Systems test ok. Riverside a couple of weeks away from being operational.
'Green' Fiberboard Plant to Open Near Riverside, Calif.
May 10 (The Business Press/KRTBN)--What its builder calls the world's
first fully "green" fiberboard plant is about to begin production near
Riverside -- having cleared a few environmental hurdles of its own.
After more than five years of planning and construction, The CanFibre
Group Ltd. hopes to begin making medium-density fiberboard from recycled
waste wood within a couple weeks.
The Toronto-based company last week tested each of the systems of its
new $110 million plant in the Agua Mansa Industrial Center in
unincorporated Riverside County. Such elements as the plant's wood chipping,
chip washing, mixing, panel board pressing and smog control systems got
the final inspection, according to CanFibre Senior Vice President Garry
LaVold.
The plant, the industrial park's first and only success story, will employ
75 workers. Plant equipment manufacturers were busy last week training
employees on the sophisticated systems, even as construction crews sprinted
to finish the landscaping and other last-minute touches at the plant at
1755 Brown Ave.
The Riverside facility is "without question, the most advanced panel board
plant in the world," CanFibre President Chris Carl said. It's also the
first plant to use only waste wood in the production of the increasingly
popular building material.
Last month, the plant produced its first fiber from some of the more than
150 to 200 tons of waste wood initially delivered to the site by its raw
material supplier, Apollo Wood Recovery, based in the Fontana area near
the California Speedway.
The plant has the capacity to convert wood that normally would be hauled
to landfills into as much as 70 million square feet a year of the hardy,
textured board that has found favor among makers of
furniture and cabinetry.
The plant will take about six months to break in before ramping up to
full capacity, LaVold said.
"This project is under the microscope of the entire industry," he said.
CanFibre will pursue niche markets among industries that want fire retardant
and moisture-resistant products, such as moldings
manufacturers and makers of manufactured homes, LaVold said. The stronger
and more durable fiberboard is quickly replacing particle board as the
material of choice, particularly in moister environments such as bathrooms
and kitchens.
Besides the fact that no new trees are killed to make it, one of the most
environmentally friendly features of the board, dubbed "AllGreen" by CanFibre,
is the nontoxic resin used in its production, LaVold said.
Moreover, the plant's pollution control equipment is among the most sophisticated
of any fiberboard plant in the world, earning praise from the South Coast
Air Quality Management District.
"We're setting a new standard for the industry," he said.
CanFibre and its parent company, Kafus Environmental Industries, chose
Riverside County because of its ready access to wood pallets, crates,
truss cutoffs, construction remnants and other sources of waste wood,
LaVold said. Because transportation costs are high, having such raw materials
nearby is crucial, LaVold said.
"This is where the wood is," he said.
Another plus is the proliferation of manufactured home and furniture
companies that thrive in the area -- all potential customers, LaVold
said.
The company said the county economic development department helped expedite
the permitting process.
Like other proposed projects in the 10,589-acre Agua Mansa Enterprise
Zone, the plant was delayed by concerns over the endangered Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly. Eventually, CanFibre and the industrial center developer,
Lowe Enterprises, crafted a compromise under which Lowe contributed $450,000
to purchase additional fly habitat.
However, the plant hasn't been the catalyst that Los Angeles-based Lowe
Enterprises had hoped. A combination of concerns over the fly, the area's
heavy bond debt and high asking prices has chilled interest in the land
straddling Riverside and San Bernardino counties, said Lowe Senior Vice
President Doug Hinchliffe.
"Obviously, we hoped CanFibre would be a stimulus, but it hasn't materialized,"
Hinchliffe said. "There's just not a lot of people standing in line to
buy property. (Development there has) been a disappointment, frankly."
But the CanFibre plant is clearly a success story, Hinchliffe agreed,
adding the area is a good fit for the production of fiberboard, the fastest-growing
segment of the composite wood industry.
By Randyl Drummer
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