by Web Editor | Jan 20, 2016 | News
Norbord Inc. recently announced that the Quebec Minister of Forests, Wildlife and Parks has terminated the wood license associated with its curtailed Val-d’Or, Quebec OSB mill. Production at the Val-d’Or mill was indefinitely suspended in 2012 following persistently weak North American housing market conditions and lower demand for OSB. This development is not expected to have any impact on the company’s financial results.
“This is disappointing news, but in the bigger picture, we firmly believe that our Val-d’Or mill is the best alternative for the aspen pulpwood in that region,” said Peter Wijnbergen, Norbord’s President and CEO. “Unfortunately, market conditions do not yet justify a restart at Val-d’Or, but we are exploring options for the mill and are committed to a restart once market conditions are supportive. The Ministry has confirmed we can reapply for a wood license when we are ready to restart the mill.”
Norbord is the world’s largest OSB producer and continues to operate in the Abitibi region at its La Sarre, Quebec OSB mill. Since 2012, the company has invested and committed capital in excess of US$35 million to optimize that mill’s capacity and ensure its long-term competitiveness.
From Canadian Newswire: https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/norbord-provides-update-on-val-dor-quebec-osb-mill-565685951.html
by Web Editor | Jan 6, 2016 | News
When complete in 2017, the 18-storey (53m) tower, called Brock Commons, will house hundreds of students at the University of British Columbia (UBC).
Unless overtaken by other ambitious timber towers now at design or proposal stage, the CAN$51.5m residence is set to be the world’s tallest, beating the 13-storey ‘Origine’ apartment block now being built in Quebec City.
The world’s tallest completed timber structure is the 10-storey Forte apartment block in Melbourne, Australia, completed in November 2012 by Lend Lease.
Construction on Brock Commons, designed by Acton Ostry Architects, started on 9 November and the building is set to open in September 2017. It will house 404 students in 272 studios and 33 four-bedroom units.
Earlier this year the provincial government of British Columbia passed a new regulation that allowed UBC to go over timber-structure height limits if the building met rigorous health and safety standards. The architects, Acton Ostry, and UBC building officials helped draft the regulation.
From Construction Manager: https://www.construction-manager.co.uk/international/worlds-tallest-timber-tower-going-vancouver/
by Web Editor | Jul 27, 2015 | News
Uniboard is proud to announce an investment of over $7 million at its 91-employee Mont-Laurier MDF plant. Uniboard says the investment will increase the productivity of the plant through what it says is the use of a revolutionary new wood fiber mat-preheating technology.
This process innovation is a first for North America and will allow Uniboard to better service our customer base in Canada and the United States. The Mont-Laurier MDF/HDF plant produces Excel+, Excel, and NU Green/PMDI-NAF and HDF panel products. Uniboard’s overall network of particleboard, MDF and thermally fused laminate facilities are at locations in Sayabec, Val-d’Or, Laval and Mont-Laurier, Quebec.
Overall Uniboard has an installed capacity of over 640 million square feet of raw particleboard, high-density and medium-density fiberboard, of which over 50% is converted into value-added thermally fused laminate and laminate flooring products. Uniboard’s mills in Val-d’Or, Sayabec, Mont-Laurier and Laval employ over 800 people. Its products are sold to retailers, distributors and finished goods manufacturers, which cater to the kitchen cabinet, furniture, office, home renovation and construction industries, as well as to the floor covering industry.
Since its original start-up as Panfibre in 1987, Mont-Laurier’s capacity has been expanded in multiple steps. In 2012, Uniboard was acquired by the owners of Kaycan Ltd., a leading manufacturer of building products in North America, with its head office located in Montreal, Quebec. Kaycan Ltd. and its group of companies offers a full range of products for both the exterior and interior of the home, including vinyl, aluminum and engineered wood siding products, PVC windows & patio doors, particleboard, MDF, thermally fused laminate and laminate flooring.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/wood/panel-supply/uniboard-invests-7-million-innovative-mdf-production?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news
by Web Editor | Jul 20, 2015 | News
Uniboard is proud to announce an investment of over $29 million at its Sayabec plant. Two major investments being announced today at Sayabec are an innovative wood fiber mat-preheating unit to expand capacity in particleboard line 2, as well as a new short-cycle thermally fused laminate press adding capacity for high-end surface structures and finishes.
Both investments will allow Uniboard to increase productivity and improve its product offering and service to our customer base in Canada and the United States. The announced investments will be implemented in early 2016. The particleboard investment will continue to position the Uniboard Sayabec facility as one of North America’s preferred particleboard producers while the thermally fused laminate investment further confirms Uniboard’s leadership and innovation position in the North American laminate arena. Both investments will strengthen Uniboard’s overall network of particleboard, MDF and thermally fused laminate facilities that are located in Sayabec, Val-d’Or, Mont-Laurier and Laval, Quebec. Uniboard employs a skilled workforce of 380 at its Sayabec site and over 800 people within the entire corporation.
Since its original start-up as Panval in 1982, Uniboard’s Sayabec plant has seen a series of investment and expansion steps leading to today’s highly integrated mega site with 2 particleboard lines and 4 high speed short-cycle thermally fused laminate (TFL) presses. In 2012, Uniboard further solidified its position in the industry when it was acquired by the owners of Kaycan Ltd., a leading manufacturer of building products in North America, with its head office located in Montreal, Quebec. The Kaycan group of companies offers a full range of products for both the exterior and interior of the home, including vinyl, aluminium and engineered wood siding products, PVC windows and patio doors, particleboard, MDF, thermally fused laminate and laminate flooring.
From PR Newswire: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/uniboard-to-invest-into-particleboard-capacity-expansion-and-a-new-thermally-fused-laminate-tfl-line-at-its-sayabec-plant-515009931.html
by Web Editor | Feb 11, 2015 | News
From: Panel World Staff
Norbord Inc. and Ainsworth Lumber Co. Ltd. announced that the Supreme Court of British Columbia has granted a final order approving the previously announced merger of Norbord and Ainsworth. Meanwhile Norbord and Ainsworth are providing the U.S. Dept. of Justice with the information it has requested about the transaction. Subject to the satisfaction of all closing conditions, the transaction is expected to close by the end of the first quarter.
The merger would create the largest OSB producer in the world with an OSB production capacity of 7.7 billion SF, according to the companies.
Norbord, based in Toronto, operates seven OSB North American mills, (six of them in the U.S. South) with one mill in Quebec, along with four mills in Europe. Ainsworth, based in Vancouver, BC, operates four Canadian OSB mills—three in Western Canada and one in Ontario. Prior to this transaction, Norbord reported it was third in OSB production capacity behind Louisiana-Pacific and Georgia-Pacific.
The new company will have opportunities to increase capacity through the expansion of Norbord’s OSB production in Western Europe, the restart of Norbord’s two idled mills in North America, and the completion of Ainsworth’s second line in Grand Prairie, Alberta.
The combined company will operate under the Norbord name. Upon completion of the transaction, Norbord shareholders will own 63% and Ainsworth shareholders will own 37% of the combined company.
Read more on this story in the March issue of Panel World…
