AHMI Talks Technology
Technology was the talk of the 2025 Annual Meeting of Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers Inc. (AHMI) with presentations on fire suppression and preparations for the EUDR.
The conference was held recently at the Harbor Beach Marriott in Fort Lauderdale, FL. A great crowd of Appalachian producers, distributors, secondary manufacturers and suppliers participated in business sessions, networking receptions and sporting events.
The business sessions included:
Fire Suppression For Wood Manufacturers
FNA, Inc., headquartered in Sweden, has developed equipment that can detect ignition in wood processing equipment in mere seconds. Its Firefly equipment is installed at any location in manufacturing equipment and recognizes light and heat from spark.
Ryan Morrow, director for North America, said the detectors immediately send signals to monitoring equipment to alert operators and/or turn on suppression systems that extinguish the flame. The pressurized water supply can use less than two liters of water to stop fires before they spread.
He said FNA equipment stops the flame, lessens damage to equipment and minimizes cleanup. The company has national and international certifications and are active in more than 80 countries.
Firefly’s unique, patented prevention systems stand out in the world because of their design to detect and extinguish ignition sources before a fire or explosion occurs, Morrow said. The Firefly Spark Detection System solution detects superheated particles from 250°C because of its patented True IR technology. More information is available at www.firefly.se.
Software Solutions For EUDR
Three software companies provided details on technology to address the demands of the European Union Deforestation Regulations that are set to take effect in the next 18 months. The rules require importers of wood products into Europe to have documents that show the plot of land where timber was harvested.
Representatives from DMSi, Forestry Systems, and Legna presented information about each of their systems. The three have the ability to capture the geolocation of harvested logs and provide the data to inventory systems.
These details can be included in total to log and lumber buyers. The EU, however, has not finalized how this data will be received.
Health Insurance and Wellness Offering
AHMI has agreed to work with two companies to provide a group health insurance and a wellness program for member companies and their employees. The AHMI Board approved preliminary plans to offer major medical health insurance from Dough Agency that includes a variety of plans for member companies to offer to employees.
AHMI will also promote Employer’s Choice which provides a wellness, tel-a-med and other services that can be paid from federal tax reductions under Section 125. More details on both programs will be sent directly to member companies.
Economist Forecast 2025
UBS Financial economist shared the company’s forecast for the manufacturing economy in 2025. Jonathan Woloshin, UBS Wealth Management Chief Investment office real estate analyst, said the new presidential administration has brought uncertainty into the U.S. economy for 2025. Investors and economists are trying to determine direction for the year.
He said there is good news with job openings, housing starts and interest rates. The number of people leaving the job market is declining and the employment outlook is good with unemployment around 4 percent.
Housing sales in 2024 were down because of two factors: lack of supply and affordability. Woloshin said the number of homes for sale around the country is low as new home construction slowed in the past 12 months. This has increased price and put many starter and move up homes out of reach for consumers.
Woloshin said there are debt issues with auto and student loan debt on the rise. He said these and credit card debt are areas of concern.
Hardwood & The New Congress
Hardwood Federation Executive Director Dana Cole said top issues for the U.S. Congress and the Trump Administration are tariffs and trade. She said the issues change daily with directives from President Trump dealing with other countries and trade with the United States.
Trump has announced tariffs on key hardwood lumber trading countries Canada, Mexico and China. The Federation has developed a formula for the hardwood industry to seek financial relief if retaliatory tariffs are introduced in countries that import U.S. hardwood products.
The Hardwood Federation Fly In is May 13-15 in Washington DC.
Sporting Events
Winners of AHMI events were:
Golf: 1st place Low Gross: Joe Pryor; 2nd place Low Gross: Mike Price; 1st place Low Net: Peter McCarty; 2nd place Low Net: Andy Nuffer; Closest to the Pin: Mike Price; Long Drive: Sylvain Dubuc.
Fishing: Largest fish: Will Parton; Most Fish: Jimmy Bradley
Early bird registration drawing winner was Frances Cooper.
The AHMI Summer Conference is July 19-22 at The Homestead in Hot Springs, VA.
For more information, visit www.appalachianhardwood.org.
