First’ LumberMate Pro MX34 delivered to a U.S. customer
By ROD URQUHART
Norwood Industries’ first ever Wood Enthusiasts’ Open House and Cookout, held at their Buffalo warehouse the weekend of April 17th and 18th, was a tremendous success, according to thrilled organizers.
More than 200 wood enthusiasts attended over the two days and excitement ran high as Norwood’s newest sawmill, the LumberMate Pro MX34 was unveiled, along with many other Norwood products. Norwood’s European partner, Logosol, also showed off the line of planer/molders.
Enthusiasts came from as far away as Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, New Jersey and even some drove from North Carolina and Florida. Norwood Vice-President Ashlynne Dale was on hand and said the staff of five was “running solid” over the two days. “Saturday was extraordinarily busy,” reported Ashlynne, with “lots of interest” in both the new LumberMate Pro MX34 and the log house molder.
Mike Long, Norwood’s Buffalo warehouse manager, reported, “The weather forecast was calling for below average temperatures with wind and rain. Being born and raised in Buffalo, we view the weather the same as our sports teams – hope for the best and plan for the worst. We were thrilled when a few customers arrived a day early and stopped by to say hello on Friday. We gave them a sneak peak at the new LumberMate Pro. On Saturday morning – the tents, tables and banners all went up and we served coffee, donuts and pastries to the hungry morning crowd. Later in the day, we cooked up a few hundred hamburgers and hot dogs!”
The Open House also marked two landmark events in Norwood’s history:
Firstly, while the LumberMate Pro MX34 had been displayed at a couple trade shows in the spring, this was its first time that the Pro was officially unveiled at Norwood’s US warehouse in Buffalo.
Secondly, the very first LumberMate Pro MX34 was delivered into the hands of a customer at the Buffalo warehouse. John Warinner of Pennsylvania picked up his brand-new LumberMate Pro MX34 on Saturday morning, took some time to visit with the Norwood team and have lunch.
To mark the occasion, Mr. Warinner brought a gift for Norwood – an old walnut barn beam well over a century old. “I was really, really touched”, remarked Ashlynne, “We’ll find a special place for it. It’ll always remind us of Mr. Warinner’s kindness and of the connection that we have with all of our customers. It’s also humbling to see how they used to hone logs into beams with an axe and now we make the job so easy with sawmills. Still, working with wood is a strong connection to our history and our ancestors.”
“Throughout the weekend, you could feel the energy and excitement in the air. Everyone seemed to gravitate with anticipation of getting an up-close look and hands-on feel of the new LumberMate Pro MX34. The open house was a tremendous success. We couldn’t have asked for a better turnout. Mother nature even decided to co-operate for the most part.”
Ashlynne noted, “There was a nice mix of new and existing customers.” “We are very thankful to everyone who came out and joined us and we look forward to doing it again in the future,” continued Mike, “Plans are already in the works for the second “annual” Norwood Wood Enthusiasts’ Open House.”
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