Weyerhaeuser closing 340-employee plant in Arkansas

In connection with its ongoing strategic review, Weyerhaeuser Company on November 29 announced that it is permanently closing its veneer and plywood facility in Mountain Pine, Ark., effective immediately.

The Mountain Pine closure will eliminate about 340 hourly and salaried positions. Affected employees will receive full pay for 60 days, as allowed by the WARN Act.

"Today's announcement is part of the ongoing effort to strengthen Weyerhaeuser's overall portfolio to enhance shareholder value," said Steven R. Rogel, chairman, president and chief executive officer. "As part of an ongoing strategic review of our businesses and against the backdrop of industry-wide market challenges for wood products, we have determined that this mill cannot be made economically sustainable.

"The closure of a mill is a difficult decision, but the reality of difficult markets requires that we allocate our capital with great prudence to ensure all manufacturing operations remain competitive and well positioned to serve our customers. Weyerhaeuser's employees work diligently to make our mills competitive and today's announcement is a reflection of the challenging business environment we face. We recognize the impact of this closure on the people of Arkansas, and we will do our best to work with state and local leaders to assist in the transition."

The Mountain Pine facility began producing lumber in the 1920s and was purchased by Weyerhaeuser in 1969 from Dierks Forest Industries. The plywood operation started in 1971. Its estimated annual production capacity is 240 million square feet (3/8-inch basis) of softwood plywood. Other Weyerhaeuser pine plywood facilities are located in Emerson, Ark., Springfield, Ore., and Dodson and Zwolle, La.

Weyerhaeuser continues to operate other businesses in the state, including: softwood lumber plant in Dierks; softwood contract lumber mill and containerboard packaging sheet-feeder operation in Russellville; plywood plant in Emerson; containerboard packaging plant in Fort Smith; retail design center in Bentonville; and a wood products sales office in Hot Springs. In Arkansas, Weyerhaeuser owns and manages more than 700,000 acres of commercial timberland.

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest integrated forest products companies, was incorporated in 1900. In 2005, sales were $22.6 billion. It has offices or operations in 18 countries, with customers worldwide.