Canfor Pulp is investing $10 million to operate a new research centre and start a new research program involving UNBC.
The B.C.-based company is also investing in new technology at its three Prince George pulp mills to improve quality control, a move that was announced earlier this year when the federal government contributed funding to the project.
"Our pulps and papers are recognized around the world as premium products. To remain competitive in a changing marketplace, we must be at the forefront of technologies that effect the production and optimal end-use of our pulps," Canfor Pulp president and CEO Joe Nemeth said Friday.
Canfor Pulp is the largest producer of market kraft pulp in British Columbia and the third largest in the world. Canfor Pulp - a company separate from Canfor Corp., which operates sawmills in Northern B.C. - employs about 1,100 people at its three pulp mills in Prince George.
The research carried out at the new Canfor Pulp Innovation Centre in Burnaby will be used to improve the pulp and papers produced in Prince George.
The research centre will have an annual operating budget of $2 million and a laboratory of 6,400 square feet. Its staff of nine technological professionals will have access to key equipment like a pilot refiner for simulating paper mill treatments of pulp, and extensive technical instruments for testing pulp and paper.
The new research program will provide $225,000 during the next three years to the University of Northern B.C. in Prince George and the University of B.C. in Vancouver.
Professor Gail Fondhal, vice-president, research of UNBC, welcomed the new program."This contribution supports our growing research programs and builds closer links with [Canfor Pulp] whose mills are within view of our campus," said Fondhal.
Canfor Pulp is also implementing advanced sensing technology in all three of its three Prince George mills. The $8 million for these technologies include the Metso Quality Vision System, the Eurocon PulpEye and two sensors developed by FPInnovations in Vancouver. The FPInnovations sensors consist of a patented fibre wall thickness measurement sensor and a specialized wood chip sensor.
The sensing equipment will give Canfor Pulp the ability to monitor the quality of its fibres online and provide information to adjust operations and maximize pulp value.
The sensing-technology project is supported by matching funding of $2.4 million from Natural Resources Canada and $2.1 million from the BC Ministry of Forests, Mines and Lands.
