Recently, the Southern Forest Products Association (SFPA) held their first-ever SFPA Summit. The Summit marks a new expansion to SFPA’s annual fall meetings, which have traditionally been only available to SFPA members. Registration for the SFPA Summit was free and open to the public, presenting an opportunity for anyone involved in forest products to gain insights and advice from experts in the field.
The Summit included a robust schedule of presentations with industry-leading speakers, all focused on a centralized theme: Vital Viewpoints for an Essential
Industry. Speakers addressed the current business climate of the Southern Pine lumber industry, what to expect down the road, and provided regulatory updates, sales tips, and valuable insights for attendees to consider.
Presenters and topics included:
- The SYP Pressure Treated Lumber Customer (Jim Dudley, Culpeper Wood Preservers)
- Welcome to the Age of Experience (Deb Calvert, People First Productivity Solutions)
- Southern Pine Market Outlook (Paul Jannke, Forest Economic Advisors)
- Treated Wood Regulatory Update (Jeff Miller, Treated Wood Council)
- Think Wood 2.0 (Ryan Flom, Softwood Lumber Board)
Along with the presentations, the Summit provided attendees with ample opportunities to be active participants with live Q&A sessions at the end of each presentation, and a bustling virtual networking mid-day lunch break.
The Summit drew a substantial crowd, especially considering it was a first-time event. There were 145 attendees the day of the event, representing six countries and 21 states. SFPA reports over 260 registered, and those who missed the presentations day-of, were able to access recordings of the sessions for two weeks after the Summit. Now, access to those recordings is reserved only for SFPA members.
You can learn more about becoming an SFPA member, view the SFPA Summit schedule, and learn more about the presentations and speakers at SFPA.org.
