Mayfield Lumber Company: A Concentration Yard That Became Vertically Integrated In 2018
Mayfield Lumber Company began in 1971 in McMinnville, TN, as a wholesale operation led by the parents of current company president, David Mayfield. David joined the company in 1973 after graduating high school and in 1980, a facility was constructed on what was formerly a cornfield. When his father approached retirement in 1998, David bought him out.
Mayfield Lumber Company now sits on 70 acres with 900,000 feet of dry kiln capacity, along with an 80,000 foot Walnut steamer and is more than just a concentration yard — it is a vertically integrated company. David shared how his company grew. “In 2016, we recognized that production was going to be a very important issue going forward, so we partnered with two different individuals and built two sawmills.” Both sawmills were brand new when operations began in 2018. One sawmill is heavier toward Poplar and White Oak, while the other sawmill is heavier toward not only Poplar, but Red Oak and Ash as well. Production at both facilities is around 48 million board feet annually, which includes lumber, pallet cants and crossties.
Jake Mayfield, vice president and yard manager, explained the process for inbound green lumber. “All No. 2 Common & Better green lumber goes through a spray booth that treats the lumber with an
anti-stain and brightening product. Sticks are laid every two feet with the green stacker, and eight-foot sticks are used. Stickers are placed every foot, for Hickory, which requires extra attention to prevent bending, bowing, twisting and warping during the drying process before it hits the planer. Another quality control measure used is all lumber is end waxed to help minimize end splits and provided by ISK Biocides before going to the air-drying yard.”
Poplar products are immediately placed on fluted sticks and sent to the kilns, preventing the lumber from developing imperfections by lingering too long in the air-drying yard. All lumber is dried between six to seven percent moisture content and they always keep two to three million feet of kiln-dried inventory on hand to meet the needs of their customers.
In 2018, they installed a drop sorter and grading line. Every specie of lumber processed is surfaced except for Walnut to create boiler fuel to feed the dry kilns. The two planers used to surface the lumber are a Newman 382 and a Yates American B-26.
In addition to Poplar, Red and White Oak, Ash and Walnut, Mayfield Lumber Company also handles Hickory, some aromatic Cedar and a little Maple. Thicknesses for every species offered are 4/4, 5/4, 6/4, 8/4 and 10/4.
David shared that customers of Mayfield Lumber Company get a “better grade because we grade from the poor face of the board after it is surfaced, and can see bird pecks, pin knots and any other defect that might be there, so the lumber is better.” The customer “doesn’t have to worry about hauling off the shavings and dust, so it is pretty much a win/win for everybody. We grade the same way every day and it never changes,” added David.
David noted that every year, Mayfield Lumber Company “ships approximately 25 million feet of FAS/1F and No. 1 and 2 Common of kiln-dried hardwoods” to their worldwide network of customers.
“Each individual piece is tallied,” shared Jake, “and after the assigned number of pieces are in a bin, it drops.” Their tallies are determined with a laser and the tolerance is precise – within 1/64th of an inch.
The distribution centers are targeting flooring, cabinet, millwork, moulding and furniture manufacturers, which consume 60 percent of their lumber. David explained the large range of distribution yards that they sell products to. “These distribution yards keep us running. All we can do is give customers our word that we will try to make them happy,” added David.
The company has clients in the Middle East, Italy, Germany, Portugal, Spain, China, Vietnam and Malaysia as well. Moreover, Canada and Mexico are large consumers of Mayfield Lumber Company’s products and two excellent trading partners. “40 percent of our lumber is serving export markets around the globe. To serve our international clients, we have agents in Europe and have held an office in China for 25 years and an office in Vietnam for 16,” stated David.
David shared a few of their more interesting projects, such as 8/4 White Oak used for the construction of the Denmark World Trade Center. Their lumber has also been used in performing arts centers, Las Vegas casinos, Red Oak for tables at Cracker Barrel and at Wendy’s.
The company operates two Cleereman carriages with head rigs, two West Plain 20-inch resaws and four Hurdle circle mills, in addition to a 48-bay bin sorter. Mayfield Lumber’s material handling system is by Froedge.
“We’re blessed to have modern machinery that eliminates the need for a lot of labor,” commented David. “When we put in our drop sorter grading line, we eliminated 10 people right there and that makes a big difference on worker’s compensation, insurance and it shows up every day to do the job.”
“We have great relationships with the people that haul our lumber,” David continued, after sharing that they use contract carriers shipping mixed loads domestically and internationally.
Regarding key personnel, Jake is the third generation at Mayfield Lumber Company and graduated in the 133rd class in 2003 from the National Hardwood Lumber Association (NHLA) Grading School. He has been with the company for 22 years.
David graduated from the NHLA Inspector Grading School in 1973. He shared that two uncles, his father, brother and his sons all graduated from the Grading School as well. The company has been associated with the NHLA since 1971 and David has served on the Board of Directors twice, holding the position intermittently for a total of 12 years.
There are, including David and Jake, around 100 people employed at their sawmills. They have six salespeople at Goodwood Lumber LLC who are Kerry Kerr in Bowling Green, KY; Scott Kvalheim in Indiana; Hiedi Hurtis in Wisconsin; John Childers in Knoxville, TN; and Rick Humphrey and Kellee Griffith in Nashville, TN. Goodwood Lumber LLC is a wholesale division.
Tisha Steakley handles payroll and invoices, while Shannon Adcock is the global logistics manager. For nearly 21 years, Cathlean Xu has been their sales representative in China.
In addition to the NHLA, Mayfield Lumber Company is a member of the American Hardwood Export Council, the Indiana Hardwood Lumbermen’s Association and the Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers Inc.
Mayfield Lumber Company is, as stated by David, “verified sustainable and renewable through the NHLA and through the Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers Inc.”
For more details, visit mayfieldlumber.com.
