Quality, reliability and the lowest possible cost

We supply utilities throughout North America with the highest quality poles and crossarms. We deliver to your site on time. And we work to keep costs low.

Wood Species
Although there are a large number of species used for poles, McFarland Cascade supplies four which we believe to be the best: coastal douglas fir, southern yellow pine, western cedar and pinus sylvestris. Each has unique characteristics:

Coastal Douglas Fir:
Grown primarily in the northwest section of the United States, it is widespread, abundant, and globally secure. Coastal Douglas fir is remarkably knot free, strong and light. It is considered to be one of the best known softwood timbers. Readily available in lengths from 20 - 130 feet, sapwood is easily treated. Some utilities gain additional penetration of the preservative by requiring penetration enhancements, such as through boring, deep incising, or radial drilling. Coastal Douglas fir is pressure treated.

Pinus Sylvestris:
Grown in the Scandinavian countries of Finland and Sweden, it exhibits exceptional strength properties; it is also straight and has very few knots; distribution size poles (25’ - 45’) are the most common; poles grown in Sweden and Finland exhibit strength values similar to coastal Douglas fir and southern yellow pine.

Southern Yellow Pine:
Grown in southeast section of the United States; consists of shortleaf, longleaf, slash, and loblolly pine (all have similar strength and characteristics); grows up to 100 feet in height, but poles of this species are predominantly distribution size (25’ to 55’); has thick sapwood; and is easily treatable once it is dry.

Western Cedar:
A premium pole species; grown in the Pacific Northwest and Canada; available in lengths from 20 - 110 feet; light weight; thin sapwood; heartwood naturally resistant to decay; may be pressure or thermal treated, either full length or butt; easy to climb.

Pole & Crossarm Information

Dimension Tables:
Coastal Douglas Fir
Lodgepole Pine
Western Cedar
Southern Yellow Pine

Weight Tables:
Coastal Douglas Fir
    Treated .45 Penta
    Treated .60 Penta
Southern Yellow Pine
    Treated .45# Penta SYP
Western Cedar
    Butt Treated 1.0 Penta
    Full Length Treated 1.0 Penta
    Full Length Treated .60 CCA

Quality Control

Attention to quality control is everyone’s job. We take it very personally.

In every location, at every step of every process, we use only our own employees, systems and materials so we can ensure the quality and control the cost.

• We maintain on-site laboratory facilities to ensure accuracy.
• We play a leadership role in the ANSI (American National Standards Institute) Wood Pole Committee.
• We’re long-time members of the AWPA (American Wood Preservers' Association) Technical Committee.
• We operate an approved JAS (Japanese Agricultural Standard) facility.
• We work in accordance with Rural Utility System WQC plant certification.
• Our production is inspected by independent agencies under the AWPB quality control program, including ALSC.
• Statistical quality control procedures are in place, with many of the disciplines demonstrated in ISO 9000.

Penetration Enhancements

Incising:
Incising is the perforating of the pole with small knives or pegs to open up avenues of penetration to insure uniform and adequate preservative distribution. In cedar, this is done to a depth of 3/4” to 1” in the area of the ground line. Typically the area of incising is:

• One foot above and two feet below the ground line for distribution poles; and
• Two above and four feet below the ground line for transmission poles.

Incising cedar poles at the ground line ensures a full-cell treatment in this crucial area where decay and insect attack are most likely to occur. Above the ground line, a relatively superficial treatment is adequate to ensure against development of sapwood decay, which while not a particular concern to long service life, can constitute a hazard to line personnel using gaffs to climb poles.

In fir, two types of incising are of benefit: full-length and ground line. Fir heartwood is not decay resistant as is cedar and is difficult to penetrate with preservative. Decay can find its way into checks, which develop in the above ground portions of the pole after treatment. For this reason, thorough seasoning is advisable so that the pole will have all checks well developed at the time of treatment and all exposed surfaces are thoroughly treated. As fir checks in an uneven fashion, a well-seasoned pole may evidence wide (1/2” - 1”) checks, which can constitute a climbing hazard. If poles are full-length incised to a depth of approximately 5/8” at the time of peeling, numerous smaller checks will be formed rather than a few large ones. This incising must be done while the pole is still “green,” usually at the peeler. McFarland Cascade routinely full-length incises all transmission poles at the peeler.

Often the ground line area of the fir poles is deep incised (2-1/2” to 4-1/2”) to insure additional preservative penetration in this crucial area. Properly designed incising teeth are required to prevent splintering the wood.

Boring:
Radial Drilling: A boring pattern of small diameter (5/16”) holes in the ground line area to the same depth and in the same pattern as the incising teeth will accomplish the same result as deep incising; however, drilling does remove wood fiber while incising does not.

Through boring is a final enhancement procedure required by some utilities. This involves drilling small holes (7/16”) completely through the pole at the groundline area tangent to the annual rings of the pole. Properly done, complete penetration of the bored cross section is achieved and little possibility of decay establishment exists at this point. Although loss of fiber is experienced, many utilities believe that the benefits of the additional preservative penetration at the ground line outweigh the possible loss of strength.

Up to 80 years of dependability.

McFarland Cascade sells Powertrusion pultruded fiberglass reinforced composite (PFRC) utility poles and crossarms in the United States and Canada. Once installed, you can expect a service life of up to 80 years. 

Leading Edge Technology:
Taking advantage of leading composite technology, Powertrusion Composite Utility Poles are virtually maintenance-free and impervious to the elements. As well as delivering consistent quality and performance, the highly automated manufacturing process allows for precise tailoring of products for specific purposes. The length, strength, weight and color of the finished product, are all able to be finely adjusted to suit your exact requirements.

Lightweight:
Powertrusion poles weigh up to 65% less than similar wooden poles, up to 50% less than similar steel poles, and up to 90% less than similar concrete poles. Poles can be installed by just two linemen, with a boom truck in less than an hour.

Exceptional strength:
Because Powertrusion poles are engineered, you get consistent performance. The composite material also possesses exceptional flexibility, allowing the poles to bend in high-force winds without snapping.

Benefits:

• Lightweight/Easy to Install
• Non-Conductive
• Ideal for remote and limited access area installations
• No treatments or periodic inspections required
• Non-toxic disposal
• Pest & woodpecker resistant
• Corrosion and weather resistant
• Maintenance free
• Long service life - up to 80 years
• Custom colors available

Crossarm Size and Weight Chart

Safety & Handling: Download the MSDS.

Crossarms

• Lightweight – less than 1/3 the weight of a comparable wood arm
• Tangent, heavy tangent, standard deadend & heavy-duty deadend arms available
• Fully assembled for ease of installation
• Field drillable or factory drilled per customer specifications
• Center mounting bracket – no braces required
• Minimum 40 year operating life
• Superior performance in harsh environmental conditions
• Internally filled with rigid, high-density, closed cell urethane foam for maximum protection against the ingress of water, contaminants or pests

Description: Download the Pole Size and Weight Chart.

Safety & Handling: Download the MSDS.

Test Data and Additional Product Information:

Pole size and weight chart (200 kb)

MSDS rev2-10-3 (114 kb)

Crossarm size and weight chart (318 kb)

Filament Glass Leaflet (148 kb)

Pole Analysis - NESC (382 kb)

Pole Bearing Hole Report (556 kb)

Pole Fire Test Data Report (981 kb)

Pole Performance Test Report (132 kb)

Pole Torque Report (255 kb)

Pole Usage Guide (180 kb)

Pole UV Report - Part 1/2 (863 kb)

Pole UV Report - Part 2/2 (276 kb)

Ten Most Frequently Asked Questions (165 kb)

Steel-Weed Grade B vs. C (535 kb)