New Biomass Heating and Energy Production Company

SLawyer Dave · March 02, 2014, 03:02:09 PM

Strange coincidence, or Destiny and Fate......Sometimes you wonder.

So a funny thing happened to me after finding the Forestry Forum. I came here because I manually process quite a bit of firewood on a semi-pro basis, and wanted to learn about sawing lumber. Prior to the FF, I had heard of Biomass, and potential uses, but here I learned much more about it. OWB, Boilers, co-generation, and many other issues have been discussed here on the FF, and I have learned a lot.

Then a couple of months ago, I was contacted by a prospective new client who was "interviewing prospective attorneys", as counsel for their business. They have a well established import and distribution business of manufactured wood working machines throughout the U.S. They also import, export and distribute a secondary line of Biomass Briquet manufacturing machines. They have always just concentrated on importing/sales and distribution of machines, but through this, they have met and worked with biomass related manufacturers and businesses around the globe. Many of their customers also needed additional help in getting these biomass systems up and running, so they started working both with their customers and the manufacturers trying to promote such products/applications. Given their success in this area, they are now looking at opening up a new business that will concentrate on design, integration, manufacture, support and importation of Biomass Applications throughout the U.S.

Their previous attorney has retired, and they were looking for an attorney that they can work with long term to continue to advise them on their ongoing business, but more importantly to help them create their new business and to advise, create, and review the disclosures, contacts, liability issues, marketing and sales policies, warranties, etc., that come with the creation of such a business.

It was pretty funny when they wanted to educate me about Biomass and the multiple applications it can have here in the U.S., and I was able to talk to them semi-intelligently about it due to what I have learned here on the FF. They were very surprised when I was asking them questions about specific biomass applications, OWBs, thermal/heat applications, power generation, green houses, briquet v. loose v. bailed biomass, different types of biomass, co-generation applications, their target customers, the scope of the proposed business and where I felt improvements to the above could be made. Needless to say, I have now been retained as the attorney for this business consortium. One of the changes I advised was to the marketing name of the new business, so that is in flux at this point. So when we get the finished website/name/entity up and running, I will post some additional information. I have also talked up the FF, and other such similar/related sites as potential marketing venues to help target the people and businesses that are potentially most interested in such applications. So hopefully, the FF may even get a new sponsor out of "the deal".

While their existing target is large scale commercial projects, (of which they have several in the works), one of the areas that I am very interested in pushing them towards, is smaller applications for the Ranch, Farm, Woodland application where the end user right now is turning their biomass into low value products or not really using them at all. While the resurgence of natural gas and its resulting low price here in the U.S. has stalled the profitability of many biomass applications, for those businesses that create such biomass, there is still a market to better utilize such products. I would like to see biomass applications and products that will allow the farmer/rancher/logger to be able to heat their homes, water, green houses and produce electricity. I also see this area as ripe for a resurgence of the "Co-Op".

Prior to "Big Farming" taking over the food production of our country, smaller farmers banded together to build the large scale grain elevators, silos, and processors to meet their needs. I see the same potential with biomass applications. Rather than having 100 ranchers/farmers/loggers chip their biomass into low value product, all competing against each other when trying to sell this biomass; they could band together to build biomass applications that will enrich them all. In my area, thousands of acres of rice fields are in production. Rice straw and hulls, are literally a waste item, that no wants, and they end up simply dumped to rot. That is a resource that should not be wasted, and there is money to be made there, both for the farmers and the manufacturers of biomass applications.

So as you can probably tell, I am rather excited at the possibilities that this new business may provide to both manufacturers and end users. Look for more updates as we progress.

Thank you for your time.

David

OH Boy · March 02, 2014, 08:39:00 PM

So without divulging too many specifics, are these briquet makers a type of machine that would take a log and chip or mill it into shapes for use in pellet stoves, or is that held together by a glue substance? I admit I need to learn more about it, but reading your post sparked an idea.

I am getting to the point of starting to look for a "retirement" business, and something to do with wood waste products has always been an interesting idea.

SLawyer Dave · March 02, 2014, 11:15:03 PM

The briquet makers are currently primarily designed to go along with the wood working machines in large cabinet shops. The briquets are made out of the waste wood products. The briquets are currently 2 to 3 inches in size, (not designed for normal pellet stoves), but for commercial boilers and heaters.

Part of the impetuous for this new company is to take what had been a "side business" of helping their customers turn their wood waste into a more profitable item, and expanding this concept into almost all forms of biomass. In working with the boiler and burner manufacturers, they realized that there is a lot of room in this area for increased cooperation and inter-dependent biomass systems.

So as to part of your question, yes they sell the briquet making machines and they are available across the country through their distribution and independent sales associates. They also include a current biomass briquet supply system wherein they help their customers who make the briquets find customers to sell such too, (if they don't use them themselves). Part of the goal of the new company will be to expand the application of the briquet making to include additional forms of biomass as well as to better centralize the ability to design and build custom biomass applications for client's specific needs that may or may not include briquets. Currently they are working with both boiler and burner manufacturers to design comprehensive systems that will be able to be modified to use the different forms of biomass that customers might have, (briquet, bailed, loose), and to adapt these systems to be able to use for either or both thermal applications or power generation.

Given the current circumstances of not wanting to let "too much out of the bag" before things are in place, if you want me to put you in contact with the existing biomass briquet business, feel free to pm me your contact information and I will be glad to pass it along. I'm sure they would love to talk to you about your ideas and plans.