Rambler Wood Products will invest $7.6 million in Saint Paul, Virginia, US, to establish a new, value-added wood products manufacturing facility in the former Bush Furniture Industries building, creating 73 new high-wage jobs.
The nearly 300,000-square-foot facility will make Rambler Wood Products the first business of its kind to operate entirely indoors, allowing for full-capacity production year-round. Through this project, the company is committing to source at least 55 percent of its timber from the Commonwealth, supporting regional loggers and forestland owners through the purchase of $22.3 million in Virginia-grown hardwoods over the next three years.
Rambler will convert high-quality white oak into barrel staves for the West Virginia Great Barrel Company and other cooperages in the region. The facility will also use Red Oak and lower value hardwoods to produce dimensional lumber for sale to flooring manufacturers, pallet production, and for use in the mining industry. The wood residuals will be sold to paper companies or further manufactured into biomass products. The remaining wood chips and saw dust will be sold to paper manufactures or made into wood pellets. By being able to purchase all the tree species from a timber tract, Rambler is establishing a valuable new market for Virginia loggers and landowners that facilitates sustainable forest management in the region and helps to maintain Virginia’s vibrant hardwood forests.
