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Hardwood Record — Veneer & Panel Section 



August 10, 1922 



Veneer and Panel Outlook Fine 



Chicago Manufacturers and Jobbers Find That Strikes Are Deterring Buying, but Anticipate 

 Heavy Fall Business If Miners and Shopmen Go Back to Work 



In spite of the disturbed influence of the coal and railroad 

 shopmen's strikes the majority of veneer and plywood manu- 

 facturers and jobbers in Chicago enjoyed a good business dur- 

 ing July, and are doing fairly well in August, though when this 

 w^as w^ritten the dual strike situation w^as beginning to make 

 itself felt more keenly in the way of scarcity of cars, slowing 

 dow^n of deliveries and fear of industrial buyers to place orders 

 for veneers and plywoods when there is prospect they will be 

 unable to ship out their finished product. But the opinion seems 

 to be almost unanimous that barring a prolongation of the two 

 strikes the demand for veneers and panels is going to be splendid 

 for the next few^ months. The piano industry is showing in- 

 creased activity and is already beginning to buy crossbanding 

 and face veneers in larger quantities than for two years. This 

 industry is expected to develop a very substantial aggregate of 

 purchases in the next few months if the strikes are settled. While 

 buying on the part of the furniture industry is not picking up as 

 rapidly as w^as expected, there is considerable demand from some 

 sources, particularly of highly figured walnut veneer and panel. 

 These items are leading in the demand. Building trades demand 

 continues to hold up well and while individual orders for veneers 

 and panels are not large from this field, they are numerous. The 

 scarcity of the better quality of birch and figured walnut items 

 continues and w^hile mill stocks of gum and oak are plentiful there 

 is no over-production anywhere, unless it be in mahogany, because 

 of the fact that the mills have been extremely conservative in their 

 production this year, and most of them have been short on logs. 



"The veneer and panel industry experienced a demand for its 

 product far in excess of that for the July month of previous years," 

 Henry P. Walsh of the Veneer Manufacturers Company, said in 

 his report for August. "This is due to the almost unprecedented 

 building boom, w^hich is not expected to lessen in activity for 

 some months to come," he continued. 



Furniture manufacturers of all grades are experiencing a 

 thriving business, which is also true of piano factories. 



"The log shortage in the north predicted in our market reports 

 of February and March has materialized. The mills are already 

 far behind on orders, and finding it almost impossible to fill those 

 on hand, due to the scarcity of logs. 



In the south mills are working to full capacity, and reports 

 are that they have a fair supply of logs. Most of these mills are 

 promising 30 to 60 day deliveries. 



"Manufacturers will do well to anticipate their needs and 

 place orders early before the coal and grain movement places an 

 embargo on other commodities, and thus avoid serious delays." 



Enjoyed Best July for Years 



The July just passed was the best we have had in two years," 

 declared Chas. A. Snapp of the C. L. Willey Company. "Busi- 

 ness has been fine during the last four or five w^eeks and much 

 above our expectations. For the past three months we have 

 enjoyed a steadily increasing business and contrary to the fact 

 that July is nearly always a slow month in the veneer and panel 

 industry, our business for that month surpassed the June sales." 

 Mr. Snapp said that the furniture industry has been buying liber- 

 ally, chiefly of highly figured walnut stock, which is scarce. The 

 interior trim people are also buying good quantities of highly 

 figured walnut and demand from the piano industry is picking up. 

 The increase in buying from this industry is moving a good deal of 

 mahogany face veneers and, of course, poplar crossbanding. 

 Strike conditions have not yet seriously interfered with veneer 

 and panel movement and demand, so far as this experience goes, 

 Mr. Snapp said, but the interference is bound to grow serious if 



the strikes continue much longer. "1 am very optimistic about 

 the outlook if the strikes are settled," Mr. Snapp continued. "The 

 outlook for fall business is tremendous; it has never been better, 

 as inquiries indicate. The consumers for the first time in months 

 are showing a disposition to place orders for future requirements 

 and this is a mighty good sign." 



Tom Dean of the Dean-Spicker Company, reported business for 

 July "pretty good," though conditions in the trade are very un- 

 certain just now because of the menace of the coal and shopmen's 

 strikes. This situation is being reflected in every increasing cau- 

 tion on the part of veneer and panel consumers, w^ho fear to buy 

 just now for any other than their urgent immediate needs. How^- 

 ever, Mr. Dean finds that inquiries are plentiful and that buyers 

 are doing a good deal of shopping, preparatory, no doubt, to the 

 placing of orders when conditions become more favorable. Thus 

 far his conipany has been getting all the cars needed, though de- 

 liveries are a little slower than usual. Building trade buying 

 continues good, while the piano industry is showing increased 

 activity in the market. 



R. M. Bickford of the J. C. Deacon Company finds business 

 "slow^" and he is very much dissatisfied with the truculent atti- 

 tude of the buyers, w^ho are inclined to quibble unduly about 

 prices and to show^ extreme caution in buying for future de- 

 livery. The strikes have caused considerable difficulty in getting 

 shipments from the veneer and plywood mills and mill deliveries 

 are also slow^ because most of the mills are short on logs and 

 behind in their orders. 



Spicker Confident of Future 



J. T. Spicker of the Ingalls-Spicker-Ransom Company expressed 

 considerable confidence over the current and immediate future 

 situation in the veneer business. He says that in the upper 

 grades just as in lumber, this product takes care of itself being 

 salable as fast as, if not faster, than cut, but that while the upper 

 grades have in the recent past caused considerable w^orry, they 

 have been showing more movement of late, though for the imme- 

 diate present, on account of mid-season conditions, orders might 

 well be a little more plentiful. 



Mr. Spicker told of a discernible increase in the call for ma- 

 hogany in both lumber and veneers, but said further that the 

 bulk of the call continues to be for w^alnut. This company is 

 doing an excellent business and making plans for further addi- 

 tions to its service, which will add considerably to the prestige 

 of its name and serve its ability to properly handle consumers* 

 requirements. 



A, W. Vermeulen of the Veneer, Lumber and Plywood Com- 

 pany, expressed considerable satisfaction with developments dur- 

 ing the past couple of months, saying the month of June was con- 

 siderably the best month in the history of that company. The 

 Veneer, Lumber and Plywood Company is a comparatively new 

 organization in the field, but has been making friends and show- 

 ing a satisfactory expansion. 



One item of interest on the floor of the company's w^arehouse 

 at 401 N. Hoyne avenue is a considerable parcel of Tennessee 

 aromatic red cedar veneers cut one-sixteenth inch. This runs 

 surprisingly round and wide for cedar. The Veneer, Lumber ana 

 Plyw^ood Company is not certain yet w^hether it will sell this stock 

 as veneers or build it up with w^alnut or mahogany one face ana 

 cedar the opposite face for cedar-chest work. The Veneer. Lum- 

 ber and Plywood Company is getting in a considerable shipment 

 of mahogany and other fine woods, which is stored in its lumber 

 warehouse adjacent to its office. 



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