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UW-SP utilizes portable sawmill

By GEORGE ROGERS
of The Gazette
At the turn of the century, Wisconsin led the nation in lumber production. Then the last of the big timber was cut and the wood products industry disappeared from the state.

Or so many people think. But that doesn't represent reality, said Bob Govett, who calls forest products a huge industry in Wisconsin. Govett is a professor in the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. He holds a distinguished professorship created by the Board of Regents to help Wisconsin's solid wood products companies. He prepares students for careers in those businesses, and he has an appointment by University-Extension to work directly with forest industries.

Govett is headquartered in a wood utilization laboratory on the university's north campus. Although UW-SP has no course called Sawmill 101, it does have a portable sawmill and it's a teaching tool. The university also has a paper machine to help train its paper science students. How many other universities have both a sawmill and a paper machine? The University of Minnesota does, said Govett. But not many others, if any.

There was a time when sawmills lined both banks of the Wisconsin River in

Stevens Point. None remain, but nine others operate elsewhere in Portage County, sawing white pine, red oak, basswood, maple and more.

Wisconsin has an incredible number of sawmills, veneer mills and similar industries. And then there are the secondary industries, such as furniture manufacturers, which take wood products from the mills and turn them into something else. And that doesn't count Wisconsin's huge paper industry, a massive user of pulpwood.

Govett works primarily with sawmills, helping them improve their precision sawing and milling, increasing their quality control and enhancing their efficiency. He has worked with all sizes of mills, from the smallest to the biggest. Often Govett helps them make decisions. "A lot of what I do is analyze opportunities and problems," he said. "It could be anything."

Many of the mills are into hardwoods such as oak and maple, but an increasing amount of softwood such as pine is being sawed, said Govett, now that restrictions have been placed on cutting in the western national forests.

Price is a problem for sawmills, he said. The low-grade lumber market is down, and that affects the price of other grades. And that, said Govett, puts a squeeze on mills because log prices haven't dropped. Another problem, he said, is a shortage of quality timber. It's not what it was 20 years ago.

Govett's sawmill is primarily for training students. They gain experience in sawing, drying and grading, and they learn the mechanics of the equipment used in mills.

The lumber they saw isn't sold on the open market in competition with private mills. It's used by UW-SP at the Schmeeckle Reserve, the Central Wisconsin Environmental Station, Treehaven and elsewhere at the university. On a recent day, Govett and Chris Brindley, the university's building and grounds superintendent, used the sawmill to make rustic benches for placement near the Allen Center.

Govett's program is part of the forestry major at UW-SP, but business students also take the course. "Our students will be typically procurement foresters or will ultimately go into mill management positions," said Govett. Procurement foresters are the people who buy logs for mills. They have to know the difference between a low-grade and a high-grade log, since the price and value vary hugely.

The employability of the students coming out of his program is "very good," Govett said.

Robert Engelhard, a retired forestry professor at UW-SP, said Govett's position is an outgrowth of an idea floated in 1979 by George McSwain of the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, it was a long time germinating because of a lack of funding, but finally the Board of Regents made it a reality by creating the distinguished professorship.

Govett came here in 1991 from the University of Idaho, where he had been since 1982. He's not a forester himself, he notes. He has an undergraduate degree in business from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. in forest products, also from Minnesota.



	UW-SP utilizes portable sawmill By GEORGE ROGERS of The Gazette At the turn of the century, Wisconsin led the nation in lumber production. Then the last of the big timber was cut and the wood products industry disappeared from the state. Or so many people think. But that doesn't represent reality, said Bob Govett, who calls forest products a huge industry in Wisconsin. Govett is a professor in the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. He holds a distinguished professorship created by the Board of Regents to help Wisconsin's solid wood products companies. He prepares students for careers in those businesses, and he has an appointment by University-Extension to work directly with forest industries. Govett is headquartered in a wood utilization laboratory on the university's north campus. Although UW-SP has no course called Sawmill 101, it does have a portable sawmill and it's a teaching tool. The university also has a paper machine to help train its paper science students. How many other universities have both a sawmill and a paper machine? The University of Minnesota does, said Govett. But not many others, if any. There was a time when sawmills lined both banks of the Wisconsin River in Stevens Point. None remain, but nine others operate elsewhere in Portage County, sawing white pine, red oak, basswood, maple and more. Wisconsin has an incredible number of sawmills, veneer mills and similar industries. And then there are the secondary industries, such as furniture manufacturers, which take wood products from the mills and turn them into something else. And that doesn't count Wisconsin's huge paper industry, a massive user of pulpwood. Govett works primarily with sawmills, helping them improve their precision sawing and milling, increasing their quality control and enhancing their efficiency. He has worked with all sizes of mills, from the smallest to the biggest. Often Govett helps them make decisions. "A lot of what I do is analyze opportunities and problems," he said. "It could be anything." Many of the mills are into hardwoods such as oak and maple, but an increasing amount of softwood such as pine is being sawed, said Govett, now that restrictions have been placed on cutting in the western national forests. Price is a problem for sawmills, he said. The low-grade lumber market is down, and that affects the price of other grades. And that, said Govett, puts a squeeze on mills because log prices haven't dropped. Another problem, he said, is a shortage of quality timber. It's not what it was 20 years ago. Govett's sawmill is primarily for training students. They gain experience in sawing, drying and grading, and they learn the mechanics of the equipment used in mills. The lumber they saw isn't sold on the open market in competition with private mills. It's used by UW-SP at the Schmeeckle Reserve, the Central Wisconsin Environmental Station, Treehaven and elsewhere at the university. On a recent day, Govett and Chris Brindley, the university's building and grounds superintendent, used the sawmill to make rustic benches for placement near the Allen Center. Govett's program is part of the forestry major at UW-SP, but business students also take the course. "Our students will be typically procurement foresters or will ultimately go into mill management positions," said Govett. Procurement foresters are the people who buy logs for mills. They have to know the difference between a low-grade and a high-grade log, since the price and value vary hugely. The employability of the students coming out of his program is "very good," Govett said. Robert Engelhard, a retired forestry professor at UW-SP, said Govett's position is an outgrowth of an idea floated in 1979 by George McSwain of the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, it was a long time germinating because of a lack of funding, but finally the Board of Regents made it a reality by creating the distinguished professorship. Govett came here in 1991 from the University of Idaho, where he had been since 1982. He's not a forester himself, he notes. He has an undergraduate degree in business from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. in forest products, also from Minnesota.