Carter Lumber To Manufacture Millwork And Components In South Carolina
Carter Lumber, with headquarters in Kent, OH, has finalized the purchase of a facility and property near Myrtle Beach, SC which will house a component and millwork manufacturing plant. This is Carter Lumber’s 14th component manufacturing plant, and the first in South Carolina. Carter Lumber operates manufacturing locations in nine other states.
Carter Lumber uses Cherry, Hard Maple, Hickory, Red Oak and Poplar in its manufacturing, based on information in the Hardwood Marketing Directory, published by Miller Wood Trade Publications.
The South Carolina location features a 120,000 square foot warehouse currently being remodeled and equipped to allow for building component and millwork manufacturing operations. The property also offers more than 20 acres of laydown area to be used for finished building components. In addition to the greater Myrtle Beach area, it will also allow Carter Lumber to service most of the coastal Carolinas, including Charleston and Wilmington.
The company projects the new location to begin production late in the first quarter of 2023 and that it will employ 60 people. To learn more, visit www.carterlumber.com.
Builder Confidence Falls For Ninth Straight Month As Housing Slowdown Continues
In another sign that the slowdown in the housing market continues, builder sentiment fell for the ninth straight month in September, the latest data available at press-time, as the combination of elevated interest rates, persistent building material supply chain disruptions and high home prices continue to take a toll on affordability.
Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes fell three points in September to 46, the lowest level since May 2014 with the exception of the spring of 2020, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released recently.
HMI tables can be found at nahb.org/hmi.
NWFA Completes 64th Home with Gary Sinise Foundation
The National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA), based in St. Louis, MO, has provided flooring for its 64th home in support of the Gary Sinise Foundation R.I.S.E. program (Restoring Independence Supporting Empowerment). The R.I.S.E. program builds mortgage-free, custom, specially adapted smart homes for severely wounded veterans and first responders. The home dedication for United States Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Romulo “Romy” Camargo took place recently in Lutz, FL. Flooring for the project was donated by NWFA members Derr Flooring and Swiff-Train.
CW3 Camargo entered the Army at age 19, completing the rigorous Special Forces training, which led to numerous deployments around the world. In 2008, while in Afghanistan as part of a humanitarian mission, his detachment was attacked during a combat mission. Camargo was shot in the back of the neck, paralyzing him from the neck down.
“Chief Warrant Officer Camargo is a true inspiration,” says NWFA President and CEO Michael Martin. “Despite his severe injuries, he and his wife, Gaby, founded the Stay in Step Spinal Cord Injury Recovery Center in Tampa, FL, which serves returning service members and veterans with spinal cord injuries and neurological disorders that cause paralysis. We’re honored to partner with Derr Flooring and Swiff-Train to provide beautiful wood floors for their new home.”
To learn more about the program, and how you and/or your company can get involved, contact the NWFA at 800-422-4556, or e-mail them at anita.howard@nwfa.org.
U.S. Forest Service Plans To Resume Its Prescribed Fire Program
USDA Forest Service Chief Randy Moore recently released the following statement announcing actions the Forest Service will take to resume its prescribed fire program safely and effectively after completion of its 90-day national review:
“I am announcing the release of the National Prescribed Fire Program Review. After thorough evaluation of the findings and recommendations provided by the National Review Team, I have decided to conditionally resume the Forest Service’s prescribed fire program. Recognizing that wildfire, drought and other extreme conditions are affecting parts of the country, prescribed fires will not occur on National Forest System lands until all recommendations have been implemented at each location and only when local conditions have been certified as appropriate for a prescribed fire on the day of the proposed burn.”
To learn more, go to www.fs.uda.gov.
APHIS Prepares To Roll Out Phase Seven Of Lacey Implementation In Late 2023
Erin Otto, the new director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) Lacey Act Program Office, recently indicated that her office hopes to begin implementation of Phase Seven of the Lacey Act declaration requirements in late 2023, with completion of Phase Seven by summer 2024.
According to Otto, Phase Seven will put in place the Lacey Act declaration requirement for “all remaining non-composite plant products” including wicker and rattan furniture, essential oils, and cork and cork products. Otto expects a year of dedicated outreach, publication of the proposed list in November or December of 2023, and six months before implementation.
A follow-up on Phase Eight would include “all remaining composite materials” such as particleboard, books, wood pulp and paper.
IWPA will be engaged throughout this important process. To learn more, go to www.iwpawood.org.
