Lumber Manufacturing
Logging
It all starts with the logging of private property as well as plots of federal land on the steep slopes of the Appalachian Mountains. Thanks to improved logging technology, we can now harvest high quality hardwood that was not previously accessible while creating minimal impact on the environment.
Sawing
Logs are delivered to our Rutherfordton lumber facility to be processed in the Parton sawmill. Our mill has an 8-foot band head rig and a twin-band horizontal resaw, in addition to a 10-inch double arbor gang saw and board edger, all of which give Parton Lumber the capacity and capability to produce high volume throughout the year.
Drying
Some species are dipped in a stain and insect control solution. Lumber is then stacked using automatic stacks to reduce warping and other damage. Depending on species, the lumber might be placed in open yards for air-drying or sent to a kiln for curing. Twenty-nine kilns at the lumber facility in Rutherfordton have a total capacity of 2.5 million board feet.
Processing
At our planing mill and re-manufacturing plant in Rutherfordton, we further process the lumber to fit customers’ unique requirements. Parton Lumber constructed its thirty-eight thousand square-foot plant in 1974 in order to meet the high demand of customers who require processed lumber products.
Inventory
13 million feet of dry storage enables Parton Lumber to maintain its massive inventory of all grades and sizes of red and white oak, yellow poplar, pine and various Appalachian hardwoods. We export and sell these choice woods across the domestic market and expedite the delivery process with our facility’s railroad sidings and a fleet of company trucks.
Chipping
Our state-of-the-art pulp chip mill in Rutherfordton produces 250 thousand tons of pine and hardwood chips per year.
