More important, because value-added products are specifically geared to niche markets they are far less prone to the booms and busts experienced in commodity lumber and pulp production. Simply put, value-added jobs are secure jobs. From his mill's location at the junction of highways 3A and 6, Dergousoff is perfectly positioned to see lots of loaded trucks hauling commodity lumber out of the region. And the reason that it goes south is that transportation routes run north-south here in the West Kootenay. Most of the utility and economy lumber in the Spruce Pine and Fir forests in the East Kootenay and West Kootenay goes down to some very sizable plants in Washington, Idaho and Montana where they re-work it into other products.
Manufacturers can move product by rail, truck, van and intermodally.
For offshore shipments, there are two principal alternatives. One is by truck in super B trains and there are some good rates being offered to Vancouver. In their report, Drake and Associates identified a host of potential value-added opportunities, the first of which was the further remanufacturing of valuable Western red cedar lumber. The consultants noted that about 150 million board feet of cedar lumber is produced annually in the Nelson Forest Region. A particular opportunity for a remanufacturer would be to utilize short length cedar lumber, typically by finger-jointing into longer lengths.