Archive for the ‘Current Events & News’ Category
BC Council of Forest Industries (COFI) Annual Convention – Apr 3-5, 2019
Monday, March 25th, 2019
Forestry for the Planet. Forest Products for the World.
COFI Annual Convention April 3 – 5, 2019
JW Marriott Parq Vancouver
Hotel & Conference Centre
Vancouver, British Columbia
The BC Council of Forest Industries’ annual convention is the largest gathering of the forest sector in Western Canada. This year the event will take place in Vancouver, BC from April 3 to 5 at the JW Marriott Parq Vancouver Hotel and Conference Centre.
COFI’S annual event brings together industry professionals from across North America and overseas, as well as local, provincial, federal government and First Nations leaders.
The convention will run from 6:00 pm on Wednesday, April 3 to 1:45 pm on Friday, April 5.
View the full program here.
Brunette Machinery will be there — visit us at Booths #30 & 31.
Tags: Brunette Machinery, COFI, Conventions, Trade Shows
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Celebrating Women
Friday, March 8th, 2019
International Women’s Day takes place annually on March 8th — celebrating women’s achievements across all segments of society and a call to continue the pursuit of inclusivity and equal representation.
To honour this event, we spoke with the inspiring women at Brunette Machinery who have cultivated successful careers in this traditionally male-dominated industry. We are proud to highlight two of their stories here.
Mary and Sonia
First, a little background on Brunette Machinery Co Inc.
Brunette Machine Works Ltd., incorporated in 1942, manufactured machines for the forestry industry. In 2013, Kirk Forbes, with partners, formed Brunette Machinery Co. Inc. Brunette moved its head office staff and operations from New Westminster, BC to Surrey, BC. Read more about our history.
Last year, Brunette Machinery Co. celebrated its 75th anniversary and today has an office staff of fourteen people — seven of them women:
Airlie, our Buyer/Engineering Production Coordinator has worked at Brunette for 24 years.
Colleen has worked at Brunette for 15 years. She is our Inventory Manager.
Kristy, our Sales Assistant, has been here for 13 years.
Mary started working for Brunette in our Toronto office. Currently she is the Branch Manager of our Prince George facility.
Sonia, our Parts Sales Manager has been working at Brunette for 42 years.
The newest members of Team Brunette are:
Cathy, who joined the team as Media and Marketing Coordinator in April, 2018, and,
Tammy, the new Production Assistant in Prince George. She joined us in February of this year.
Sonia’s story:
I started at Brunette on September 8, 1977. The job — filing and office work — was a temporary position for 2 weeks of vacation relief. Eventually, the position became full time and I settled into an office assistant job at what was then, Brunette Machine Works.
In 1993, a permanent position in parts sales opened up and I applied. We agreed on a 3-month probation period. Since I had been working at Brunette for quite sometime, I thought “How hard could it be?” I was so wrong!
The job was very stressful and demanding — I had 2 small children at that time and combined with the intensity of learning new skills, I felt exhausted by the end of each day.
Fortunately, Hans Menzel, the Service Manager, took me under his wing and patiently answered my many questions. When new equipment arrived in the shop, we would go over it together and I would ask many more questions.
As my confidence built, I relaxed into my role, enjoyed the busyness of the days and learned the ins and outs of the big machines we built.
I have been told “it’s a man’s world” in the forest industry, but over the years, I feel like I have kicked that wall down and have earned the respect of the maintenance planners, purchasers and millwrights that I work with. Now, I receive calls from buyers who trust that I will deliver the exact parts they need even if they don’t have the part numbers!
Times are changing and I know more women who are maintenance planners, purchasers and mill workers pulling on wrenches. Good job, ladies! It isn’t all a man’s world now.
Over the years at Brunette, I have held several positions — but Part Sales Manager has been the most rewarding. I have earned the respect of my colleagues and customers and, along the way, I have made many lasting friendships.
As I approach my retirement years, I am hoping to find someone to work with me to learn the ropes and who will enjoy the job as much as I do.
My father worked all his life in this industry — I was brought up on forestry dollars and in turn, my children have been brought up on forestry dollars. This industry has been good to me and I feel proud of everything I have learned and accomplished.
But, never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would still be employed by Brunette 42 years later!
A big shout out to Hans Menzel — for answering all my questions, for investing his time in teaching me, for believing in me and for showing me that I could be successful in my position. Also, a heartfelt thank you, to Kirk Forbes, President of Brunette Machinery, for his belief in me and his continued support.
Mary’s Story:
I’ve worked for Brunette Machinery since January 1983. The team at Brunette made it easy for me to stay all these years. Brunette has a supportive and flexible management that afforded me the opportunity to change my hours when my kids were little, giving me time that I needed for my children and family.
This is a male-dominated industry and I have felt at times the need to prove myself. But generally, I’ve found it to be a non-issue, because I know our products well and can discuss them with our customers knowledgably and professionally.
Brunette’s company policy puts the issue of a balanced environment in perspective and treats everyone fairly. As Branch Manager, I am responsible for taking action, getting answers and making decisions. I don’t wait for anyone to tell me, be it a man or a woman.
I’m proud and happy to be a woman in today’s society.
Tags: #BalanceForBetter, #IWD2019, Equality, March 8th, Women's Day
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International Biomass Conference & Expo — Savannah, GA Mar. 18-20, 2019
Wednesday, February 20th, 2019
The International BIOMASS Conference & Expo is the largest event of its kind in the world and this year expects to see close to 900 attendees. Taking place March 18-20, 2019, in Savannah, Georgia, the 12th annual convention will bring together biomass industry stakeholders from across the globe for an educational and networking symposium.
Join us for this exciting event that will include more than 30 panels and 90 technical presentations on a wide range of topics of interest to professionals from all sectors of the biomass industry.
We will be there — make sure to stop by and say hello! We will be at Booth 200.
International BIOMASS Conference and Exhibition
March 18-20, 2019
Savannah International Trade & Convention Center
Savannah, GA
Brunette Booth located at #200
Tags: Biomass, Conventions, Expo, Machinery, Trade Shows
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Talking Trade
Wednesday, February 13th, 2019
Have you read February 2019 issue of National Hardwood yet? Check out their Trade Talk section for the latest Brunette Machinery news! We recently completed an equipment installation at Toney Lumber in North Carolina and talked to National Hardwood about it. Click the image below to read the article in their current digital issue.
Tags: Brunette Machinery, Flare Butt Reducer, Forestry Equipment, In the News, Media
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New Year — New Job!
Wednesday, January 2nd, 2019
Are you looking for a change in 2019?
We have a full time position for an Inside Sales — Parts Sales Associate!
With your strong communication and organizational skills and your experience in customer service and sales, you will be an integral member of our team. You can expect to work in a collaborative environment that values cooperation, new ideas and flexibility. We will provide you with the opportunity to use your expertise, expand your skill set and learn new things working for a family-oriented company.
Do you enjoy interacting with customers, working closely with others to identify new sales opportunities, developing strategies for streamlining procedures, and being part of a busy, productive environment? If so, you may be the person we are looking for.
Brunette offers a competitive salary, a benefits package and a 40-hour work week. We live by our Corporate Values (read them here) and strive to encourage and support each other in maintaining a healthy work/life balance.
Please read the complete job description and send us your application. To explore all our current employment opportunities, visit our Careers page.
Join Our Team!
Tags: Inside Sales, join our team, new job, New Year, work with us
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Giving Back
Monday, December 24th, 2018
This year, our head office partnered with Murray Latta Progressive to hold a food drive for the Surrey Food Bank. For five weeks, we brought in non-perishable food items to fill the food bank boxes that we displayed in our front reception area.
Our creativity and sense of fun was evident in the kinds of items we brought to fit with a weekly theme. We started with things such as pancake mixes with syrup, and oatmeal along with canned fruit for our Breakfast Week and we ended with Dinner Week that included items for meals such as spaghetti dinners, macaroni and cheese, Chinese food fixings, cans of hearty stew and more. We finished up the drive with a Baby Week where we contributed baby/toddler items from diapers to formula.
Volunteers from the Surrey Food Bank arrived on Wednesday morning to pick up our contribution and we were surprised when an old friend and co-worker walked through the door to load up our boxes. Bill, who worked for Brunette for many years, now retired, burst into the office with a big grin and a boisterous voice — proclaiming his excitement at seeing his Brunette family again. What a thrill — a happy mini-reunion with a favoured workmate!
This was our first time holding an organized charity event in the office and we feel it was a great success! We hope to continue to hold such charitable efforts in the future. Not only did we help hungry people by filling sixteen boxes with nutritious food, but in doing so, we discovered a bonding, uplifting experience that showed a generosity of spirit that we all can be proud of.
Together we accomplished a lot and made a difference to vulnerable members of our community.
Tags: Brunette Machinery, Charitable Giving, Giving Back, Season of Giving, Surrey Food Bank
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In the News
Thursday, December 20th, 2018
We’re in the news again! Read these two short pieces in the November/December issue of CFI magazine featuring Brunette Machinery.
In October 2018, we exhibited at the the 2018 TP&EE show in Portland, Oregon where we brought along two BIG machines — one of our Brunette Drum Chippers and the new CBI Magnum Force grinder. Check out the write-up in the magazine’s spotlight on 15 booths at the show that showcased the latest top-of-the-line equipment for the forestry industry.
There is also a short item about our Flare Butt Reducer in the same issue — read it here.
And if you missed the feature story on Carrier Lumber in the hardcopy of CFI magazine, you can read it in Wood Business, the online reach of Canadian Forest Industries magazine. It is a great article on Carrier Lumber’s Tabor sawmill and it mentions their most recent project — building the Brunette RTL (retract-to-load) Log Singulator.
Tags: Big Machines, Brunette Machinery, In the News, Lumber, Sawmills
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Canadian Forest Industries Magazine — November/December Issue
Tuesday, December 11th, 2018
Custom Solutions
by Maria Church
“Carrier Lumber’s Tabor sawmill in Prince George, B.C., reflects the company’s motto: “A tradition of innovation and quality,” where traditional family values and a quality lumber product are produced with innovative equipment and custom solutions tailored to solve the mill’s specific challenges.”
In their latest issue, Canadian Forest Industries magazine featured an article about Carrier Lumber and some of their recent projects, one of which was building and installing a Brunette RTL (Retract to Load) Log Singulator®. Read the full article.
Tags: Brunette Machinery, CFI Magazine, Forestry Industry, RTL Log Singulator, Sawmill Equipment
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Tis the Season!
Thursday, December 6th, 2018
Tis the season…
… of giving! This year, Brunette Machinery and Murray Latta Progressive Machine have joined forces to collect non-perishable food items for our local food bank.
Our decision to hold this charitable event was inspired by an article we read online about an Advent-themed food drive challenge that was run during the four weeks before Christmas. We came up with a variation of this idea — a four week run with a different weekly “meal theme” and a one week “Baby Item” theme for a total collection period of five weeks.
We started off our first week on November 19th, with a “Breakfast” theme and saw bags of oatmeal; boxes of pancake mix; packages of dry cereal and granola; jars of peanut butter; and tetra packs of juice start to fill up the donation boxes.
We are just over the halfway point and so far, we have filled 10 donation boxes! We have collected cans, boxes and cartons of non-perishable items for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner!
Some of the office staff posing with our donation boxes
With two weeks left of our food drive, we are busy planning what items to bring for our fourth theme — “Coffee Break / Snack Time”. Our event will finish up on Friday, December 21st with donations of baby food and other needed items for our “Baby Week”. (According to the Surrey Food Bank — in 2017, families needing support included 650 babies, toddlers and children and 80 expectant mothers!)
As our donation boxes continue to fill up each week, we are gladdened to see the kind-hearted and generous spirit of our office and shop staff. As we near the completion of our food drive, we are happy in the knowledge that we are making a difference by helping to feed vulnerable people in our community.
Tags: Christmas, Community, Food Drive, Surrey Food Bank, The Season of Giving
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Looking For a New Job? Come Work With Us!
Friday, November 30th, 2018
We have an opportunity for a full time shipper/receiver to join our busy team.
Our ideal candidate has excellent time management skills and the ability to work in a fast-paced, self-disciplined environment. Along with two years of shipping/receiving experience, the selected candidate will be a highly motivated team player who shows initiative and can work with minimal supervision.
We offer a competitive salary, a benefits package and a supportive workplace where you will be a valued member of the Brunette team.
Interested? Check out the complete job description.
To learn more about our company, including our corporate values, please click here. Check out all our current employment opportunities.
Tags: Come Work With Us, join our team, new job, Shipper/Receiver
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