From its large lumberyard in eastern Henrico County, the Ruffin & Payne Lumber Co. ships out building products to construction projects around the Richmond region.
With 40 years of experience in the lumber industry, company President George E. Haw says he hasnât experienced anything quite like what has happened this year with lumber prices, as the COVID-19 pandemic has played havoc with them almost all of 2020.
âItâs been crazy,â Haw said. âIâve been around a long time, and I have never seen a lumber market behave like this in 40 years.â
On a recent ride around the lumber yard, his son, George W. Haw, the companyâs vice president and director of purchasing, pointed out some of the varieties of lumber stacked around the operation and how prices have been affected. That includes some of the most common types of lumber used in home construction â southern yellow pine, which is often used in house framing, and spruce fir pine.