113th Annual Meeting

April 9-11, 2019 at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada USA

Join us in Las Vegas, Nevada for what promises to be excellent technical and guest programs. Come early or stay after the meeting and enjoy world class casinos, abundant recreational and sightseeing activities, spectacular shopping and exciting nightlife. Plan your visit today.

AWPA Meeting Registration
Note: Online Registration has closed. However, you may register on site:

On-site registration: April 8-11, 2017 (Members $675, Non-members $875)


Getting to Las Vegas
Las Vegas is served by McCarran International Airport (LAS). Las Vegas is served by over 30 commercial airlines providing hundreds of flights per day. Rental cars, taxicabs, and other ground transportation options are available at the airport.

Hotel Reservations
The meeting will take place at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, located at 3131 Las Vegas Blvd South in Las Vegas. The group rate for a Single/Double Resort King is $199. Rooms with two beds and/or those with three or more occupants are available at higher rates. Other room types are also available. A first-night's deposit is normally required at the time of reservation. Parking at the hotel is complimentary. NOTE: The cut-off date has passed and rooms are no longer available at the AWPA group rate.

Spouse/Guest Program
On Monday, guests will have the unforgettable experience of floating down the Colorado River through the Black Canyon on a motor-assisted raft. This scenic and gentle float trip starts at the bottom of the Hoover Dam for a unique perspective of the Dam few ever have the chance to see.

The rugged and remote mountains that line the river are home to desert big horn sheep, osprey, great blue heron and so many others animals you rarely see in nature. While you enjoy a leisurely float, guides will share the history and significance of this magnificent geological area. The walls of the Black Canyon rise nearly 2000 feet from the river's edge and create a picturesque view wherever you look. You will want to have your camera.

The rafts stop along the shore so guests can eat lunch and enjoy a swim in the refreshing Colorado river. The bus will meet everyone a Willow Beach in Arizona for a comfortable ride over the Hoover Dam and back to the hotel.

Bring a towel and swimsuit if you think you might want to swim. This raft does not offer shade so bring a hat/sunglasses/sunscreen as necessary. Each raft holds 25 people so this tour is limited to 50 participants. You won't want to miss it.

Breakfast will be available in the hotel on Tuesday for registered spouse program guests. As always, you are invited to the closing reception and award presentation Tuesday night.

The 2017 Hacker's Classic Moves to Revere Lexington
WOW! - that is the best word to describe the Revere Lexington Golf Course in Henderson, Nevada, selected to host the AWPA 2017 Hacker's Classic Golf Tournament, Sunday, April 9, 2017, held in conjunction with the AWPA 2017 Annual Meeting. This is one golf event you will not want to miss.

Designed by Billy Casper and Greg Nash, the Lexington offers a blend of an awe-inspiring view of the Las Vegas Skyline, the surrounding mountains, and an artist's design of a truly beautiful, desert-sculpted golf course. The course will test your shot-making capabilities with classic risk/reward scenarios. We selected this course because it sets itself apart from the rest due to its elevation changes, rolling fairways and gorgeous layout. Most golfers will find the course challenging, but fair and fun. Bring your camera!!

The Hacker's Classic will feature a scramble format, shot-gun start, with prize events on all 18 holes. Lunch is included. Note: Registration for this event has closed.

Pickler's Prance 5K Fun Run/Walk
The 2017 Pickler’s Prance 5K Fun Run/Walk will treat you to a tour of the exciting Las Vegas Strip. The event will be on the morning of Sunday, April 9. Note: Registration for this event has closed.

Suppliers Showcase
The Suppliers Showcase is a great way to make potential customers aware of your products and services at a very reasonable price. The Suppliers Showcase is normally held in conjunction with coffee breaks for a more comfortable, inviting interaction with potential sales contacts. We intentionally limit the number of spaces to maximize your opportunities to meet the people who need your products and/or services, so if you are interested, please be sure to inquire soon. Please note that registration includes full meeting registration for one person, member or non-member.

Current Suppliers Include:

American Wood Technology

Ametek Process Instruments

Applied Rigaku Technologies, Inc

Eco Chemical

Wood Care Systems

Things to See and Do in Las Vegas
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitor's Bureau website is a wealth of information on all things Las Vegas...visit their site now to begin planning your trip:

113th Annual Meeting Schedule of Events
General Chair: Jerry Winandy

Program Chair: Bob Baeppler

Saturday, April 8, 2017

12:00 pm to 5:00 pm - Registration Desk Open

9:00 am to 5:00 pm - Executive Committee Meeting

Sunday, April 9, 2017

8:00 am - Golfers meet at Revere Lexington Golf Course for 2017 Hacker's Classic

8:00 am - Pickler's Prance 5k Fun Run/Walk

12:00 noon to 5:00 pm - Registration Desk Open

1:00 pm to 8:00 pm - Suppliers' Showcase Setup

12:00 noon to 5:00 pm - Task Group Meetings, Track 1

12:00 noon to 1:30 pm - P-5 XRF Standard Reference Materials Task Group

1:30 pm to 3:00 pm - T-1 Residential Products Task Group

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm - Technical Committee Training Session

4:00 pm to 5:00 pm - T-7 Residential Products Quality Control Task Group

11:00 am to 5:00 pm - Task Group Meetings, Track 2

11:00 am to 1:00 pm - T-7 M1/M2/M3 Task Group

1:00 pm to 2:00 pm - P-4 CX-A Reaffirmation Task Group

2:00 pm to 3:00 pm - P-6 Task Group on Minimum Retentions

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm - P-9 Chemical Modification Task Group

4:00 pm to 5:00 pm - T-1 Education Task Group

6:00 pm to 7:30 pm - President's Reception

Monday, April 10, 2017

8:00 am to 5:00 pm - Registration Desk Open

8:00 am to 5:00 pm - Supplier Showcase

8:00 am to 10:00 am - Opening Session

• Welcome, and recognition of sponsors and guests
• Keynote Speaker: John Kriesel (www.stillstandingstory.com)
• Award of Merit Presentation to Mike Freeman
• General Committee Reports
• Vice President's Address
• President's Address

8:45 am to 3:30 pm - Spouse/Guest Trip. Meet by the Encore Hotel Registration Desk (by the main hotel entrance) to board the bus.

10:00 am to 10:15 am - Business Session

10:15 am to 10:30 am - Break

10:30 am to 12:00 noon - Technical Session 1: Student Research Presentations.
Session Coordinator: Colin McCown, American Wood Protection Association

• Trends in Waterborne Treated Wood Production and Implications for Wood Waste Disposal. Athena Jones, University of Miami
• Comparison of Performance of Wood Extractives as Preservatives in Field Tests Against Termites and Decay in the USA and in Pakistan. Babar Hassan, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan
• Reducing the Thickness Swelling of Wood Composites Using Z-Direction Adhesive Cross-Links. Will He, University of British Columbia
• Assessment of Volatile Metabolites for In-Situ Detection of Fungal Decay of Wood. Nasim Maafi, Mississippi State University
• Understanding the Interactions Between Photodegradation and Biological Degradation by Black Stain Fungi. Antoine Cogulet, Universite Laval, Quebec
• Development of a Method for Assessing Water Repellency and Dimensional Stability of Preservative Treated Railroad Ties. Daniel Trebelhorn, Oregon State University

12:00 noon to 1:30 pm - Lunch (on your own)

1:30 pm to 5:00 pm - Technical Session 2: Colley/Hartford Memorial Lecture and Research Symposium.
Session Coordinators: Grant Kirker, USDA Forest Products Laboratory, and Carl Morrow, Jeld-Wen 

• The Colley/Hartford Memorial Lecture will be presented by Dr. Lech Muszynski of Oregon State University. The title of this year's lecture is "CLT Exposed: Sunny Architects' Dreams, the Rainy Reality, and How to Make Everyone Happy."
• Changing Perceptions of Pressure Treated Lumber. Jeff Morrell, Oregon State University
• AWPA Biodeterioration Hazard Map Revisited, Again. Grant T. Kirker* and Amy Bishell, USDA Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory, Wood Durability and Protection
• A Revision to the Standard A40 Borate Titration Method. Jay Hilsenbeck, Lonza Wood Protection
• Biological Durability of Hygrothermally Modified Hardwoods and Softwoods. Matthew Aro* and Suzanne French, University of Minnesota-Duluth and Dana Richter, Glenn Larkin, Erik Keranen, and Peter Laks, Michigan Technological University
• Five Year Inspection of ACZA Treated Hardwood Ties in Track. Michael Sanders*, Mississippi State University and Tim Carey, Lonza Wood Protection
• Update on Revisons to 2018 National Design Specification for Incising-Effect Adjustment Factors for Strength and Stiffness. Jerrold Winandy*, University of Minnesota & Kevin Cheung, WWPA
• An Update on Micronized Copper Chemistry. John Ruddick, University of British Columbia (Retired)
• Copper Azole Type A (CBA-A) Pole Field Study. Dragica Jeremic, Mississippi State University and Tim Carey*, Lonza Wood Protection
• Correlation of HPLC, XRF & NAA Instrumental IPBC Measurement Methods in Wood Materials. Gerald DeMenna and Min Chen, Troy Corporation

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

8:00 am to 4:00 pm - Registration Desk Open

8:00 am to 3:00 pm - Suppliers' Showcase

8:00 am to 10:00 am - Technical Session 3: Performance of Industrial-Use Systems. Session Coordinators: Tom Pope and Doug Herdman, Osmose Utilities Services 

• Potential for Preservative Migration from Treated Poles or Piles: A Review, Jeff Morrell, Oregon State University, Dept of Wood Science & Engineering
• Evaluation of Human and Ecological Risks Associated with Remedial Wood Preservatives, Doug Herdman* – Osmose Utilities Services, Inc., and Lyle Trumbull*, O’Brien and Gere Engineers, Inc.
• Wood Pole Service Life and Impact of Cyclical Maintenance Strategies, Ben Butera* and Tom Pope-Osmose Utilities Services, Inc.
• Review of LCA of Brazilian Eucalyptus and Concrete Utility Poles, Steve Smith, Stephen Smith Consulting
• Utility Pole Specifications – A Suppliers Perspective, Jim Hickman, Langdale Forest Products Company
• Use of Creosote by the Construction and Transportation Industries - David A. Webb, Creosote Council, and Daniel P. Hagerty, Koppers Company

10:00 am to 10:30 am - Break

10:30 am to 12:00 noon - Technical Session 4: Durability Issues of Using Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT). Session Coordinator: Paul Merrick, LP Corporation 

• Lessons Learned from Wood Framing: Why Durability is an Essential Consideration for Mass Timber. Jeff Lloyd, Nisus Corporation
• Development of Protective Treatments for Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT). Rod Stirling, FPInnovations
• Potential Impact of Subterranean Termites on Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) in the Southeast. Beth Stokes*, Mississippi State University, and Juliet Tang, USDA Forest Products Laboratory

12:00 noon to 1:30 pm - Lunch (on your own)

1:30 pm to 2:30 pm - Technical Session 5: Marketing Treated Wood Products in 2020.
Session Coordinator: Kevin Archer, Viance LLC

• Putting Preserved Wood Back on the Forest Industry Map. Dallin Brooks, Western Wood Preservers Institute
• Market Opportunities for Exterior Products. Bill Ross, Fiberon

2:30 pm to 3:00 pm - Break

3:00 pm to 4:30 pm - Technical Session 6: Evaluating Preservative Treatments and Durability
Session Coordinators: Mark Mankowski and Stan Lebow, USDA Forest Products Lab 

• Statistical Process Control for Residential Treated Wood. Timothy Young*, University of Tennessee and P.K. Lebow and S.T. Lebow, USDA Forest Products Lab
• Bio-deterioration of SP Stakes at Various Geographical Testing Sites. Jun Zhang, Koppers Performance Chemicals
• Comparison of Performance Criteria for Evaluating Stake Test Data. Stan Lebow, USDA Forest Products Lab, Madison, WI
• Long Term Durability of Heartwood Solid Wood and Plywood Stakes Treated with ACA or CCA. Mark Mankowski, USDA Forest Products Lab, Starkville, MS
• Above Ground Test Method for Preservative Depletion. Andrew Zahora, Viance, LLC.

6:00 pm to 7:30 pm - Closing Reception and Awards Presentation

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

9:00 am to 12:00 noon - Railway Tie Association R&D Committee Meeting

CANCELLED: 9:00 am to 11:00 am - Accredited Standards Committee O5