Forestry mills becoming more service-oriented.

• Position: Forestry: Special Report - Domtar's Timmins wood product division - Brief Article

Becoming more service-oriented with a specialized line of wood products is key to building a better relationship with customers.

Benoit Melancon, general manager of Domtar's Timmins wood product division, says the company is constantly studying ways to produce higher grades of lumber to meet customer specifications and introduce new value-added products.

"We're trying to build a better knowledge of our customers," Melancon says. And upcoming major investments in the mill are designed to do just that.

In the past 10 years, both Domtar and previous owner E. B. Eddy have invested $13.6 million in the Timmins operation, including a recent $4.3-million edger-optimizer.

The company has already made some strides in that direction through a joint venture I-joist mill in Sault Ste. Marie with Anthony Log of Arkansas.

The pulp and paper...