Tuesday, March 17, 2026
In the wood products industry, “sustainability” is often used as a buzzword. But for Freres Engineered Wood, a century-old manufacturer based in Lyons, Oregon, it is a lived reality—one recently validated by two prestigious industry honors.
This week, the company celebrated winning the Portland Business Journal’s 2026 Environmental Corporate Impact Award and a Green Good Design Award for a residential project that literally rose from the ashes of the 2020 Santiam Canyon Fire. Together, these accolades paint a picture of a company that isn’t just selling timber; they are engineering a more resilient future for the Pacific Northwest.
The Portland Business Journal recognized Freres Wood not for a single transaction, but for a decades-long commitment to the World Forestry Center (WFC). By funding educational programs focused on wildfire resilience and climate action, Freres has helped bridge the gap between industrial forestry and public ecological literacy.
“We’re honored to receive this recognition, but we see it as a reflection of the people who made the work possible,” says Tyler Freres, the company’s Vice President of Sales. “Our team, project partners like Skylab, and the wider wood products community continue to raise the bar for what responsible construction can be. We’re grateful to be part of that collaboration.”
While the corporate award honors the company’s heart, the Green Good Design Award honors its technical brilliance. The award-winning project—a 3,900-square-foot home in Gates, Oregon—is more than just a house; it’s a proof of concept.
Designed by Skylab Architecture, the residence replaced a family fishing cabin lost to the devastating wildfires of 2020. To ensure history wouldn’t repeat itself, the team utilized Freres’ signature Mass Ply Panels (MPP). These veneer-based engineered wood products are crafted from sustainably sourced, small-diameter timber—material that often creates “fuel ladders” in forests if left unmanaged.
By utilizing MPP, the project demonstrates that mass timber can be both ecologically restorative and inherently fire-hardened. The density of the panels creates a “char layer” that protects the structural integrity of the wood during a fire, a stark contrast to traditional stick-frame construction.
“Working closely with the Freres Engineered Wood team allowed us to push the potential of Mass Ply construction and explore how innovative mass timber systems can shape more resilient architecture,” says Susan Barnes, Design Principal at Skylab Architecture. “Recognition from the Green Good Design award program affirms how design can support regenerative forestry while creating architecture that is enduring and connected to place.”
For those of us in the woodworking and construction trades, the success of Freres Wood offers a roadmap. It proves that staying “local” and “sustainable” isn’t a limitation—it’s a competitive advantage. By focusing on small-diameter timber and high-tech engineering, Freres is turning secondary forest growth into primary structural solutions.
As we look toward a future defined by climate uncertainty, the collaboration between Freres and Skylab serves as a masterclass in regenerative forestry. It’s a reminder that the best way to protect our forests is to value them—and the best way to honor a landscape is to build something that can withstand its toughest days.
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Tags: Environmental Leadership, Freres Engineered Wood, Mass Ply Panels, mass timber construction, sustainable architecture
