New zero-emissions galvanizing plant officially opens in North Bay

This week, a plant billing itself as the only one of its kind in Northern Ontario is holding its grand opening in North Bay.

Norgalv is a galvanizing operation, located in the city's Airport Industrial Park. Managing director  Andre van Soelen says their facility is environmentally sound, and has zero emissions.

All fumes are extracted and completely cleaned; its chemical room is located above ground, and is completely sealed.

"I think the important thing is that our facility is an extremely clean, safe environment for employees and it's also safe for the environment around us," van Soelen said.

The company, which hails from South Africa, specializes in hot-dip galvanizing — the process of dipping fabricated steel in a "kettle" of molten zinc to create a chemical and physical barrier against corrosion.

van Soelen says their customers come from various sectors, including mining, manufacturers, telecommunications, and agriculture.

"We've even got private individuals who bring their own snow trailers in for galvanizing," he said.

But how did they land in North Bay?

"We reached out to the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation at the Prospectors and Developers Conference in 2017, and we were introduced to the various cities in northern Ontario. And from there, North Bay just presented itself for this galvanising plant," van Soelen said.

He describes Norgalv as a medium-sized general galvanization plant, with a kettle that is roughly 8 metres long, 1.4 metres wide and 3.5 metres deep. 

"We've got a host of pretreatment tanks that are a similar size. And after that it goes into the galvanizing kettle where it's immersed in molten zinc. Any product that can basically fit those dimensions will be able to be galvanized."

Currently 31 people are working at the 3,200 square metre facility. 

van Soelen says he's hopeful that plant will be around for years to come, and the current fabricators in northern Ontario will appreciate have a galvanizer on nearby, and not have to ship items to southern Ontario.

He also notes that the new plant may be an "economic attraction" for other companies that may be considering setting up shop in the region.

"There are quite a few products where galvanizing is a requirement," he says.

"And people would not necessarily manufacture those products if they're not close to a galvanizer. So the hope is that we would attract some other businesses in the future."