���Entrepreneurship Opportunities in �Maine’s Forest Industry�

Eric Kingsley

Innovative Natural Resource Solutions LLC

kingsley@inrsllc.com

Phone 207-233-9910

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Innovative Natural Resource Solutions LLC

• Founded in 1994
• Offices in New Hampshire and Maine
• Focused at the intersection of forest industry, energy and economic development
• Services include:

- consulting in renewable energy

- advocacy

- forest management and protection

- forest certification and sustainability

• Clients from the private, non-profit and government sectors
• Conducted work in all regions of North America
• www.inrsllc.com

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Traditional Industries

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• Farming
• Fishing
• Forestry

Probably a lot like many other industries, but there are some things to be aware of…

Manufacturing / Processing

• Fixed location
• A sawmill
• A paper mill
• Very likely to be technology innovators / adopters
• Rarely early adopters
• Employing technology and automation to improve efficiency

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Supply Chain

• From the resource to the market
• A logger
• A trucking company
• Often mobile
• Smaller companies
• Likely to use expensive and technology – heavy equipment
• Unlikely to be utilizing information technology to its potential

Example of a Supply Chain (forestry)

• Landowner
• Forester (professionally trained, managing the timberland)
• Logger (logging crew)
• Trucker
• Mills
• Sawlogs
• Pulpwood
• Chips
• Each part of the supply chain has unique needs and opportunities

Companies – in a gross over-generalization

• Smaller companies
• From solo to +/-25 is typical
• B2B
• Significant capital investment
• Education obtained via operation, some school
• Little time to search for solutions
• Rely upon trusted advisors to identify opportunities (trade associations, accountants, bankers, equipment dealers, etc.)
• Limited information technology – UI / UX is critical

Where Are There Opportunities?

• Tracking from resource to market
• This is becoming important for market-based label claims and certification
• Trucking dispatch / coordination
• Productivity
• Monitoring
• Measurement
• Safety
• Compliance
• Training
• Others?

Some Things to Consider

• Cell coverage is not a given – no mater what the maps show you, there are lots of places where cell coverage does not exist
• There are opportunities to transfer technology from adjacent industries
• In many instances, traditional industries are not the logical first-use case, but likely some technologies can be customized and re-purposed
• These are often commodity businesses
• Low margin operations are common
• Efficiency is frequently the key to success

Customer Discovery

• Trade associations are a great place to start – they represent the entities you are looking to connect with
• Trade associations are not actually in the business you want to connect with – they are a resource, but not the market
• Spend time seeing what tasks actually occur
• Spend time in the field, if possible
• Wireframes, mock-ups, etc. are critical – users are concrete thinkers
• Be as clear as possible, don’t use tech language
• Ask questions and listen

Forager – example of Farm-to-Table

Team Safe Trucking: example of remote learning

Safety App – example of compliance

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Discussion and Questions

Eric Kingsley

Innovative Natural Resource Solutions LLC

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Phone 207-233-9910

Email kingsley@inrsllc.com

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DRAFT - FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION ONLY

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