The Spring Board Meeting Rocks!

Every Spring the NHLA board of directors meets for the “spring meeting.” As creative a name as it is, it is very informative from a scheduling point of view. This year, the meeting was held in late April with a high level of board member attendance. This was our second board meeting with the new and improved committee meeting schedule, and I believe we are nearly done getting the kinks worked out. The meeting was efficient, productive, and informative. As your Chairman, fulfilling my duty to provide transparency on board matters, the following is a brief description of the two-day meeting, emphasizing our commitment to prioritizing member value.

NHLA staff on day one gave a detailed and thorough report on each of their specific areas of responsibility. Then with great enthusiasm committee meetings began:

FINANCIAL REPORT:
NHLA Controller, Desiree Freeman, reported that first quarter financials were in line with the approved annual budget. NHLA continues to be in a strong financial position and is weathering the challenging hardwood markets admirably. The independent audit provided a clean report, and we continue to meet our cash reserve percentages. The NHLA board and staff review the financial reports regularly. We do this so if anomalies present themselves, we can be proactive instead of reactive.

MARKET IMPACTS COMMITTEE:
Rob Cabrals, Mission Leader of the Market Impacts Committee; discussion included an update on the EUDR challenge with commentary from Mike Snow, AHEC Executive Director, while he was in Europe discussing potential solutions with policy makers! Additional topics included log export challenges and reactive remarks towards misleading social media information regarding hardwoods. Two task forces were set up to further investigate these challenges, and report back at the fall board meeting.

MEMBERSHIP AND NETWORKING:
Stephanie Vandystadt is the Mission Leader of this committee and leads the conversation regarding bringing additional membership value to your NHLA membership invoice. Topics discussed were enhancing the value of the yield analysis and quality control member only opportunities. Providing a new service in thermography, which would be helpful in identifying potential locations in your facility prone to failing bearings or friction fires. And lastly, the idea of a North American Wood Expo was presented. This expo would bring together all aspects of the wood industry from hardwood and softwood pavilions to flooring and industry supplier pavilions. This kind of industry expo could attract attendees from around the world.

CONVENTION:
Dennis Mann is at the helm here and leads the conversation about future convention locations to maximize attendance. Lots of exciting locations are in the future for sure. Even more exciting was the discussion about some new sponsors. With new sponsors come the potential for new giveaways and raffles, like no other NHLA convention has seen in the past. New educational seminars were also discussed but the conversation quickly turned back to the exciting new raffle plunder. See you all in St. Louis, Missouri – October 2nd-4th.

INSPECTOR TRAINING SCHOOL:
Sam Glidden might very well have the most challenging task of all board members. While Sam leads this committee, he has also taken on reviewing the revenue model of the School. He has raised several key questions. What does membership need regarding Hardwood Lumber Inspectors? How can we attract more students? How can we educate those students in a timely manner, so they are proficient in their skills? Sam and his committee reported on their results and explained more time was needed and would be reporting their findings and recommendations at the fall board meeting. Good luck Sam.

LUMBER SERVICES:
Ray White guided this committee and discussed potential structural opportunities for hardwood lumber and the process in which hardwood lumber is certified for such applications. This could be a new and emerging place for low grade fiber which might interest us all. Additionally, the committee discussed tightening the requirements a manufacturing facility would have to maintain to be awarded the NHLA Facility Grade Certification document.

EDUCATION SERVICES:
Joe Pryor is the Mission Leader of this committee, and had a lively discussion regarding the Hardwood Federation, the Hardwood Federation PAC, the Real American Hardwood Coalition, and the American Hardwood Export Council. Having NHLA representatives from the board on these Associations will keep information flowing efficiently and ensure that all groups are promptly informed about industry specific impacts.

Besides the board members I have mentioned, all board members made significant contributions to the dialogue in each committee. These were long meetings. I appreciate all the board members staying focused and engaged. There are impacts on our industry from all sides. The board and NHLA staff work tirelessly to represent and defend our industry! Its is an honor to be at the table with all of them. Thank you, board members and staff!

If you have made it this far in my letter, God bless you, and your family and business. Thanks!

Jon Syre
NHLA Chairman | Cascade Hardwood