92nd Annual RTA Symposium and Technical Conference
Information about this year's annual Conference in Branson, MO - October 12-14, 2010 is now available.
Congratulations to the 2010 John Mabry Forestry Scholarship Winners
Megan Buland is a Junior at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Her primary professional interests are plant and soil conservation and sustainable forests. Megan is a member of the Society of American Foresters, UK Forestry Club (and Conclave team member), and the National Junior Horticultural Association.
Josh Waukau is a Junior at the University of Wisconsin at Stephens Point. His primary professional interest is Forest management and Josh is a member of the Society of American Foresters, Menominee Fire Management Program, UWSP Fire crew, and the Annual Sandhill Crane Count team.
Please watch for a review of the 2010 Field Trip to Virginia and West Virginia in the July/August issue of the Crossties magazine.
Trends Reporters' Forum
A Production Trends Reporters' Forum is available to all RTA members. The Forum allows RTA members to view a running commentary with current, in-depth information on what is occurring in the marketplace regarding regional log availability, sawn hardwood product market conditions, and production.
Monthly Purchases Report
The current RTA Purchase Report reflects some changes we have made to include longer range effects of the latest trends. We have shifted the focus of the report to analyze annual and then quarterly data before reviewing the monthly data. In this way, the reader can view longer-term trends plus the monthly data in both text and graph format prior to moving to the data tab where all the information can be seen in significant detail. We hope that a clear picture of both long and short term trends will emerge.
On-Line Publications
Several new studies have been added to the RTA-Sponsored Research page of this site. You may want to look over this current literature in both the Environmental and Wood Preserving sections.
TieReports
RTA unveiled its long-planned TieReports series of technical notes at the 2008 American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way conference. These are condensed versions of RTA's most significant research on wood ties performance and wood preservation. The first 10 TieReports contain research on cost comparisons of alternative tie materials, the RTA Tie Usage Index, the environmental fate of creosote in wood tie track, wood preservation technology, and other timely topics.
You can find all TieReports issues in our Online Publications section.
Plant and Other News
NISUS CORPORATION ANNOUNCES NEW APPOINTMENT FOR DR. JEFF LLOYD
The Nisus Corporation has appointed Dr. Jeff Lloyd Vice President of the International Research Group on Wood Protection (IRG). The appointment to VP lasts for three years and is followed by three years as President, then another three years as Past President. IRG is a non-profit group that focuses on the latest developments and research in wood protection by providing the opportunity to develop and foster interaction between scientists from all over the world. Lloyd has been involved with IRG since his first paper, "The Mechanisms of Action of Borate Wood Treatments" in 1991. Nisus Corporation is the originator of Green Pest Management® and manufactures pest management products used by professional pest companies across the U.S. as well as other parts of the world.
To read more about Dr. Lloyd's appointment, see http://www.nisuscorp.com/portal/page/portal/Nisus.
AquAeTer CELEBRATES
August 17th, 2010, marked the 18th year in business for RTA member company AquAeTer. You may visit their website, http://www.aquaeter.com, for a special celebration message to their employees, loyal clients, and friends who have been an important part of their success over the years.
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PACIFIC WOOD PRESERVING LAUNCHES NEW WEBSITE
The Pacific Wood Preserving Companies have launched its new website at http://www.pacificwood.com. The redesigned site has a fresh new look and offers new resources for its customers who will be able to quickly download company brochures, technical information, and specification guides. The new website also has a “frequently asked questions” section where questions and answers will be posted for users to read. The website also has blog, a first for the wood treating industry. Company management, employees, customers and others will now be able to share ideas and information in a free flowing blogging environment.
Pacific is one of the nation’s largest producers of treated wood products, focusing on producing long-lasting wood products such as transmission utility poles, distribution utility poles, railroad ties, crane mats, fire retardant treated wood, and preservative treated wood for construction utilizing the latest technology in an environmentally forward-thinking manner. Facilities are located in Bakersfield, CA; Eloy, AZ; Silver Springs, NV; Sheridan, OR; and New Willard, TX.
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STELLA-JONES COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF TANGENT RAIL CORPORATION
For the full Press Release, see http://www.stella-jones.com/press/STE_Tangent%20closing_EN_vf.pdf
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STELLA-JONES INTRODUCES SINGLE-STAGE
BORATE TREATMENT PROCESS FOR RAILROAD CROSSTIES AND TIMBERS
A two-stage borate treatment has been used for years to help increase the life of a crosstie. Stella-Jones recently developed a new single-stage treatment process which allows for less handling of the crossties and reduced costs.
The new process was developed by Dr. Gordon Murray, Vice President of Stella-Jones and Adjunct Professor at Dalhousie University. The single-stage process will replace the current cumbersome and costly two-stage process, which involves treating crossties with borates, allowing the borates time to diffuse, and then finally treating the crossties with creosote.
Testing of the borate diffusion began in August 2009 to AWPA specifications and has since been independently validated. This analysis determined that Stella-Jones’ new single-stage borate treatment produces the same end result as the traditional two-stage process. Full scale production testing is expected to begin in April 2010 at the Company’s Goshen, Virginia facility serving CSX Transportation and a number of short line railroads.
CSX Transportation installs a limited number of borate-treated crossties in the heavy decay zones of the Southeastern United States. Company officials visited the Stella-Jones research facility in January, and CSX Transportation plans to utilize the single-stage treated crossties. This lower cost alternative will be a factor in the number of borate-treated crossties the company purchases, said the officials of CSX Transportation.
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AWPA HAS APPROVED ACZA FOR TIE TREATMENT
The Executive Committee of the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) gave final approval on January 26 for listing of ACZA-treated Douglas fir railroad ties in the AWPA Book of Standards.
Ammoniacal Copper Zinc Arsenate (ACZA) has been listed in AWPA standards since 1983 as an accepted wood preservative but it was not listed for the protection of ties. Recent pressures on creosote treated ties led Arch Wood Protection, Inc., licensor of the Chemonite brand of ACZA-treated wood, to submit test data to AWPA membership for tie applications.
The data package was submitted to an AWPA technical committee and its positive reaction was sent to the general membership which voted in favor of the listing. AWPA is a consensus organization that establishes standards for the wood preserving industry. Its membership consists of preservative manufacturers, treaters, users of treated wood, scientists, academics, and other interested parties.
According to Arch Wood Protection, Inc., ACZA preservative has proven its value in heavy duty applications. For example, Douglas fir is a strong, plentiful species – well-suited for use as ties – but not readily treated with other preservatives. Tests of ACZA-treated ties have shown low corrosivity and excellent spike-holding characteristics. The preservative enables wood to resist termite damage and fungal decay and has been found to reduce flame spread in wood timbers.
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