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USA      International

October Newsletter

October 23, 2011
Uncategorized

Treated SP Shines at DeckExpo
SFPA’s marketing efforts for treated Southern Pine products were enhanced last week with an exhibit at the Remodeling Show and DeckExpo in Chicago.  Russell Richardson, SFPA’s director of treated and industrial markets, reported the show was a solid success. “This show had an impressive turnout.   I answered a range of questions from sourcing materials to proper maintenance to correct spacing of the decking.  I also made several key contacts to extend SFPA marketing efforts through the supply chain and with end-users.”  Russell also noted the value of face-to-face contact at shows such as DeckExpo. “Personal contact goes a long way to building relationships to market SFPA member products,” he added.

SFPA exhibited as part of Real Outdoor Living’s Wood Pavilion at the show.  “The Wood Pavilion is a great promotion of wood products for the decking industry.   Attendees noticed the presence of wood products compared to alternative materials.  It remains important for the wood industry to have this level of presence at key trade shows such as DeckExpo,” Russell commented.  This is the second year the Wood Pavilion has been featured at DeckExpo.

Along with promotional literature, Russell displayed samples provided by several SFPA members.  “SFPA continues to bring members’ product samples to shows.  It works better when you have a product to hold when you are explaining a product’s features or addressing a technical issue.”  New to SFPA’s display at DeckExpo this year was a banner comparing the cost of a pressure-treated Southern Pine deck compared to the same deck built with tropical hardwoods or composites.   “Many times, conversations about the new banner turned to the Southern Pine lumber industry offering a more customized decking product.  There seems to be enough gap in material costs compared to alternative products to accomplish this”, Russell reported.

For more information about SFPA’s treated lumber program, contact Russell at 504/443-4464, ext. 239 or e-mail him at [email protected].

SFPA Expands Social Media Reach

To continue providing the latest industry information to its members and their customers, SFPA is expanding its social media reach.  Recently, SFPA launched a Twitter account, @Southern_Pine, posting regular news updates, enabling access to information immediately.  SFPA’s flagship website,www.SouthernPine.com, now provides an RSS feed that streams the latest content posted to the site to interested readers. For continuous updates, followSouthern_Pine on Twitter or subscribe to the RSS feed onwww.SouthernPine.com.

SYP Showcase at First-Ever UK Timber Expo

American Softwoods was one of the first exhibitors to sign up for space at Timber Expo, a new timber-focused exhibition in the United Kingdom, held September 27-28 in Coventry. More than 4,000 architects, engineers,contractors and local authorities attended this show. Modeling itself on France’s Carrefour International du Bois, Timber Expo has been rated an outstanding success by both exhibitors and visitors. “Our exhibit was busy for the entire show. The seven SFPA members who attended found it a valuable experience, and met with buyers and UK importers to help develop their business and the wider market. They also took the opportunity to meet new and existing customers, many of whom were exhibiting at the show,” reported Charles Trevor, American Softwoods’ UK director and SFPA’s consultant.

This show marked the debut of American Softwood’s newly built display that incorporates a treated Southern Pine deck along with samples of all the principal US softwood species. “The American Softwoods brand is focused to ensure the industry is fully aware of the advantages, opportunities and benefits of Southern Yellow Pine in a wide range of applications, both commercial and domestic, internal and external,” Charles said. “Timber Expo was a fantastic showcase for us,” he added. During the “Timber Talks” seminar series, Mark Junkins of SFPA active member McShan Lumber Company presented “Lumber from the US South: We’d Like You to Consider One of Your Oldest Sources of Supply”, covering certification programs.

During the expo, attendees also visited the Wood Awards ceremony. Sponsored by American Softwoods and others, the annual Wood Awards recognize excellence in timber design. The Gold Award winner this year was a building for the Rothschild Foundation Archive. Click here to view the winning entries.

Contact Charles for more information about UK markets and AMSO activities; send e-mail to[email protected]. For complete information about SFPA’s international market development program, contact SFPA’s Richard Kleiner at 504/443-4464, ext. 211 or send e-mail to [email protected].

Check-Off Update

The Blue Ribbon Commission for Check-off (BRC) plans to sunset itself before the end of 2011.  In the meantime, it is helping the Agricultural Marketing Service prepare for the first Softwood Lumber Board meeting.  The BRC is compiling “lessons learned” from the Binational Softwood Lumber Council, other check-offs/promotion programs, and the USDA.  The BRC expects board appointments to be made by the end of October so that the board can prepare for its first meeting in late November. Click here to read the latest BRC update. For additional information please contact Steve Lovett at 240/644-6681 or send e-mail to [email protected].

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