Five value-added approaches

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Professor Gene Wengert presents ideas on adding value to your wood products. April 2, 2002

by Gene Wengert, President
The Wood Doctor's Rx, LLC

1. Add value to present product

--Make it better; upgrade it

--Make what the customer wants

--Rename "low grade" lumber to "industrial grade" lumber

--Manufacture short lumber (at least 10x more valuable than chips)

2. Sell the same product you now manufacture, but sell it to a different market (where it is more valuable)

--sell to hobbyist

--sell No.2 Common to furniture/cabinet

--sell No.3 Common to flooring mill instead of pallet mill

--sell cants

3. Make a new product (i.e., "new" for your operation)

--Try to enter an existing market for wood; BEWARE: Often competition is well established

--Enter a market where you are substituting wood for another non-wood product

--Enter existing market, but market not well served or market with room for expansion

--Enter new/developing market

4. Get more value from the present resource (less low value, less waste, better processing)

--end coat logs (at least 4%) and lumber (up to 4% gain)

--sawyer efficiency (up to 22%)

--Don't sell veneer logs

--Make lumber without stain; lumber that is flat and smooth

5. Improve marketing and sales

--"I'd rather justify my prices being high than excuse my quality being low."

--"Are you interested only in price" (17% say yes!) "or are you interested in quality and availability (delivery)?" (27% are not strongly interested in price)

--Pick two

* quick delivery

* low price

* high quality