Going PRO Training Award Helps AJD Forest Products Remain Competitive

AJD Forest Products needed to train one of their Grayling facility workers to fill the role of certified Lumber Grader. They worked with Michigan Works! Northeast Consortium and their Business Solutions Professional Alayne Hansen to apply for Going PRO Talent Funding to help pay for this training.

Thankfully, they were able to secure a $2,000 Talent Fund grant so they could get one of their workers, Steve Carpenter, into Lumber Grader Training. Once he completed the training, Steve received a wage increase and the lumber grader certification he earned is a transferable skill, which makes him more marketable for future promotions.

"Steve's skillset has been elevated and this allows AJD to remain competitive by having a certified lumber grader on staff checking for quality of the products we deliver,” reports Katrina Burtwell, AJD’s HR Manager.

For AJD to remain cost effective and competitive, their lumber needs to be graded to establish a degree of reliability in the appearance and structural value of the final product the mill produces. By having a trained Certified Lumber Grader on staff, it allows for AJD Forest Products to ascertain that their product has the quality that matches the standards set forth by the company and the proper lumber scanning and labeling.