Global markets for U.S. hardwood components

U.S. hardwood dimension and flooring manufacturers (SIC 2426) were surveyed in the spring of 1995 about their 1994 operations to better understand this value-added industry in terms of demographic variables, international market position (product mix, markets served, channels used), and the importance of business relationships with domestic and international customers. More than 3/4 of the respondents were from single-site operations, and 77 percent had less than $6 million in total sales that year. Almost one-third (30%) of the study's 505 responding firms exported hardwood components. Destination of exports by region for U.S. hardwood component products were: Europe (45% of export value), Canada (20%), and Japan (15%). The two largest end-use customers of hardwood component products in domestic and international markets were wood furniture and moulding/millwork buyers. The most common hardwood component products were mouldings and millwork, cut-to-size blanks, and hardwood flooring. Respondents indicated that red oak and hard maple were the two most popular species sold to domestic markets, while red and white oak were most often demanded by international buyers. The channel most frequently used by hardwood component producers, for both domestic and international markets, was an in-house salesforce. Business relationships with domestic customers were more long term and partnership oriented than their relationships with international customers.