In “price taker” markets, successful businesses are the low cost producers, and pallet manufacturers are no exception.     The single largest cost component of pallet manufacturing is raw material costs. Cants and lumber typically account for over...

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    Sometimes a joke just bombs because people don’t get it. My column from the July 2008 issue titled “Beware: The Scammer” is a perfect example. I need to set the record straight for my own personal reputation as...

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    Rules concerning employer-paid personal protective equipment (PPE) are hardly new. Published in the Federal Register in November 2007, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final rule mandating that all PPE required under OSHA standards, with...

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ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA – It is not often that an employee spots a new source of revenue for a business owner.     An employee’s foresight, however, provided the impetus for Tilsner Carton Co. to become involved in the pallet...

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    Carroll Edwards, founder of Edwards Wood Products in Marshville, N.C. passed away suddenly on August 24, 2008 after a brief bout with leukemia. An overflow crowd of at least 800 people filled the auditorium at Wingate University, a...

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    Recent industry research indicates that wages and bonuses are on the rise in the pallet industry. Industrial Reporting Inc., the publisher of the Pallet Enterprise, has conducted a nationwide survey of pallet manufacturers and recyclers. This is the...

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    The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) announced in July that imports of nails from China were injuring the domestic nail market. By a unanimous 6-0 decision, the ITC approved import tariffs ranging from 21.24%   to 118%. The...

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    In the Depression era, country folk would often reimburse their family doctors for a simple treatment with a cord of firewood or a bushel of vegetables grown from the garden. That’s wishful thinking nowadays, and small businesses are...

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    For the past 40 years, presidential state-of-the-union addresses have called on the U.S. to become energy independent. Legislators typically rewarded such patriotic calls with standing ovations, and then did absolutely nothing about it. That must stop. The citizens...

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    Earlier this year, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) finalized plans to seek accreditation for its National Green Building Standard. While the new standard aims to provide clear-cut guidance to contractors and homeowners on a variety of...

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