There is great interest within the wood product manufacturing industry to further optimize and automate production. The upcoming Timber Processing & Energy Expo (TP&EE) in Portland, Oregon provides an excellent opportunity to connect with companies developing this technology and much more.

This year, the TP&EE takes place from September 25 to 27 at the Portland Exposition Centre and admission is free with pre-registration or a small walk-in registration fee at the time of the event.

Exhibitors will range from small consulting and software firms to major hardware and machine centre suppliers, all gathered in one place. And there will also be representatives for mobile equipment, used in the millyard, as well.

This is the seventh biennial (every two years) event produced by Hatton-Brown Expositions LLC, and for the third time in a row, exhibition space is sold out, with well over 170 domestic and international exhibitors occupying over 45,000 sq ft of display space.

“Events like TP&EE are so valuable in that you get to actually speak to company representatives and touch and inspect the equipment,” says Jessica Johnson, senior editor at Timber Processing Magazine, part of the Hatton-Brown corporate family, and key facilitator for exhibitors at the Expo. Being at the show is so much better than doing a virtual meeting, “where a camera doesn’t give you the same experience as a live show.”

The event is all about sawmilling for lumber, panelboard or engineered wood products, she adds, but also much more, including exhibitors promoting the use of biomass byproducts to potentially save on power costs, heat buildings and dry lumber. There are also opportunities to monetize this biomass into such products as wood pellets. Exhibitors at the Expo can show attendees how and what technology is available.

As always, the Expo’s focus is to connect representatives of the vibrant wood product manufacturing industry primarily in the American Northwest and Western Canada with industry suppliers. Portland and the Exposition Centre, with its large parking area and shuttles from area hotels, has proven to be an excellent gathering locale for what is one of the premier events where people can not only connect with industry suppliers, but also have conversations with industry colleagues about what is currently driving the industry. At the present time, higher interest rates and its impact on construction, lumber prices, and demand in North America are probably near the top of that list.

Two years is a long time in terms of technological advances, so it is important for industry representatives to keep abreast of the latest technology, as well as becoming acquainted with new companies serving the sector. In addition to domestic suppliers, the Expo will include a number of international suppliers to the industry—some well known and others interested in introducing themselves.

Whether domestic or overseas, these suppliers understand industry’s need and desire to optimize the value from every log, especially in some regions in the Northwest where annual timber allocations are being severely curtailed by government or due to catastrophic events like wildfire. Attending such industry-focused events as the TP&EE can help companies design a path forward, especially in this era of a changing climate, by acquainting decision makers and workers with the latest and greatest technology available to maximize their production potential with the wood fibre basket available to them.

Organizers expect that as in past years, companies and suppliers will use the Expo to unveil new technology and make project announcements. In fact, Johnson says that she knows for sure that there will be some announcements.

She describes the Expo as a “must-see” event for the sawmilling, panelboard and engineered wood product sectors, adding that it is a unique opportunity for attendees to meet, discuss and maybe even sign deals with key industry suppliers all under one roof.

On Wednesday, September 25th, the first day of the Expo, Andy Pollard, of Pollard Lumber in Appling, Georgia will be introduced as the Timber Processing Magazine 2024 Person of the Year, co-sponsored by industry supplier, Carbotech Group. A veteran of the sawmilling industry, Pollard has contributed to many industry innovations and holds several patents related to the curve sawing gang and continuous dry kiln.

There is a lot of industry buzz these days around digital technology and what influence Artificial Intelligence (AI) will have on the wood product manufacturing industry now and into the future.

“Artificial Intelligence is definitely one of those issues currently being discussed within industry, and we have a number of exhibitors that will be bringing both the technology and technical experts to share what they have to offer with attendees,” Johnson says.

Artificial Intelligence is also one of the key topics that will be discussed during conferences chaired by Johnson that will be held concurrently with the Expo in the same building. On Thursday, September 26th, a half-day will be dedicated to discussions about the current state of Artificial Intelligence and how it can and will be introduced into wood product manufacturing facilities. The second half of the day will be focused on more efficient use of byproducts. In another area of the Expo Centre, there will be a half-day conference on veneer, plywood and engineered wood products, with the focus being on production. The slate of speakers at these conferences will be announced as the Expo draws near.

Organizers say there is something for everyone at TP&EE, from the forklift operator working in the yard to senior executives. Companies are encouraged to send a wide variety of employees to the Expo, as well as people they might know who are looking for a possible career in wood processing.

TP&EE is seen as a central place to become acquainted with the cutting edge technology being used in today’s sawmills and panelboard plants, while providing an opportunity to connect with recruiters and companies looking for new hires.