Mike Mooney Joins AHC Hardwood Group As Director Of National Sales
AHC Hardwood Group, headquartered in Atlanta, GA, announced that Mike Mooney has joined the company as director of national sales. Mooney will oversee sales operations for the Midwest, Southwest and Western United States. With more than 25 years of experience in the building products industry, Mooney is an expert in market entry, new product introduction and brand development.
Atlanta Hardwood and its affiliated locations operating as AHC Hardwood Group, made a tactical move over the course of the past five years to increase capacity by 300 percent to meet the growing demand for value-added secondary manufacturing. Mooney is charged with expanding the distribution footprint for AHC Hardwood Group as part of the increased focus on the production and sale of these products.
With Mooney’s leadership, AHC Hardwood Group will be increasing market presence in areas where there has formerly been limited exposure. Having successfully driven growth and innovation in past roles, Mooney’s strategic vision and expertise in developing markets for value-added products aligns seamlessly with AHC Hardwood Group’s mission and values.
In recent years, AHC Hardwood Group changed business models from a lumber yard-focused product group to the manufacture of customized and specialty products. As the largest manufacturer and distributor of Cypress siding in the United States, the company has expanded its offering of specialty products to include thermally modified exterior siding and decking, cabinet and furniture components, shiplap and nickel-gap siding, window and door parts, solid-plank flooring, and more than 1,000 moulding profiles. Mooney will be leveraging his industry knowledge and customer relationships to deliver a new message for the group that pivots from lumber yard sales and focuses on value-added products.
As AHC continues to evolve within a dynamic industry, Mooney’s focus will be on expanding the market for value-added products, which are produced in state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Clarksville, TN, and Cleveland, GA. These facilities are renowned for their advanced technology and commitment to quality, providing exceptional and customized products to customers.
For more information, visit www.hardwoodweb.com.
Collins Promotes John Olson To Sales Representative Of Kane Hardwood Division
Collins, headquartered in Wilsonville, OR, recently promoted John Olson to sales representative in their Kane Hardwood division, located in Kane, PA. Collins is a family owned company that traces its roots back to 1855, when T.D. Collins began timber operations in Pennsylvania. The family expanded west and moved the company headquarters to Oregon. Collins produces hardwoods, softwoods, NAF Pine particleboard, TruWood Siding and Trim. Collins upholds their long-standing commitment to land and resource stewardship with more than 370,000 acres of FSC-certified forest lands, five manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and one retail yard in California.
Collins, annually, produces 18 million board feet of lumber and kiln-dries 14 million board feet. The species that they offer are Black Cherry, Hard and Soft Maple, Red and White Oak, Ash and Birch. They offer these species rough or surfaced in thicknesses of 5/8-12/4, green and kiln-dried in thicknesses of 4/4-12/4. They also offer specialized custom sawn timbers, railroad and switch ties and veneer logs in lengths of 6-feet through 16-feet.
Olson started in the forest products industry in 2006 at Highland Forest Resources, where his first job was laying sticks and stacking lumber on the green chain and dryline. He has been with Collins for 13 years and before transitioning to sales representative, he inspected lumber for 10 years before transitioning into yard manager. As yard manager he supervised 10 dry kilns, shipping operations, the planer and dryline, as well as the 16 employees in his department.
Olson graduated from Kane Area High School in 1999.
Olson and his wife, Melissa, have three children, Julian, 10, Melody, 9 and Jett, 7. He enjoys coaching, watching and cheering on his children’s sports teams, as well as camping and vacationing with his family.
For more information, call Olson at 814-598-0118 or visit www.CollinsWood.com.
Graf Brothers Flooring & Lumber Join The Charlois Group
Through its subsidiary Oak Nation, Charlois is proud to announce the acquisition of 100 percent of Graf Brothers Flooring & Lumber in the United States.
For four generations, the Graf family has been active in Oak processing in the United States. Founded in 2003 by Greg and Dave Graf in South Shore, KY, at the heart of the finest White Oak forests, Graf Brothers is the world’s leading producer of quarter-sawn and rift-sawn American Oak, specializing in the transformation of Quercus alba into high-quality lumber and premium flooring. The South Shore facilities employ 350 people across 14 storage and production facilities, featuring extensive kiln-drying capacity and log yards on nearly 100 acres, supplemented by a 346 acres land reserve. The two sawmills on site, along with the sawing capacities of two exclusive subcontractors and log yards spread across the Appalachians, enable the processing of over 42 million board feet of logs per year into carpentry components, solid and engineered flooring or staves for wine and bourbon barrels, generating an annual revenue of over $100 million.
With this significant acquisition, the largest in its history, Charlois replicates in the United States the vertically integrated model that has made it strong in Europe, where the group is already the largest buyer of Oak in France and Romania.
Dave and Greg Graf will continue to lead and support the activity, benefiting from Charlois’s expertise and support, with many synergies anticipated. Graf’s carpentry and flooring products, highly reputed in the United States, represent a timely diversification for the group. Indeed, in its pursuit of maximizing and optimizing raw materials, Charlois brings together historically complementary activities: forestry, sawmilling, stave milling, cooperage and now flooring.
“Our expertise and ambitions converge: joining the Charlois adventure is an exciting new chapter for all Graf teams. We are happy to embark together on this new phase dedicated to valuing the finest Oaks,” said the Graf brothers.
For more information, visit www.grafbro.com or www.charlois.com.
MacBeath Hardwood Welcomes CJ Katsekos
Industry vet CJ Katsekos has joined MacBeath Hardwood as the newest team member at their dry kiln division in Edinburgh, IN, as a sales and purchasing representative. Katsekos came equipped with nearly 20 years of experience in the industry, with a focus on sales and purchasing, both domestic and import/export.
Katsekos is married with four children. He enjoys deep sea fishing and is a diehard Bengals and Reds fan.
As the company observes its 70-year anniversary, MacBeath Hardwood continues to grow at all levels of the industry.
For more information, visit www.macbeath.com.
Merrick Hardwoods Welcomes Jerry Starns
Jerry Starns recently joined Merrick Hardwoods, located in Burnside, KY. Starns will be taking over for George Crawford as the lumber purchasing manager. Merrick Hardwoods offers kiln-dried hardwood lumber in S2S, SLR1E and hardwood flooring, as well as export prep.
Starns has sat on the Executive Board for the Kentucky Forest Industries Association (KFIA) for six years and continues to serve as chairperson for the Nominating Committee.
Starns began his career with the lumber industry in 1998 with Brown and Forman at the Bluegrass Stave Mill in Albany, KY. Before joining Merrick, Starns was a lumber purchaser at American Woodmark for over 19 years.
A graduate of Berea College, located in Berea, KY, he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology. Married to Melissa for 31 years, the couple has two sons (Travis–29, and Bryson–26). In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family and hunting and sports, as well as volunteer work in his community.
For more information visit www.merrickhardwoods.com.
Overseas Hardwoods Company Offers New Service: ProCoating
Overseas Hardwoods Company (OHC), located in Mobile, AL, has been an importer and distributor of high-performance lumber products since 1967 for the transportation, outdoor living, millwork and marine industries. OHC has a new value-added service to offer customers; ProCoating, high performance lumber coating. This service eliminates wasted prep time for customers and ensures consistent quality in every board, while also extending the lifespan of finished projects.
“The lumber products we sell are typically coated at the jobsite right before or after installation,” said Gregory Robinson, vice president of operations at OHC. “Now we can custom machine and pre-coat our products all in the same factory setting, assuring our customers a stunning and professional grade product will arrive ready to install.”
The new coating machine has the capability to coat and dry not only solvent coatings for decking and trailer flooring, but also water-based coatings for siding, soffits and paneling products. Engineered with high quality, weather resistant coating, an OHC company representative said that their high-performance lumber products can withstand the toughest of elements, from the scorching sun to heavy rain, ensuring a longer lasting stunning appearance. Lumber products can be finished with a clear coat, color tone, prime or stain, with a wide range of colors and finishes available.
“We have sold wood coatings for our decking products for many years and have offered a coating service for our trailer flooring customers upon request. It just made sense to expand this to a full-service option for all our customers,” said Luckett Robinson, vice president of finance at OHC. A company representative said that OHC’s pre-coated lumber products come ready to install, saving customers time and effort and is perfect for tight project schedules. “With this new value-added service, combined with over 35 species of lumber and our custom moulding capabilities, we can offer more coated products than anyone in the industry,” explained a company representative.
OHC also offers custom manufacturing, including pre-drilling, precision-end-trimming, gluing, planing, sanding, finger-jointing, resawing, CNC capabilities and custom moulding/profiling.
For more information, visit www.ohc.net.
Bid Group Becomes Comact: Pioneering The Future Of Wood Processing
BID Group, a leader in the wood processing industry for over a century, is proud to announce its new identity as Comact.
This transition marks a significant evolution in the company’s journey and reflects its commitment to innovation and excellence. From its origins as an OEM, Comact has been instrumental in transforming the wood processing industry. The company has consistently invested in research and development, addressed customer challenges, and adapted to their evolving needs. Through strategic alliances and acquisitions of leading brands, Comact has established itself as a world-class leader and pioneer renowned for its high-performance technology and equipment and its exceptional customer engagement.
As Comact, the company will continue to focus on what matters most to its clients: optimizing operational performance, leveraging advanced technologies and delivering exceptional field support. The company’s comprehensive project services, including construction and installation, will continue without interruption.
The company also recently unveiled its new brand identity and logo, which embody its customer-centric approach and the robustness and high performance of its equipment.
The company is gradually implementing the new brand across all touchpoints. Customers, partners and stakeholders can expect a seamless transition with no disruption to its operations.
For over 100 years, Comact has been a leading OEM in high-caliber wood processing equipment, digital technologies, cutting solutions, project services and aftermarket support. Whether for brownfield or greenfield projects, Comact’s expertise provides wood processing facilities with the confidence that their investments will yield superior performance, throughput and ROI, stated a company representative. This ensures they remain competitive and achieve sustained growth in an ever-evolving market.
For more information, visit www.comact.com.
Wholesale Building Products Upgrades with Nyle Dry Kilns
Nyle Dry Kilns, headquartered in Brewer, ME, recently announced the successful installation of two state-of-the-art 65,000 board feet Gas Kilns at Wholesale Building Products’ Jacksonville, FL, facility. These kilns are designed to optimize the drying process for Southern Yellow Pine, ensuring superior quality and efficiency for Wholesale Building Products.
The kilns feature cutting-edge technology, including indirect-fired gas heaters and high-efficiency heat recovery vents. These systems are engineered to deliver precise temperature control, energy efficiency and consistent performance. The advanced control systems allow for detailed data logging and remote management, providing operators with comprehensive insights into the drying process. According to a company representative, this installation not only enhances Wholesale Building Products’ operational capabilities but also aligns with their commitment to sustainable and cost-effective practices.
According to Nyle Dry Kilns, Wholesale Building Products invested in a solution that significantly boosts their production capacity while maintaining the highest standards of quality. Nyle’s kilns are built to handle large volumes of lumber while maintaining reliability, ensuring that Wholesale Building Products can meet increasing market demands. This successful installation is a testament to the collaborative effort between Nyle’s teams and reflects their dedication to innovation and excellence in kiln manufacturing.
For more information on Nyle Dry Kilns’ wide range of products and services, visit www.nyle.com or call (800) 777-6953.
TS Manufacturing Installs New Optimized Grading And Trimming Line
TS Manufacturing, Lindsay, ON, announced the successful startup of a new optimized grading and trimming line at East Perry Lumber Co., in Frohna, MO. The new line replaces their existing drop saw trimmer and grading station in their green sawmill.
The project starts from their existing landing chain from the sawmill and the new TS line consists of: a new unscrambler with even ending rolls feeding a TS patented multi chain system which brings boards closer together approaching the grading station to increase piece count, a waterfall grading station with a board turning station that feeds a new A&E 3D geometric optimizer, a TS lineal electric servo operated positioning fence and 17 saw drop saw trimmer, outfeed even ending rolls with board printer and a canted transfer chain to their new TS green chain. The project also included TS controls and programming, turnkey mechanical installation, substructure and catwalks and two waste belt conveyors.
The project also features a TS AccuTally tally software system for pack calculation and shift reporting, continuing the enormous success of AccuTally since TS developed it three years ago with over 60 systems sold.
For more than 50 years, TS Manufacturing has been offering a complete line of machinery, controls and software to fit their customers’ mills. For more information on their complete line of sawmill and planer mill offerings, they can be contacted at sales@tsman.com or (705) 324-3762 or visit www.tsman.com.
Cleereman Industries and Cleereman Controls Work Together to Complete Installs at Three Mills
Cleereman Industries, based in Newald, WI, recently completed three installs in conjunction with Cleereman Controls.
Clark Hardwoods in Erin, TN, and Eby Sawmill in Clearville, PA, each recently started up Cleereman Optimized Edgers at their respective mills. Both installs were Cleereman’s 654 combination Edger/Gang Saw. Cleereman Controls commissioned both machines under the guidance of its president, Stefan Dracobly; Dracobly also assisted in operator training. Both mills reported that they could see an immediate gain in yield, with less waste going into the chipper.
Cleereman Controls also recently installed and started up new linear carriage controls with 3-D scanning at Fox Lumber Company in Mill Creek, WV. Due to issues with an older Inovec system, the customer’s mill was down. Cleereman Industries keeps their systems in stock at all times. Engineer Trevor Cleereman was able to deliver the new system two days later. Once onsite, Trevor was able to remove the old system and successfully install the new carriage controls. Dracobly was also onsite to commission the system and to work with the sawyers in order to make sure they could safely and effectively operate the new system.
To learn more about Cleereman Industries and Cleereman Controls, visit www.cleereman.com.
The AGL Group Welcomes Adis Nadarevic As Their Newest Drayage Analyst
Adis Nadarevic recently joined The AGL Group, headquartered in Weymouth, MA, as a drayage analyst, where he is poised to make a significant impact on the company’s drayage operations. In his new role, Nadarevic is responsible for optimizing drayage processes, analyzing performance metrics, and developing strategies to enhance efficiency and cost-effectiveness. His expertise aims to drive the success of AGL’s drayage program and foster continuous improvements in service delivery.
Nadarevic graduated from Englewood High School in Jacksonville, FL, before earning a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of North Florida. With nearly a decade of experience in the Transportation and Logistics sector, Nadarevic has established a strong track record in freight management and transportation coordination. His career commenced as a freight specialist at a brokerage firm, and he further honed his skills at Florida East Coast Rail, managing transportation operations across Jacksonville, Atlanta and Charlotte. This background underscores his capability to navigate complex logistical challenges and deliver operational excellence.
Prior to his focus on transportation and logistics, Nadarevic accumulated valuable experience in the financial services sector, including roles in auto finance and the mortgage industry. This diverse background has endowed him with a keen analytical perspective and a thorough understanding of financial management, which he now applies to enhance logistics operations and improve financial outcomes for AGL.
Outside of his professional pursuits, Nadarevic is an avid soccer enthusiast and a dedicated supporter of Manchester United. He enjoys attending various sporting events, such as soccer, basketball and football. Nadarevic shares his life with his fiancé of eight years and their Golden Retriever. Together, they value time spent at home, visiting the beach and engaging in other leisure activities.
For more information, visit www.theAGLgroup.com.
SFPA Announces LaSalle Lumber Co. And Others As 2023 Sawmill Safety Award Recipients
The Southern Forest Products Association has announced the recipients of the John Edgar Rhodes 2023 Sawmill Safety Excellence Awards. The SFPA Safety Awards embody the impact, dedication and legacy of the Association’s founding leader, John Edgar Rhodes.
The eight award recipients represent a record of 2,282,255 total hours worked among 987 employees – achieving safety excellence with zero reported incidents. As a side note, this follows two years in a row where seven member mills reported zero incidents.
SFPA Lumber Manufacturer members are considered for the award based on standardized information submitted using OSHA Form 300A. Awards are presented in three divisions and safety performance is judged by how each mill’s safety record stacks up against facilities with comparable lumber output throughout the year.
“In an industry where worker safety is of utmost importance, operating without any reportable incidents is a significant achievement,” said Eric Gee, SFPA’s executive director. “We are extremely proud of each of these operations and their commitment to safety excellence.”
Division One: (SFPA member mills that produce 50 million board feet or less annually)
• Almond Brothers Lumber Co. – Coushatta, LA
• McShan Lumber Co. – McShan, AL
• Swift Lumber – Atmore, AL
Division Two: (SFPA member facilities that produce 51 to 150 million board feet annually)
• West Fraser – Fitzgerald, GA
• West Fraser – Lake Butler, FL
• West Fraser – Blackshear, GA
• West Fraser – Mansfield, AR
Division Three: (SFPA member mills that produce more than 150 million board feet annually)
• LaSalle Lumber Co. – Urania, LA
Having a successful career in the forest and paper industry, Rhodes was chosen to lead the Southern Pine lumber industry. Under Rhodes’ leadership, the Association grew into the model trade association in American industry. He was a strong champion for the forest products industry – advocating for proactive forest resource management and standardized grading rules.
SFPA represents Southern Pine lumber products and services around the globe, managing a comprehensive product promotion program. Our mission is to advance the Southern Pine lumber industry, promote the use of member products in domestic and international markets, and facilitate the exchange of information and ideas.
For more information, visit www.sfpa.org.
