News & Resources - Customer Focus
The Freeman Corporation
Not all veneers are equal
Most veneer companies sell you whatever comes out of the log. Big runs. Lots of middlemen. You've got to sort to get what you want. Not with Freeman.
Freeman sells and grades veneer for the exact needs of the end user. You want a specific grade, a specific cut - you get it. Maybe that's why they've earned an enviable reputation as the highest quality veneer manufacturer in the industry. They're also the largest of the American family-owned mills. Freeman cares a little more and tries a little harder, not only because it's their family pride that's at stake, but it's their customer's pride, too. They want it right. You get it right.
Thick, thin, sliced, rotary, or cut to size
Ash Burl-White
Freeman is the only major veneer mill that combines thick slicing, thin slicing, and thick rotary for flooring. Plus, they sort their veneers into many more product specific grades than their competition. That means you get exactly what you want without sacrificing quality or sorting through a run looking for good pieces. Some veneer companies are simply production-based. At Freeman, they're decidedly customer-based.
Thin Sliced Veneers
Freeman produces export-style clipped and bundled veneer as well as crated and sampled domestic-style in: ash, cherry, hickory, maple, poplar, red oak, white oak, and walnut. They also produce veneers on special order in: hackberry, ponderosa pine, sugar pine, birch, basswood, and many others.
Thick Sliced Veneers
Primarily used for the engineered flooring industry and window and door industry and can be ordered 1/8" (3.715mm) to 1/36" (0.7mm). It is also available clipped to exact length and width specifications.
Freeman High Speed Rotary
Rotary Veneers
Produced in Freeman's high-speed rotary line that can peel several truckloads of high quality veneer each shift. Typically, only North American hardwoods are available in thicknesses from 1/6" (4.2mm) to 1/20" (1.27mm). Veneers can also be ordered trimmed to the exact length and width you want.
Advanced manufacturing techniques
Innovation in manufacturing has allowed Freeman to produce more diversified products than any mill in North America. Whether it's multiple thicknesses, different dimensions or grain patterns, their five slicing lines (and soon to be six) and their high-speed rotary line can meet any demand. In addition, much of the dedicated processing machinery is unique to Freeman and has been specifically designed and built on-site.
With 250 employees and 6 acres under roof, Freeman produces about 900,000 square feet per day of sliced and rotary veneers.
Not all forests are equal either
Freeman was the first mill in the world to offer large volumes of FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified veneers. And today, Freeman is still the world's leading producer and marketer of FSC certified veneers. The majority of their certified black cherry and red oak comes from Kane Hardwood, a division of The Collins Companies. Kane is located in the heart of the Allegheny Mountains, home to the finest black cherry in the world.
"We have partnered with The Collins Companies for three simple reasons: Their quality is consistently superior; their management and harvesting practices protect and enhance not only the forest but the fish and wildlife that depend on that forest; and finally, because like us, they practice what they preach." -George Freeman
Family-owned and proud of it
Founded in 1914 by George E. Tomlinson, the Kentucky-based company began as manufacturers of hardwood lumber, tobacco hogsheads (a type of tobacco storage barrels), and Tomlinson takedown tables, the first banquet tables capable of being instantly disassembled for storage. Originally named The Tomlinson Company, the name was changed to The Freeman Corporation when Tomlinson's grandson, Gene Freeman, took over after George Tomlinson's death. By 1982, Freeman's sons, George and Reid, joined the company.
Today, the Freeman Corporation is a multi-faceted wood veneer manufacturer. Major customers include: furniture manufacturers, furniture components manufacturers, veneer splicing plants, plywood factories, architectural millwork companies, window, door, and flooring manufacturers. Their 22,000 square foot office and showroom is the hub of the operation and houses a marketing team selling to over 30 countries.
Contact Information
Visit their virtual showroom where domestic and export customers can see and buy many of their architectural flitches.
www.FreemanCorp.com
859.744.4311
sales@freemancorp.com