Precision end trimming to reduce drying degrade

A relatively new practice in hardwood lumber processing that may lead to significant increases in raw material yield and reductions in raw material costs is precision end trimming. Precision end trimming (PET) is trimming lumber to a specific length prior to stacking, which allows straight lumber piles with stickers close to the ends?promoting good airflow, reduced warp, and increased kiln capacity. Most large-volume drying operations use stacking practices where boards are aligned evenly on one end of the stack and unevenly and poorly supported at the other end. No research has been conducted to document the potential increased grade recovery, lumber yield increases, and financial return of PET practices. The objective of this project are to determine: 1) differences in lumber degrade volume and value between non-PET and PET practices; 2) differences in kiln volume between non-PET and PET practices; 3) differences in moisture content variability within a kiln charge for non-PET and PET lumber and; 4) rough mill yield differences for lumber dried using non-PET and PET practices. Preliminary results indicate that by using PET lumber, dry kiln capacity can be increased by 15% and grade recovery can be increased by 5-10%.

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