BC Announces Additional Funding to Support Wood Product Manufacturers

On Wednesday, the British Columbia provincial government announced that it was providing new funding for six wood-product manufacturers that will help create and protect hundreds of resource-sector jobs and strengthen BC’s value-added wood sector and local economies.

According to the press release, BC is contributing as much as $8.6 million (CAD) through the BC Manufacturing Jobs Fund (BCMJF) to fund eight new capital projects to help manufacturers grow and diversify their operations through new production lines, equipment, and innovative technology, setting the stage for long-term sustainability while establishing new jobs and preserving existing positions.

Two recipients were highlighted:

1. San Industries Ltd., a vertically integrated forestry company that produces value-added and engineered wood products, will receive as much as $2.5 million to support purchasing new equipment, optimizing its processing line, and constructing a new storage facility at its Port Alberni plant. These upgrades will significantly increase the efficiency of operations with an innovative process that creates engineered cedar products using ultra-thin sheets of veneer. This will allow San Industries to use a fraction of the fiber and produce less waste as compared to conventional wood products. The project will enable better use of diversified fiber sources in creating value-added products and help it enter new international markets, while creating 30 jobs.
2. Richmond Plywood Corp. Ltd., which has been operating for more than 60 years in Richmond, is receiving as much as $2.3 million to purchase and install new, innovative equipment to enhance its value-added manufacturing processes using second-growth fiber and waste wood. This will improve the company’s product quality and operational efficiency, reduce reliance on old-growth fiber, and reduce its carbon footprint, allowing it to produce high-quality, value-added plywood products and use any remaining residual wood waste to power its facility. The capital project will result in Richmond Plywood upskilling 24 employees to higher-paid, skilled positions and will create 14 jobs at the company.

In a statement accompanying the announcement, BC Minister of Jobs, Economic Development, and Innovation Brenda Bailey said:

“Natural resources helped build this incredible province and the local economies that are the foundation of BC. The BC Manufacturing Jobs Fund helps BC’s forest-sector operators modernize and adopt the new, innovative technologies that get more jobs out of every tree harvested, while creating secure, sustainable jobs in forestry.”