From the Executive Director: November 2024
Linda Patch, Longtime SFPA Employee, Retires
Working alongside Linda since 1997 has been such a privilege. Her unwavering commitment to SFPA and our members is truly inspiring. Many of our members got their first impression of our association through her, and they couldn’t have met a more dedicated, kind, and knowledgeable face of SFPA.
She was a team player through every challenge, and her friendship has been a constant source of support, especially during the tough times. She always spoke her mind — something I came to admire. Thank you for being a strong ally, an honest voice, and a true friend. I, along with the SFPA team, our Board of Directors, and our members, wish you all the happiness in this next chapter!
8% of Forest Products EXPO 2025 Exhibit Space Remains
I can’t recall this much Forest Products EXPO exhibit space being under contract one year out from the event, but here we are! Can you believe only 8% of exhibit space remains available within nine months until the EXPO 2025 doors open?
Demand to be part of the No. 1 event on the sawmill industry tradeshow charts is so strong, we opened additional exhibit space, which you can review by clicking here. Hurry before it's gone! We are expecting a sellout, and we want you to be there!
Not receiving EXPO-related emails? If so, great! The SFPA team will be communicating primarily through the Map Your Show exhibitor platform, so if you're not receiving emails about EXPO, including next week's sponsorship announcement,?whitelist these email domains ASAP, we recommend you whitelist the mapyourshow.com domain to ensure you don’t miss any important Forest Products EXPO news.
Have questions about the show? Visit?SFPAexpo.com or email?[email protected].
Welcome New Members!
Our Associate Member roster has expanded again, with the addition of the following companies:
These four newest members bring our Associate Members roster to 160, and there are still a few new members going through onboarding which we’ll introduce you to soon!
There’s never been a better time to be a part of SFPA. We believe partnerships are key to remaining strong and moving forward, so I want to recognize the important role partnerships played in our success and growth.
We firmly believe with their continued support, participation, and feedback, we can make a lasting difference in the Southern Pine lumber industry together.
Have You Secured Your EXPO 2025 Sponsorships?
Forest Products EXPO 2025 sponsorship opportunities are now on sale and going quickly!
New opportunities in 2025 include Blood Mary bars, hospitality/networking lounges, specialty coffee carts, column wraps, and more!
Log into your Map Your Show portal to secure these amazing opportunities to stand out.
American Wood Council Lifecycle Reporting
Final reminder! The American Wood Council (AWC) Life Cycle Survey closes December 1.
SFPA is proud to coordinate with its Lumber Manufacturer members to engage in this important project to meet the growing transparency demands and position wood – and Southern Pine – as the premier building material. ?Have you completed your mill’s survey?
International Promotion
SFPA is always somewhere representing the industry and promoting the benefits and best use of Southern Pine. We’ve had and will have a busy few weeks with the following events:
Members, don’t forget to check out the trip reports and trade leads from each of these international shows!
I also want to share that we still waiting on an update on the Farm Bill to see how much funding SFPA will receive for 2025 promotional events and international tradeshow participation. We hope to have an update in December, at which time we will start compiling the international event calendar. Members, you’ll be the first to know when registration opens for those events!
Association Management System (AMS) Move-in Almost Complete
We reached our first major milestone last week by getting all our members imported into our new association management system powered by Growth Zone and are well on our way to educating you on how to use this new technology before the end of 2024.
Our next major milestone is running our 2025 Associate Member dues renewal campaign through this new software! Stay tuned for details!