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March 7, 2008

Southern Pine Site Gets Fresh Look

Visitors to the Southern Pine Council’s Web site are being greeted with a freshly redesigned home page these days. “Following hurricanes Katrina and Rita, we realized major rebuilding would be required along the Gulf Coast and dedicated much of our home page to messages and information about the storms and related construction issues,” said SFPA President Digges Morgan. “Though those efforts are still important, it’s time to move forward and offer information that addresses a wider range of interests.”

Visitors to the site’s home page can now choose between a series of topics that rotate at the top of the page. To help ensure the site continues to offer visitors new content, the topics featured in the rotation will change about every three months. In addition, the home page touts wood’s position as an environmentally-friendly building product, promotes raised floor living and grants visitors easy access to a host of do-it-yourself project plans.

Check out the new page at www.southernpine.com. For more information or to comment on the site, contact SFPA Communications Manager Georgiann Gullett at 504/443-4464, ext. 216, or e-mail her at ggullett@sfpa.org.

Year-end Numbers for Housing, SP Shipments

So how bad was 2007? According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 1,380,470 construction permits for single and multi-family housing units were issued in 2007. That’s a 25% drop from the 1,837,287 permits issued in 2006. The slowdown in residential construction obviously led to a decreased market for Southern Pine, but the decline wasn’t as steep as the one seen in the housing market. Preliminary data shows SP shipments totaled 16.62 Bbf in 2007, an 11% decrease from the 2006 total of 18.50 Bbf. Shipment statistics are based on information from Southern Pine Inspection Bureau (SPIB) and Timber Products Inspection (TP), the two agencies that grade and stamp Southern Pine lumber shipped from U.S. mills. Meanwhile, Reuters, which provides financial news and related services, reports at least one analyst sees potential for improvement in 2008. Lehman Brothers looks for sales trends in the U.S. homebuilding industry to improve within the next two quarters and gives the sector a “positive” rating. Click here for that report.

Treated Lumber Preferred for Outdoor Projects

Pressure-treated lumber is currently the hands-down favorite for outdoor projects in a poll Handy Magazine is conducting on its “Handyman” Web site. In response to the question, “What’s your favorite material for use in outdoor projects,” 48.48% have chosen pressure-treated lumber; 28.81% like cedar; 11.59% prefer redwood; and 11.12% would opt for composite materials. The survey is still active, so the percentages change daily. Visit www.handymanclub.com to view the poll – it’s in the lower right corner of the page. You have to participate in order to see the results. As of yesterday, 854 people had responded. 

AF&PA Names New Director for Tokyo Office

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) announced that Edward Matsuyama is the new director for its office in Tokyo, Japan. Edward will oversee AF&PA’s policy issues and act as the primary liaison between the Japanese government and the U.S. forest products industry. He will also work with affiliated U.S. wood industry groups including SFPA, APA and the Softwood Export Council. His experience includes heading the Japanese operations of a major North American forest products company and more than 10 years experience working with the Council of Forest Industries’ Japan office.

History Channel Series Highlights Loggers

Though it’s not set in Southern Pine country, members still might want to check out a new reality series about loggers and the logging life. “AX MEN” premieres on the History Channel March 9 at 10 p.m. Eastern Time. The History Channel bills the show as the first-ever non-fiction series about the treacherous life of timber-cutters in the Pacific Northwest. The series is expected to educate viewers about the logging profession and does not appear to bash forestry or logging from an environmental standpoint. You can learn more on the “AX MEN” Web site at www.history.com/minisites/axmen. The site offers video clips, a history of logging and a glossary of logging terms.

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