Things have changed since the old days when sawmills required manual labor and brute strength. The original sawmills were dangerous places. Today, sawmills rely on highly technical systems and computerization to maintain high production.

A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensional lumber).

Corneliszoon patented the sawmill on December 15, 1593 and the pitman on December 6, 1597. He built the first sawmill in 1594. Before to the invention of the sawmill, boards were sawn by two men with a whipsaw, using saddleblocks to hold the log, and a pit for the pitman who worked below.

A sawmill works by cutting logs into lumber using large bandsaw blades. The same process is repeated over and over, log by log, to produce high-volumes of rough cut lumber.