Life, business, the economy, the environment, and just about everything else are cyclical, like the leaves of a deciduous tree that grow big and fall off again and again and again. In good times or bad times, there really is only one answer for the Hardwood industry – keep on producing the best you can. Sure, ROI and EBITDA are a business’s bottom-line focus, and they are always changing, but remember we are not just appearance grade we are also pallets and ties. So, they can’t transport without us. We are the floor, door, cabinet, and furniture in every home. We are the sustainable supply moving products across this country.
We are not a fly-by-night industry. It is clear, that what is in your phone today will not be in your phone 25 years from now. But that is not the same for Hardwood. The way we use Hardwoods may change but the functionality won’t. The forest jobs are not going away or being outsourced. No matter how far you look into the future we will always need to manage our forest and thus use wood products from that forest. We are the foundation on which this country builds and has been for more than 100 years. We have our act together and anyone would be hard-pressed to find an industry as environmentally leading as we are.
We have cleaned up our products’ protection and fiber recovery and created voluntary grading rules. The benefit of being the low-hanging fruit, the easy target is that we have taken the first crack at the bat and hit a home run with a low carbon footprint and long-term carbon sequestration, while other industries are still thinking short-term singles and talking recycling. Renewable is better than recyclable and we are both.
So yes, we have had hard times before and we will have them again. There is no end to complaining about the government no matter who is in power and there is no end to working to ensure our products get a fair shake. But that means there is no end to Hardwood. Just think the Hardwood you sell today may still be in service until the next century. That is longevity, which is a good story, even during bad times.
When times are bad, that is when associations have the most value. But is also the time when companies look to cut back on expenses and look for places they can save. Dues to the NHLA and allied associations are not wasted but are critical roots of our industry. We use your hard-earned dues to support the Hardwood Federation (10 percent) and the Real American Hardwood Coalition (5 percent), whose advocacy and promotion efforts are critical to turning the market around. Your NHLA dues also fund the Inspector Training School building the next generation of workforce, inspectors, managers, and leaders within your organization. Additionally, they support the rest of the foundation the NHLA requires to keep staff inspectors in the field, perform QC and yield analysis, as well as provide industry publications and the annual convention. So, when times are bad don’t cut off the root. Instead, trim a few branches and remember the leaves will grow again. Why knot remember the good we do?
