Shift reductions coming to Tolko plants in BC as market remains volatile

VERNON, BC — Tolko Industries Ltd. says its Armstrong, Lumby and Heffley Creek operations in British Columbia will see shift reductions as volatile conditions continue to plague the province’s lumber industry.

It says more than 700 workers will be affected by the curtailments running from Aug. 17 to Sept. 2 at the Armstrong and Lumby plants.

Workers at the Heffley Creek veneer mill will be off the job for one week, starting Aug. 24.

Tolko, a privately owned Canadian forest products company based in Vernon, manufactures specialty forest products to world markets, including lumber, plywood, veneer and oriented strand board.

Troy Connolly, Tolko’s vice-president of solid wood, says in a statement that the company prefers to remain in operation but wants to manage the business responsibly and remain sustainable in the future.

The company, like many in BC’s, has cut back and closed mills in recent months in response to limited log supplies and a plunge in lumber prices from record highs last year.

West Fraser announced plans late last year to cut shifts at its mills in Quesnel, Fraser Lake, and in the last quarter announced it would also cut a shift at 100 Mile House and close its mill in Chasm in response to the squeeze on margins. The permanent reductions totalled about 614 million board feet.

Canfor recently announced it was indefinitely suspending operations at its Mackenzie sawmill and permanently cutting a shift at its Isle Pierre mill to reduce output