600 registrants.

Other current Gold sponsors include The Teaford Company, TECO and Arclin.

“We are most pleased that Arclin is providing the ultimate show of confidence in PELICE,” comments PELICE co-chairman and Panel World editor Rich Donnell. “We strongly believe they won’t be disappointed.”

In announcing its Gold commitment to PELICE, Arclin released the following statement:

“Our strength is our people and the desire to form long-term, strategic value chain partnerships adding value every day. Choosing the right partner can be the key to success in today’s tough markets where margins are tight and everyone can’t be the low cost producer.

“Our technical and product development teams are ready to assist our partners with new product and market development efforts so they can be leaders. Recent successes include our E-Gen designated ULEF resin systems for composite panels that can reach background emission levels of wood with minimal impact on operating windows and cost. Additionally, as the world leader in overlay technology, we are proud to be the exclusive treater of papers printed with Mossy Oak branded camouflage designs, bringing new choices to the decorative surfaces market.”

Visit http://www.arclin.com

For information, contact:
Co-Chairman Fred Kurpiel, 678-642-1238; fkurpiel@pelice-expo.com
Co-Chairman Rich Donnell, 334-834-1170; rich@hattonbrowncom
Conference Coordinator Dianne Sullivan, 334-834-1170; dianne@hattonbrown.com

Download PELICE 2010 Brochure with Sponsorship Package

Westmill Industries is based in Aldergrove, British Columbia and specializes in advanced veneer dryer technology, including new and retrofit projects. Westmill designs and manufactures complete sheet handling lines. One of its newest products is the Light-SORT green veneer moisture sensor technology.

Visit Westmill Industries at www.westmill.com

For information, contact:
Co-Chairman Fred Kurpiel, 678-642-1238; fkurpiel@pelice-expo.com
Co-Chairman Rich Donnell, 334-834-1170; rich@hattonbrowncom
Conference Coordinator Dianne Sullivan, 334-834-1170; dianne@hattonbrown.com

Download PELICE 2010 Brochure with Sponsorship Package

PELICE will be held February 4-6, 2010 again at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in Atlanta. Held every other year, the first PELICE attracted 600 registrants, 90 exhibitors, and featured 90 speakers who addressed a range of subject matter including structural and non-structural products and technologies, emissions, energy, resins, research & development and other topics.

Co-producers Panel World magazine and Georgia Research Institute report that Raute is the latest in a line of companies to have already signed up for one of the exhibitor sponsor packages—Gold, Silver or Bronze. The companies include: Bruks Klockner, Electronic Wood Systems, Search North America, Megtec, TSI, Hunt Guillot & Associates, Con-Vey Keystone, TECO, Kimwood, Globe Machine and Tri-Mer Corp. and Raute.

Co-Chairman Fred Kurpiel, President of Georgia Research Institute, notes that the entire event will be held in the Grand Ballroom North Tower, with the three primary meeting rooms immediately adjacent the exhibit area.

Companies signing up for sponsorships are allowed to immediately choose their exhibitor booth locations.

Co-Chairman Rich Donnell, Editor of Panel World magazine, adds that the subject matter for the conference agenda will be released along with a call for papers in March. “We’re continuing to focus on the pertinent technologies,” Donnell says. “Particularly during an economic downturn, mill operations need to stay abreast. The day will come, and perhaps about the time our conference is held if not before, that we will be addressing market momentum as opposed to its flat line.”

For information, contact:
Co-Chairman Fred Kurpiel, 678-642-1238; fkurpiel@pelice-expo.com
Co-Chairman Rich Donnell, 334-834-1170; rich@hattonbrowncom
Conference Coordinator Dianne Sullivan, 334-834-1170; dianne@hattonbrown.com

Download PELICE 2010 Brochure with Sponsorship Package