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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 21 A P R I L 2 1 , 2 0 2 5 F O C U S B A N K I N G / F I N A N C E / I N S U R A N C E T ears streamed down Joshua Henry's face as he cited American novelist Jack London. "I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet," the chemist-turned-entrepreneur told the crowd at the July 2023 ribbon-cutting ceremony for TimberHP, the startup he co-founded six years earlier. "I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time." e bittersweet moment is cap- tured in "e Comeback Mill," Josh Gerritsen's documentary film about how Henry joined forces with archi- tect Matthew O'Malia to breathe new life into a defunct paper mill in the Somerset County town of Madison as the first U.S. manufac- turer of high-performance wood- fiber insulation. For the time being, however, the company's fate rests with a bank- ruptcy judge in Delaware. e com- pany started manufacturing in 2023 and added a second product in 2024, before financial difficulties stalled construction of a third product line. Currently operating with 54 employees, TimberHP filed a voluntary, pre-nego- tiated Chapter 11 reorganization plan in late March to lessen its debt. e company's road to recovery is far from certain — and could be as bumpy as the start. From shuttered mill to startup e closure of Madison Paper Industries in May 2016 marked the end of an era for the 4,800-population Kennebec River town, which had been home to a paper mill since 1899. It was Maine's fifth major paper mill to close in three years, leaving 214 people without jobs and a 600,000-square foot factory empty. Two years later, Henry and O'Malia bought the building with the goal of manufacturing wood fiber insulation — an environmentally friendly material used for 20 years in Europe where the market has grown close to $800 million. Timber HP began production in 2023, using wood chips and thinnings left over from timber harvesting to make fire- and sound-resistant ther- mal insulation that arrives at con- struction sites with a negative carbon footprint. e company added a sec- ond production line in February 2024. Early customers included the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, which used the company's TimberBatt your legacy, MCB Wealth Management is here earned. Make the most of your success. Securities and advisory services are offered through LPL Financial (LPL), a registered investment advisor and broker-dealer (Member FINRA/SIPC). Insurance products are offered through are not registered as a broker-dealer or investment advisor. Registered representatives of LPL offer products Not insured by FDIC or any other government agency | Not bank deposits | Not bank guaranteed or obligation | May lose value Let's talk | maine.bank/wealth C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » P H O T O S / C O U R T E S Y O F C O L L E G E O F T H E AT L A N T I C Wood-fiber insulation made by TimberHP was used in the construction of the Center for Human Ecology at College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor.

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