MLA Lumber Industry News Express
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Here's the new issue of the Mid-America Lumbermens Association online newsletter. We'll send a new issue every two weeks to let you know what's happening in the industry, at your MLA, and in the world that affects your business. We welcome your opinions and ideas. If you have information you'd like to share with other members, we'd be happy to include it in our next issue. We welcome both personal and industry-related news - members would love to hear your news and views - so don't hesitate to email us with information.
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Estimating Training Available in December
Learn how to read blueprints and do a material take-off. Discover short-cut formulas that will speed up the material take-off process. Estimating 3 takes students beyond to the basic construction take-off. Students choose which days to attend – day 1 & 2 or day 2 & 3 or all three days. This training is offered through our sister association, Northwestern Lumber Association, in Omaha, December 11-13.
When:
December 11-12-13, 2018
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. each day
Where:
Holiday Inn Downtown Omaha
1420 Cuming St.
Omaha, NE 68102
Block Rate: $99 or $109+ taxes
Expires: 11/16/2018
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Save the Date!
The MLA Board of Directors met earlier this month and set the dates for 2019 meetings:
Jan. 10-11 MLDAC Winter Meeting, Columbia, Missouri
Jan. 24-25 Kansas Winter Meeting – Hays, Kansas
May 2-3 Swing-into-Spring Golf/Fishing/Bowling Event –
Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri
June 14 Sunflower Shootout – Hesston, Kansas
Nov. 7-8 MLA Annual Fall Conference – Kansas City, Mo.
As other meetings are added to the schedule, we’ll let you know!
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New Tariffs and Rising Delinquencies Will Pressure Your Cash Flow - 3 Ways to Prepare
For building material suppliers, the tariff problem isn't going away. In July, higher tariffs lifted the prices of lumber, aluminum, steel and other products. More recently, a 10 percent tariff on more than $200 billion worth of Chinese goods has begun to affect the market for materials such as plywood, roofing slate and air-conditioning parts. Suppliers that want to avoid increased expenses face a tough dilemma: source cheaper product substitutes, pass higher costs on to customers or absorb the costs and lower their margins.
Read more
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Source: BlueTarp
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Save Money, Time and Sanity on your Next Truckload Shipment
PartnerShip
®
, the company that manages the MLA Shipping Program, offers competitive rates on full and partial truckload shipments to all MLA members! PartnerShip has created relationships with thousands of national and regional truckload carriers to help you save time and money. Even when your freight shipment is a full or partial truckload, requires specialized equipment, or is being exported or imported – PartnerShip has the connections to help you with a solution in this tight-capacity segment of shipping.
Read more
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Source: PartnerShip – MLA’s endorsed provider of shipping services!
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MLA Member Presents LuDPAC Check…
LuDPAC, the Lumber Dealers Political Action Committee, provides donations to pro-business candidates. Terry Parker, PrimeSource Building Products, (right) presented a $1,000 check to Rep. Billy Long (left) on behalf of LuDPAC and MLA on Tuesday, October 16. Parker recently completed his term as Associate Director with the MLA Board of Directors.
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Time to Consider the MLA MEP
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MLA has offered a “group” MLA 401(k) plan for members for more than three years. It is saving participating dealers on their fees and offering a great benefit to reward their loyal employees. If you haven’t taken a serious look at this program, now would be a good time. Find out why smart dealers are making the move to the MLA program. Call the MLA Hotline at 800-747-6529, or
click here to learn more
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Safety Corner
Five rules to know for ladder usage
Employers are required to ensure employees know the proper usage of ladders. The LBM sector regularly sees citations for improper usage of portable ladders. These citations can result in thousand dollar fines.
Make sure your employees know these five basic rules –
- You must face the ladder when climbing up or down it.
- You must use at least one hand to grasp the ladder when climbing up and down it.
- You must not carry any object or load that could cause you to lose balance or fall while climbing up or down it.
- You must not stand on the cap or top step of a stepladder.
- When used to gain access to an upper level, the side railings of a portable ladder must extend at least 3 feet above the upper landing surface.
Source: NLBMDA, October 22, 2018
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Lumber News
Five for the Future: The key trends that will shape c
o
nstruction and LBM demographics through 2048 ...
Projections on how the demographics on the U.S. will change over the next 30 years and what retiring millennials will mean for the residential construction sector.
Read more
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Source: ProSales, October 22, 2018
Five Ways OSB Has Evolved - and What it Means for Builders...
OSB first burst onto the scene about 40 years ago as an affordable alternative to plywood. Versatile functionality, affordability, and resource efficiency helped OSB quickly become the leading residential structural panel product in the U.S. And while OSB’s status as a go-to material hasn’t changed, many other things have.
Read more
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Source: Builder Business Update, October 25, 2018
Upside Surprise for Economic Growth for the Third Quarter...
In the third quarter of 2018, the nation’s economy grew at a slower pace than in the second quarter. According to the “advance” estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 3.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018, following the strong growth in the second quarter. It is the 18th consecutive quarter of growth, as shown in Figure 1. The back-to-back growth rates for the second and third quarter were the fastest in four years.
Read more
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Source: NAHB Eye on Housing, October 26, 2018
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Just like buildings, fires come in all types and sizes. The ripple effect on the community, customers, and the business itself can be stressful. To reduce the likelihood of a devastating fire, business owners and risk managers should take the initiative to keep their property and employees safe.
Read more.
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This service provided courtesy of Federated Mutual Insurance Company, your association’s recommended insurer.
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Have You Checked Out the MLA Online Campus?
The MLA Online Campus provides you and your employees with high-impact, "real-world" training that develops your leaders, retains your best people and increases your customer loyalty. Each employee has a unique username to access the campus, which houses more than 1,000 courses on customer service, sales, leadership and more. Want to try a program for yourself?
Click here
to view an example. If you like what you see, contact us for a one-week trial subscription to see the hundreds of available courses.
Learn more
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The Last Word
“
Humanity is acquiring all the right technology for all the wrong reasons
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”
Buckminster Fuller
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