Reengage Your Customers - January 27, 2022
With Randy Hnatko, Trainwest Management & Consulting
Many companies have been forced to make drastic changes to their operations. The way you communicated with customers and prospects or generated sales in the past may not be effective in the new reality.
In this interactive training session, we will give you some tips and tactics on how you can refine and, in some cases, redefine how you will interact with your customers and prospects as well as grow your sales. You will learn how to create a prospecting sales plan that will contain a mix of activities appropriate for your business and market.
We will focus on the following areas:
• Dealing with Change
• Defining Excellent Customer Service
• Understand and creating Rules of Engagement with People
• Learn how to Effectively Communicate with People
• Understand the Psychology of Selling
• Understand Why and How People Make Decisions
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8 AIBC Core LU’s Approved!
Future of Prefabrication Building Symposium – Virtual
February 24, 25 & 26, 2022 – 9:00 am to 12:00 pm PST
Registration is Open!
Prefabrication in mass timber buildings is fast becoming a reality and through digital design and manufacturing processes, is bringing forth a disruptive effect on the building industry. In order to maintain BC’s lead in innovation in wood and to promote value-added processes within the province, it is time for BC to lead a symposium on the state-of-the-art in Wood Prefabricated Buildings. This symposium is held jointly by the University of British Columbia, in collaboration with the British Columbia Institute of Technology and the University of Northern BC.
The 3-day symposium will be delivered in a virtual format and will focus on aspirational outcomes for prefabrication bringing together architects, engineers and fabricators who are interested in the potentials for their disciplines using prefabrication in wood. The conference will be focused on three key themes; (1) State-of-the-Art in British Columbia (2) State-of-the-Art in Prefabrication, and (3) Industry 4.0. As such the event will appeal to architects, engineers, manufacturers and building professionals seeking more information on prefabrication that will enable them to fully participate in the growing market for prefabricated mass timber, tall wood, passive house and large multi-family wood structures.
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WMC Management Skills Training
UBC - Online Managements Skill Training Courses
Jason Chiu | 604 822-0082
These wood products industry-specific courses are designed for owners, managers, supervisors or management tracked employees. These are not academic courses and the skills learned can be applied immediately to the workplace. Each part-time course is led by a tutor with extensive industry experience.
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17.75 AIBC Core Learning Units Approved!
3-DAY WORKSHOP – Robot Made: Large-Scale Robotic Timber Fabrication in Architecture
February 19th to February 23rd, 2022
Assistant Professor David Correa from University of Waterloo and Associate Professor AnnaLisa Meyboom from UBC SALA, will hold a technical workshop on robotic fabrication, in collaboration with UBC Centre for Advanced Wood Processing (CAWP). While many industries have made leaps and bounds in adopting highly flexible and fully automated fabrication workflows using robotics, the construction and design industry are only just starting to open the door to these technologies.
Recent developments in robotics combined with more accessible design-to-fabrication tools can now offer architects, designers and fabricators unprecedented access to a new design paradigm.
We are pleased to welcome two experts to UBC, to share their knowledge and experience with students and practicing architects. Using a state-of-the-art eight-axis industrial robotic work cell in the CAWP manufacturing pilot, the workshop will guide participants through the unique technical and conceptual foundations that underpin robotic milling in wood, through the development and construction of a full-scale fabrication project.
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VIRTUAL WOOD PRODUCTS PROCESSING CO-OP PRESENTATION NIGHT
Intermediate co-op students in the Forestry, Conservation, Forest Sciences and Urban Forestry programs present together, while students from the Wood Products Processing programs deliver presentations on a separate evening. Also, select work term posters from junior co-op students are on display. This is a great networking opportunity to meet our students, industry guests, and faculty members.
WHEN: Tuesday, January 27th, 2021, 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm
WHERE: Anywhere! A Zoom link will be provided to those that RSVP.
Please RSVP by 11:55 pm, January 24th, 2022.
Please note that the program for the evening, as well as the presenter list, will be distributed in January.
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TWIG Monthly #15 - From Skatepark to Sawmill
January 25 - 7:00pm - 8:40pm
The founders of Van Urban Timber, Eric Savics and Danny Hagge, first started hanging out skateboarding in their teenage years in North Vancouver. Hagge had always been interested in woodworking from a young age and went on to practice carpentry for four years, which led to the purchase of an Alaskan chainsaw Mill. The company started in 2009 when Savic's interest peaked upon observing the amount of wood that was being taken down on construction sites every day across Vancouver. From a pile of slabs in a driveway to a North Vancouver shop and expanding sawmilling operations in Squamish, the company has evolved from their roots as an urban salvage and small shop operation. Today Van Urban Timber is a vertically integrated lumber business, with sawmills in both Pemberton & Squamish, producing custom cut softwood & hardwood post & beam, dimensional lumber, and live edge slabs. Recently they have formed a partnership with Lizzie Bay Logging who manages private timberland licenses, as well as cut blocks in partnership with First Nation communities such as Lil, wat, Douglas, Samahquam, and Skatin.
TWIG is creating an industry-leading forest products innovation ecosystem. The TWIG Monthly event is a recurring get-together where we highlight design, art, invention, and creative thinkers working with locally available fibre.
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The Export Readiness Training Program is an in-depth webinar based 9-module
program developed for Canada’s wood products industry that will guide
participants through the complete process of exporting.
The modules are broken into three phases, starting with determining export
readiness, then offering tactical lessons in performing research, learning about
key markets, building Export Plans and identifying the best fit partners, followed
by a number of hands-on webinars with experts on dealing with logistics,
international finance, virtual selling and other trade topics that will provide
specific and actionable advice on expanding internationally.
This program has been developed using best practices of other export marketing
training programs, but focused on wood products manufacturers specific needs,
and will be delivered with input from industry members.
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BUILDEX VANCOUVER
Join us in person at BUILDEX VANCOUVER at the Vancouver Convention Centre West, March 23-24, 2022. Exhibit your booth within the featured BC Wood Pavilion and Wood Products Showcase.
BUILDEX VANCOUVER is the largest building industry trade show in Western Canada – features products, services, and technologies relevant to those designing, building, and managing real estate of all kinds. The audience includes Architects, Designers, Engineers, Construction Managers, Contractors, Developers, Property Managers, and Industry professionals. The 2022 show will see new and innovative products for the built environment, diverse speakers and continuing education seminars, installations focused on the future of design and construction, industry networking and meaningful dialogue, an enhanced online experience, safe and secure face-to-face event, and a reconnection experience.
The event will be organized in accordance with official government and local authority guidelines, as well as any venue or location-specific regulations. BUILDEX Vancouver aims to deliver the highest levels of hygiene and safety, providing the community reassurance and confidence that they are participating in a controlled environment.
BC Wood member cost: SINGLE BOOTH – 10’ x10’ space - $2,750 (includes electrical and carpet)
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New Program Launch: “Client Direct: Korea”
For many years, BC Wood has given members the opportunity each winter to exhibit at the Housing Brand Fair held in Seoul’s COEX facility and meet with Korean importers and distributors. Unfortunately, the current dramatic spike in Omicron infections worldwide has kept Korea’s borders closed and is also leading to more and more severe restrictions on gatherings within the country, meaning that BC Wood will not be able to host members in the market this March. Therefore, we have developed an all-new program that will allow participating companies to develop new Korean customers without leaving home.
“Client Direct: Korea” will be a two-part match-making program that leverages our in-market staff and the power of online meetings. During the first step, our Korean market representative JC Lee will analyze your offerings and then begin an outreach campaign to test market your products with potential importers. Having devoted his entire career to the building products industry, JC has an immense network of connections to work from. However, we will also seek out and develop entirely new contacts that specifically meet the needs of unique products. Once the potential clients have been qualified on your behalf, JC will schedule meetings during our Zoom-based event to be held in late March. All meetings will offer professional English-Korean translation services. After the online event, our in-market staff will also follow up with each of the clients on the results of the meetings and report back to the participants on the next steps to be taken.
Unlike other such online programs, Client Direct: Korea will be limited to a small number of Canadian participants and all client recruiting efforts will be focused on only the participants’ products. This will lead to an extremely efficient and direct search for potential new customers in the Korean market. For more information, please contact JC Lee at jclee@bcwood.com. |
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Back to In-Person Trade Events in the United States
A few comments, suggestions, and ideas…
After a long 22-months, I got back on the proverbial horse and travelled into the United States. It wasn’t without a lot of pre-planning and, to be honest, some trepidation. With the requirements for Covid testing and a reduction of flights, travel has certainly become more challenging and expensive than before the pandemic. Despite all the barriers, it was nice to get back in front of people and meet face-to-face (although socially distanced) once again.
The one thing that came out of my trips was that America is open for business and despite the pandemic, business is good. Whether it was meeting with architects, builders, or distributors, nearly everyone I spoke to was having a strong year and was keen to meet with suppliers. The questions that were consistent across the board, were “can you supply, and when can I get it?”
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As we move into the new year, BC Wood will be offering a number of trade activities that will get you in front of key US buyers and decision-makers. We will be offering the opportunity to meet face-to-face, or if you are not quite ready to travel, we will be able to offer some events in a hybrid format, where meetings will take place using the Zoom platform.
We all have different levels of “comfort” dealing with the pandemic and meeting with people. For me, it was good to get back out on the road and meet direct. For others not quite ready, our hybrid format is the next best step. For more information on this or other inquiries regarding the US program, please reach out to me at dfarley@bcwood.com. |
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Webinar:
DISASTER-PROOF YOUR BUSINESS:
PROPER INSURANCE COVERAGE AND PLANNING
Tuesday, February 1, 2022
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Hosted by:
Kenneth Crown, Vice President
Greenspan Adjusters International, Inc.
Kenneth Crown has been a public insurance adjuster for Greenspan Adjusters International, Inc. since 1984 and has a wealth of expertise in the claims and claims recovery industry. He negotiates on behalf of insured individuals in order to settle claims with insurance companies. As a public adjuster, Ken’s services are rendered to help expedite claims, obtain a better settlement, and help restore and reestablish businesses without victims of losses having to work directly with the adjusters representing insurance companies.
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Funding that helps your company grow into global markets
CanExport SMEs is a funding program designed to promote and enhance Canada's trade diversification efforts. The program is delivered by the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service (TCS), Global Affairs Canada, in partnership with the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP).
The CanExport SMEs program reopened on January 10, 2022, and is accepting new applications for projects starting on April 1, 2022.
Key highlights of the program include:
- The cost-sharing formula set to 50:50;
- Maximum funding per project is $50,000;
- Reintroduction of travel dependent-activities for funding. Note: while CanExport has resumed funding for travel and travel-dependent activities that comply with the Government of Canada’s travel advisories, applicants are responsible for ensuring that the planned destination travel advisory is not at the “Avoid all travel” risk level.
Support for non-travel activities:
- Gathering market intelligence (custom research, reports and studies)
- Applying for intellectual property protection in international markets
- Applying for certification in international markets
- Seeking expert legal and business advice
- Search Engine Optimization
- Translating, adapting or creating marketing materials
- Attending virtual trade shows, networking functions, meetings or conferences
- Visits to foreign markets
- In-person participation at trade shows, networking functions, meetings or conferences
- Participating in a trade mission
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B.C.’s value-added forest industry pleads for old-growth wood
Tom Fletcher
Brian Menzies, executive director of the Independent Wood Producers Association, spoke to a panel at the virtual Truck Logger's convention Jan. 13, warning that many of the industry’s 16,000 direct jobs with 600 small and medium manufacturers are threatened by the B.C. government’s aggressive move to defer logging on up to 2.6 million hectares of designated old-growth forests. He said it’s not a question of converting his industry to second-growth wood, because half of the products B.C. sells for home construction can’t be made with it.
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Nelson Bennett
“Lots of people have an emotional attachment to a log cabin or log house,” said Josh Littler, vice-president of Artisan Log and Timber Homes, a family-owned business based in Mission.
But log home building, which boomed in the 1990s, has declined in recent decades in B.C. While sourcing good raw timber and finding skilled workers willing to make log building a career has always been a challenge, many log home builders say those challenges have become increasingly pronounced.
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Structurlam Celebrates Completion of Terminus at District 56, Eco-Friendly Retail and Commercial Office Building in Langford, B.C.
Structurlam
Structurlam, along with Design Build Services and Aspect Structural Engineers, are celebrating the completion of the new Terminus at District 56 commercial building , now open in Langford, B.C. Located on Vancouver Island, the building site of Terminus is one of the highest seismic regions of North America. The five-story mass timber post-and-beam Terminus building contains the first buckling-restrained braces housed within a timber frame. This state-of-the-art design enables its lateral system to be highly ductile while allowing the wood to be exposed. The first-of-its-kind construction is the first of two projects from Structurlam, Design Build Services and Aspect Structural Engineers in Langford, B.C.
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PREPARING FOR TRAVEL & TRADE SHOWS
Export Navigator
Trade shows are crucial to expanding your sales outside B.C.’s borders, but the culture, etiquette and expectations of doing business in each country are different. Preparation is key in order to make the most of the trade show.
Join us for this FREE interactive webinar on January 21st and learn everything you need to know about trade show preparation. From promoting your attendance at trade shows to creating an eye-catching booth, there are many factors that play a part in ensuring a successful experience!
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BCIT embarks on 10-month mass timber training pilot in January
Don Procter
The mass timber construction movement in North America started in B.C. about a decade ago but like most other jurisdictions in Canada and the U.S., the province has lagged on training opportunities for builders and their workers in the new construction medium.
That is about to change as the B.C. Institute of Technology (BCIT) in Burnaby commences a 10-month pilot program in January.
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