Pittsburgh, PA–Regional Meetings have long been a favorite with members of the Hardwood Manufacturers Association, headquartered here. That’s because, by touring sawmills, concentration yards and secondary manufacturing facilities, they get to see the latest technology at work; witness working solutions to common problems; exchange information with seasoned counterparts; then participate in discussions on industry issues, forest resource topics, or Hardwood market updates.
Unfortunately, the pandemic has limited such face-to-face gatherings. And so HMA did the next best thing. They used technology and connected their membership virtually by taking a video crew, complete with a drone, to two HMA member facilities in Northwestern Pennsylvania; documenting the operations; interviewing key personnel; then making that valuable information available to members’ desktops and/or mobile devices.
Recently, nearly 60 industry stakeholders got online and made a “virtual” visit to Northwestern Pennsylvania for a tour of Ron Jones Hardwood Sales Inc., Franklin, PA. The tour was narrated “live” by President and Director of Sales, Steve Jones, who took all attendees through the entire family-owned operation, beginning at the sales office located in Union City, then to the warehouse and dry kiln facilities in Franklin. Industrial Vision Systems, Inc., SII Dry Kilns and U-C Coatings were sponsors of the virtual event.
On the next day, from the comfort of their offices, over 50 viewers participated in a virtual tour of Matson Lumber Company, located in Brookville, PA, a family owned and operated company that has been in the timber and lumber business for more than 200 years and employs over 200 people. Narrated “live” by President Burt Craig, tour participants viewed the entire sawmill operations – from log yard to debarker, through the mill and eventually in trucks heading for the interstate. U-C Coatings sponsored the virtual tour.
And finally, to provide a networking forum and to keep the conversations going, a “virtual Happy Hour,” sponsored by TS Manufacturing, gave participants ample time to exchange information and catch up.
Coming up on HMA’s 2021 agenda is the National Conference and Expo. The hybrid event is being formulated for March 24–26, at the Hyatt Regency, Austin, TX.
Learn more at www.hmamembers.org.
