Rosario Poirier inc. is a family enterprise where is currently working three generations. Our company located in the Gaspe Peninsula was founded in 1973 and, by the way, incorporated depending on the Quebec Companies Act.

In our beginnings, we specialized in manufacturing cedar shingles and a few years later, in 1980, we started making laths. It is in 1985 that we changed our installations to make lumber. It was so successful that in 1994, we rebuilt the sawmill. The first kiln dryer, that was also the first one in the Gaspe Peninsula, was installed two years later, in 1996. During the year 1998, the globalization of markets, the decline of lumber prices and the decrease of the TSFMA, that passed from 32 900m3 to 10 985m3, forced us to diversify our operations. In 1999, we got a building in the town of Bonaventure to implement value-added to our aspen components that were produced in the sawmill of St-Alphonse. Since then, we are regarded as a pioneer in second and third processing of aspen. In the same year, the enterprise has also done an expansion in the sawmill. Always with the idea to progress, we acquired two others drying units in 2000. In 2001, Mr. Luc Poirier, son of Mr. Rosario Poirier, became president of the company. Until 2007, we modified techniques and tools in order to improve further, but since that year, there have been many changes. We first built a new factory in St-Alphonse and moved all Bonaventure’s building equipment there. During the move, we automated all the equipments for the application of value added. The two factories are now in the same yard, and this facilitates the production. We kept the Bonaventure’s building for storing and perhaps, in the future, experimenting new machineries. With innovative thinking, in January 2008, our company acquired a briquetting press to make densified logs. It allows the recuperation of shavings and sawdust produced during the processing. We currently discuss about other projects like a second and third work shift at our value added plant if the raw material is available but, for now, we are studying the possibilities.

 

From our humble beginnings in 1973, with a turnover of less than $35 000, composed with three employees and an owner working part-time until 1978, our company now employs 55 employees and reach a turnover touching the $7 million, including $3.2 million from the added-value plant. Our current facilities enable us to produce lumber, pallet components, value-added products with aspen wood and also densified logs. For what is our supply, we have a Timber Supply and Forest Management Agreement of sawmill quality hardwood (Aspen). Our punctual volumes come from the 111-53 and we are takers of all available volumes of sawmill quality hardwood (Aspen). An additional supply comes from the private forest through the Syndicat des producteurs de bois de la Gaspésie.

 

Finally, we started from nothing to get where we are and we are doing our best to always innovate. The primary mission for Rosario Poirier inc. is to recuperate everything that is in our power so that we don’t waste anything from the wood which is a valuable resource. We must have a futuristic vision for future generations.