Table of Contents

April 2009 Classifieds

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The Lighter Side of Logging

A preacher went to his church office on Monday morning and discovered a dead mule on the church grounds. He called the police. Since there did not appear to be any foul play, the police referred the preacher to the health department. A spokesman said since there was no health threat that he should call the sanitation department. The sanitation manager said he could not pick up the mule without authorization from the mayor.

Now the preacher knew the mayor and was not eager to call him. The mayor had a bad temper and was generally hard to deal with, but the preacher called him anyway.

Ability To Adapt

One constant in Evergreen Wood Recycling, Inc., is that it’s constantly changing. At various points in its 20-year history, the grinding operation has been: a logging outfit, contract grinding service, provider of pulpwood for paper mills, biomass supplier and a recycling yard operator. In fact, it’s Evergreen’s ability to adapt to changing markets and conditions that have helped it survive where others have failed.

Today, using two Morbark 1300 tub grinders, model 27 Chiparvestor and 6600 horizontal grinder, the company processes more than 100,000 tons of wood and green refuse annually and operates multiple yards in the Savannah area. And, with a number of additional opportunities presenting themselves, chances are pretty good that more changes await Evergreen.

Davis Emerges As Tigercat Dealer In Arkansas

After spending 18 months on the sidelines, Jonathan Davis is back in the logging equipment business, flying the familiar Davis “tree D” logo. On March 31, Davis and a small group of investors bought most of the Arkansas assets of Tidewater Equipment Co. and the next day began doing business as Davis Tractor and Equipment, LLC—the new Tigercat dealer for all of Arkansas and the nine northernmost parishes of Louisiana. Interestingly, what began a few weeks ago as Davis interviewing for Tidewater’s “go to” Arkansas guy turned into something more.

Davis Tractor and Equipment (DTE) operates a headquarters store in Warren, a full sales-parts-service branch in Hope and a satellite sales-parts arrangement in Junction City, La. In addition to Tigercat’s full line, DTE represents Viking trailers, CSI and Riley attachments, Cummins engines and Dynamic Cone-Head chippers. A separate entity, Davis Tractor Inc., the original name of Davis’ business, brokers high quality used equipment from M

Glass Half Full by May Donnell

Joe Lang is a lemons-to-lemonade kind of guy, a grandfather of three who thinks the next five years will bring good things to his church, his family and his 20-year-old logging operation. He admits his optimism may be a bit unusual considering the timber industry and the nation it serves are riding out one of the worst economic recessions in more than three generations.

“I can’t help it,” says Lang. “I’m an optimist.”

Lang has been working in the Louisiana forests for 32 years. To avoid confusion, that’s Atlanta, Louisiana, a small town located in Winn Parish near Winnfield. “I’m just not one of those doom and gloom loggers and I never was. God brings challenges every year and every year it’s our job to take advantage of them.”

Nameless Texas Towns

By 1880, improvements in sawmill technology necessitated railway delivery systems to feed the increasingly voracious saws. Big Allis 60-inch and 72-inch circular saws were the early standard, capable of making short work of the largest logs, and during the 1800s steam log-carriage machinery appeared, along with the first single-cutting band saws, continuous blades rotating on eight- or nine-foot wheels.

A decade later the band saws had become double-cutting, toothed on both edges, slicing a log from alternate ends on each swift to-and-fro of the steam carriage. The new saws were powered by Corliss steam engines of several hundred horsepower that turned massive flywheels over 20 feet in diameter, which in turn ran belts to energize the saws and other mill machinery.

Partners In Pine by David Abbott

Tommy Brown, 47, owner of Linton Land & Timber, LLC, has a very good relationship with his timber dealer, Middle Georgia Timber. Brown had only been logging for a year and a half when he received what he calls the “best phone call of my life” from Middle Georgia owners Jack Rocker and Jason Simmons. They put him to work four years ago. “It was the best move I ever made,” he says.

His satisfaction with Middle Georgia Timber stems from his confidence in Rocker and Simmons personally. “I can trust them to deal square with me,” he believes. As an example, when diesel fuel was in the $4 per gallon range late last summer, some area mills gave a fuel surcharge of up to $2.51 per ton, to be distributed through timber dealers. Brown says he knows of dealers who didn’t pass on the money to their loggers at all, but he says he saw every dime of it. “That’s one reason I can partner with these guys and feel good about it. I know what kind of people they are.”

Current Industry News

There is generally a high level of anxiety when a notice of audit is received in the mail, and a fairly comprehensive list of items must be prepared in advance for the auditors to review. It seems that no matter how thorough we attempt to be, that a deficiency in the eyes of the field auditors will most certainly be found.

I have generally been made to feel almost criminal when auditors leave. I believe I’m not alone in being made to feel this way. Our last two sales tax audits were certainly this way. (A more in-depth examination by the Arizona Dept. of Revenue found no shortcomings.)

New Product Information

John Deere’s 8/900JH-Series tracked harvesters offer an integrated hydraulic system, a dedicated harvester boom providing 52% more cutting swath, a factory-installed Waratah TimberRite measuring system and plug-and-play readiness to accept an array of Waratah heads.

The 853JH and 903JH models are best applied to thinning and regeneration harvesting while the 909JH is also built to take on steep ground. The 909JH has a leveling upper structure making work on steep slopes comfortable for the operator and more productive. Each of the harvesters boasts a John Deere PowerTech 6081H engine, which complies with EPA Tier 2 regulations and CARB emissions.

Some Perspective Please

Like many businesses, timber-related or not, SLT’s parent company in January trimmed personnel and slashed other expenses in an effort to stay ahead of the hounds. One of those released by Hatton-Brown Publishers was Tonya Cooner-Vots, who wrote this column for several years. Tonya did a commendable job in this space and otherwise carried the H-B flag with honor. We wish her and the other H-B departed the very best.

As I write this, it seems that the economic calamity continues its grip. I’m reminded of that line in an old Merle Haggard song: “Are we goin’ downhill like a snowball headed for hell?” It was only a short time ago that I could see retirement on the horizon. Today I can’t even see the horizon. But hey, ole Merle is older than me and he’s still performing.