By JAMES RONALD SKAINS
Journal Correspondent

Dr. Richard Vlosky has been named Director of the Louisiana Forest Products Development Center, a unit of the Louisiana State University AgCenter's School of Renewable Natural Resources. Dr. Vlosky brings a wealth of experience in marketing wood products to the position.

"Although we are experiencing tough times in the forest industry, I'm still bullish on wood products," Dr. Vlosky told the Piney Woods Journal in his LSU office. "The harsh reality is that our current global marketing conditions are beyond the control of any individual wood manufacturer. However, there is so much that can be done on the wood industry."

"Marketing is the key to survival," Dr. Vlosky emphasized. "The big boxes [large national product retailers] are the market leaders but the consumers don't have much loyalty. They are looking for less cost and new products."

Vlosky, a 46-year-old Pearl River, New York native who attended Oswego State University near his hometown for two years before moving west, has been at LSU for the last ten years of his career. He noted, "I really like LSU. I love to come to work here every day. We are doing some exciting things that will make a difference in the forest industry in Louisiana."

Vlosky received his Ph.D. in Wood Products Marketing at Penn State University, a Masters Degree in International Forest Products Trade from the University of Washington and a Bachelor's Degree in Natural Resources and Forest Management from Colorado State University. Dr. Vlosky also spent time working with the U.S. Forest Service in both California and Alaska. In addition, Vlosky served one and one-half years in the Peace Corps working in Costa Rica in forestry and environmental projects, honing his skills for future work.

His research includes Forest Certification, Internet Business, and International and Domestic Market and Economic Development. He has spent his 29-year academic and working career in the wood products industry. He has over 200 publications and has made more than 100 national and international public presentations.

"At the Louisiana Forest Products Development Center, we are currently working several programs to better enable Louisiana forest products manufacturers to find new markets and for markets to find them," Dr. Vlosky explained. "We are setting up a website-based directory of forest sector participants of both primary and secondary manufacturers. We will include loggers and distributors, eventually having a virtual forest products website community."

There are a lot of specific things that can be done to enhance our forest products industry," Dr. Vlosky pointed out. "We can use technology to communicate in the supply chain. Our Louisiana wood manufacturers can develop long term relationships with large companies. We can find niche wood products for niche markets that can't be substituted."

"We are right in the middle of the wood basket of the South," Dr. Vlosky added. "We can cut to size for our customers, we can cut to metric size for export lumber. We need to remember that most customers are different, so one approach will not always satisfy each customer."

"We want to turn out products that cannot be bought anywhere else but here in Louisiana," Dr. Vlosky suggested. "The hardwood market is still good. Thee is a lot of room for expansion in the Louisiana furniture market. Also, our Cajun culture gives us markets for Louisiana wood products."

Previously, Dr. Vlosky was vice president of sales and marketing, Optical Data Systems, Inc., Vancouver, B.C.; general manager, Bar Tech International Coding System, Inc., Vancouver, B.C.; product line marketing and planning manager, Plum Creek, Co., Seattle, WA.; and database manager, Center for International Trade in Forest Products (CINTRAFOR) at the University of Washington, Seattle.

While on the west coast, Vlosky met his wife to be, Denese who practiced law in Pennsylvania while he had worked on his Ph.D. at Penn State. Now at LSU, she works on her Ph.D. in Family Studies Human Ecology. They have two sons, Daniel, 17, and James, 12.

The Woods Product Center, spanning the spectrum from laboratory-based experiments and product development to economic development, attempts to not only develop new technology and products that will add value to forest products, but assure that it is adopted and put into the marketplace and ultimately made available to the consumer.

"Improving quality of life for Louisiana consumers and improving forest sector economic viability of the state are our primary goals and I look forward to contributing to their achievement in my new role," said Vlosky in conclusion.

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