By Jennifer McCary
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A primary factor in the final machinery selection was its rugged construction, which Ryan notes is probably overbuilt for Pennsylvania's log size compared to West Coast timber. The mill took its first scheduled maintenance shutdown and brought in outside help to completely check alignment and review each machine center in 1999. After three years of operation, machine alignments were still pretty accurate. The plant manager reports all necessary adjustments were easily corrected by adjusting jackscrews.
Andrews estimates the new mill has improved log yield 5-10 percent. Yield improvements are the result of running thinner kerfs and improvements in sawing accuracy with the computerized headrig setworks and optimizers at the edger and trimmer.
Operating hours were also reduced from 15-hour days (using split-shift six months out of the year) to a single 10-hour shift year-round. The plant manager reports, "What we used to produce in 15 hours, we're now sawing in 10. So we're producing about the same amount of lumber, but it's in one shift." Annual production is running 12-13MMBF.
Seventeen degree tilt at headrig simplifies turning and provides a better view of the log.
The mill is brightly lit and clean. Principals are convinced that a cleaner mill also means that equipment can be better maintained. A clean-up crew comes in at night along with a maintenance team.
The emphasis on lighting is two-fold. "My main concern was on the maintenance factor, on keeping things up," Andrews says. "That starts with the cleaning process." But he also points out that good lighting is a key to the operators' ability to maintain production quality.
All machine operators have had grading experience or training. The plant manager ticks off each machine center: headsaw, horizontal resaw, and edger operators are all former graders; the linebar resaw operator is a former grader at the kiln-dry grading station, and the trimmer operator has attended grading school. That doesn't include the two men who grade lumber on the green chain, or the lumberyard supervisor, who is a former NHLA inspector.
"Because we are optimized, we need people who can tell a computer what the board is," Ryan says. "We've done a lot of cross-training throughout the years and now we feel we have people who can make a proper selection."
Operators rotate positions throughout the mill every 2 1/2 hours, which helps break the monotony. A spacious break room and conference/training room in a second-floor addition provides a dedicated are for training programs, i.e., lumber grading, computers, safety, and Sustainable Forestry Initiative courses.
Turnover is exceptionally low with many employees having 15-plus years of tenure. Recent expansions have allowed some of the newer employees to move into new positions on the mill floor. "The logical step is for us to move our graders onto machinery," he adds.
In the filing room, Deer Park added two Armstrong grinders and a Williams & White stretcher roll leveling bench to complement the facility. Existing equipment includes an Armstrong stretcher and Wright top, face, and side grinders. The addition of a saw filer to the staff allows the two-man department to work 10-hour split shifts to maintain the bands and circular saws.
Deer Park is surrounded by Pennsylvania's Endless Mountains, an area well known for its high-quality and even-colored hardwoods. The family owns roughly 15,000 acres and manages another 50,000 acres under contract. The forestry department includes Procurement Manager Jeff Nichols, foresters Matt Andrews, (another son), and Barrett and Travis Wiggins.
The family-owned business has long subscribed to sustainable harvesting practices and its owners are avid Sustainable Forestry Initiative proponents. The forestry staff is actively involved in the SFI training programs, where they've served as class instructors as well as hosted classes at the mill. Additionally, Matt Andrews serves on the Pennsylvania SFI committee. President Ron Andrews is past chairman of the Hardwood Lumber Manufacturing Association of Pennsylvania.
More than half of Deer Park's annual 15-16MMBF log supply is harvested from company lands. Together with its timber management contracts, the mill currently has a 10-year supply of timber.
Decks of red oak, maple, cherry, and ash logs are stacked unusually high under Shade Dry coverings in the log yard. This protection, and a short four-week rotation of inventory, aids in keeping log defects to a minimum, according to management.
Mobile equipment includes two truck-mounted Prentice 180 loaders used to stack logs and three front-end loaders-a Cat 950 and John Deere 544 and 644H models.
The debarker is housed in a separate enclosure to keep dust to a minimum. A 100-ft. log deck provides ample surge area as the logs travel through a Goring-Kerr metal detector ahead of primary breakdown. A photocell calculates log diameter and kicker arms automatically direct logs less than 16 inches in diameter to the new headrig. The debarker operator can override the system and manually direct logs to either breakdown center.
the story continues...
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