Uniboard Announces Moncure MDF/HDF is Open for Business

LAVAL, QC, Feb. 18 /CNW Telbec/ - Uniboard, a North American leader of manufactured engineered wood products, is pleased to announce the completion of its new medium and high-density fiberboard (MDF/HDF) plant in Moncure, North Carolina.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our customers, business partners and employees for their continued support and enthusiasm during this process. I would also like to extend a special thank you to Ricardo Hillmann, Moncure Site Manager, and Karsten Klos, MDF Plant Manager for their dedication to making this exciting project a reality," said James Hogg, President and CEO of Uniboard. "Today is a milestone for Uniboard as we open North America's largest and most technologically advanced manufacturing plant of MDF and HDF products."

The $160M plant, produced its first panel on February 17th just one year after construction of the facility started. With an annual production capacity of 225 million sq. ft (3/4 inch basis) per year the plant is the largest MDF/HDF facility in North America and is the company's third manufacturing facility in the United States. The new facility is part of Uniboard's Moncure Mega Site concept offering customers the ability to order a full range of panels from a single source. Particleboard, thermofused melamine and now MDF/HDF are all produced at Moncure, making it a true ONE-STOP shop for manufacturers of kitchen cabinetry, office and residential furniture, store fixtures, flooring and molding.

"Our aim is to strengthen relationships with existing clients and to develop new customers, markets and business opportunities," said Hogg. "This new plant will play a large role in fulfilling that objective by broadening our product offering at Moncure and ensuring Uniboard is the supplier of choice."

The new Moncure facility is approximately 40 miles from Raleigh, N.C., and is geographically well positioned to service the entire Eastern United States by truck or rail. The 340,000 square foot facility took just over a year to complete and has created 160 permanent local jobs.

About Uniboard (a subsidiary of Pfleiderer AG)

Uniboard is a leading North American manufacturer of engineered wood products, with installed capacity of over 1.1 billion square feet of raw particleboard, high density and medium density fiberboard, of which over 50% is converted into value added melamine and laminated flooring products. Uniboard reports annual sales at over $550 million CDN and Uniboard employs over 900 people. Its products are sold to retailers, distributors and finished goods manufacturers, which cater to the kitchen cabinet industry, the furniture industry, the renovation and construction industries, as well as to the floor covering industry. Uniboard is the largest supplier of thermofused melamine panels in North America.

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For further information: Don Raymond, Vice President Marketing, [phone], ext. 12299