Economic Benefits of Precision Trimming Wood Posts Before Treating

Considerable potential operating cost savings and/or revenue increases may be realized by producers of treated wood posts if they trim post materials to exact sizes prior to treatment with preservatives. This conclusion can be drawn from the results of a study conducted at a wood treating plant in Alabama. If materials are delivered already cut to exact sizes (i.e., 7 or 8 ft.) at no extra charge to the mill, the mill studied can realize before-tax annual operating cost savings (from preservatives and freight) of about $38,100 based on a daily production output of 2,000 posts. If, however, precision trimming has to be done at the mill site with a new trim facility installed, the expected before-tax annual net income would actually be about $22,125. This income comes from savings in preservatives (47 percent) and freight cost (38 percent) as well as added revenue from wood chips converted from trims (15 percent). An investment ($92,300) in a trim facility for implementing proper trimming of wood post materials at the current plant site appears to be economically desirable.

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