Plant Services - October 2007 - (Page 39)

Deep roots Park Falls is perhaps the most geographically isolated community in Wisconsin. The city’s 2,800 residents live in a region distinguished by vast forests, abundant lakes, hiking trails and wildlife. The pulp and paper mill is the largest employer in the area and is one of just a handful of manufacturers. There are only two traffic lights in the entire county, both installed to accommodate traffic trucking raw materials in and finished paper out of the mill. Pulp and paper were first manufactured in Park Falls in the 1890s. During the next 100-plus years, the mill’s name changed several times, but the faces largely remained the same. Many employees spent their entire working career at the mill. Tom Ratzlaff, Park Fall’s part-time mayor and a full-time beater engineer, has been employed at Flambeau River Papers since 1979. Dan Detko, president of Local 2-0445 of the United Steel Workers of America, the union representing the mill employees, graduated from high school on a Sunday and walked into the mill for work the next day. purchases 140,000 cords of wood per year and produces 22 to 27 truckloads of product per day. The bankruptcy touched not just the mill employees, but logging companies, those who truck the logs and the final product, and other local companies in support roles. “The mill’s closing was huge. Finding new jobs for the 300 displaced employees in a town of 2,800 people was next to impossible. Some found new jobs or moved away, but many stuck around to see if efforts to re-start the mill would be successful,” says Ratzlaff. Escape from liquidation Plant closure When Smart Papers acquired the mill from Fraser Papers early in 2005, the goal was to expand its position in the premium specialty segment. Things soon got shaky because of rising costs and price pressures. Energy costs were the primary concern, rising from $400,000 to $1.4 million per month. In March 2006, barely a year after buying the mill, Smart Papers declared bankruptcy. “It was a devastating blow to the region when the mill went down,” says Detko. “The mill is a huge part of the Northern Wisconsin area economy.” Flambeau River Papers October 2007 A team of investors led by Butch Johnson of Johnson Timber acquired the asset from bankruptcy court in July and reopened the mill as Flambeau River Papers on August 9, 2006. “We were the only party that wanted to keep the mill open. Everyone else wanted liquidation,” says Johnson, the CEO and majority owner of Flambeau River Papers. The main challenge was financing. “The banks didn’t greet us with open arms because they weren’t sure we’d stay around and be profitable.” Loans and grants ultimately helped with reopening. Financing for the purchase included a $4 million loan from the Wisconsin Department of Commerce. Staffing the mill was easier. “We lost a couple of key people when the mill went bankrupt, but the vast majority returned. They hung on to rumors, later validated, that the mill would reopen,” says Randy Stoeckel, the mill’s vice president and general manager. The mill reopened with no change to the labor union agreement: No wages were reduced and no benefits were cut. “We decided if we were going to make it work, we would do it with better operations, not on the backs of the employees.” 39 www.PLANTSERVICES.com http://www.PLANTSERVICES.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Plant Services - October 2007

Plant Services - October 2007 Contents Monetize It Letters Step into the Blogosphere What it Takes to be a Leader Up and Running Crisis Corner What Works From the Summit Treat Them Right Access Control Out of the Woods Show Me, Don't Guess Condition Assessment Made Easy The Air Above the Floor Power to the Prime Movers In the Trenches Illuminating Maintenance

Plant Services - October 2007

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