For Dan Warren, the former Proboard plant in Atikokan is more than just a new business venture. It is a chance to come home again.
Warren’s company Fibratech Manufacturing Inc. is the successful bidder for the former particle board plant, which, prior to its closing last year, employed about 120 people in Atikokan, a small town of about 2,000 people located 150 kilometres west of Thunder Bay.
The deal with the plant’s creditors was expected to close by April 15, says Warren.
“We’re going into a lot of value-added stuff and we have a tentative plan for a startup around May 18,” he says.
The retooling of the plant will require changing the “green end,” which accepts round wood that traditionally supplied the plant with its fibre for making particleboard. Instead, they will be taking in residuals such as sawdust and chips from other plants.
“The green end is traditionally the most expensive part of an operation like this,” he says. “(By eliminating that and going to residuals) we eliminate a lot of that expense. It also creates more wood for the wood basket. We will be able to trade logs for residuals and other products, which is how it is usually done in the business.”
They will also be adding a melamine veneer press and cut-to-size operation for cutting components for the kitchen cabinet industry. There is also an edge-banding facility and paint line planned for various applications for uses such as case backs, cabinet backs and closet organizers. The final price tag for the mill renovations has not been revealed, pending finalization of the deal.
“We’re putting some substantial capital into (the plant),” he says. “Probably more than it’s seen in 15 years. The actual manufacturing equipment is there and in good shape, but there are things that have to be done to ensure the long-term viability of the planet.”
Warren, a former worker at Proboard and resident of Atikokan, has been in the particle board business for 29 years. After 16 years with Proboard, he left the company following a job offer from a Quebec particle board company, and later moved to B.C. to work with another company. He has transitioned from the plant floor to quality control to marketing, and he used that experience to start his own business four years ago.
He says Fibratech will be hiring back much of the original workforce that worked at Proboard. Atikokan will also be the corporate head office for the company that has sales representation all over the Canada and the United States.
“We do value-added products in the particle board business; right now, we custom manufacture them with other companies by sending them our recipes of what we want and selling the final product,” says Warren. “This was a good fit for us to be able to supply our own value-added products and market them ourselves. It’s going to give us a chance to grow a lot bigger.”
Sales projections for the Atikokan plant are about $40 million per year.
“We’re going to come back wide open,” he adds. “This also creates the opportunity for other value-added products that other people might want to get into in the area. They have a resource right there.”
