MUNISING, Mich. — Timber Products announced that it has opened a new hardwood component  facility in Michigan. The company said it made a "game-changing investment in automation, quality, and customer-centric manufacturing. 

Located in Munising, Michigan, on the same property as Timber Products’ existing hardwood veneer and lumber plants, this new cutting-edge facility, known as Munising Components, enables Timber Products to produce ready-to-use hardwood components at scale on one central site. 

Details of the facility, including size of the plant and total investment dollars were not immediately released.

The components made at this facility will serve the cabinetry, flooring, and millwork industries. The company said the plant for significantly reducing waste for the customer, improving their yield, and elevating product quality.

The company said the project was achieved through a strong partnership between Timber Products and Eagle Machinery & Supply Inc. “Eagle has more than 25 years of experience with continuous improvement and development in the industrial woodworking and automation industry,” said Jon Johnson, manager of Timber Products’ Michigan operations, “Their willingness to work with us from the raw conceptual phase, and support the project along the way is what made them stand out as the clear partner for the job.”

Timber Products’ new mill is powered by an array of advanced systems including Eagle’s High Speed Hogging Moveable Blade Ripsaw, Eagle’s Talon 3000 High Speed Crosscut Saws, MiCROTEC Innovating Wood Woodeye Rip and Woodeye Crosscut Scanners, and Eagle’s Newly Patented Automation for the Palletizing of finished goods parts with custom-designed Material Handling Equipment, Vision, and Software. The fully integrated system collects available data from all machines, producing comprehensive production and performance reports for both Timber Products and Eagle in real time via a SQL Database.

"The Woodeye scanners allow for defects to be detected that could go unnoticed by a human," said Jerrod Allen, Lumber Inspector, “We can do just about anything now.” With high-speed automation and robotics, the new facility processes 30 boards per minute.

Beyond production, Munising Components supports sustainability by "defecting" material onsite and utilizing that downfall to create fuel for onsite boilers, which power all three facilities and generate steam for their dry kilns. Utilizing this material onsite allows Timber Products to handle waste for their customers and efficiently turn it into energy. This new facility also brings higher skilled jobs to the lumber industry and the local Michigan community.

From log sourcing, all the way to ready-to-use components, every step of the process happens onsite, setting Timber Products apart from competitors and giving customers a clear edge in both production efficiency and bottom-line value. “This mill allows our customers to focus on what they do best without dealing with lumber waste or additional processing,” said John Erickson, Hardwood Component Sales Manager.