Schmidbauer Lumber, Incorporated Schmidbauer Lumber, Incorporated Apply Now

Find your station.

Schmidbauer Lumber runs a modern softwood mill on the Eureka waterfront. Ten stations turn North Coast logs into lumber that ships worldwide. Every one of them is a job — and we train people who’ve never set foot in a mill.

Apply Now See the line
Line running 10 stations ~110 people Eureka, California Est. 1971

A log becomes lumber in ten stations.

This is the whole process, in order. Work here starts at one station and rarely ends there — most people learn several.

  1. 01Log Deck

    Logs arrive off the truck and are sorted by species and diameter. Loader operators feed the mill and set the pace for the whole day.

    A wheel loader with a log grapple working the log deck beside stacked logs and a loaded log truck.

  2. 02Debarker

    Bark comes off before the saw ever touches wood. What's removed doesn't go to waste — it feeds the boiler.

    Residual conveyors and overhead cranes running the length of the mill building.

  3. 03Headrig

    The primary breakdown saw opens the log and takes it down to cants. This is the cut that decides what the log becomes.

    The sawmill carriage on its rails at the headrig, with the operator's booth above the line.

  4. 04Edger & Trimmer

    Boards are squared and cut to length, recovering every usable inch before the piece moves down the line.

    A mill hand at the controls of a heavy chain conveyor carrying a freshly sawn cant.

  5. 05Green Chain & Sorter

    Fresh lumber is graded and sorted into bins by size and grade. Graders read wood at speed — it's a skill the mill trains from scratch.

    Two graders working boards along the green chain beneath a grade readout.

  6. 06Stacker

    Boards are stickered into packs built for airflow, ready to dry evenly.

    A forklift lifting a finished pack of rough lumber clear of the transfer chains in the yard.

  7. 07Kilns

    Packs are dried on a controlled schedule — temperature and humidity held to a curve for days at a time.

    Steam venting from an open kiln with stickered packs standing on the rail carts outside it.

  8. 08Planer

    Dry lumber is surfaced to final dimension and graded a last time before it carries the stamp.

    Surfaced boards spreading out across the transfer chains while an operator works the panel alongside them.

  9. 09Shipping

    Packs are wrapped, banded, and loaded for customers worldwide. The board that started as a log this morning leaves on a truck.

    Banded and tagged packs of finished lumber stacked in the yard, with a ship at the dock on the waterfront behind them.

  10. 10Maintenance

    Millwrights, electricians, and welders keep every station above running. When the line stops, they're why it starts again.

    Two workers at the filing bench running the teeth of a wide bandsaw blade between them.
Two mill hands working a cant along the green chain.

Most of the crew started with no mill experience.

Some have run the same station for twenty years. Others moved from the green chain into millwright and electrical trades. Both paths started the same way — showing up and being trained.

I had no experience with any of this. Over the years I've learned how the mechanics work and how to operate different machinery — it's been a learning experience, and I've bettered myself in the process.

James SherrodSaw Operator · 12 years at the mill

Open positions.

Applications take about fifteen minutes, on a phone.

Entry Level Full-time Floater

Full-Time Hourly · Trained, then placed at a station

Apply for this position

Stations for This Role

01 Log Deck02 Debarker03 Headrig04 Edger & Trimmer05 Green Chain & Sorter06 Stacker07 Kilns08 Planer09 Shipping10 Maintenance

Train on a station or two, then settle into the one you'll run. The Floater is how most people here find the job they'll keep.

The Floater position allows the selected individual to train and learn how to effectively operate many different positions throughout our manufacturing process. This is a great opportunity to become part of a successful team, with opportunities for career advancement.

In practice, most new hires learn one or two stations before being placed in the one they'll run day to day. Which stations those are depends on where the line needs people and what you take to. Learning more of them over time is how people here move up, but nobody is trained on all of them at once.

If you are a motivated individual that can follow written and oral instructions, work in a team environment, and are willing to work weekends and holidays when necessary, apply online today.

What comes with the job.

  • Medical, Dental & Vision For you and your family.
  • 401(k) with 4% Match Plus discretionary profit sharing.
  • Paid Time Off Vacation and floating holidays.
  • Life Insurance For all employees.
  • AirMedCare Membership For you and your family members.
  • Employee Assistance Plan Support when you need it.
  • Health Club Membership Discounted, with employer contribution.
  • On-the-Job Training No mill experience required to start.

The line runs every shift. Come run it with us.

Apply Now Download paper application

Questions? Call human resources at (707) 443-7025.