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On the Street: WFP mills reopen; Crofton mill restarts paper production

WFP restarts mills after lengthy strike After an eight-month strike that all but shut down the coastal forest industry, Western Forest Products staff and contractors were back on the job this week.

WFP restarts mills after lengthy strike

After an eight-month strike that all but shut down the coastal forest industry, Western Forest Products staff and contractors were back on the job this week.

The company said it is ramping up operations based on availability of employees, log supply, market demand and, in the case of harvesting operations, weather. With the exception of Cowichan Bay and Ladysmith, all of its manufacturing facilities were operating as of Feb. 24.

The two mills that have not restarted will do so when they have a sufficient log supply.

Western expects its mills to run at about 85% capacity as it works to build up orders and log inventory.

Harvesting operations will start on March 2 where circumstances allow.

The strike, the longest in coastal forest history, had kept 3,000 Western Forest Products employees and contracted workers on the picket line at six Island manufacturing plants and timberlands since July 1.

Papermaking resumes at Crofton following malware attack

Papermaking has resumed at Paper Excellence’s Crofton mill after being down for five days due to a malware attack that affected the firm’s computer systems.

The attack affected the company’s enterprise business systems that drive fulfilment of paper manufacturing at Crofton, Port Alberni and Powell River.

Paper operations were curtailed as orders could not be planned and manufactured because of the systems interruption. Since the attack, the company has taken steps to secure its system.

While papermaking has resumed at Crofton, where it can use manual fulfilment techniques, Paper Excellence is still developing plans to restart papermaking at Port Alberni and Powell River.

Pulp manufacturing has not been affected by the attack.

Silver Threads moves to new home

The Silver Threads Service will move into its new Victoria Centre location at 902 Caledonia Ave. on May 4.

The new 5,400-square-foot centre will bring additional services for older adults to the North Park neighbourhood, while continuing to offer residents throughout the city a wide range of social programs, recreation and outreach services.

Silver Threads, which has been serving seniors since 1956, works to enhance social connections and well-being for seniors by providing programs and services that are accessible to all.

Silver Threads’ current site, 2340 Richmond Rd., will close April 24.