Environmentally Friendly Fuel Accelerates Exports to European Markets
News release
Lewis Mouldings and Wood Specialties Limited expands production capacity and export market reach to grow
September 27, 2018 – Weymouth, NS – Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Businesses that invest in advanced manufacturing equipment are better positioned to scale up, expand into new export markets and create high-value jobs. Lewis Mouldings and Wood Specialties Limited is taking advantage of clean technology opportunities to expand its production capacity to sell its Fiber Fuel bricks made of wood waste to newly identified European customers.
Colin Fraser, Member of Parliament for West Nova, announced a repayable contribution of $200,000 to Lewis Mouldings on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). The funding is being provided through ACOA’s Business Development Program, which supports small and medium-sized companies capitalizing on innovations to become more competitive.
The assistance is a continuation of an earlier project that allowed Lewis Mouldings to purchase a high-speed moulder and modernize its current bricker and dust collection systems to increase efficiency and reduce its carbon footprint. The current funding will help the company purchase two additional bricker machines to manufacture more compressed fiber bricks from both its white wood and bark kiln dried waste for export to new markets in the United Kingdom and Europe.
The company has already begun exporting to the United Kingdom and is sending multiple containers of Fiber Fuel to overseas customers each month. The project will result in the creation of three full-time positions, and maintain the 90 existing jobs that are integral to the region’s rural economy.
This project builds on the Government of Canada and the four Atlantic Provinces’ commitment to drive economic growth in Atlantic Canada through the Atlantic Growth Strategy, which supports strategic investments in initiatives that build on the region’s competitive advantages, such as its strong export potential, growing innovation ecosystem, and skilled workforce.
Quotes
“Companies willing to proactively take the steps necessary to expand their business through the identification of export opportunities is an example of the adaptability we need to foster in our home-grown businesses to maintain our competitive edge in the global economy.”
- The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for ACOA
“Lewis Mouldings is an integral economic driver in this rural community. They have created a solid reputation creating specialty wood items and have become an industry leader in the manufacturing of compressed fuel bricks made of recovered wood waste. They possess the drive and adaptability our government applauds, and increase economic growth in the process.”
- Colin Fraser, Member of Parliament for West Nova
“We are very pleased to have the support of ACOA to help us seize this opportunity to expand and diversify our markets for Fiber Fuel by increasing our capacity. Lewis Mouldings is striving to maximize the value we generate from all of the fiber we process, and developing diverse markets with strong growth potential is paramount to succeeding in this effort.”
- Jamie Lewis, General Manager of Lewis Mouldings
Quick facts
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Lewis Mouldings Wood Specialties Limited specializes in finger-jointed Eastern White Pine wood mouldings and has become one of the largest added-value facilities east of Quebec.
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The company is committed to waste wood recovery and uses its dry wood waste for the production of compressed wood briquettes known as Fiber Fuel. Lewis Mouldings also sell its bark and green wood waste for hog fuel (power), and wood shavings for animal bedding.
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The Fiber Fuel bricks can be burned in wood or coal-burning stoves, and are a clean burning fuel, which has a smaller carbon footprint than traditional fuel sources.
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The company has identified an export market in Europe for bark bricks, which are in demand because of their longer burn time.
Contacts
Alex Smith
Director of Communications and Outreach
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Phone: 902-426-9417 | 902-830-3939 (cell)
Email: alex.smith@canada.ca
Jamie Lewis
General Manager
Lewis Mouldings and Wood Specialties Limited
Phone: 902-837-7393 ext. 24
Email: jlewis@lewismouldings.com