PenPly unloads logs for production in Port Angeles; big first day is Monday
Tim Freeman operates a machine called a "shovel" to lift Olympic Peninsula logs off the back of a truck and stack them at the PenPly log yard in Port Angeles on Thursday. The truck was being driven by Jerry Thompson of B&D Trucking. -- Photo by Chris Tucker/Peninsula Daily News
By Tom Callis
Peninsula Daily News
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That will be the first time that the mill on Port of Port Angeles property on Marine Drive in Port Angeles has operated since Klukwan Inc. closed its doors in November 2007.
The mill's first day will see 124 employees at work.
"I'm going to feel a lot of satisfaction, enthusiasm and relief," PenPly President Josh Renshaw said.
The relief comes from finally beginning production after nearly two years of work on Renshaw's part to save the shuttered plant.
Renshaw, a former sales manager at the mill, then known as KPly, began assembling investors to save the shuttered plant shortly after Klukwan, an Alaskan native corporation, permanently laid off its workforce of 132 in April 2008.
Investors in Peninsula Plywood Group also include Grant Munro, former Port Angeles City Council member, and Wilmer Possinger Jr.
All of the logs unloaded thus far are from the Olympic Peninsula, Renshaw said.
Renshaw said a barbecue, only for employees, is planned today, and that a formal ribbon cutting is still in the works.
The formal ceremony is expected to include dignitaries such as Rep. Kevin Van De Wege, D-Sequim, who helped PenPly acquire the state loans needed to restart production, Renshaw said.
Van De Wege represents the 24th District, which includes the North Olympic Peninsula.
PenPly began training its mill workers last week.
An additional 25 workers will be hired for the swing shift in two to three months, Renshaw said.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: February 25. 2010 11:52PM
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