Photo by Wanda Hanson
The former Root River Sawmill is once again up and running in Preston under the ownership of Jenny and Jason Kleppe. Originally Jason had gotten a call asking if he was interested in purchasing some equipment; he already owned other sawmills in the area. From there it snowballed until the Kleppes were purchasing the entire mill, set up and ready to go – totally turnkey.
The closing date was April 30; on May 1, the Kleppes headed to Preston to check out their new mill and equipment. The sawmill was then up and running again, back in business as Kleppe Forest Products.
Jenny, Jason and Chase, their son, now run the mill. Chase makes sure everything is running well at the mill in Preston. Several former Root River employees now work for the Kleppes. Bob Sauer is the yardman at the mill and sells sawdust, mulch, etc., while Ron Klinski is the lumber grader and does lumber sales. The former Root River employees were not only familiar with the industry, but also with the exact location and equipment; this helped make the transition easy.
Chase, Bob and Ron collaborate on the day-to-day work at the sawmill. The Kleppes other son, Cole, also works for the family business, driving log trucks and semis.
Jason has a long history in logging. After graduating from high school, Jason started trucking and logging, hauling logs to Amish mills located between Harmony and Canton. When the sawyer at the mills moved away, Jason bought the mills. Jenny is not just a partner on paper; she drives log skidders, log trucks and scales logs, determining their quality and size. She works in the woods with Jason, cutting logs and also does the invoicing and handles customer calls.
The main office for Kleppe Forest Products is located in Prosper. On a given day, Jenny might travel from Prosper to Preston or perhaps to Harmony to run a front-end loader moving logs. She then heads back to Prosper. Daughter Kaylee is in eighth grade at Mabel-Canton and involved in lots of school activities.
Jason farmed while he was logging. His kids grew up riding in the log truck. Cole moved logs and stacked them before he got his driver’s license. It’s no wonder that both Chase and Cole are now involved in the family business. According to Jenny, there are not many young people in the lumber industry right now.
Kleppe Forest Products saws both pallet lumber and grade lumber. They make crane mats and swamp mats; these mats are used to provide a stabilizing surface for vehicles on rough terrains. Crane mats are used to install high lines; they measure eight inches by four feet wide and come in lengths of 16, 18 and 20 feet long. The swamp mats are smaller than crane mats; they measure 8’ by 14’ and are 4½” thick. Swamp mats are used by many people when they are digging ponds.
Railroad ties, trailer decking and shore lagging are other products they make. Shore lagging is a construction technique to stabilize ground during deep excavations.
Photo by Wanda Hanson
Photo by Wanda Hanson
In addition to the mills they own, the Kleppes have three Mennonite mills in the Orchard, Iowa area help with some custom work.
Many of the orders are custom orders. Jenny related that earlier that week a man called wanting white oak boards for a cattle chute; a snowmobile club ordered wood to repair bridges on its trail and a gentleman called wanting two 2×12” eight foot long pieces. The Kleppes can cut any size their customers want or need.
When asked about their employees, Jenny answered that there are 15 not counting Chase, Slade, Jason and herself. Four truckers based out of Prosper are kept busy every day. On that particular day, two truckers had headed to Illinois to bring back logs, another headed to Mazeppa to haul logs while Sam went to Luck, Wis., to deliver a load of lumber.
Shipments are made to Texas furniture stores. Grade lumber goes to Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and Canada. Crane mats are shipped all over the U.S. Most of the lumber is shipped to the west.
With all the equipment in working order, the Kleppes have no plans now for any new purchases at this time. Their goal is to maintain and deliver good products. By purchasing this mill, they have doubled their production and are keeping very busy. Jenny laughed, “The boys can tackle it (any future growth) down the road if they want! Great for them!”
Kleppe Forest Products gives quotes and bids to landowners interested in selling lumber. Their crews go into the woods and harvest the standing lumber. They are glad to have the sawmill open again so locals can get sawdust, mulch and firewood. They are happy to be a part of the community.
A web page for the company is in the works (https://kleppeforestproducts.com/). Jenny noted that they are a small, family owned company and have not advertised too much.
Employee Ron Klinski volunteered, “The Kleppes are very good people and are good for the community!”
Leave a Reply