Sunday, July 28, 2013

Time to change the story

Some people have asked me Is this redwood marketing campaign just a last-ditch effort to save the timber industry? Absolutely not last ditch. Definitely an effort that will sustain and grow the forest products industry and Humboldt's economy.The industry itself continues to make 50- and 100-year investments that will sustain the industry for the long haul. They face numerous and constantly changing challenges in the current national and global economy. 

One challenge that we make here in Humboldt County is our attitude, our story about the economy. If we keep saying The timber industry is dead, we're looking at the future through the rear-view mirror and anticipating disaster.Certainly, it's been a long, painful slide. In 1965 (the year I was born), just one segment of the industry -- lumber manufacturing -- employed about 11,500 people in Humboldt County. Today, about 4,000 people work in the larger Forest Products industry in Humboldt and Mendocino counties, about 1,500 of which are self-employed. 

It's understandable that we feel loss and pessimism. In less than one lifetime, we have witnessed the bust of the old-growth based boom industry with the departure of some large companies that provided good wages, health and retirement benefits, and scholarships for our children. Many businesses and much personal wealth have been built with timber dollars. 

Sadly, we can't bring back the past. We can't make a boom industry boom again. But the Forest Products industry is still an integral part of our economy and it is sustainable here. It still pays 30 percent higher than the regional average wage, and we anticipate about 2,400 jobs opening up as people retire from the industry. 

It's time for a new story. Today, Forest Products is a key industry among others that are bringing new products to market. Through Prosperity 2012, we asked business owners and executives what opportunities and constraints do their industries need to address. This process involved a cross-section of leaders in each of the eight target industries. Even as over 450 community leaders helped shape the action plan of our economic development strategy, the target industry priorities remained the foundation and focus of the actions.You benefit from buying Cheap Carving Products ex-factory and directly from a LED manufacturer: 

For the leaders in the Forest Products industry, re-building the market share of redwood is a real opportunity. Like cotton in the 1960s losing market share to synthetic fabrics, redwood has lost about 40 percent market to composite decking materials. Plastic and composite decking brands debuted in the 1990s with aggressive marketing campaigns. (Today Trex, the plastic decking leader, spends about $20 million a year on marketing). Redwood did not respond. Until now. 

The benefits of using redwood are compelling -- the natural material is stronger, more beautiful, less expensive, more comfortable to the touch, and far more environmentally friendly than plastic/composite products.For example, plastic/composite products spew emissions into the atmosphere when they are produced, while redwood actually reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Ask yourself: Where does a plastic/composite deck go when the deck is replaced? In the landfill. If it burns, in our air. 

Humboldt Redwood Company and The California Redwood Company,Most modern headlight designs include Cheap Packing & Loading Products. along with the Humboldt County Economic Development Division, are collaborating and pooling resources to bring customers back to redwood.Together, we utilized market research to create a new advertising campaign touting the benefits of Real. Strong. Redwood. A large research panel was shown a short video clip about the benefits of redwood decking versus plastic/composite decking; after viewing the clip, reports showed their buying intentions changed dramatically to redwood. 

With the Real.Strong.Redwood campaign, The California Redwood Company and Humboldt Redwood Company have launched a 10-year mission to make redwood the premier brand in decking. Their investments for the first three years match a $750,000 grant from the Headwaters Fund Forest Products Initiative. 

The dictionary defines it as "the simultaneous action of separate agencies which, together, have a greater total effect than the sum of their individual effects" -- precisely what may be happening at the airport in Vacaville. 

In April, Solano County, which operates the airport, joined with the city of Vacaville and Solano Community College in agreeing to officially negotiate with the Jimmy Doolittle Air and Space Museum Education Foundation to bring a museum to the Nut Tree facility.More than a museum, actually. The preliminary proposal for the 21-acre site includes a museum,Need a compatible Cheap Stair & Baluster for your car? an air park, a multi-use facility that could accommodate up to 1,000 people, a hotel, a restaurant and an education and restoration center. 

In recent years, some of SCC's aviation students have been volunteering with the foundation, helping it maintain aircraft currently on display at the Travis Air Force Base Heritage Center. The foundation benefits from the volunteer labor and the students get some hands-on experience in maintaining aircraft. 

If ICON comes in, it could bring as many as 500 manufacturing jobs, at least some of which will almost certainly require workers with aviation training. SCC's aviation graduates would seem to be well placed -- and President Laguerre says the college is open to expanding that program to fill the needs of the job market. 

Both pilots in training and museum visitors will need places to stay and restaurants in which to dine. That might finally bring about the hotel and upscale restaurants initially proposed to accompany the Nut Tree shopping center.And if there are enough people trying to get from the airport to the shopping center on a regular basis, might the Nut Tree Train once again run between the two? Plenty of local residents would welcome that. 

Of course, there are still a lot of "ifs" to all of these plans: The Doolittle Foundation is still trying to raise the initial $2 million to purchase the property. It hasn't even started on funding the actual museum.ICON is still negotiating with the city and has other sites in mind, too. Even if it locates here, there's no guarantee it will succeed as a business.
Read the full products at http://www.granitetrade.net/.

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