Manitou Forest Products under going expansion

After only three years of shared ownership, Manitou Forest Products at Rainy River First Nation (Manitou Rapids) is looking at the possibility of a half-million dollar expansion.
It already has re-invested $750,000 over the last five years.
“We’re always expanding, trying to put up new buildings. Right now, we are trying to winterize the sawmill and make our whole operation here run year-round,” said owner and general manager Dale Kaemingh.
The plan to winterize the mill will mean year-round production and full-time employment for most of the employees there.
“In our peak time, we are going to be running close to 30 employees,” said Kaemingh.
There also are plans to purchase a new, more advanced saw-line carriage, which will maximize production from each log which runs through the mill.
The mill’s success has been attributed to a business-oriented board of directors and strong management.
In the late 1970s, Rainy River First Nation approached Emo businessmen Tom Judson and Ted Kaemingh in search of someone who would take on the property’s abandoned mill.
The two took the risk and Manitou Forest Products has been up-and-running there ever since.
But the mill was leasing the property and buildings from Rainy River First Nation and was not likely to invest in expansion until the ownership deal was struck three years ago.
Now Manitou Forest Products owns 49 percent of the mill’s shares while Rainy River First Nation owns 51 percent. Both groups have a vested interest, assuring growth and efficiency.
“For [us], the benefit was actually owning some assets. You can work to be worth millions but you don’t benefit from it,” noted Kaemingh. “[We now have] part ownership of the assets, too.”
For Rainy River First Nation, the growth of the mill has been beneficial as a source of revenue and employment.
“It’s a business relationship and we treat it as a business. We have a share in the profits and there’s employment for the community,” said Chief Jim Leonard.
The mill has come a long way since it started in 1980.
“It was worth $100,000–maybe. It now has a value of $1.5 million,” said Kaemingh.
“The Rainy River First Nation has been a very good reserve for job creation and stuff like that. A lot of it is having a vision and a good council to work with,” he added.
“It all stems from a good chief, good councils, and good band administration,” Kaemingh stress-ed.
New products are being taken on by the mill, and regular sales have been established with retail yards in the area. It also has been looking at partnerships with larger mills in the area.
Manitou Forest Products currently produces three-five million feet of lumber per year depending on the wood supply, Kaemingh said, but added the goal is to produce as much as eight million feet.
“I think the future looks good,” he remarked.