Timber Products history

But in 1920, “super salesman” Gus Bartells of Elliott Bay Plywood in Seattle began generating customers in the automobile industry.

Rainier Pulp & Paper Company is founded in Shelton, Washington, in 1926.

By 1929, there were 17 plywood mills in the Pacific Northwest and production reached a record 358 million square feet (3/8-inch basis).

By 1930, our company has expanded to three mills in Shelton, Hoquiam and Port Angeles, WA, becoming the largest dissolving paper producer in the world.

A breakthrough came in 1934 when Doctor James Nevin, a chemist at Harbor Plywood Corporation in Aberdeen, Washington, finally developed a fully waterproof adhesive.

Rayonier becomes a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange in 1937.

The new association struggled until, in 1938, it hired a legendary business development guru, W. E. “Diff” Difford.

A pulp mill built to utilize the new sulfite technology begins production in Fernandina Beach, FL, in 1939, the first of its kind in the Southeast.

In 1940, the association sponsored “The House in the Sun,” the first of many plywood demonstration houses.

A significant development in the glulam industry was the introduction of fully water-resistant phenol-resorcinol adhesives in 1942.

In 1944, the industry’s 30 mills produced 1.4 billion square feet of plywood.

In 1949, Wil Gonyea purchased Umpqua Plywood with Jay Pritzker and the Pritzker family, a partnership that has lasted more than 60 years in various business ventures, involving four generations of Gonyeas and three generations of Pritzkers.

By 1952, Rayonier has acquired 400,000 acres in Washington and is the largest timber owner on the Olympic Peninsula.

By 1954, the industry had grown to 101 mills and production approached 4 billion square feet.

The first US manufacturing standard for glulam was Commercial Standard CS253-63, which was published by the Department of Commerce in 1963.

Adhesive and technology improvements eventually led to the manufacture of structural plywood from Southern pine and other species, and in 1964 the Association changed its name to American Plywood Association (APA) to reflect the national scope of its growing membership.

1966 Particle board plant established in Medford, Oregon

1970 Softwood veneer plant acquired from Georgia Pacific in Yreka, California

That same year, the Stanford Research Institute predicted that demand for plywood would rise to 7 billion feet by 1975—21 years into the future.

In 1985, Rayonier will open an office in Beijing, China.

To better reflect the broadening product mix and geographic range of its membership, the Association changed its name again in 1994 to APA – The Engineered Wood Association.

1995 First hardwood plywood company certified by Sustainable Forestry Initiative

Public participation in the partnership will end in 1998, but one result of the partnership is that Rayonier breaks the supply link between its timberlands and manufacturing facilities, auctioning timber to the highest bidder.

In 2001, Rayonier's United States forests achieve Sustainable Forestry Initiative® certification.

On January 1, 2004, Rayonier reorganizes as a Real Estate Investment Trust, or REIT, focusing on three core businesses: forest resources, real estate and performance fibers.

In 2006, Rayonier's New Zealand forests will achieve Forest Stewardship Council® certification.

In 2007, Rayonier will become the first REIT to issue convertible debt from its subsidiaries.

Rayonier will plant its billionth tree in 2009.

2011 MCTC founded Gonyeas purchased Michigan-California Lumber Company with 114,000 acres in Northern California and re-named the company Michigan-California Timber Company (MCTC)

On June 27, 2014, Rayonier’s performance fibers business spins off into an independent, publicly traded company, Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. (NYSE: RYAM). Rayonier announces David L. Nunes as President and Chief Executive Officer.

2016 Particle board plant acquired from Sierra Pine in Martell, California