Patrick lumber project lead Dennis Sanders (left) and CEO Dave Halsey (right) on site at Patrick Lumber Manufacturing in Philomath, Oregon, where a new hardwood sawmill is under construction.
PHILOMATH, Oregon – Patrick Lumber Manufacturing has begun work to add a hardwood sawmill at its manufacturing facility in Philomath, Oregon. It’s an unusual move given that the vast majority of mills in Oregon process softwoods such as Douglas fir and Ponderosa pine, the state’s most common tree species.
However, while softwoods dominate, the forests of Oregon and Northern California also contain large volumes of Oregon white oak, Pacific maple, tan oak, madrone, chinquapin, myrtle, and Oregon ash. Attempts by other companies to develop markets for these species have mostly failed, other than a few mills that primarily cut alder.
With no commercial outlets for the hardwoods, the trees have become a nuisance for land managers working to improve forest health and are an increasing component of wildfire-threatened overstocked stands.
“We saw a real opportunity here,” said Patrick Lumber CEO David Halsey, “We can produce and market products that are in demand while also making it possible for forest managers to more economically perform activities that further the health of our forests.”
The new mill will be the only commercial-size hardwood mill in western Oregon that is not primarily cutting alder, according to Halsey. As such, its fiber-sourcing area will extend hundreds of miles, from northwest Oregon to northern California, making it a critical outlet for land managers fighting pathogens such as Sudden Oak Death in southwest Oregon and northern California. It likely will be the only commercial outlet for ash trees threatened by a recent emerald ash borer outbreak in northwest Oregon. Logs for the mill will be supplied from private, tribal, state, and federal lands.
The mill is being funded in part by a $1 million community wood grant provided by the U.S. Forest Service. It is one of nine projects in Oregon to receive funds totaling more than $4 million through the grant programs. The grants support local economies while directly contributing to improving forest health and reducing wildfire risks to communities.
“This project is a great example of what our programs are all about – it addresses a specific need for wood processing infrastructure that will help us improve the health of forests and reduce the risks of wildfire while also serving as a key investment in rural America,” said Brian Brashaw, assistant director for Cooperative Forestry Wood Innovations at the Forest Service.
Letters of support for the project from both the Oregon Department of Forestry and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) echoed the importance of adding new hardwood processing capacity.
“One of the greatest barriers to enhancing forest health and resilience is a lack of management enforced by a paucity of processing infrastructure…Because of the absence of this infrastructure to provide revenue opportunities to offset management costs, needed management activities are often unaffordable,” wrote CAL FIRE’s Chris Lee.
The Oregon agency’s Marcus Kauffman and Wyatt Williams added, “Utilization infrastructure for hardwood products is rare in Oregon…With no other high-capacity hardwood mills within reasonable transportation distance of the affected areas, Patrick’s new utilization capacity would bolster mitigation efforts.”
In addition to milling underutilized hardwoods, Patrick will produce long-length alder lumber that other manufacturers are unable to supply to the market. Patrick also expects to mill juniper, an invasive softwood species that is threatening the natural ecosystems on millions of acres of arid land in eastern Oregon and Washington.
The majority of species Patrick intends to process at the mill are highly valued for their unique grain patterns and physical properties. The company expects most of the lumber it makes will find its way into end uses such as wood flooring, wall paneling, moulding and millwork, countertops and butcher blocks, as well as niche markets such as guitar components and picture frame manufacturing.
Planning and site prep for the mill has been underway since 2022. The mill is expected to be operating at full capacity by June 2025. When complete, the mill is expected to produce about 150,000 board feet of hardwood lumber per month, a four-fold increase over the smaller mill Patrick had been contemplating before the federal grant opportunity was announced. “The chance for federal support for the project was a game-changer,” Halsey said. “It allowed us to think bigger and consider how we could make a much more significant impact for the community and the forests.”
Within days of finalizing the award paperwork, Patrick purchased a complete head rig equipment package that will serve as the mill’s primary processing center. Equipment being installed at the mill includes a refurbished Salem head rig band mill with a 36-inch opening, three-knee carriage and Inovec light curtain scan optimization, along with a Powell rotary gang edger.
Patrick Lumber Company recently moved its headquarters to Philomath from Portland, where the company had been based since it was founded in 1915.
Patrick Lumber Manufacturing is a subsidiary of Patrick Lumber Company. Founded in 1915, Patrick Lumber Company was one of the first true lumber trading companies, connecting buyers and sellers of mostly niche lumber products produced in the Pacific Northwest. Over the decades the company evolved, adding manufacturing capabilities for value-add products and opening new export markets for U.S. lumber producers.
Patrick Lumber Manufacturing was formed in 2016 when the parent company purchased a portion of the assets of Mary’s River Lumber Company in Philomath, and it has steadily expanded since then.
