Reminder: Manufactured Forest Products Regulation (MFPR) Reporting |
Reminder to manufacturers of sawn-wood products and lumber from western red cedar or cyprus, that MFPR reporting for the timeframe of September 30 to December 31, 2020 is due February 28th, 2021.
Background:
The government of B.C. announced changes to the Manufactured Forest Products Regulation (MFPR) around export requirements for sawn-wood products and lumber from western red cedar or cyprus, effective Sept. 30, 2020.
Under the current MFPR, logs that are squared off up to a maximum dimension of 0.2 square meters (17 x 17 inches) are classified as sawn-wood product and can be exported without further manufacture.
The amended MFPR stipulates that the maximum dimension of lumber that will be classified as a sawn-wood product will be 0.1 square meters (12 x 12 inches). Further domestic processing of lumber will therefore be required before it can be exported. Lumber made from western red cedar or cypress on the B.C. Coast must be fully manufactured under the updated MFPR.
If products don’t meet these requirements, companies will have to get a provincial export permit or pay a fee in lieu of manufacture to be eligible for export.
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What are Your Opinions on Labour Recruitment and Retention Challenges? |
As you may have heard, BC Wood is leading a project which will identify ways to increase recruitment and retention of skilled workers for BC’s value-added wood products sector. We are looking for input from employers in the industry to develop these workforce strategies. Based on your input a strategic plan will be developed to support the growth, productivity, and profitability of the Value-Added Wood industry. I would be grateful if we could interview you to gain your valuable insights. Deetken Insight, a Vancouver-based consulting company, will lead these interviews.
I would ask that you consider participating in a 45-60-minute virtual interview (via Zoom or, if you prefer, Google Meet) sometime in the next two weeks. During this interview you will be asked about your opinion on the labour market challenges facing the Value-added Wood industry and the actions you would suggest are taken to address these challenges and to help continue to grow your business. We would appreciate if you could review the Project Background Document as well as this presentation that we will use to guide our interview (also attached).
Please click here to schedule an interview. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Brian ( bhawrysh@bcwood.com) or me directly. |
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Future of Prefabrication Building Symposium
February 19 & 26, March 5 & 12, 2021
Registration is Open!
10 AIBC LU’s approved
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Prefabrication in mass timber buildings is fast becoming a reality and, through digital design and manufacturing processes, is bringing forth a disruptive effect on the building industry. In order to maintain BC’s lead in innovation in wood and to promote value-added processes within the province, it is timely for BC to lead a symposium on the state-of-the-art in Wood Prefabricated Buildings. This symposium is held jointly by the University of British Columbia in collaboration with British Columbia Institute of Technology and the University of Northern BC.
The 4-day symposium will focus on aspirational outcomes for prefabrication, bringing together architects, engineers and fabricators who are interested in the potential for their disciplines using prefabrication in wood. The future of design in prefabricated building necessitates the integration of disciplines and thus the symposium will focus on multiple viewpoints of the same projects. The conference will be focused around three key themes;(1) Architectural Innovation (2) Structural Engineering considerations, and (3) Integrated Manufacturing Processes and Technologies. As such, the event will appeal to architects, engineers, manufacturers and building professionals seeking more information on prefabrication, that will enable them to fully participate in the growing market for prefabricated mass timber, tall wood, passive house and large multi-family wood structures.
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WMC Management Skill Training Program |
UBC - Online Managements Skill Training Courses
UBC – Centre for Advanced Wood Processing (CAWP) will be offering the following “online” courses; Sales & Marketing, and Factory Planning and Equipment Justification. Both these courses will run for 6 weeks starting February 22nd, 2021 to April 5th, 2021. The next set of courses; Production Planning, and Supply Chain Management will run from April 5th, 2021 to May 31st, 2021.
These wood products industry specific courses are designed for owners, manager, supervisors or management tracked employees. These are not academic courses and the skills learned can be applied immediately to the work place. Each part time course is led by a tutor with extensive industry experience.
For more information on the courses, please click on the following link: Management Skill Training or call Jason Chiu at 604 822-0082.
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Virtual Wood Wellness Summit
Wednesday, March 10, 2021 8am-2pm PST
Thursday, March 11, 2021 9am-2pm PST
Summit Pass: $150 + HST
Includes:
- Up to 9 hours of Continuing Education
- Full access to all virtual sessions with moderated Q&A
- 30 day access to recordings (*not eligible for Continuing Education)
2 half days of presentations | 11 thought leaders in wood building and design
The inaugural Wood Wellness Summit is dedicated to showcasing innovative research, advancements, and applications in designing for health-centered living using wood. Join us for 2 days (approx. 4 hours each day) of thought-provoking perspectives and project examples at the forefront of innovation that have the potential to transform the built environment into healthier, low-carbon communities where people thrive. If you are an architect, engineer, contractor, builder, developer or project team member, the Wood Wellness Summit is for you. Don’t miss this informative and inspiring virtual event!
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Doing Business In Mexico: SOFT LANDING PROGRAM 2021
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Join us in accessing Mexico’s Industrial Wood Market or its Resort and Architectural Market, March 8-31, 2021.
BC Wood continues to develop our business partnerships in Mexico adapting to the 2021 virtual world. This program will mentor Canadian companies on the Mexican Market, prepare some sales tools, and arrange business-to-business meetings with qualified potential industry partners/customers.
Mexico Market Mentoring Sessions (via Zoom)
March 8 through 21, 2021
Five B2B Meetings with industry customers/partners in Mexico (via Zoom)
March 22 through 31, 2021
Cost:
BC Wood Members: $525
Non-members: $1,080
To get your name on the short-list to participate, contact Ken Hori at khori@bcwood.com. Click below to read more about the program offer.
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A few comments, suggestions, and ideas...
Last week, BC Wood and member companies participated in the Bond X Interiors event. This online event introduced BC manufacturers of architectural millwork and finished products to 50 top architectural and interior design firms in the United States. The event consisted of pre-set one-to-one, 20-minute meetings between buyers and suppliers over the Zoom platform. At a Bond event, manufacturers introduce their products and services, commonly by PowerPoint, to key buyers, influencers and decision makers. The format allows for a short Q and A session before the meeting ends, precisely at the 20-minute mark.
The true value of a Bond virtual event is the direct connection it provides between buyers and suppliers. Vick Yau, of VanAir Design stated that “Participating at Bond directly opens the door for me to meet with key buyers in my sector. If I was to attempt this on my own, it would be next to impossible, even more so during the pandemic. Bond gives me a key contact in the firm that I can use moving forward.”
We have one more scheduled Bond X live event before the end of the BC Wood fiscal year. The Bond X Architect takes place March 9 -11 where manufacturers will be introduced to principles from top multi-disciplinary firms from across the United States. If you are interested in this event, and want to see the list of firms participating, please reach out to me at dfarley@bcwood.com or on my cell at 604-728-8786. |
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2021 Global Buyers Mission™ (GBM) Review |
The 17th Annual Global Buyers Mission was held January 25 – 29, 2021 and welcomed 677 delegates from all over the world to join us virtually, using the Whistler Conference Centre as our backdrop this year. Given the economic challenges faced by many international markets, we were extremely pleased with the efforts made by those buyers and suppliers that supported and participated in the 2021 Virtual Global Buyers Mission.
This year, we registered 268 pre-qualified buyers from Australia, Canada, China, Czech Republic, France, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, Pakistan, Poland, Russian Federation, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the United States. Half of these early respondents were first time GBM attendees and 73% said the event increased the likelihood that they would definitely or most likely purchase Canadian wood products. They also rated the virtual GBM a 68 Net Promoter Score, which is extremely positive and significantly higher than the average of 34 and our goal of 49. One buyer noted “Having the ability to interact 1-1 with manufacturers and mills was incredibly valuable. The virtual exhibitor platform was perhaps more effective than in-person events.”
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Promote your Company in Korea through BC Wood’s Korean Brochure
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BC Wood is currently updating its Korean language brochure that is used at all of our trade events in South Korea. It is also distributed in response to all inquiries by our in-market office and during outreach visits. By being a part of the new brochure, your product information and hand-samples can also be displayed in the Seoul office for year-around exposure.
Even if you cannot take advantage of our trade show programs by participating directly, our brochure program will cost-effectively get your company in front of a wide cross-section of the Korean building products industry. If you are interested, please contact JC Lee at jclee@bcwood.com as soon as possible for more information.
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“Zoom-in On Japan”: Lead Generation Campaign PART II
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While Japan has fared better with COVID-19 than most countries and is even holding in-person trade shows, international travel restrictions still prohibit Canadian companies from attending directly. For this reason, BC Wood is creating more opportunities for members to reach wood products buyers in Japan without directly attending trade shows. One new initiative is a cost-effective, multi-pronged, promotional campaign that will market your products directly to over 8,000 of our industry contacts across the country, as well as at the industry leading Nikkei Architectural and Construction Materials Show from March 9 to 12.
Participating members will only need to submit their contact information, brief company/product profile, logo, and image/ product shot. BC Wood will use this information in several mediums to help promote your products. First, we will produce a 1/4 page company introduction in our soon to be updated, professionally produced Japanese language brochure, which will be used at all BC Wood organized trade events over the next two fiscal years (5,000 copies).
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The Virtual Global Buyers Mission Attracts More Than 660 Participants
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog News
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Last May, BC Wood CEO Brian Hawrysh was forced to postpone the 17th annual Global Buyers Mission (GBM) at Whistler BC due to Covid-19, but he would have been forgiven for cancelling the event altogether given the significant challenges associated with executing the complex international event in a virtual format, particularly as Zoom-fatigue was setting-in and the pandemic dragged on. However, demand for this one-of-a-kind networking event for buyers and sellers of value-added wood products remained strong and the BC Wood staff were determined to create a workable alternative to the in-person event.
Proceeding virtually did not come without risk, and in fact some did hold back, but in the end more that 660 wood buyers, sellers and specifiers of value added wood products tuned in, fully 85% of the usual in-person participation level. According to Hawrysh, buyer attendance was up from the USA, Japan and Korea (thanks to BC Wood’s in-market reps in those areas) as was the contingent of architects and specifier groups. “Feedback from manufacturers affirmed that a virtual tradesheow is not preferred over an in-person event but most were pleased, such as Juliann Gauthier of Mira Timber Frame, who commented he was already bidding on two jobs that came from leads from the tradesheow floor.”
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Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium |
The Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC), founded in 1997, is a Canadian not-for-profit association of manufacturers of all sizes and sectors, which focuses on enabling competitiveness in industry. This goal is achieved through regular networking and sharing of best practices as well as programs and activities that help companies to be competitive, efficient, effective, and adaptive.
Prior to the pandemic, monthly events would take place in a plant and manufacturers were invited to network on a peer-to-peer basis; however, since the outbreak of COVID-19, they have successfully transitioned to an interactive virtual platform. Recently, BC Wood Member, Woodtone Industries, presented at an EMC virtual events sharing their best practices in relation to “Attraction and Retention Strategies”. This was a great presentation full of great ideas and generated considerable discussion after! For a full list of EMC Manufacturers Networking Events, please visit: https://www.emccanada.org/events
In addition to these great seminars and networking opportunities, EMC also offers supplementary programs and activities to enable competitiveness. For example, there is the Manufacturing Essentials Certification, which is an initiative designed to help manufacturers increase their workforce productivity and become more competitive in a growing global marketplace. This is accomplished through a regional training cluster, providing up to 40 hours of skills training, using industry validated learning programs, live workshops, facilitated online learning with on-going support and assistance with professional trainers, and a workplace action-based learning project. Other programs include the Harvard Supervisory Certificate Program, designed to help encourage the development of critical leadership and other management skills. These are just a couple of programs and EMC has much more to explore!
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Sunrise Kitchens - $12 million Expansion |
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Sunrise Kitchens, a Surrey BC based kitchen cabinet manufacturer, announces the near completion of their $12 million expansion including a significant investment in automated equipment. “The expansion allows us to increase our production capacity to better serve the requirements of the North American West Coast construction and multi-family development industry” said business owner and CEO Paul Bhogal.
35,000 square feet were added to the existing facility to create a total of 80,000 square feet. This increase will support their transformation towards automated manufacturing applying Kaizen principles along with lean manufacturing thinking , and overall greater value to our customers.
Automated production offers more precision, enhanced efficiency and a 50% increase in capacity allowing manufacturing with shorter lead-times, higher quality products and overall greater value to our customers.
Sunrise Kitchens is proud to have been able to safely continue production throughout the pandemic, as well as grow their team to support their expansion and continue actively delivering products to keep the local construction industry thriving.
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Tall mass timber construction gains momentum as more B.C. municipalities approve projects
Journal of Commerce
The City of New Westminster is eager to take tall wood construction to the next level.
Recent city council documents show officials have been getting requests about tall mass timber construction from developers after the province began rolling out an early adoption program for 12 storey mass timber buildings.
Other cities, like Coquitlam and Delta are also looking at allowing taller wood construction. So far, the province’s early adoption program has more than a dozen cities signed up. The program allows municipalities to approve encapsulated mass timber projects above the current six storey limit in anticipation of upcoming revisions to the National Building Code.
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Foundations in Diversity and Inclusion Certificate |
The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade's Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Council is pleased to announce a virtual instructor-led training on diversity and inclusion, in partnership with the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion (CCDI).
There are three separate sessions held over three days. You will need to attend all three sessions of this training in order to receive the CCDI Foundation Certificate.
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UBC planning $315 million facility expansion of medical research and nursing schools
DailyHive
Another wave of major construction is planned for the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) Point Grey campus, with the key projects creating new health sciences facilities located at the main gateway into the campus.
Demolition work on the D.H. Copp Building at 2146 Health Sciences Mall, located mid-block on the south side of University Boulevard between Wesbrook Mall and East Mall, just west of the David Strangway Building and next to the bus stops for the trolleys, is set to begin this spring.
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