Freres Lumber Co. Inc. is known for innovation. Take, for instance, its new-to-market patented, engineered wood product: mass plywood panels (MPP).

MPP is a unique product that competes directly with the popular cross-laminated timber (CLT) products – which were originally developed in Europe and are now produced by several manufacturers in the US and Canada. Where CLT utilizes dimensional lumber laminated in layers in alternating directions, MPP uses a thin veneer to fortify the wood and augment it with dimensional stability.

Recently, Freres worked with Crow Engineering to design an open-sided structure using its MPP product. The aim of the project was to infill a space between two manufacturing buildings at the Freres Plant 3 mill in Mill City, OR.

With the project complete, Freres now enjoys a structure that is 43 feet wide by 109 feet long, open on the ends to allow trucks and forklifts to pass between the buildings, while providing weather protection for materials being transferred from one building to the other.

The use of heavier MPP materials gives the infill building greater fire resistance than the adjacent light-framed timber buildings. The dimensions of the MPP materials used in this project would qualify it as a Type IV Heavy Timber building per the IBC code. However, since it is not separated from the adjacent structures by fire separation walls, it is still classified as Type V-B.

After modeling the structure in Revit, the Crow team created 3D files and shop drawings for Freres to import into their system. From there, Freres created the files to control the CNC machine to cut the parts. Freres also sent files to the contractor for cutting steel connection plates – while construction documents were prepared from the Revit model for permitting and construction.

For us here at Crow, this project demonstrates the viability of MPP as a high-quality building material that can serve as an alternative not only to CLT but to concrete and steel as well. We thank Freres for the chance to learn and contribute.

John Bradford. Sr. Structural Engineer

Miloptic is pleased to announce the acquisition of Automation Industries Corporation (AIC). This acquisition will allow Miloptic to offer a variety of nondestructive testing technology systems that ensure and improve the quality of building products through its parent company Crow Engineering, Inc. Clyde Steffens, former President of AIC, is serving as President of Ultrasonic Development for Miloptic.

AIC: A pioneering history

In the early 70’s, Clyde Steffens developed a technology that allowed plywood producers to eliminate blisters, blows, and other internal defects that lead to the delamination of panels. Along with American Plywood Association personnel, AIC visited plywood mills all over to demonstrate the first Trienco 506 ultrasonic NDT (non-destructive testing) system. With value demonstrated, installations followed.

Years later, Trus Joist approached Clyde based on his success in the plywood industry.  They challenged Clyde to do   the same for the LVL industry, a thicker and more structurally critical product.  Taking the challenge, Clyde developed a higher strength ultrasonic system for the industry that was a success.

Over the years, Clyde has developed multiple systems using ultrasonic and laser technology to solve similar problems across other industries. These include lumber, engineered flooring, gypsum, and corrugated and web roofing systems.

The present and future

Miloptic will continue to offer the same exceptional high-quality products that have helped AIC build a reputation as the best NDT testing manufacturer in the industry. We will continue to produce and support the existing product lines. We are committed to enhancing our current products while developing new and advanced NDT solutions in the years to come.

About Automation Industries Corporation

AIC has developed and refined ultrasonic technology applications for more than 40 years. The company’s current generation of machines can detect smaller defects and reliably penetrate thicker materials than prior generations.  OSB and plywood defect detection systems have represented a significant portion of sales for AIC. The 5700 series systems are proven to reliably penetrate LVL and PSL300 that are 3.5” thick (the typical maximum thickness of LVL). CLT and other engineered wood systems are next on our list for development.  While ultrasonic systems may not be powerful enough to scan these thicker products, we are already on path to development other systems that do.

“Crow’s goal is to continue to be the first place mills turn to for help with improving their operations.  Traditionally this support has come from capital and maintenance project support.  This acquisition, and the recent addition of PLC and electrical capabilities now allows us to help our clients in optimizing their operations.   We are excited to have this opportunity with the AIC team and the 40+ years of experience they bring to the table!”

Hunter Wylie
Crow Engineering’s President

January 2021

The Crow Engineering Chess Tournament

by Chad Corkern

Two players. One chess board. One move yields a countermove – attack and defend, strike and counterstrike. Warring adversaries fight it out by the rules of an ancient game. There’s a quiet but palpable tension in the room. Then a single word breaks the silence: “checkmate.”

The defeated player lays down his king. He’s not happy to lose but it’s just a friendly competition. Yes, he’s beaten Bob from Accounting in past. He’s sure can beat Bob again. But today he has to accept the fact that he’s simply out of the running.

This is the Crow Engineering Chess Tournament.

How It All Got Started

It began almost as a goof. An employee wanted to teach his son how to play chess. When he brought a board home, the whole family got hooked. Soon he was competing against his wife regularly.

At first, he won handily. But when his wife started winning, he thought it best to get some practice at work. Initially, a couple of employees joined in during lunch or break. But then interest grew. Who knew you could draw crowds with a game of chess? Soon, the Crow lunchroom became the site multiple games a day.

A tournament was probably inevitable. Engineers can be competitive.

Soon, lines were drawn, ranking sorted, and the Crow Engineering Chess Tournament was born. Currently, we’re about halfway through a double elimination bracket. We’d like to go faster, but we do have work to do.

Why It Is Important

It has been a tough year. A pandemic, social distancing, economic troubles – and let’s not forget the murder hornets! We are all adjusting to the times, with a dynamic paradigm shift in how we work and live. Even the definition of normal is currently in question.

But Crow Continues.

Due to the pandemic some of us are working from home. This, of course, makes it hard to play chess – though surely there’s an app of some kind that could do the trick. But even those that still work in the office are forced to keep their distance from one another. The classic pictures of designers hunched together over a set of drawings or engineers clustered around a whiteboard – these seem like images from a bygone era.

But Crow Continues.

Yet. All of today’s troubles aside, customers still come to Crow – and they still expect the best. There can be no excuses. We cannot allow ourselves to let the times get in our way. We must bulldoze our way through any challenge to deliver for our clients.

Which is why, Crow Continues.

The Crow Engineering Chess Tournament is helping us to keep our focus on our clients and get through these hard times. It’s a simple game to learn – but takes a lifetime to master. The competition is fun and it’s helping us to bring together people who might not typically interact. Just beware of the normally demure types – Se sometimes found to be quite aggressive and unreserved competitors.

Bringing people together helps to improve communication. Even if only through osmosis, ideas are exchanged, and conversations had. We at Crow are at our best when we’re communicating effectively –exchanging ideas, having disagreements, and driving toward resolution. But communication takes practice – and the Crow Engineering Chess Tournament has helped get a lot of practice indeed. It’s also been great for morale – which is helping us to keep pushing forward. Because as always . . .

Crow Continues.

At Crow Engineering, relationships with customers last for years. One company – a long-term customer – recently engaged us to review ways to increase the productivity of its lumber manufacturing process. To assess and identify improvement opportunities, we conducted an efficiency study of the company’s log infeed and breakdown systems.

Over the course of a two-day onsite review, Crow engineers studied the production line – interviewing operators, observing critical equipment, and generating a video for quick multi-engineering collaboration. Within seven business days, the team submitted a final assessment report that identified the main culprit standing in the way of improved productivity: overlooked maintenance practices.

The assessment recommended several fast, low-cost remediation actions that were implemented immediately and have helped improve process efficiency dramatically. The company also blessed the design of two additional pieces of equipment expected to be installed in 2021.

Does your company want to improve productivity as well?

Critical areas to continuously review include:

• Log quality (potential gains by minimizing log flair)
• Automation to avoid manual decisions
• Slab recovery
• Controls programming at each station
• Proactive equipment maintenance to avoid unscheduled downtime
• Grading process
• Saw-doctoring (filing)
• Calibration of measuring instruments and equipment

We would love the opportunity to meet you and discuss how we can help you lower your cost while increasing your productivity. Please contact us to assess your operation and identify opportunities for improvement.

Recently, Crow Engineering completed an engineering design to replace a raw material infeed conveyor at a building products mill. The mill was connected to a mining operation with a single conveyor to deliver feedstock. The conveyor was built in 1962 and worn out. Any interruption or problems with this conveyor caused both mining and mill production to stop. The owner hired Crow to evaluate the situation and investigate possible solutions to replace, upgrade, or rebuild the raw material feed line.

The Crow team researched a variety of new and standard technologies and worked with multiple vendors representing their respective technologies. After evaluating and comparing possible solutions based on priorities, restrictions, and budget, the customer chose to build a new 450-foot long conveyor that rose to a height of 118 feet over existing buildings. Then a split flow would be engineered to separate three process lines via 100 foot long chutes that snaked around existing structures. Sounds simple, right? This project was anything but simple. However, Crow Engineering made this option viable by effectively using modern engineering tools.

Modern Tool No. 1 – 3D Scan

Two Crow engineers went onsite and conducted a 3D scan of the facility, verified the existing support structures, conditions of walkways, and verified missing as-built data not obtainable by the 3D scan.  Crow presented the 3D scans and other field survey elements to the project participants.  This 3D scan was used extensively with the conveyor vendor to avoid interferences and thread the chutes through a maze of structural steel. 

 Crow Engineering imported the vendor’s conveyor model into the 3D scan.  Crow worked the project with real field data from the Crow offices and virtually walked thru the buildings identifying this door, this beam, this roof, and this path.  These virtual reality meetings were more effective than being on-site.  This saved travel time and Covid-19 issues were not a problem.  A snapshot of design as shown below gives an example of what we could see:

Modern Tool No. 2 – Advance Steel 3D

Crow Engineering took the existing structural steel drawings and made a 3D model of the structure using Advance Steel (evaluated as the most cost-effective tool for this job).  This model was then imported into the 3D scan so we could do a structural analysis and see where bracing had been modified or removed,  where conduit and piping were added, how to route our conveyors and chutes, and ensured that we met current building codes. 

Modern Tool No. 3 – SOLIDWORKS 3D

The conveyor vendor designs with SOLIDWORKS.  The 3D model by the conveyor vendor was brought into Crow’s model of the structure.  3D snapshots were presented by Crow Engineering to the conveyor vendor showing where their conveyor and supports would hit existing obstructions.  The conveyor vendor could easily see where the problems were and then modify their design.  This went on for weeks with small modifications being made as their design progressed.

Modern Tool No. 4 – Microsoft Teams

Crow Engineering uses many modern-day collaborative tools.  The conveyor vendor for this job is located in Mexico City, Crow is located in Beaverton, OR, and the owner’s team is located throughout the USA.  Each week we would meet online and look at updated models and renderings to discuss ways to resolve issues.  Crow believes that meeting weekly for one hour ensures that problems stay small, issues are resolved quickly, the project design flows smoother toward completion, and the “things to do” list stayed manageable.  The modern way of doing business has become a new “norm” because of Covid-19 workarounds. Ultimately  Crow Engineering and others have found that this method of collaboration has greatly improved project efficiency. 

Recently, Crow was hired by a client in the Northwest that wanted to replace an outdated planer mill. The client had identified a planer line located in the Southeast and hired Crow as the principal consulting engineer and the contractor responsible for disassembling, relocating, adapting, and installing this system in their facility. To accomplish the task, Crow divided the project into several phases.

First Crow was onsite at the seller’s facility in Alabama for several weeks to coordinate and control the equipment’s takedown and tagging all pieces to put them back together in their new location. Crow carefully identified all of the electrical components for reuse to save the client money during the process’s installation. Crow coordinated the packing and shipping of every component and system removed.

SecondOnce the system was relocated into the new facility, Crow worked with the client and all vendors to determine possible upgrades and modifications of the components to increase the efficiency and output at the new mill. Crow deployed one of our 3D specialists to take pictures at the new location. The 3D images ensured Crow and Crow’s clients would have the most accurate data needed to complete the installation. These images were used to design the mechanical, structural, and electrical layouts needed for the installation. The 3D images’ accuracy greatly reduced Crow’s design time and the mill’s downtime during the installation.

ThirdElectrically, Crow had to add a new motor control center (MCC) room with 2 new MCCs and did the layout drawings to show the motor and device locations for the control system. Single lines were created for the new MCC, and a complete set of control drawings were created to show termination points in the PLC enclosures for each field device. Crow provided layout and connection drawings for each operator console as well as the field mounted junction boxes. Network drawings were created for the new frequency drives and encoders that are controlled through Ethernet.