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Freres Engineered Wood, Lyons, Or., recently received two awards honoring the company’s commitment to forest preservation and climate-conscious construction. The century-old wood products manufacturer won the Portland Business Journal’s 2026 Environmental Corporate Impact Award, recognizing its long-standing support of the World Forestry Center (WFC). Additionally, a mass timber residence manufactured by Freres Wood and designed by Skylab Architecture has received a Green Good Design Award for its sustainable, fire-resilient design.
Both awards underscore the company’s commitment to environmental stewardship and industry collaboration.
“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, 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.”
The Portland Business Journal’s Impact Awards honor philanthropic endeavors by businesses and nonprofits, spanning social impact, housing support and more. Freres Wood received the Environmental Corporate Award for its decades-long partnership with the WFC, including donations supporting the organization's educational programs focused on forest management, climate action and wildfire resilience.
The Green Good Design Award further highlights Freres Wood’s investment in environmental stewardship, naming a 3,900-square-foot home in Gates, Oregon, winner of the Green Architecture category. This collaborative build, designed by Skylab Architecture, replaced a family fishing cabin lost in the 2020 Santiam Canyon Fire and illustrates the potential of fire-resilient mass timber construction in residential applications. The home was constructed almost entirely from locally manufactured Mass Ply Panels (MPP), Freres Wood’s veneer-based engineered wood products made from sustainably-sourced, small-diameter timber. By combining the product’s inherent fire performance with added fire-hardening measures, the property’s design supports lasting resilience in a wildfire-prone landscape.
“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.”
Freres Lumber Co., Inc., DBA Freres Engineered Wood, has a 100-year history of innovation in the wood products industry, beginning in 1922 when T.G. Freres started a small sawmill in Oregon’s Santiam Canyon. Today, Freres’ operations include finished plywood, lumber, veneer and structural composite lumber, Mass Ply products, biochar, and a cogeneration facility that supplies renewable power for the local area.
Known for being traditionally innovative, Freres is deeply committed to its community and to sustainable forest management practices. The company uses 100% of the wood it processes throughout its three operations—Freres Engineered Wood Products, Freres Timber and Evergreen BioPower LCC—and six wood products facilities. Freres provides family wage jobs to nearly 500 employees.
