“The industry overall has seen constraints in highly skilled labor. Grant Jelec, product manager for Weyerhaeuser, agrees. But they also want to know that more efficient installations don’t equate to sub-par quality.” “They want building solutions and installation practices that can eliminate labor and/or complexity from the process-both of those equate to time, and time is money. “Quality and affordability continue to be the primary drivers for most builders as they wrestle with how to build a great finished structure that also addresses the affordability gap,” explains Craig Miles, business marketing manager of OSB/EWP at LP Building Solutions. It’s because of both the anticipated growth and the potential inability to keep pace with it that contractors are looking for unique lumber and panel solutions. 81% of respondents say they are having a hard time filling positions, and almost two-thirds expect it will continue to be hard or become harder to hire personnel in the coming 12 months. According to a recent survey of nearly 1,000 contractors conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America and Sage Construction, most construction companies expect business to grow in 2020 but the ability to find qualified workers to shrink. If this pans out as Fannie Mae predicts, it would mark a post-recession high.īut just as things go up, they must come down, and it’s the ongoing labor shortage that’s causing the concern. For 2020, it predicts growth in single-family housing starts to swell 10%, and by 2021 to exceed 1 million. This year, however, Fannie Mae is forecasting a brighter picture. This time last year, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) forecast 1.268 million housing starts for 2019, and Fannie Mae forecast 1.265 million starts, 903,000 of which were single family-only a marginal increase over 2018. Yet the lumber market can be a volatile commodity, and dealers and distributors need to be ready to serve their customers as a resource, providing not only product but information and solutions for today’s building challenges. You might be tempted to think that, in light of the amount of production, lumber should practically sell itself and be of no concern. softwood lumber production in 2018 totaled a whopping 34,873 million board feet. Today, that number is significantly higher U.S. Lumber production spread throughout the colonies, and by the Revolutionary War, New England was exporting over 36 million feet of pine boards every year. Going back to the early 1600s, the British-owned Virginia Company started using the American colony of Jamestown to supply lumber for the British crown. Here in the United States, lumber literally built our country and is so intrinsically tied to our history that it’s practically impossible to separate one from the other. Next to stone, lumber is our oldest building material. With shortages in skilled labor expected to continue, the lumber industry is turning to innovation to keep pace with expected growth. According to the manufacturer, it eliminates the need for house wrap, whichĬan speed the construction process and also provide a tighter home to meet both moisture and environmental efficiency challenges. Click the supplier logos below to learn more about the products we carry.LP recently introduced its WeatherLogic Air & Water Barrier System, an OSB wall sheathing with an integrated weather resistant barrier. Trex products are very high performance, low maintenance deck, rail, and trim systems that provide years of care-free outdoor living. Trex is a leader in the composite decking industry, and The Building Center stocks several colors of this durable material. Treated lumber and railings, panels, accessories and fasteners for wood or composite decks.Lumber accessories, fasteners, hand drive nails and pneumatic nails.We operate our own fleet of over 100 vehicles focused in these two states, and focus on providing you with the best service in the business. Serving the Carolinas, The Building Center can ship virtually all of your lumber and framing materials from our yards in South Charlotte, Gastonia, Greensboro, Mebane, Rock Hill, and Columbia.
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