Positioned to supply a new market

Brisco Manufacturing Ltd. produces engineered wood for construction

1 of 5Corey Boilard is vice-president of operations for Brisco Wood Preservers Ltd. and Brisco Manufacturing Ltd. — Marie Milner photo

2 of 5The headquarters for the two Brisco companies is located in Brisco, north of Radium Hot Springs, B.C. — Photo courtesy Brisco Manufacturing Ltd.

3 of 5This plant at Brisco Manufacturing Ltd. makes engineered wood products through a process of gluing, pressing, planing and cutting to size. — Photo courtesy Brisco Manufacturing Ltd.

4 of 5Overhead cranes are transporting glued and pressed product out of the press onto the planer infeed line at Brisco Manufacturing Ltd. — Photo courtesy Brisco Manufacturing Ltd.

5 of 5Engineered wood panels from Brisco Manufacturing Ltd. are used on the floor and walls in this office space under construction. — Photo courtesy Brisco Manufacturing Ltd.

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Brisco Wood Preservers Ltd., BC Hydro’s exclusive source for its utility poles, has an offspring that is attracting attention. Brisco Manufacturing Ltd. has been around since 2002 and recently began making a new product that is unique in the marketplace.

Brisco’s engineered product is gaining recognition

Brisco Fine Line is the company’s trademark product, consisting of engineered wood beams, columns and panels. Brisco Fine Line products will be going into the Wood Innovation and Design Centre in Prince George, a government-funded project to showcase innovative wood products in B.C.

“We have recently completed a major project in the Lower Mainland,” said Corey Boilard, vice-president of operations for Brisco Manufacturing and Brisco Wood Preservers, “and the next thing we’re working on is a commercial building that we’re putting up in Peers, Alberta—a dowel plant for Brisco Wood Preservers.”

The next market

With the construction industry’s growing interest in mass timber construction, Brisco Manufacturing is positioned to be a leading supplier of materials for a broad range of structures in residential, commercial and industrial construction.

Building designers and project managers around the world are focusing more and more on the sustainability of their buildings. Wood is shown to be the least carbon-intensive building material that engineers have at their disposal, and research shows that mass timber construction can reduce the carbon footprint during construction and for the life of a building by 60 to 75 per cent.

Massive beams produced by Brisco Manufacturing can bear loads far in excess of what can be borne by sawed logs. When used in conjunction with concrete or steel at areas of critical stress, engineered wood is becoming a popular choice in construction—even high-rise construction.

Customized for every client and use

Boilard said that Brisco Fine Line products are custom-made, so the company works very closely with architects and engineers.

“We can provide everything from accent pieces to complete buildings,” Boilard said. “We take the laminated veneer lumber from our supplier and laminate that together (into columns, beams or panels), depending on what our customer wants. We plane and manufacture the product and cut it to the appropriate size and length, and it becomes a component for the project. It can be further customized by being stained to complement the rest of the building.”

Brisco Wood Preservers—founded in 1989—and Brisco Manufacturing have their home in Brisco, B.C., about 30 kilometres north of Radium Hot Springs. Both companies are owned by Peter Mason of Sundre, Alberta. In addition to its facilities in Peers, Alberta, Brisco has pole production yards in Sundre and in Nakusp, B.C.