174 



-THE OUTLOOK FOR TIMBER IN THE UNITED STATES 



general reduction in use of all raw materials 

 per dollar of product value resulting from increases 

 in the degree of processing of materials and rising 

 relative costs of labor and capital per unit of 

 production. 



Projected Demand for Timber Products in Manu- 

 facturing 



Projections of timber products use per dollar 

 of shipments — shown in table 130 and Append. 

 V, tables 11-14 — have been based on (1) recent 

 changes in materials use, (2) judgment as to the 

 influence of technological and economic factors 

 in future decades, and (3) 1970 relative prices 

 of materials and production costs. In general, 

 these projections indicate a continuation of 

 recent trends, including further declines in the 

 use of lumber and plywood and increased use of 

 hardboard and particleboard. 



In spite of the projected decreases in use of 

 lumber and veneer and plywood per dollar of 

 shipments, total demands rise for all products 

 because of the major increases projected in total 

 value of shipments (table 130, fig. 66; Append. 

 V, table 11-14). 



Projections of demand for lumber, for example, 

 rise nearly 75 percent by 2000 (medium projection 

 at 1970 prices) from 4.7 to 8.1 billion board feet. 

 Related demands for veneer and plywood are 

 projected to more than double. Projected demands 

 are up about 3.6 times for hardboard, and in ere .se 

 about five times for particleboard. 



The lumber and plywood used in manufactured 

 products covered in this section consist largely of 

 hardwoods. In the furniture industry, for example, 

 80 percent of the lumber, and three-fourths of 

 the veneer and plywood, used in 1965 were 

 hardwoods. Most of the hardwood lumber con- 

 sumed has been produced from domestic species, 

 and this is expected to continue through the 

 projection period. 



DEMAND FOR TIMBER PRODUCTS IN SHIPPING 



In 1970 nearly 6 billion board feet of lumber 

 and 600 million square feet of veneer and plywood 

 (/8-inch basis) were used in shipping, that is, 

 for the manufacture of pallets, boxes, crates, 

 hampers, baskets, and other wood containers; 

 and for dunnage, blocking, and bracing required 

 for the transportation, handling, and storage of 

 industrial, agricultural, and military products 

 (table 131). 



The 1970 level of lumber consumption was 

 about 36 percent above that of 1960. Use of 

 veneer and plywood in 1970, on the other hand, 

 was 48 percent below the 1960 level of use. 



Demand for Timber Products in Pallets 



Increased lumber use in shipping in the 1960's 

 was entirely attributable to a major rise in pallet 



Table 131. — Timber products consumed in shipping 

 by end use 1948, 1960, 1965, and 1970 



Year and product 



Lumber 



Veneer 

 and 



Ply- 

 wood 



Hard- 

 board 



1948: 



Containers, wood ... 

 Pallets 



Million 

 board 

 feet 



3,997 

 220 



740 



Million 



square 



feet 



1, 672 



1 



C 1 ) 



Million 



square 



feet 



NA 

 NA 



Dunnage, blocking, and 

 bracing . 



NA 







Total ... 



4,957 



1, 673 



NA 







1960: 



Containers, wood. 

 Pallets ... 



1,864 

 1, 550 



800 



1, 125 



18 



1 



13 

 2 



Dunnage, blocking, and 

 bracing _ _ 



1 







Total. . . ... .. 



4, 214 



1, 144 



16 







1965: 



Containeis, wood.. 

 Pallets. 



1,829 

 2,200 



856 



595 

 75 



12 



20 

 16 



Dunnage, blocking, and 

 bracing 



3 







Total . 



4,885 



682 



39 



1970: 



Containers, wood 



Pallets 



Dunnage, blocking, and 

 bracing . 



1,755 

 3, 150 



820 



437 

 140 



14 



26 



28 



4 



Total 



5,725 



591 



58 



1 Negligible. 



Sources: Lumber for pallets: Forest Service estimates 

 based on data published in: U.S. Department of Com- 

 merce, Business and Defense Administration. Wooden 

 pallets. 1963; Pallet industry growing by leaps and bounds. 

 Wood Construction and Building Materialist 56(11) :26-27; 

 The Appalachian pallet industry. The Northern Logger 

 and Timber Processor 20(2):22-23, 60-61; Pallets from low 

 grade hardwoods. Forest Prod. J. 13(3) :11— 13; U.S. Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, Forest Service. Wood used in manufac- 

 turing industries, 1960. Stat. Bull. 353. 1965. 



All other: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Serv- 

 ice. 1948 — Wood used in manufacture, 19A8. Forest Resource 

 Rep. 2. 1951; 1960 — Wood used inman ficturing industries, 

 1960. Stat. Bull. 353. 1965; 1965— Wood used in manu- 

 facturing industries, 1965. Stat. Bull. 440. 1969; 1970— 

 Forest Service estimates based on pallet production, value 

 of shipments of containers, and trends in timber products 

 use in dunnage, blocking, and bracing. 



production. As new methods of materials handling 

 were introduced, and new facilities geared to the 

 use of pallets were constructed, pallet production 

 doubled in the 1960's from 62 to 126 million units 

 (table 132). 



Since the mid-1 950's there has been a close 

 relationship between pallet output and manu- 

 facturing production (fig. 67). Projections based 





