3 Practical Things you Can Do to Make your Sawmill an Industry Leader

All of the following are important and can help you avoid losing revenue. Here are the top 3 things you can do to make your sawmill an Industry leader.

#3 Plan Ahead:

“If it ain’t broke don’t fix it” is one of those lines we’ve all used at one time or another, but living in the present at a Sawmill can backfire. The best thing you can do for your mill is plan ahead. Don’t think about a project when you’re forced too, think about what you can do to improve your mill and make the most profit you can every hour. Right now the demand for lumber is forecasted to grow in the next 5 years because of the Global demand for North American Lumber that is currently happening. If you are vigilant and see that demand is expected to increase then you should complete projects that boost your supply. By staying on top of your projects and maximizing your productivity and production you can then capture more market share from that upcoming demand. More market share equals more profit  and when you have more market share you become one step closer to becoming an industry leader in the Sawmill Industry.

#2 Use the Right People at the Right Time:

Get to know people and businesses that work in providing solutions for Sawmills. Not everyone has the answers for every question. So everyone has their own speciality and niche. For example, a lot of Sawmills rely on Vendors to do more than just provide equipment, they also get them to draw plans and engineer how their equipment is going to fit in their Sawmill. You might be someone who does this as well. The only problem with this method is Vendors are very useful when it comes to knowing their equipment, of course, but they are not the best at communicating with other vendors or tying your existing equipment to their new equipment. This interferes with the ability to lay out the best plan for your mill to achieve the production goals you have. This is why you should get a Mill Engineer to help coordinate your projects. Their specialty is in sawmill projects and they can take your project concept to a design and then later detail it, while providing input on what the most cost effective solutions are for your project. Another thing to note is that Mill Engineers can usually use their close ties with vendors to give them a clear scope, which can help get you a sharp pencil on your equipment. You need to have the right people doing the right jobs and that’s how those at the top of the Industry year after year solve their problems.

#1 Get Proper Scope:

What it usually boils down to on whether a project is a success or failure is if it had proper Scope. If you go along trying to complete projects with no scope you are usually not going to come up with a plan that gives you best layout and ROI. This again relates back to using the right people at the right time. If you can’t get proper Scope for your project, use someone who can. A proper detailed scope can get you the desired results from your project, eliminate contingencies, and get you a sharp pencil price from vendors. This is the one secret that ties the others together. Profitability and return on investment hinders on the success of a project and the success of a project heavily relies on getting proper scope for the project. If you follow these three secrets, but above all else the #1 secret, you will take your Sawmill from middle of the pack to top of the Industry.

For a concise description of inadequate scope ramifications, click the link below!

5 ways inadequate scope can negatively affect your projects’ success.