A sharp decline in multifamily production pushed overall housing starts down (9.8% decline) in May while single-family output was essentially flat due to economic and tariff uncertainty along with elevated interest rate, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Philly woodworker captures 2005 Young Wood Pro contest with bentwood tambour cabinet.

Each month in FDMC Magazine we feature the 'Notable Nine Online', nine stories that were the most viewed and engaged with from WoodworkingNetwork.com over the past month. The following stories were chosen by our readers by what they were most interested in from May 14 to June 13.

The National Woods Board (NWB) announced receiving renewed support from Richelieu North America and the North American Building Material Distribution Association (NBMDA), as well as generous initial funding from the Wood Industry Association.

The event welcomed over 1,300 qualified attendees to the show floor between Wednesday and Friday, with nearly 90% of attendees holding purchasing power. The surge in attendance reflects continued industry growth and strong interest in new technologies, design trends, and educational opportunities.

NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI — Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division in the Americas released data that reveals "outdated perceptions of manufacturing, uncertainty, workforce shortages and technology gaps [that] are threatening long-term growth, even as the manufacturing industry continues to modernize."The Americas State of Manufacturing 2025 Report, commissioned by Hexagon and conducted by Dynata, surveyed professionals of all levels across the U.S. manufacturing workforce. The survey of 500 U.S. employees in the manufacturing industry was conducted in May 2025.

UFP Factory Built, a division of UFP Industries’ Construction segment, has acquired the Twin Falls, Idaho, facility previously owned by the Robert Weed Corporation.

The company's products include Medium Density and High Density fiberboards, made from waste, capable of outperforming existing solutions with a dramatically lower carbon footprint.

Construction input prices increased 0.2% in May compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index data released in June. Nonresidential construction input prices increased 0.3% for the month.

Finnish deep tech startup Fiberwood Ltd has secured $3 million in funding from the EU LIFE Program to reduce buildings' carbon footprints. The company will use the grant to scale up its sustainable insulation solutions made from wood industry side streams and accelerate its entry into broader European markets.