USDA Upping Its Mass Timber Investments
As the soft housing market in the U.S. is impacting the mass timber movement, the Forest Service is stepping in to help. “Mass timber and CLT have been priorities for creating new markets for wood products,” said Brian Brashaw, assistant director of the Wood Innovations Program for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service. “Since […]
The Tale of the $1.4 Million Trees
When is a group of trees worth more than a million dollars? When they’re on Nantucket and they’ve been cut down – maybe illegally. Neighbors feuding – and even eventually suing each other – over trees that may have been cut down without permission is nothing new. It’s been going on since people began living near […]
These Two Giants Control Nearly Half of Home Improvement Market
It’s no surprise that Home Depot and Lowe’s are the largest retailers in the business, but together, their market share is astounding. The retail world for home improvement and building products continues to be dominated by two big national chains. It’s the level of that dominance that a new study confirms that shows exactly how […]
New Legislation Introduced to Support Modernizing Sawmills
Even as the U.S. Congress remains deeply divided, a new bipartisan bill has been introduced into the Senate. The proposed legislation comes from Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley and Montana Senator Tim Sheehy and is called the “Supporting American Wood and Mill Infrastructure with Loans for Longevity (SAWMILL) Act.” It would support mills around the nation by […]
The West Is the Best for Micro-Housing
The tiny house movement is nationwide but four cities lead the country in their development. Micro-housing is now a staple of new home construction, presenting new challenges for builders used to working on a larger scale. And even if the western part of the country is still the prime area for such undersized homes and […]
Mass Timber’s Latest Benefit: It’s Antimicrobial
In addition to all the pluses of mass timber construction a new study finds it also is better when it comes to containing germs. The old cliché that wood construction was not hygienic, especially for structures in the healthcare field, is about to get turned upside down. New research coming out of the University of […]
Houzz Barometer Grows More Cautious
The uncertainties surrounding the national economy, especially in the home building sector, are turning pros more pessimistic. The new Q3 U.S. Houzz Renovation Barometer, a key metric for sizing up the overall state of mind of the professional building community, is out and it shows another decline in sentiment, the second consecutive quarter of such […]
Four Keys to Success in the Lumber Business
A new report from the Boston Consulting Group identifies a quartet of initiatives for getting ahead in the business. The lumber industry, like many in the country today, is a challenging one given all the complications from global supply chains, domestic construction trends and environmental considerations. So those trying to make a living working in […]
When Is the Housing Market Going to Get Better?
Forecasting the return of new home construction has been an ongoing struggle this year… and so far, most of the experts have been wrong. It’s been the big question throughout the building trade for much of the past year and despite informed predictions that a combination of lower mortgage rates, built-up demand and a slowdown […]
Sumitomo Completes Teal Jones Mill Acquisition
The deal will allow the company to launch its first mass timber manufacturing facility in the U.S. For Tokyo-based Sumitomo Forestry Co. Ltd, the purchase of Teal Jones Louisiana Holdings LLC gives it the capabilities to produce dimension lumber and other materials for homes and multi-family buildings in addition to being able to get into […]