CHESTER, S.C. - First announced in 2017, Roseburg Forest Products' $200 million engineered wood facility is now open in South Carolina.

 

Roseburg, a manufacturer of particleboard, plywood, laminated veneer lumber (LVL), and thermally-fused laminates, says the new plant - which features the highest-capacity LVL press in the world - is the most technologically-advanced manufacturing facility of its kind. The plant will primarily manufacture LVL structural beams for residential and commercial construction.

 

When fully operational, the plant will employ at least 145 workers.

 

Roseburg says much of its customer base is east of the Mississippi, and having a plant in the Eastern U.S. is a logical step.

The company held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday, in which South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster toured the plant. Other attendees included local and state politicians, regional officials, and 100 recently-hired employees.

 

“What started out as an undeveloped plot of land is now home to a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility thanks to the efforts of a team of people with the vision and knowledge to make it happen,” said Allyn Ford, Roseburg owner and chairman. “Because of those efforts, 145 people will have jobs that did not exist before, and 145 families will earn a stable income in a safe work environment that contributes to the overall health and prosperity of this community and this state.”

 

Founded in 1936, Roseburg Forest Products is a privately owned company and one of North America’s leading producers of particleboard, medium density fiberboard and thermally fused laminates. Roseburg also manufactures softwood and hardwood plywood, lumber, LVL and I-joists. The company owns and sustainably manages more than 600,000 acres of timberland in Oregon, North Carolina and Virginia, as well as an export wood chip terminal facility in Coos Bay, Ore. Roseburg products are shipped throughout North America and the Pacific Rim.