Western Forest Products

Western Forest Products is a Canadian company that manages forests and manufactures quality wood products in British Columbia.  With approximately 2,000 employees concentrated on Vancouver Island and western BC.  They harvest approximately 6.4 million cubic meters or 27 million mbf annually.  WFP is the largest land manager on the Island and has considerable influence on the local economies.

Lots of limestone on the island

Western Forest Products’ “goal is to produce wood products that meet and exceed customer expectations for quality, sustainability and certification.  All [their] systems and processes are continually being improved to satisfy [the] customers’ changing needs.”  The identified core company values are: operating priorities, open and transparent communication, create trust through mutual respect, and a culture of continues improvement.  The operation priorities include personal safety, environmental stewardship, product quality, and productivity.  The top priority in all operations is safety.  WFP strives to achieve the best safety training and procedures to allow employees to be safe on the job. 

The company railway

WFP manages landed granted from the Crown.  They do not own the land but are given 50 year contracts allowing them the rights to harvest and manage the land for timber.  Five main species are found and harvested on Vancouver Island including: western redcedar, Sitka spruce, western hemlock, Douglas-fir, and yellow cedar.  The company generally designs ground operations with year round systems in effect.  Western Forest Products registers all harvesting operations and manufacturing to internationally recognized environmental certifications that include regular audits.  Their commitment to environmental protection is evident in their cultural and social considerations, site sensitivity treatment, pollution prevention, recycling, and waste and emission reduction initiatives. 

Large "Booms" transport logs to the south part of Island

Bark chipper outside my room

WFP owns and operates 8 mills located in the southern part of the Island.  International export of logs is an interest but not a priority. The majority of their wood products stay within Canada with some export to the United States.  They are committed to providing high quality products to customers while maintaining valuable social connections within the local communities.  Their employees are highly qualified and dedicated individuals committed to reflect a community focused on achieving company goals.  Western Forest Products makes creating a safe, happy, productive, and continuing improving workplace a priority for those working at WFP. 

All information and statistics was found on Western Forest Products website.  

"Quality, Sustainable, Certified - Western Forest Products." Western Forest Products. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Aug. 2014.