January 10, 2005 Notre-Dame, New Brunswick While on a tour of Future Doors, a specialized manufacturer of high-quality cabinet doors, the MP for Beauséjour, Dominic LeBlanc, today announced the granting of a repayable loan of $107,625 to the next-door company, All-Wood Stairs, to expand and purchase production equipment. "I am very pleased to be here today touring a company that is providing precious jobs in the Notre-Dame area," said Dominic LeBlanc on behalf of the Honourable Joseph McGuire, Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). "The Government of Canada, through ACOA, is proud to have invested in several Future Doors projects over the past few years. The company has expanded and acquired new tools to improve its productivity in order to better serve its customers and penetrate new markets." Founded in 1990 by Lionel Boucher, Future Doors is a manufacturer that specializes in the production of superior quality unfinished cabinet doors. The company sells its products to cabinetmakers in the four Atlantic Provinces and the United States. Since the company was founded, ACOA has invested $281,153 to support various projects, the latest being a lean manufacturing project undertaken as part of ACOA's Innovation Skills Development Initiative (ISDI). The funding announced by MP LeBlanc for All-Wood Stairs comes from ACOA's Business Development Program. All-Wood Stairs specializes in the manufacture of wood stair parts and custom-made wood products for the furniture and cabinet making industry. "Let me take the opportunity on my visit to Notre-Dame to announce some excellent news for the entire region: All- Wood Stairs is expanding, which will allow the company to create new jobs while meeting growing customer demand, among other things," said MP LeBlanc. In 2003, All-Wood Stairs received ISDI financial assistance from ACOA to hire a consultant to implement a lean manufacturing initiative. Thanks to this initiative, the company quickly noted improvements in production efficiency. The expansion project is the direct result of recommendations made by a consultant. All-Wood Stairs, headed by Eddy Boucher, has been in operation since 1994. The company's product line includes handrails, posts, balusters and newels¿in oak, ash, birch, maple and cherry. "This expansion project will enable us to increase our production capacity and efficiency," explained Eddy Boucher. "We'll also remain competitive and be able to capture a larger share of the market. I'm pleased that ACOA recognizes our potential and is prepared to give us financial backing in our various projects". "Without ACOA's assistance, we couldn't have been able to undertake all the projects we've completed over the past few years," noted Lionel Boucher. "We're grateful to ACOA officers who've always showed confidence in us and have been able to meet our needs as entrepreneurs." The two Boucher brother companies alone account for 80 jobs in Notre-Dame. All-Wood Stairs has 22 employees and plans to add six more with the expansion project. For its part, Future Doors employs about sixty people. ISDI was designed to improve the innovation and technology management capabilities of small -and medium-sized enterprises in Atlantic Canada. ACOA's Business Development Program provides repayable financial assistance to companies looking to establish operations, expand or modernize. For further information on ACOA programs, visit the Agency's Website at www.acoa-apeca.gc.ca. - 30 - Valérie Poulin Director of Communications Office of the Honourable Joseph McGuire Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (613) 941-4227 Stéphanie Bilodeau Senior Communications Officer ACOA NB (506) 452-3304 Lionel Boucher Owner Future Doors (506) 576-9769 Eddy Boucher Owner All-Wood Stairs (506) 576-6430
