SIC 2431 Millwork
SIC 2431
This category covers establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing fabricated wood millwork, including wood millwork covered with materials such as metal and plastics. Planing mills primarily engaged in producing millwork are included in this industry, but planing mills primarily producing standard workings or patterns of lumber are classified in SIC 2421: Sawmills and Planing Mills, General. Establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing wood kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities for permanent installation are classified in SIC 2434: Wood Kitchen Cabinets.
321911
Wood Window and Door Manufacturing
321918
Other Millwork (including Flooring)
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 3,500 millwork establishments operated in 2005 in the United States, employing more than 124,000 workers. These establishments manufactured products almost entirely for the construction industry. The composition of output shifted in the late 1980s as renovation and repair increased faster than new construction. However, new construction starts increased significantly in accordance with the growth of the economy.
Despite a strong U.S. economy in the late 1990s, which spurred demand for wood products in residential and light commercial construction, as well as for residential repair, remodeling, and home improvements, this industry experienced only modest growth through the mid-2000s. To combat this slow growth, manufacturers are venturing into diversification, outsourcing, and educating customers of the environmental and energy efficiency advantages of their wood products.
Mills in this industry cut down either raw logs or stock lumber to produce wood shapes for windows and door trims, baseboards, railings, window sashes, and other items. Wood pieces are also assembled with glass, vinyl, and aluminum cladding to make window sashes and frames. Often an inert gas such as argon fills the space between the glass panes to enhance insulation. Doors may be constructed out of solid pieces for high-end uses or, more commonly, consist of a frame, two panels, and filling. In addition, exterior doors and interior apartment entrance doors often use steel to enhance security. In the 1990s, there was a shift away from expensive stain grade millwork to less expensive paint-grade, along with an increased use of medium density fiberboard (MDF).
Over time, the industry's dependence on new construction and repair decreased, and it turned its focus to remodeling, maintenance, and home improvements. During economic downturns, new construction subsides and repair work increases its share of construction activity. Repair work held steady during the recession in the early 1990s, while new construction grew more quickly into the 2000s.
According to reports of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the primary products manufactured by the millwork industry are doors, wooden windows and sashes, and moldings. Increasingly, doors and windows in particular are clad with vinyl, aluminum, or other metals, and energy savings have led to the development of vinyl and aluminum windows. Wood windows are regaining popularity, however, because of their strength, beauty, and natural insulating properties. Industry developments have allowed aluminum and vinyl clad wood windows to be produced in unlimited shapes and sizes. Solid wood doors, on the contrary, have lost market share to nonsolid wood doors, steel, and steel-covered exterior doors.
Continued environmental legislation has put the industry under tremendous supply pressures, although the effect on employment has been minimal compared to the logging, sawmill, and plywood industries. Nevertheless, the pressures are shifting the direction of technological change and marketing techniques in the industry. Most establishments specialize in one product class, such as wooden door units, stairs, or railings. Although the industry was previously concentrated primarily in the Pacific Northwest, the Midwest, and Texas, new wood...
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