PLC Supporting Member Weekly Update March 1, 2024

In this Issue:

Have You Received The New PLC Membership Handbook?

Recruiting is underway for Mechanized Logging Operations and Forest Trucking Program in 2024

New Member Discount – Maine Trailer

PLC Annual Awards – Accepting Nominations Now!

PLC Annual Meeting – Save the Date & Book your room!

Northeastern Loggers’ Expo

Forest Resources Association Meeting

Treeline, Inc. is Shopping for White Oak, Soft Maple, and Hard Maple

Maine – Latest News

Vermont – Latest News

Classified listings – Send us your listings!

Member Discounts – Many to choose from

Have You Received The New PLC Membership Handbook?

By now you should have received your 2024 PLC Membership Handbook. This year’s ‘Handbook’ is a great tool to find out which businesses, individuals and associations really support the Northeast’s logging and forest trucking industry!

Inside you will also find PLC bylaws, meeting schedule, information about Log-A-Load, 2023 award winners, the Mechanized Logging Operations and Forest Trucking program, contact information for your elected officials, contact information for state agencies, listing of PLC Contractor Members, listing of Supporting Members and the buyer’s guide with discounts for PLC Contractor members.

We would like to especially thank and recognize all the PLC Supporting Members who have advertised in the 2024 edition of the PLC Membership Handbook. Without them, we could not make this great resource available to the membership.

If you would like to receive additional copies ($10 each plus S/H), please contact the office at renee@plcloggers.org or 207-688-8195 and we will mail them to you.

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you at the 2024 PLC Spring Safety Trainings!

Professional Logging Contractors of the Northeast and Northern Maine Community College announce recruiting is underway for Mechanized Logging Operations and Forest Trucking Program in 2024

HINCKLEY, ME -The Professional Logging Contractors (PLC) of the Northeast and Northern Maine Community College (NMCC) today announced recruiting is underway for the Mechanized Logging Operations and Forest Trucking (MLOFT) Program, an expanded version of their highly successful logging operations certificate program that now includes Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) training.

The program will run for 20 weeks, from June 24 to November 7. Classes will take place at an active timber harvest site on the Kennebec Valley Community College (KVCC) Alfond Campus on U.S. Route 201 in Hinckley. Tuition remains free for qualified students.

“This program has a proven track record of addressing Maine’s shortage of qualified logging operators and forest truckers in an efficient and affordable way,” PLC Executive Director Dana Doran said. “Thanks to Maine’s Congressional delegation the program has secured Congressional Directed Spending (CDS) support, and with planned new equipment purchases to support forest trucking for this year’s program, we are well positioned to provide top-notch instruction and hands-on experience for the incoming class.”

“This short-term training is the opportunity of a lifetime for people looking to learn equipment operation and earn a CDL,” stated NMCC Assistant Dean of Continuing Education Leah Buck. “To be able to learn both in a 20-week span is incredible, and thanks to a grant from the USDOL supported by Senators King, Collins, and Rep. Golden we can offer this training at no cost to the 16 students selected to join us this summer. I encourage anyone interested in the program to reach out and fill out the online application without delay. A career working in the woods of Maine is waiting.”

The opportunity to earn a CDL-A permit and receive preparation for the state driving exam was a significant addition to the program in 2023 and has expanded opportunities for graduates while increasing benefits to Maine logging employers who need more mechanized logging operators and truck drivers.

Students enrolled in the post-secondary training program will harvest timber and operate trucks using sophisticated state-of-the-art machines like those they will encounter in the logging industry. The hands-on experience students gain operating equipment is an opportunity unavailable anywhere else in Maine and neighboring states and will prepare them for in-demand careers with logging contractors throughout the state of Maine. A report released by the University of Southern Maine in 2019 documented that up to 2,000 positions in timber harvesting and trucking will be available in the next decade.

The program includes a strong emphasis on safety as well as giving students an understanding of the variables of timber growth, tree species, and markets. Students pay no tuition or fees, and the program provides all personal protective equipment (PPE).

This project is funded 100% by a $1M grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.

The program was created in 2017 by the Maine Community College System, the PLC, and industry partners. This year’s class will be the 8^th since its launch, and dozens of graduates are working in Maine’s logging industry today.

Approximately 95 percent of logging in Maine now relies on mechanized equipment. The industry also relies almost exclusively on heavy trucks to move wood. With the majority of logging operators and forest truckers at or near retirement age, the demand for new workers in the logging industry is high and most students in the previous certificate program have had job offers before graduating.

Anyone with an interest in the program should contact Holly Grant at Northern Maine Community College at 207-768-2645 or by visiting nmcc.edu to apply. Additional information may be found online at plcloggers.org.

Maine’s loggers are a vital part of the state’s forest products sector, which is worth an estimated $8.1 billion annually. Logging contributed an estimated $582 million to the state economy in 2021.

Maine Trailer – Member Discount

Do you know a person or business involved in the logging industry who ought to be recognized for service to the community, outstanding professionalism or service to the industry? If you do, please NOMINATE THEM for one of the PLC’s annual awards.

PLC Logging Contractor of the Year Award – The PLC Logging Contractor of the Year award recognizes a PLC Logging Contractor for their commitment to the sustainability of the industry and logging as a profession.

PLC Community Service Award – This Award is given annually to a PLC member, Supporting Member or affiliated organization that has demonstrated a significant commitment to giving back to their community.

PLC Supporting Member of the Year Award – The PLC Supporting Member of the Year Award is presented annually to a PLC Supporting Member who has demonstrated an unprecedented commitment to logging contractors in the Northeast.

Nominations should be received no later than March 29, 2024.

Awards will be presented at the PLC Annual Meeting on May 10 at the Samoset Resort in Rockport, ME.

A list of previous winners is available HERE

NOMINATION FORM HERE

This year, the PLC Annual Meeting, Dinner, Awards Ceremony and Live Log A Load Auction will be held on May 9 – 10, 2024at the Samoset Resort in Rockport! Please be sure to block the dates in your calendars.

We are planning for a fun social event on Thursday, so stay tuned for more updates.

Below is the reservation link for early booking information.

Reservation Booking Link:

Professional Logging Contractors of the Northeast

Code: 051024plcm

Northeastern Loggers’ Association Expo 2024

FRA Forestry Forum Meeting Announcement – March 7, 2024

WHEN: Thursday, March 7, 2024
WHERE: Jeff’s Catering -15 Littlefield Way, Brewer, Maine
TIME: 5:30 – 6:15 PM – Social “Hour”
6:15 – 7:00 PM – Buffet Dinner
7:00 – 8:00 PM – Forum Speaker and Discussion

COST: $25 for Members and $35 for Non-Members – Payable at the door. Payment via cash, check or credit card.
Pre-registration is requested to assure an accurate head count for meals!

Mass Timber – Opportunities and Activities Across New England
Using Northeastern Lumber in Cross Laminated Timber – Charles Levesque(Innovative Natural Resource Solutions LLC) and Andrew Fast (University of New Hampshire – Cooperative Extension)

While the Northeast doesn’t (yet) have a manufacturer producing Cross Laminated Timber, lumber from the region has been used in multiple projects. Eastern hemlock from the Northeast has been shipped to manufacturing facilities in Alabama and Illinois, turned into CLT panels, and utilized in projects in the region. Spruce-fir will be next. Hear about the process that took place over the last 3 years to source the appropriate lumber, test panels, and use regional lumber in regional projects.

Developing New England CLT Panels – John Rake (Sterling Structural)

Sterling Structural has begun using Northeastern lumber at its CLT manufacturing facility in Illinoisr for local mass timber projects. Hear from the company on who they are and how this might lead to expanded CLT panel production using spruce-fir and eastern hemlock from the region.

Barriers to Use of Cross-Laminated Timber in Maine – Shane O’Neill (University of Maine)

Hear and discuss findings from a report recently produced for the Maine legislature which outlines opportunities to increase mass timber construction and drive demand for Maine-based manufacture, helping to expand and diversify markets for Maine lumber.

Forestry Forums are an important opportunity to network and bring value back to your business.
Bring a friend! Invite a logger, forester or other prospective FRA member.

Thank you to Seven Islands Land Company
for Sponsoring this FRA Forest Forum

Pre-registration is requested to assure an accurate head count for meals!

Please e-mail by Tuesday, March 5, 2024 to:
Eric Kingsley, ekingsley@forestresources.org

To register, please simply send the names of attendee(s) to ekingsley@forestresources.org