A cut in demand is forcing two Tolko operations to temporarily shut their doors, forcing 260 employees out of work.
Tolko Industries Ltd. announced that due to continuing poor market conditions, it will temporarily curtail panel production.
White Valley division’s veneer operation in Lumby and Armstrong division’s plywood operation will shut the weeks of July 4 and July 11 with restart scheduled for July 18.
Heffley Creek Division, near Kamloops, will curtail one shift of plywood production during the same period.
“With Canada being the main market for our plywood products, this sector has been particularly impacted by the unusually cold, wet spring, and the related low construction activity,” said Larry Broadfoot, general manager, lumber and plywood sales.
The markets will be reviewed at the end of the scheduled downtimes to determine if extensions are required.
The curtailment will affect approximately 260 employees and reduce Tolko’s plywood production by at least 10.4 million square feet.
Tolko Industries Ltd. is a private, Canadian-owned forest products company based in Vernon, British Columbia with approximately 3,200 employees. Tolko is a major producer and marketer of lumber, veneer, plywood, oriented strand board, and kraft papers, with manufacturing operations across Western Canada.
The Company’s Woodlands operations have received third-party certification of their sustainable forest management systems.