“On the sorting station is four-year veteran Malsi Neehahs, and our newest crew members are Casandra Stephen, Ethan Vrede-goor and Johnson. F.,” Perrault says. During slower seasons, Bio Fuels Inc. runs with nine or 10 employees. When things pick up, they employ 15 or more. INDUSTRY SWINGS Bio Fuels Inc. runs a 2013 Doppstadt 3060 shredder to process a huge range of waste wood from construction and demolition projects. years back and has significantly increased the functionality and speed of the manual process, Perrault says. The star of the show is their 2013 Doppstadt 3060 shredder. The company has been running the same model of the German machine since 2010, upgrading to newer versions as needed. “It’s been a really good application for us,” Perdicou says. Brandt Tractor is their dealer of choice for the heavy equip-ment, but they’re currently on the hunt for a new Doppstadt dealer to service their shredder. LONG-TERM EMPLOYEES At full capacity, Bio Fuels Inc. could handle 6,000 tonnes a month. And if supply was steady, Perrault says, the company could easily scale up their equipment to handle higher volumes, including look-ing at automation options for the sorting station. A recent slew of new transfer stations opening up in the greater Edmonton area has decentralized the players that traditionally part-nered with Bio Fuels Inc. Without a national, provincial or regional policy requiring wood waste recycling, the new companies are un-der no obligation to recycle their wood and will instead bring it with their regular loads to the nearest landfill. But both Perrault and Perdicou are optimistic things will change for the better as the public continues to value environmen-tally friendly practices. “I can see good things coming,” Perrault says. “This is the way to do things, and it will grow. People have to get on board, and our government has to get on board. It’s expensive to do things this way, but it’s the right thing to do.” • EXPERIENCE THE BENEFITS OF MOISTTECH'S Automated Moisture Control Sensor on the Production Line Perrault, a 26-year employee of Bio Fuels Inc. and Dapp Power (under a few owners), is on his final year before a well-deserved retirement. “When we first started, it was a lot of manual labour and the volumes were low. About 1,000 tonnes a month we would do. Over the years we’ve doubled that, and when there were highs we’d go as high as 3,000-5,000 tonnes a month,” Perrault says. “We’ve gotten better at sorting. The operators have gotten better.” Perdicou started with Bio Fuels Inc. in 2008 and will be taking over as general manager when Perrault retires next May. “Brian took a chance on a few of us riffraffs and taught us all that he knows. We’ve tried to listen and learn,” she says. “His knowledge is not eas -ily replaced. Realizing that is going to be a challenge. But he has trained us well. “And we’ll at least give him a couple of months before we start bugging him,” she says with a laugh. Employee retention is a strength for the company. Heavy equipment operator Amber Kidd is among the veterans, with 12 years in the yard. Annamarie Sommer and Garry Corkum both have nine years under their belt, while Raphael Luseluanzambi has eight and Kim Poss and Larry Crispin both have seven. CONSTANT MONITORING Allows for a constant, non-contact solution to moisture measurement directly on the production line in real time CLOSED LOOP Measuring moisture directly on the production line produced instant, accurate data that can be easily communicated to a PLC -creating a closed loop process IMMEDIATE IMPROVEMENTS A MoistTech system provides improved product quality, lower waste and energy costs, process optimization, increased plant efficiency, dryer control and reduced downtime [email protected] www.moisttech.com USA: +1 941-727-1800 Canadian BIOMASS CB_Moisttech_Spring23_CSA.indd 1 11 2023-04-26 9:20 AM
Canadian Biomass Summer 2023: Page 11
