Northeast Business Trends
Softwood Activity Mixed In The Northeast
By Michelle Keller
Contributing Writer
Softwood activity across the Northeast is showing improvements in some facets of the market. Some sources report being busier while one described the second and third home market as strong, although the blue-collar market is flat. There are some challenges, however, shaping the market, such as issues with transportation, including finding trucks and high fuel prices, as well as issues with finding labor.
A New Hampshire lumber source, who handles 4/4 and 5/4 Eastern White Pine, said the market in his area is busy and better than it was six months ago.
His operation has its own sawmill and also distribution. “For us, I think part of why it’s so busy is because a lot of retail yards are utilizing distribution yards such as ourselves more than they had been in the past just because they are trying to keep inventories down, so we’re set up well when that happens,” he explained. “That’s where I’m seeing the most demand is out of our distribution yard.”
The company’s customers are retail yards in the Northeast, and the contact said those customers are busy.
Trucking and labor issues are two challenges the lumber company is facing.
“It’s just been tough to find truck drivers and tough to find just general labor,” the contact said.
In Pennsylvania, a softwood lumber representative said the market is weak.
She added, however, “I would probably say it’s a little better” than it was six months ago.
“We seem to be a little bit busier than we were about six months ago, selling a little bit more items than we were,” the contact said.
She added, “I have no idea why that is, just lumber and building materials in general like roofing and pressure treated lumber.”
Finding transportation and workers is causing issues for softwood lumber suppliers in the Northeast.
Her operation handles No. 2 and Better Spruce, some Hem-Fir and some Euro Spruce Premium in 2 x 4 through 2 x 12 thicknesses.
Wholesalers comprise a segment of her company’s customer base as well as contractors and homeowners.
Transportation, including railcars, has been a slight issue.
“It’s hard to book trucks for truck loads to come in here,” she said.
A New York lumber source said the softwood market in his area is worse than it was six months ago, although the market for second and third homes is still doing very well while the blue-collar market is “pretty flatline.”
He said within the last six weeks he has noticed a massive drop in activity in the wholesale industry. “Just talking to the East Coast, West Coast, something’s going on,” he said.
He continued, “If you’re not beating a path emailing and calling, you’re not getting anywhere and that’s no guarantee. Very noticeable digression.”
A wholesaler who he had spoken to in the spring told him his prediction was right when the source said he thought by mid-summer the market would potentially get worse.
“That’s all based on conversations in just seeing how the general public’s doing,” he said. “I don’t want to be negative, but it’s not good stories out there” in his area.
The contact said the blue-collar market is not spending money.
“You hear it, the retail market, they’re not spending on renovations. Obviously, there was a lot during the pandemic but going beyond that people are very hesitant. I hear it all the time, cost of fuel, cost of groceries, cost for everything. People are curtailing their spending habits, and that’s really effecting the building supply industry.”
The lumber representative said, “As a mill producer, we’re wondering where things are going to head into fall. We don’t see a fall rush happening.”
He said, however, the second and third home market is strong in his region.
“Your second and third home type construction is still supporting a lot of people, too,” he said.
His operation handles strictly Eastern White Pine primarily 4/4 and very little 5/4. “We used to do more. We’re not doing much in 2x, like log sidings, but we still do it but very little, and we do a small percentage of timbers for the second or third home timber frame market. That’s really a niche we had for years, but it’s not a large percentage of our production. Our largest percentage is 4/4.”
He sells to manufacturers, other White Pine mills, reman, priming, finger jointing and also wholesalers like office brokers that sell to the end user or the retail yards.
Labor has been a challenge for his operation.
He said there have been issues with the younger generation not coming in to work.
“We’ve had to do some disciplinary here last week,” the source explained. “We’re at the end of our rope.”
He said the younger generation who are hired as full-time employees do not want to work full time. The crew works 10-hour shifts four days a week, and he said he is lucky to get some of them to come to work two days out of the four.
“You can’t afford to fire somebody because they just don’t want to come to work, because when they are here, I won’t deny it, the majority of what we have, they are productive,” he said. “They’re good when they’re here, but they just don’t want to work full time.”
He said trucking is also a major concern. He is hearing from his customers how trucking companies are dropping booked loads that are cheaper in favor of picking up a load priced higher. “Fuel prices are so bad it’s dictating everything,” he said.
The source added, “It’s such a mixed bag of stories but it is a major challenge, not just for the White Pine industry but to the building supply industry. Everywhere you’re hearing it.”
He’s also observed that even in an economy facing headwinds, people are still looking for workers.
“That’s a weird sign when your economy is down and yet people are still looking for employees,” he said. “Well, that’s because they are not out there, we’re aging out. The baby boomers are aging out, and there’s not enough families having kids, having one or two instead of having eight in my family for example. You grew up in the ’70s and ’80s seeing bigger families, and it’s just not the case. We’ve got a challenge.”
While many softwood sources are seeing more activity, there may be some challenges that continue when looking ahead as issues finding transportation and a stable workforce persist.
