As part of the “Re-Think” Wood Pavilion, NELMA participated in the 2016 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Convention, held May 
19-21 in Philadelphia. Made possible with funding provided by the Softwood Lumber Board to promote both appearance and structural applications of wood, NELMA joined forces with the American Wood Council, the Southern Forest Products Association, Western Wood Products Association, the Western Red Cedar Lumber Association, and WoodWorks under one banner as a one-stop shop for architects and design professionals from across the country. More than 30,000 attended this year’s event.
Once again, the NELMA Eastern White Pine grade swatch and Pattern Profile booklet were popular reference and specification take-aways by visitors to the Association’s kiosk and information counter. “Wood is definitely trending heavily with these key wood market drivers”, noted Jeff Easterling, President of NELMA. “While the advent of tall wood construction has garnered mega attention from architects which will certainly increase the use of construction grades of lumber, the use of wood products in appearance applications is also benefiting from this sudden attention.”
NELMA would like to thank the Re-Think wood team and the Softwood Lumber Board for their continued support of this type of national promotional activity that permits regional associations access to these key audiences.
