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Timber manufacturer Structurlam on Monday announced plans to open its first U.S. plant in a former steel factory in Arkansas.
The company, which produces timber for the construction and industrial segments, expects to invest $90 million to acquire and renovate the property in Conway, about 30 miles north of Little Rock. Structurlam officials said the new plant should open in the middle of 2021 and create 130 new jobs.
The factory will produce mass timber — laminated wood used in structural components of buildings — from Arkansas-grown Southern Pine trees. Structurlam says timber offers a green, cost-effective alternative to steel and concrete and can accelerate project timelines by pre-fabricating components elsewhere.
Walmart will be the Conway facility’s first customer. The retail giant, which invested in Structurlam, plans to use more than 1 million cubic feet of the company’s timber to build its new Bentonville headquarters.
“Our new U.S. location will answer the demand for mass timber building products and industrial matting products in the southern, central and eastern United States,” Structurlam CEO Hardy Wentzel said in a statement.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Structurlam
