Monticello · Wilmar · Tillar · Jerome

Monticello and Drew County: Crane Prep for Timber Country

Drew County is pine country, and its largest construction project in years is a timber one. Weyerhaeuser is building a TimberStrand engineered wood plant near Monticello and Warren, a roughly $500 million investment the company says began construction in 2025 with operations targeted for 2027. Add the University of Arkansas at Monticello, home to the state's only School of Forest Resources, a regional hospital and the mills that ring the county, and crane work here is closer to industrial than many people expect. Study for an accredited crane certification online, at whatever pace your shifts allow.

Enroll

Building a TimberStrand plant

Weyerhaeuser announced the Monticello-area facility in November 2024. Its FY2025 annual report says construction started in 2025, that about $109 million was spent on it that year, and that roughly $300 million more was expected in 2026. Planned capacity is about 10 million cubic feet of laminated strand lumber a year from southern yellow pine, with a biomass-fired cogeneration system to power the plant. The company projects nearly 200 jobs once it runs at full capacity.

Weyerhaeuser's quarterly filing for the period ending June 30, 2026, still gave 2027 as the start-up target and set aside about $300 million for the Monticello plant outside its regular 2026 capital budget.

A greenfield wood products plant is a crane-heavy build: structural steel for long press and finishing buildings, a boiler and cogeneration island, dryers, conveyors and large press components that come in on heavy-haul trucks. Expect engineered lifts, tandem picks and plenty of hydraulic crane time for mechanical contractors. Whether local crews get those seats depends on the contractors involved, which we cannot speak for.

Mills, logging and day-to-day lifting

Outside that project, most crane hours in Drew County come from the timber economy. Sawmills and wood yards need periodic work on saw lines, kilns and boilers, log loaders get serviced, and boom trucks move equipment between sites. SeaArk Marine, a boat builder in Monticello, and agricultural operations on the county's eastern edge toward the Delta also use cranes and knuckle booms for handling heavy pieces.

Campus and hospital work

UAM had about 2,850 students in fall 2024, and early 2025 reports described a forest research center under construction there. Campus buildings, the hospital and school projects bring steel and precast lifts into town where space is limited and people are close by.

Overpasses and bypasses

ARDOT broke ground in July 2023 on a roughly $30 million connector from the Highway 83 Spur to Highway 278 in Monticello, awarded to Mobley Contractors. The work included a new railroad overpass and two roundabouts, with the city contributing $2.5 million and Drew County $505,000, and a later award entry credited it with eliminating several at-grade crossings. Earlier, the 8.5-mile U.S. 278 bypass around Monticello opened in October 2018.

Railroad overpasses are classic crane work: girders set over or beside active track, railroad flaggers, protective work windows and lift plans the railroad reviews before anyone picks. Long-radius girder lifts, and now and then a two-crane pick, sharpen the same skills the TimberStrand build calls for.

Heat, storms and exam travel

Southeast Arkansas summers are long, hot and humid, and spring storms can push strong winds through quickly. Pine-woods sites turn muddy after rain, which matters for crane pads and haul roads into mill yards.

There is no Arkansas state crane license; federal OSHA's Subpart CC governs construction cranes for private employers. Written exams can be taken online with a proctor, at a test center or at an event, and the practical is booked at an accredited site through the certifying body. Little Rock is about two hours north. Our requirements guide has more.

Questions people ask

Is the Weyerhaeuser plant hiring crane operators?

We do not speak for Weyerhaeuser or its contractors and cannot tell you about hiring. Holding an accredited certification is a requirement for most construction crane work under federal rules.

Does this cover towns outside Monticello?

Yes. Wilmar, Tillar, Jerome, Winchester and the rest of Drew County are included.

Do jobs near a railroad need extra training?

Railroads usually require their own safety orientation for contractors working near track. That comes on top of crane certification and does not replace it.

How long do I have to finish the prep?

The prep is self-paced and available 24/7. Ask an enrollment advisor through the form for current access details.

Suggested courses for this area

  • Mobile Crane Operator

    Self-paced study for the NCCCO mobile crane Core and your LAT, TLL or TSS specialty, aimed at Arkansas operators on hydros, all-terrains and crawlers.

  • Rigger Level I

    Self-paced study for the NCCCO Rigger Level I written test, covering slings, hitches, hardware checks and signals for crew members who rig everyday picks with a known load weight.

  • Signalperson

    Study for the NCCCO Signalperson written test on any device, covering standard hand signals, voice and radio communication, crane behavior and the federal OSHA rules for directing a lift.

  • Articulating Crane Operator

    Written exam prep for the three NCCCO articulating crane designations, for Arkansas drivers dropping building materials, running log loaders or handling scrap with a grapple.

Towns covered in Drew County

Neighboring areas

Start your Arkansas crane certification prep

Name the card you need (operator, rigger or signal person) and the part of Arkansas you work in. An enrollment advisor writes back with the matching course and what the exam steps look like from there.

  • Self-paced lessons that open on any device, day or night
  • Practice questions written in the style of NCCCO written tests
  • Crew enrollment for Arkansas contractors and plants

Ask about enrollment

Short form. Your details are used only to reply to you.