Built to Adapt
The Eugene facility produces Alder, Pacific Coast Maple, and Oregon White Oak, species that reflect the unique hardwood resources of the Pacific Northwest. Over its history, however, the mill has processed 13 different species, including Ash, Tan Oak, Myrtlewood, Hemlock, Ponderosa Pine, Cedar, Chinquapin, Cottonwood, Pacific Madrone, and Black Walnut.
That history of working with a diverse range of species has helped build a culture of flexibility at Eugene. In recent years, the mill has demonstrated its ability to adapt its operations to meet changing customer needs, including working with the Quality Control and production teams to develop new Alder sort-to-width products and expand its Oregon White Oak production.
“We’re continuing to adjust our operation to maximize value for our customers,” says Mill Manager Ed McGehee.
That ability to adapt is an important part of what differentiates Eugene. Rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all approach, the team works closely with sales and customers to find ways to meet specific needs while maximizing the value of every log.
The People Behind the Process
The Eugene facility is home to 98 employees with an average tenure of eight years. Its location in a larger city also contributes to a diverse workforce, bringing together employees from a variety of backgrounds and experiences.
For Sawmill Supervisor Justin Langer, that diversity is one of the operation’s strengths.
“Being located in a larger city, we have a very unique and diverse group of employees that come from many different backgrounds. It provides us with a lot of different ideas and perspectives.”
The team’s focus extends beyond production. “We want to go home safely, work as a team, and ensure everyone knows they are valued and have opportunities to grow,” says Langer.
Leadership That Starts With Safety
Mill Manager Ed McGehee joined NWH in July 2022 after building his career across several areas of the wood products industry. He began as a sawmill summer hire with Weyerhaeuser in 2013 while attending Oregon State University and went on to work as an export logistics coordinator, production operator, production supervisor, safety manager, and operations manager before becoming a mill manager.
That range of experience has shaped his approach to leadership.
“If you take care of the safety and wellbeing of your team, many of the other problems go away because they know you care about them,” McGehee says. “It creates a more engaged atmosphere where people are willing to share their ideas and know they have the support to make improvements.”
For McGehee, safety and operational performance go hand in hand. He believes the most reliable mills are often the safest mills because many of the issues that cause production losses can also create safety concerns.
“If you are correcting and solving those issues, everything gets better.”
The Eugene team reinforces that philosophy through peer-to-peer intervention and leadership involvement on the production floor. Every employee has both the right and responsibility to intervene when they see an unsafe condition.
The facility currently has almost 700 days without a lost-time incident, reflecting the team’s ongoing commitment to safety.
Experience on the Production Floor
Sawmill Supervisor Justin Langer has been part of the Eugene team since 2004. Over the course of his career, he has worked his way through nearly every stage of the sawmill operation, starting on the dry chain before moving into roles including sander operator, lumber tacker operator, edger, main gang off bearer, grizzly, headrig, and High Yield.
That hands-on experience gives Langer a unique perspective on the production process and the attention to detail required to consistently produce quality lumber.
One thing he believes customers might not realize is just how much detail and intention go into the process of making every board. That attention to detail is also what Langer considers one of the facility’s greatest accomplishments.
“That we can safely produce at a high level, on a very consistent basis.”
A Career Built on Experience
The Eugene facility’s longest-tenured employee is Jeff Fifer, a Headrig Operator who started in 1983. Over more than four decades, Jeff has worked in green lumber grading, edging, resaw, chop saw, pallet sorting, and as an off bearer before becoming a Headrig Operator.
His advice to new employees is simple: “Slow down and be safe, think about what you are doing before you act.”
For Jeff, one of his proudest accomplishments isn’t a specific project or production record. It is simply showing up every day and doing the job safely.
“I like my job,” he says. “When everything is going right and the timing is perfect it’s really fun to produce a lot of high-quality wood.”
That experience has given him plenty of opportunities to push the mill’s production capabilities. His personal record on the Scribner is 80,000 in one shift.
If you’re touring the facility with Jeff, there’s one place he recommends seeing it from: the catwalk. “From the catwalk, you can see the full process. It’s a great spot to be able to explain everything.”
From the Forest to the Mill
Long before a log reaches the sawmill, there is a network of people working to source the right timber and keep the operation supplied. For Log & Timber Procurement Manager Heidi Leib, that connection to the forest is at the heart of her role.
Growing up in Southern Oregon surrounded by public forests, Heidi developed an appreciation for the outdoors and working landscapes at an early age. After the historic Biscuit Fire inspired her to become a wildland firefighter, she pursued a degree in Forestry at Oregon State University.
While in school, she worked on a student logging crew, cruised timber, and continued firefighting. Those experiences gave her a firsthand understanding of the people, forests, and businesses that make up the forest products industry.
Today, one of her favorite parts of the job is supporting the rural communities and families that depend on that industry.
“Whether it’s working with landowners to manage their timberlands, partnering with loggers who make their living in the woods, or helping keep our mills supplied with the logs that support local jobs, it’s rewarding to be part of an industry that connects so many people.”
Quality Starts with the Log
Producing high-quality hardwood lumber starts with sourcing the right raw material. A high-quality log is straight, sound, and free of excessive defects such as rot, stain, sweep, or large branches and knots. The better the log quality, the more usable lumber can be produced and the higher the grade of the finished product.
“Quality logs help us maximize value while producing lumber with the appearance, strength, and consistency our customers expect.”
That process also depends on strong relationships with landowners and loggers. Landowners entrust NWH with a valuable resource, while loggers provide the expertise needed to bring that resource to market safely and efficiently.
According to Heidi, those partnerships are built on trust, clear communication, and mutual respect—and are essential to maintaining a reliable supply of quality timber.
More Than Just Buying Logs
Timber procurement is much more complex than simply purchasing logs. It requires an understanding of timber markets, manufacturing needs, logging operations, transportation, and landowner objectives, all while responding to changing market conditions.
Much of that work happens behind the scenes.
“People are often surprised by how much planning and coordination goes into ensuring the right logs arrive at the right mill at the right time,” Heidi says. “It takes a great deal of effort behind the scenes to keep the supply chain moving and provide a steady flow of quality timber for our operations.”
That connection between the forest and the mill is an important part of Eugene’s operation—and of the value NWH brings to the hardwood supply chain.
If Heidi could teach customers one thing about hardwood logs, it’s that “Hardwood has value. Many people think of hardwood as a byproduct or secondary product to Douglas-fir, but species like Alder, Maple, and Ash are in demand, and are used in everything from furniture and cabinetry to flooring and architectural millwork. Hardwood plays an important role in the wood products industry and should be considered in forest management plans.”
Fun Facts About Eugene
Outside the mill, Eugene is perhaps best known as the home of the University of Oregon and its reputation as “Track Town USA.” The city hosts national and Olympic track and field competitions each year, attracting athletes and visitors from around the country and around the world.
For a facility focused on precision, consistency, and high performance, it’s fitting that Eugene is surrounded by a community with its own long-standing connection to excellence.
What Makes Eugene Special?
From the forests of the Pacific Northwest to the sawmill floor and ultimately to customers around the world, every board represents a chain of decisions, skills, and relationships. At NWH Eugene, that process is supported by a team committed to doing the job safely, maximizing the value of every log, and delivering the consistent quality customers expect from Northwest Hardwoods.
Looking Ahead
McGehee says one of the things he is most proud of at Eugene is the team’s ability to develop the next generation of skilled operators, tradespeople, and leaders while simultaneously setting records and improving the site’s financial performance.
That combination of people, experience, adaptability, and operational discipline is what continues to move the Eugene facility forward.
NWH
90189 Prairie Rd
Eugene, OR 97402
- Sawmill & Kiln
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