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Province of British Columbia
NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
2019FLNR0033-000571
April 4, 2019
Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development
Forestry Innovation Investment Ltd.
B.C. invests $7.9 million to continue advancing wood use and growing global market

VANCOUVER – To create and support good jobs in British Columbia’s forest sector, government is investing $7.9 million to promote and grow markets for B.C. wood products at home and abroad.

Doug Donaldson, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, made the announcement in his opening remarks at the annual Council of Forest Industries conference.

“Advancing new products and markets for B.C.’s world-class wood products supports good jobs in over 140 communities throughout British Columbia,” said Donaldson. “Advancing innovation in wood products and wood technology supports our strategy to maintain B.C. jobs in B.C.’s forest sector.”

Fifteen industry trade associations and research institutes were selected to receive funding and deliver programs that will advance market development or wood innovation programs on behalf of government and industry. Forestry Innovation Investment, the Province’s market development agency for forest products, manages B.C.’s contribution to the selected programs, with additional funding provided by the federal government, through Natural Resources Canada, and B.C. industry.

“This partnership between industry and government is critically important as we work together to expand markets for the high-quality, carbon-friendly wood products that are manufactured in communities throughout B.C.,” said Susan Yurkovich, president and CEO, BC Council of Forest Industries.

A total of $7.9 million will be made available, with $5.8 million committed to activities that work to expand markets for B.C.’s wood products in Asia and North America. The remaining $2.1 million will be delivered through research, marketing, education and capacity building dedicated to the innovative use of wood and wood building systems in B.C.

More than 7,000 businesses in British Columbia are supported by B.C.'s forest sector. Provincial revenue generated through forestry is key to ensuring that public services, such as education, health care, and infrastructure, are delivered throughout the province.

Quick Facts:

  • In 2018, B.C. exported $14.89 billion in forest products (lumber, pulp and paper and other wood products), which represented 32% of B.C.'s total exports.

  • B.C. communities are incorporating wood innovation into public buildings, helping lower society’s carbon footprint and deliver value for taxpayers.

  • Wood products from the Province's sustainably managed forests help tackle climate change by being a renewable building material and a means to store carbon.

  • B.C. is internationally recognized as a centre of excellence for wood building and design expertise, and B.C.’s architects and engineers are recognized as global experts in taller and larger wood construction.

  • As of 2017, wood has over 90% market share in five- and six-storey, mid-rise residential buildings in the province. For low-rise commercial buildings such as stores, restaurants and office buildings, as well as public institutional buildings, wood has over 30% of the market share.

Learn More:

Forestry Innovation Investment, the Province's market development agency for forest products: www.bcfii.ca

A comprehensive information resource featuring the facts and science about wood species, sustainable forests, product manufacturing and building innovations in British Columbia: www.naturallywood.com

A backgrounder follows with the list of trade associations and research institutes receiving funding.

 
Contact:
 
Media Relations
Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource
Operations and Rural Development
250 356-7506
 

 
Province of British Columbia
BACKGROUNDER
For Immediate Release
2019FLNR0033-000571
April 4, 2019
Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development
Forestry Innovation Investment Ltd.
Trade associations and research institutes receiving funding 2019-20

Funding is delivered by the Province through Forestry Innovation Investment Ltd. Funds are allocated through an annual competition process that reflects the priorities of the British Columbia government, the B.C. forest sector and the Government of Canada.

BC Wood Specialties Group — $1.074 million

  • Pursue niche opportunities for value-added wood products at trade events in the United States and Canada.
  • Bring together British Columbian and Canadian value-added wood product manufacturers with pre-qualified international buyers and specifiers at the 2019 Global Buyers Mission in Whistler.
  • Deliver targeted market development activities to increase sales in Japan, South Korea, Mexico and Europe.
  • Support activities to build export capacity of small- and medium-sized B.C. companies to identify and pursue market opportunities, particularly in the United States.
  • Educate and train architects, engineers, interior designers and construction professionals on available B.C. wood products and their applications through a variety of educational events, such as lunch-and-learn sessions, group seminars and factory tours.
  • Promote building products and systems, as well as the benefits of wood in construction and design, with value-added forest product companies at trade events.
  • Increase competitiveness, innovation and adaptability of individual value-added wood companies by improving their marketing and business-development capability through assessments, site visits, workshops and business-development projects.

British Columbia Institute of Technology — $33,405

  • Create a virtual reality-assisted wood-based building construction application for education and skills tool development.

Canada Wood Group — $3.033 million

  • Expand the B.C. forest product sector’s global reach with market access and development teams in China, Japan, Korea, Europe and India.
  • In China, address code constraints and provide training and other support to grow wood use in the construction (including pre-fabrication) and manufacturing sectors.
  • In Japan, develop innovative solutions to expand the use of lumber and panel products in large-scale buildings.
  • In South Korea, deliver wood-frame design and construction training to support innovative building solutions for larger scale developments, including multi-family structures and those that use infill walls.

Canadian Wood Council — $683,000

  • Provide technical support and advice to address wood performance attributes in multi-family, multi-storey and non-residential projects.
  • Convey practical wood design solutions through educational events.
  • Communicate sound wood construction practices.
  • Support building and fire code changes that allow for increased wood use.

Cedar Shake and Shingle Association — $104,170

  • Deliver a multifaceted education and marketing campaign to encourage the use of cedar roofing and sidewall shakes and shingles as products of choice among specifiers in the United States.
  • Research optimal roof-system configurations and develop innovative ventilation approaches to mitigate the risk of roof failures caused by moisture entrapment.

Construction Foundation of BC — $130,205

  • Deliver the Skills Ready for Wood program to engage youth, educators and industry to learn about B.C. wood products, with an emphasis on innovations in wood engineering and manufacturing.

Council of Forest Industries — $414,549

  • In China, encourage further adoption of existing wood applications and introduce new applications for B.C. forest products, such as energy efficient wood wall systems (prefabrication) and tourism-oriented structures.
  • In Japan, expand opportunities for SPF and hem-fir lumber by promoting wood-frame and hybrid construction in the non-residential sector and in taller/larger buildings.
  • In South Korea, grow the use of SPF lumber in multi-storey buildings and for use in infill wall systems.

Engineered Wood Products Association (APA) — $36,466

  • Deliver a diversified promotional and educational program for Japanese specifiers to create new opportunities and demand for B.C structural panels and engineered wood products in residential and large-scale non-residential construction.

FPInnovations — $197,440

  • Reduce barriers for mass timber systems through fire performance research that studies the fundamental fire performance attributes of nail-laminated timber, as well as how different construction and design details influence that performance. 

University of British Columbia – Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability — $67,100

  • Provide learning opportunities for students around the use of mass timber that support the knowledge base and professional development of the next generation of building industry professionals, designers, policy-makers, regulators, owners and entrepreneurs.

University of British Columbia – Centre for Advanced Wood Processing — $295,537

  • Design, engineer, prototype, test and conduct cost-benefit analyses to support value-added manufacturers in the development of new wood products.
  • Organize a series of networking meetings to foster collaboration between manufacturers and industrial designers in various subsectors of the value-added wood industry.
  • Deliver educational programs to explore and convey advanced wood-processing solutions, such as industrial robotics and mixed reality wood fabrication.
  • Develop design guidelines for concrete-jointed hybrid mass-timber buildings that use coupled shear walls, timber moment frames and timber core walls.

University of Northern British Columbia — $147,910

  • Advance innovative building methods by researching the optimal configuration of mass-timber and tall-wood building hold-down connectors.
  • Acoustical performance of mass-timber building elements.
  • Building envelope sustainability research.
  • Full-scale testing for mass-timber buildings.

Western Red Cedar Lumber Association — $1.096 million

  • Deliver a comprehensive program of marketing, communication, education and outreach to increase market awareness and improve the value proposition of western red cedar as a species in the U.S. and Canada.

Wood Pellet Association of Canada — $91,972

  • In Europe, improve the regulatory environment for wood pellets and communicate the sustainable pedigree of B.C. forest products to the power generation and heating sectors.
  • In Japan, identify new customers for industrial wood pellets and increase the amount of volume under long-term sales contracts.
  • In Canada, and in an effort to mitigate the impacts of climate change, position wood pellets as a viable, environmentally friendly alternative to coal.

Wood Products Council — US$337,852 (the equivalent of C$439,208)

  • Encourage shifts in the U.S. design/build community that result in greater wood use in non-residential and multi-family construction projects.
  • Drive demand and support the specification of wood in mid-rise and mass-timber structures by providing technical advice, education and support to the building community.

Zero Emissions Building Exchange (ZEBx) — $53,728

  • Build capacity to achieve affordable, efficient zero-emissions wood buildings with hands-on technical workshops.
 
Contact:
 
Media Relations
Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource
Operations and Rural Development
250 356-7506
 

 
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