A ProSales reader in Texas sent us this photo showing lumber from Georgia-Pacific (GP) bearing something new: A label that included actual as well as nominal sizes. The change appears to stem from last year's controversy in California in which Lowe's paid a $1.6 million fine following allegations it was advertising products normally sold in nominal dimensions but whose actual dimensions failed to meet industry standards.
The case's final judgment says that Lowe's won't be considered in violation of state law if its ads and bin tags rely on the manufacturer's description of the product's dimensions. Thus, GP--which sells to Lowe's--in effect helps out the big-box store by adding actual dimension sizes. Lowe's also has sought to protect itself by changing its ads, bin tags, and other promotions to add the words "actual dimensions" and those real sizes, right below the nominal sizes, when it lists a product. (See examples from a November 2014 ProSales visit to a Lowe's store in California.)
GP declined to comment on the record about the addition of the new labeling. We also don't know whether other mills are doing the same. So we ask you: Have you seen wood from companies other than GP come in recently that showed actual as well as nominal dimensions? If so, please take a picture and e-mail them to [email protected] so we can share them with the rest of the ProSales community. Let us know if you want to be identified as the person taking the photo.
