Every year in North America, hundreds of millions of trees are planted to reforest areas that have been harvested. Depending on the species and climate, it takes anywhere from 25 to 80 years for those new trees to attain harvest size. (25 years is more typical of the southeastern United States with longer periods in the Northwest and Canada.)

As with all plant species that have been tested, ESP-90 treatment of seeds produces more vigorous, faster-growing trees. This can reduce the time needed for trees to reach harvest size by at least 20%. Or, if trees are allowed to grow the same length of time before harvest, it can increase yields by at least 20%, producing not only more, but also better wood, because wood quality tends to improve as the log size increases. This is significant because, although timber producers have been able to produce enough wood to meet demand, the quality of the wood has diminished over time as the average size of logs has declined due to harvesting of younger trees.

Faster reforestation also offers ecological and aesthetic benefits. These can be of significant value as the forest products industry continues to address public concerns about the impact of logging and forest management practices.

Enhanced growth enabled by ESP-90 process is evident below. Acorns collected in October, 1999 were treated using full ESP-90 (right), partial (middle) and none (left), Photo made late November, 1999.

As with most applications of the ESP-90 process, the economics of this market still need to be worked out. ESP-90 treatment of seeds is straightforward and should involve very little expense, so the cost/benefit relationship should be extremely good. This is a huge market.

How to apply the ESP-90 process to treat seeds for reforestation has been worked out and tested on a small scale. Larger-scale demonstrations are very simple to arrange, along the lines of crop demonstrations that have already begun.

As soon as an interested party (government, academic or commercial) is ready to provide seeds for Mr. Sexton to treat, the demonstrations can be carried out immediately. All that will be required is for the interested party to provide the seeds. Mr. Sexton will treat the seeds and return them for planting in whatever location the interested party chooses. Details of how results are documented and how such documentation may be used will be worked out according to the interests and needs of the participants.

Obviously, trees take a long time to grow to commercial size. The improved performance of ESP-90 treated seedlings should be unmistakable within a short enough time to allow licensing and commercial use sooner, rather than later. Supporting this will be the increasingly conclusive demonstrations with faster-growing species, such as field crops, Christmas trees, etc.

The total value of the United States timber is difficult to determine since the various products (lumber, round wood, plywood and veneer, for example) have production listed in several different units. Obviously, such figures as over 33 billion board feet of lumber,1.3 billion cubic feet of plywood and veneer and 5.5 billion cubic feet of pulp products clearly indicate the huge size of the timber market. A modest decrease in losses due to physical and biological degradation coupled with significant increases in quality and strength are easily attainable using the ESP-90 process.

Log Storage: Extends the time window of outdoor storage without degradation by 300%- 400%. Eliminates the need for wet-storage of logs. Permits indoor storage of logs without degradation indefinitely—even years, in log form with no degradation. Also enables overseas shipping without loss due to degradation.

Milling: Substantially reduces wear and tear on saw blades and other cutting equipment. The ESP-90 wood is less brittle and machines better.

Air-Drying: Reduces air-drying time by an average of 20%+. Reduces sticker stain and other degradation during air-drying by an average of 20%+.

Kiln-Drying: Reduces kiln-drying time by an average of 20%+. This needs to be thoroughly researched. It is possible that the process will allow for substantially reduced kiln-drying time, which would produce a major cost saving, without the usual problems associated with drying of wood.

Reduces all forms of degradation: Reduces checking, warping, cupping, staining, etc. in all species of both hardwoods and softwoods during and after kiln-drying by an average of 20%+.

Yield: Based on the reduction in degradation at every stage of processing, theESP-90 process will increase the both the quantity and quality of yield from each log processed.

Quality: ESP-90 process treated wood is stronger, truer, less brittle, machines better, is more dimensionally stable, sounds better (for musical instruments) and looks better than other wood.

The appearance and figure of the wood are noticeably clearer, with fresher-looking, natural color. Every woodworker who has worked with samples of ESP-90 process treated wood has been more than impressed—almost universally, woodworkers are EXCITED when they experience the difference. ESP-90 process treated wood appears (and in fact is) more natural, and more beautiful, than conventionally processed wood.

As with most applications of the ESP-90 process, the economics of this market still need to be determined. The areas where ESP-90 treatment of hardwood logs will create value include:

1. Increased value of the end-products. This due both to higher yields and a higher quality, end-product worth more per board-foot.
2. Savings due to increased efficiency of operations. This may be especially significant with regard to kiln-drying, which typically takes a minimum of 10 to 14 days and can take up to 6 or 8 weeks for some hardwoods. This comprises one of the most expensive aspects of hardwood processing. ESP-90 treatment of logs can significantly reduce this time. Savings due to reduced wear and tear on equipment during milling may also provide significant value.

The ESP-90 process is well-suited to the way hardwood trees and logs are typically handled, although it will involve some modest adjustments in the operations. The impact of those adjustments on processing costs must be assessed; however, they should be well within the range of feasibility for an excellent cost/benefit relationship.

ESP-90 processing of trees and logs requires no change in the equipment employed. TheESP-90™ process has no impact on the environment. It involves no chemicals, combustion, etc.

How to apply the ESP-90 process to treat hardwood trees and logs has been worked out and tested on a small scale. The next step in demonstrating the value of ESP-90 treatment for hardwood processing is to arrange a series of kiln-drying tests. To accomplish this, a suitable kiln needs to be found, either in a private, commercial operation or at a research institution.

Unless the commercial kiln is part of a major operation that’s seriously interested in licensing the process, a research setting is preferable because the results can be can be publicly distributed and will more convincing to prospective users. Discussions are now underway with a forest products research facility that can serve this purpose.

Once the test facility has been arranged, the testing itself can be completed in a few months’ time. The documentation from those tests will then become the basis for discussions with hardwood producers, some of whom have already expressed significant interest.

Hardwood veneer is one of the most valuable of all forest products. The ESP-90 process is especially well-suited to this application and could be introduced quickly

Production of wood intended for veneering purposes shares a 1.3 billion cubic foot volume with plywood production. A major advantage for oyster veneer has been demonstrated by a furniture manufacturer who produced many chests with ESP-90 walnut using thin-sliced veneer without any splitting or checking. Without the ESP-90 process, losses due to physical deterioration would have effectively made the effort impossible.

Tests with two veneer producers are being arranged to further demonstrate the benefits of the ESP-90 process for veneer production.

• Improved quality of veneers for all purposes (fewer splits, more uniform veneers that are easier to handle, that sand and finish better, etc.)
• Improved yields due to reduced degradation/fewer defects during processing
• Reduction in handling costs related to preparation for veneering operations.

Any improvement in yield or reduction in degradation will produce a significant profit benefit. The exact value for this industry will be worked out as implementation progresses.

The ESP-90 process is well-suited to the hardwood veneers industry and will be easy to document and implement.

The first step will be to arrange for on-site demonstrations of how ESP-90 process treated hardwood performs in veneer production. At least two veneer producers have expressed interest in having demonstrations done at their facilities. These can be done at any time.

Because veneers dry very quickly, the advantages of the ESP-90 process for veneer producers should become clear immediately.

Softwoods for lumber in 1995 amounted to 32 billion board feet. Softwood lumber is the largest category of wood products (not including pulp and paper products).

It includes operations in Canada and the northwest United States that involve primarily spruce, white pine, ponderosa pine, fir and hemlock, and operations in the southeastern United States that are primarily southern yellow pine.

The ESP-90 process can be applied to all these operations starting at harvest and processing, according to where it best fits in with the way the timber is handled. Some applications (e.g. higher value timber that is handled more selectively) will lend themselves to more thorough ESP-90 treatment, while others will lend themselves to a more abbreviated application of the process.

At least one of the largest U.S. producers of softwood lumber has expressed serious interest in doing a thorough investigation of the ESP-90 process to evaluate its potential for the company’s use.

• Higher yields and reduced degradation from all causes at all stages of processing
• Improved dimensional stability and trueness of lumber
• Improved structural strength (Table 1)
• Improved drying characteristics. This may be especially significant with those woods that tend to distort the most during drying; e.g., southern yellow pine and wood from younger trees in general.

As with most applications of the ESP-90 process, the economics of this market still need to be worked out.

Depending on how timber is handled within each of the various sub-categories within the softwood lumber industry, the ways of applying the ESP-90 process and the cost/profit advantages will vary. This is a huge market that is not really one market, but a group of related markets.

The tasks involved here (e.g., kiln-drying testing) are similar to those for hardwood lumber and can be done together to a large extent. The discussions under Forest products /Hardwood lumber earlier in this section also apply to softwood lumber.

The log home industry is worldwide and involves many manufacturers using a substantial quantity of lumber. The range of tree species which can be used is limited by some species failure to retain dimensional integrity during the drying process. Additional problems involve splitting and other kinds of physical and biological deterioration which can cause both structural and ascetic problems.

As with other wood applications ESP-90 will offer significant reductions in deterioration from physical and biological degradation. It will also improve log handling and processing through better drying and milling characteristics. ESP-90 may also enable use of tree species currently unsuited for log homes.

As with most applications of the ESP-90 process, the economics of this market still need to be worked out. Reduction of losses due to physical and biological deterioration, improved drying and milling operations and possible added availability of tree species will all contribute to important economic benefits.

ESP-90 can be implemented now in all current aspects of log home production from tree harvest to construction completion. Efficacy testing to determine the suitability of new species would take from six to ten months.

The improved properties of ESP-90 process treated wood are especially valuable for applications that demand the highest performance from the wood. These tend to be smaller markets, but ones where the cost of the materials used is often a secondary concern, compared to the demand for highest performance.

• Improved strength and resiliency of the wood (e.g. sports equipment)
• Dramatically improved dimensional stability and freedom from checking, warping and splitting (lathe turning, sculpting, large architectural pieces, etc.)
• Improved weathering characteristics and resistance to fungal and insect attack (e.g., boat building)
• Improved acoustical properties, possibly to Stradivarius-like quality (musical instruments)

Because these are applications where quality is prized, ESP-90 process treated wood can command a premium price in these markets. They are the markets best suited to using all aspects of the ESP-90 process to produce the absolute maximum, premium level of wood quality and performance that can be attained. The ultimate value of the process for these markets will be worked out one by one as implementation proceeds.

Each of these market niches will require tests and demonstrations.