Background

The development of Georgia Tech's Advanced Wood Products Laboratory (AWPL) was an effort to capitalize on a unique and possibly historic economic opportunity for the wood products industry in Georgia and potentially the United States.

Currently, the United States' domestic wood products industry, of which 60 percent is located in the Southeast, is approaching a technological watershed where modern, inter-linked CNC machines are replacing the traditional tools employed by furniture and cabinetry firms.

These new technologies have the potential to expand the market for a diverse array of products, and thus to transform the market in much the same way carpeting transformed floor covering markets 30 years ago.

The economic potential of this market is considerable. In 1998, the direct impact of expenditures associated with the wood products industry in Georgia was $19.7 billion. 177,000 Georgians directly and indirectly owe their employment to products derived from Georgia's forest industries.

With the expansion of the secondary wood products manufacturing industry utilizing high-tech machines, the potential for high-tech jobs in Georgia is undeniably significant. The degree to which the center of gravity in the wood products industry can be shifted to Georgia cannot be predicted at this point. However, it would not be unreasonable to assume that the economic impact of the current Georgia wood products industry could be doubled within 10 years.

The development of this laboratory, which became operational in January of 2001, serves to focus national attention to the secondary (finished) wood products industry in Georgia. Moreover, activities of the AWPL will establish the state as a regional, if not national, wood products industrial hub.