Wood Flooring Manufacturing
Description
Companies in this industry make wood flooring products. Major companies include Armstrong Flooring, Floor Covering International, Mohawk Industries, and Shaw Industries (all based in the US), along with Anxin Floors (Shanghai), Goodfellow (Canada), and Tarkett (France).
The global market for wood flooring is expected to grow to about $152 billion by 2034, according to Expert Market Research. Leading countries for wood flooring manufacture include Canada, China, and the US.
The US wood flooring manufacturing industry includes about 1,600 establishments (single-location companies and units of multi-location companies) with combined annual revenue of about $7 billion.
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
Demand for wood flooring is closely tied to residential construction and remodeling activity. The profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations. Large companies have economies of scale in purchasing machinery and raw materials. Small companies can compete effectively by specializing. The industry is concentrated: the top 50 companies account for about 60% of revenue.
Competition for the industry comes from manufacturers of alternative flooring products such as carpet, vinyl, and ceramic tile.
PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Wood flooring is milled from hardwoods, principally oak but also maple, ash, beech, birch, pecan, walnut, hickory, and others. Oak is popular due to its hardness, low cost, appearance, and wide availability. Wood flooring comes in three main shapes: strips, planks, and parquet. Strips typically range in thickness from 3/8 inch to 3/4 inch; in width from 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches; and in length from 2 to 3 feet. Planks are 3/4 inches thick and 3 to 8 inches wide. Strips, planks, and parquet are milled so that one side has a tongue, the other a groove, allowing a tight fit when installed. Wood millwork products, which include wood flooring products makes up about 40% of the industry. Other product manufacturing includes oak and maple hardwood as well as wood moldings, both accounting for about 20% each.
The production process involves drying boards of wood in kilns until the wood's moisture content (MC) is reduced to a range of 6 to 9 percent. Pieces are then cut from boards and the sides milled to produce the tongue and groove. The angle of cut partly determines the wood's final appearance: "plainsawn" (the most common); "quartersawn;" or "riftsawn." After the wood is cut, it's given one of four grades for appearance: for oak, "clear," "select," "No. 1 common," and "No. 2 common," which describe the amount of variation produced by knots and color differences; for maple, beech, birch, and most other woods, "first," "second," and "third." After manufacture, the wood is sorted, packed in ready-to-sell bundles, and shipped in pallet loads of about 1,000 board feet.
A typical manufacturer is a sawmill operator who also operates a dry kiln facility and flooring manufacturing plant. Some manufacturers buy rough lumber on the open market. Because of the simple nature of the manufacturing process, most production is highly automated.
Producers generally hold large inventories, partly because wood must be kiln-dried before processing and the finished product is essentially a commodity that can be stockpiled for later sale. Warehouses must be climate-controlled to maintain proper humidity.
Most flooring leaves the manufacturer unfinished, to be sanded and coated with a finish after installation, but some is also prefinished at the factory. Finishes include penetrating stains and waxes that soak into the wood, and surface finishes, blends of synthetic resins (usually urethanes and polyurethanes).
The global market for wood flooring is expected to grow to about $152 billion by 2034, according to Expert Market Research. Leading countries for wood flooring manufacture include Canada, China, and the US.
The US wood flooring manufacturing industry includes about 1,600 establishments (single-location companies and units of multi-location companies) with combined annual revenue of about $7 billion.
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
Demand for wood flooring is closely tied to residential construction and remodeling activity. The profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations. Large companies have economies of scale in purchasing machinery and raw materials. Small companies can compete effectively by specializing. The industry is concentrated: the top 50 companies account for about 60% of revenue.
Competition for the industry comes from manufacturers of alternative flooring products such as carpet, vinyl, and ceramic tile.
PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
Wood flooring is milled from hardwoods, principally oak but also maple, ash, beech, birch, pecan, walnut, hickory, and others. Oak is popular due to its hardness, low cost, appearance, and wide availability. Wood flooring comes in three main shapes: strips, planks, and parquet. Strips typically range in thickness from 3/8 inch to 3/4 inch; in width from 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches; and in length from 2 to 3 feet. Planks are 3/4 inches thick and 3 to 8 inches wide. Strips, planks, and parquet are milled so that one side has a tongue, the other a groove, allowing a tight fit when installed. Wood millwork products, which include wood flooring products makes up about 40% of the industry. Other product manufacturing includes oak and maple hardwood as well as wood moldings, both accounting for about 20% each.
The production process involves drying boards of wood in kilns until the wood's moisture content (MC) is reduced to a range of 6 to 9 percent. Pieces are then cut from boards and the sides milled to produce the tongue and groove. The angle of cut partly determines the wood's final appearance: "plainsawn" (the most common); "quartersawn;" or "riftsawn." After the wood is cut, it's given one of four grades for appearance: for oak, "clear," "select," "No. 1 common," and "No. 2 common," which describe the amount of variation produced by knots and color differences; for maple, beech, birch, and most other woods, "first," "second," and "third." After manufacture, the wood is sorted, packed in ready-to-sell bundles, and shipped in pallet loads of about 1,000 board feet.
A typical manufacturer is a sawmill operator who also operates a dry kiln facility and flooring manufacturing plant. Some manufacturers buy rough lumber on the open market. Because of the simple nature of the manufacturing process, most production is highly automated.
Producers generally hold large inventories, partly because wood must be kiln-dried before processing and the finished product is essentially a commodity that can be stockpiled for later sale. Warehouses must be climate-controlled to maintain proper humidity.
Most flooring leaves the manufacturer unfinished, to be sanded and coated with a finish after installation, but some is also prefinished at the factory. Finishes include penetrating stains and waxes that soak into the wood, and surface finishes, blends of synthetic resins (usually urethanes and polyurethanes).
Table of Contents
- Industry Overview
- Quarterly Industry Update
- Business Challenges
- Business Trends
- Industry Opportunities
- Call Preparation Questions
- Financial Information
- Industry Forecast
- Web Links and Acronyms
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