Hi-Tech in the Lumber Industry

FARMS Leadership | Tehama | Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Location of Field Day
Sierra Pacific Industries 19794 Riverside Ave. Anderson, CA 96007

Field Day Host(s) and Mentors

  • Kristy Lanham: North Sierra Community Relations Manager
  • Deanna Lewis: Communications Coordinator
  • John Parratt
  • Vaughn Emmerson: Division Manager-Fabrication
  • Drew Peterson: Electrical Supervisor

Theme
Technology and Manufacturing

Summary of the Day 

Tehama FARMS Leadership kicked off the 2021/22 year with a field day at Sierra Pacific Industries in Anderson, CA. Students from Red Bluff, Los Molinos, Corning, and Orland High Schools all came together to explore the career opportunities at SPI as well as learn more about the Lumber Industry as a whole and how Sierra Pacific Industries uses every fiber of every tree it harvests. Kristy Lanham, North Sierra Community Relations Manager, and Deanna Lewis, the Communications Coordinator welcomed us with an overview of the company sharing about how it is still a family-owned company with 4 generations of Emmerson’s working in different divisions of the operation and how SPI now owns over 2.3 million acres of land in Washington, Oregon, and California.

               We then went over to the Cogen and were introduced to John Parratt, who led the students on a tour of the Cogen itself. What is a Cogen you might be wondering like most of the students were? Cogeneration is the process of using steam to heat kilns that dry lumber, and then again to turn a turbine which makes electricity. Why is this important? Students learned that the manufacturing of lumber, windows, doors, and other products that SPI makes generates lots of low-grade byproducts, bark, and sawdust which they can burn in their Cogen to in turn create all the necessary power to run their entire Anderson facility, as well as about 5,000 local homes. So, it is an amazing way to be sustainable while literally using every fiber of every tree that comes onto the facility! Since SPI treats the FARMS Leadership Students like VIP, they were able to make the 9-story climb to the top of the building and take in the breathtaking view! This was by far the highlight of most students’ day!

               After the exciting Cogen tour, we headed over to the Fab and Tech Shop and met Vaughn Emmerson, Division Manager-Fabrication, who shared about all the opportunities available in this state-of-the-art facility. We were able to meet members of the impressive team of mechanical and electrical engineers, welders, machinists, and electrical technicians and see them building parts and pieces that will be used in the new upgraded Sawmill that is currently the main priority of the Fab Shop. Drew Peterson, Electrical Supervisor, took the time to teach the students why high voltage power is important and used in a facility such as this, opposed to lower voltage power like what we have in our homes. He passed around a portion of the power line that runs from the Cogen to the rest of the facility for the students to explore hands on.

My favorite part of the day was…”Going into the shop. All the equipment they had was incredible and it was cool to compare it to our school’s shop!” Lillian Tomasetti, Red Bluff High School

Nuts in the North State

FARMS Leadership | Tehama, North State, and Kern| April 21, 2021

Field Day Host(s) and Mentors  Andersen and Sons Shelling: Vina, CA Karen Gundersen, Grower Relations Manager Kristin Coley, Food Safety and Marketing Jennifer Williams, Marketing Director with California Walnut Board and Commission

Hands-On Kit Components Variety ID Worksheet, 5 different walnut varietals, In shell walnuts for cracking and grading, Kernel Defects information sheet. Small mallet for cracking nuts.

Theme
Walnuts and Processing

Summary of the Day  This field day hosted by Andersen and Sons Shelling was extra special with Jennifer Williams with the California Walnut Board and Commission joining us. She started off the day by introducing herself and the California Walnut Board to the students and explaining the important role they play for all those involved in producing and processing walnuts. We then jumped into watching a wonderful video about Andersen and Sons as a company which gave the students a good overview of what to expect as Karen Gundersen and Kristin Coley took us on a LIVE tour of the HUGE and expanding facility in Vina, CA. Students were able to see everything from walnuts being cracked and sorted, to grading, and finally to the packing line where local walnuts were going into retail packages with large retail names on them! So cool!!

Along the way, we discussed the many career opportunities that Andersen and Sons offers. Many of which require only a high school diploma, however if students have an interest in exploring high education they learned about careers that needed a certificate as well as those which need a 4 year degree to hold. To wrap up the day, Karen did a fun and interactive walnut variety identification activity using the hands on kits each student had received prior to the field day. Who knew there were so many different varieties of walnuts?! Students then were encouraged to use the guide they were given to crack and sort the in shell walnuts they received to see what kind of work goes into deciding what a farmer get paid for his walnuts.

We couldn’t be more thankful for partners like Andersen and Sons and the support we get from the Walnut Board to help educate our youth on the importance of not only where our food comes from, but how much work goes into getting it from the orchard to your trail mix or granola.

If you would like to join in on this field day…click HERE!

Plans After Highschool?

FARMS Leadership | Tehama & North State | March 16, 2021

Field Day Host(s) and Mentors Shasta College Agriculture – Dr. Audra Harl Horticulture – Leimone Waite Forestry/Natural Resources – Melissa Markee Heavy Equipment/Logging – John Livingston & Rick Boontjer Truck Driving – Clancy Mitchell Diesel Technology – Ray Nicholas & Ishmael Rivas Industrial Technology/Welding – Rick Osbrink & Jay Davis

Hands-On Kit Components Tomato Plant Seedling, Pot to transplant into, Soil

Theme
College Exploration

Summary of the Day  With the current pandemic in place, many students have not had the opportunity to get out and explore their college options for after they graduate. While this is especially important to juniors and seniors, the more exposure to higher education and what exactly that means the better chance our students have to make an educated decision on which path they plan to take when it’s time. Shasta College supplied a 2 hour information packed virtual field day where students “toured” 7 different departments from Agriculture to Forestry to Heavy Equipment, to Welding and everything in between. We then used our hands on kits which were graciously supplied by the Horticulture Department and the students were able to transplant their tomato seedling and learn about the root structure of a tomato compared to other plants as well as a little bit about the varieties they were planting. To wrap up the day Shasta Colleges Ag Leadership Students joined us LIVE to talk to the FARMS Leadership kids about life on campus and what being a college student really looked like. Finally all the departments that had been showcased at the beginning of the field day were available LIVE for the students to ask questions to. Thank you Shasta College for rocking it and giving a fabulous field day even on a virtual platform. Click HERE to watch the recorded field day!

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