Who we are and what we do

Weir is a mining technology company. Our technologies help customers in mining and similar industries operate with the highest productivity and lowest environmental impact.  Customers rely on our solutions and our service to keep their mission-critical operations running efficiently and drive their sustainability footprint down.

Weir Canada has been operating in Metro Vancouver since 2013 when we acquired the long-established R. Wales Company. We are a leading provider of products and services for a variety of Canadian markets including power, minerals, and industrial. We manufacture products, and our specialty is applying pre-fabricated rubber lining to metal pipes and hoses that help our customers improve operational efficiency, increase the lifespan and durability of their equipment, and reduce industrial waste.

Our Surrey Facility

We established a state-of-the-art facility within the Campbell Heights North Business Park located in Surrey, B.C., which was inaugurated in May 2017.

Our facility:

  • Consolidates two facilities that were formerly situated in Richmond and Delta (R. Wales)
  • Employs 125 people, many of whom live in Surrey
  • Cleaner and better for the Metro Vancouver environment than the two older facilities.

September 2022

At Weir Minerals’ state-of-the-art facility in Surrey, we diligently pursue continuous improvement in our processes. We acknowledge, and approach with utmost seriousness, our obligation to both the environment and our neighboring communities. Since our inception in 2017, we have made significant investments in enhancements to our facility, resulting in numerous advancements and the attainment of multiple sustainability awards across Canada within the Weir Group.

These commendable efforts were acknowledged by the Surrey Board of Trade, and it is with immense pride that we accepted the Environment Business Award at a gala event held on September 20, 2022. Satpal Judge, the facility manager for Surrey, graciously accepted this award on behalf of the entire Surrey workforce and the broader Weir Canadian team. We express our sincere gratitude to the Surrey Board of Trade. Weir Minerals Surrey remains committed to our journey of sustainability, further reinforced by this esteemed recognition.

Our Permit Application

November 2017

Activities conducted at our facility result in air emissions; consequently, we were mandated to secure an air quality permit from Metro Vancouver. The issuance date of our air quality permit was 9 November 2017.

March 2019

Weir Canada, Inc. is pleased to announce that in December 2018 a mutually satisfactory resolution was reached between Weir and members of the Surrey, BC community (including South Surrey Clean Air & Water) regarding the granting of air emission permits issued by Metro Vancouver for Weir’s facility on 34 A Avenue.

The terms of the resolution include the implementation of a joint Business & Community Engagement Plan that includes a joint Technical Committee to provide advice and recommendations on a sampling and monitoring program for all emissions from the facility.

The resolution has been approved by the District Director of Metro Vancouver. Weir Canada Inc is pleased to be a part of the Surrey business community and looks forward to a long and beneficial relationship with the wider Surrey community.

April 2022

Weir Canada Inc. is seeking an amendment to existing permit GVA1081 to reflect the as-built equipment and layout in the industrial rubber rebuilding plant, in-use capture efficiency of particulate control equipment and to add a provision for fugitive emissions of volatile compounds. 

The requested permit changes are as follows: 

  • Remove allowances for equipment listed on the permit but not installed. 
  • Minor modifications to operating limits for existing sources to reflect the actual performance of emissions controls based on testing that has been performed including a lead emissions limit.
  • A formal provision for fugitive emissions of volatile compounds as a listed source in Weir’s permit rather than as a total usage annually. 

December 2024

Metro Vancouver issued the Air Permit GVA1081 Amendment to the Weir Surrey facility, in which the requested modifications have been granted.

  • Removal of the unbuilt emission sources
  • Fugitive VOC sources reported quarterly to MV
  • Increased particulate matter limits to enhance verification through US EPA test method #5
  • Further enhance communication with the community, addressing inquiries
  • Designing, planning, implementing and monitoring improved technologies of emission controls for the next 7 years, prepared by a MetroVan-approved professional

Since facility start-up, Weir has taken steps to reduce emissions in their process including:

  • Mobile filter carts equipped with carbon cartridges have been installed to capture emissions associated with the application of specific adhesives, in addition to fixed carbon filter systems designed to mitigate emissions throughout the facility.
  • Changes to the formulation of compounds have virtually eliminated chemicals such as toluene. 
  • Significant efforts to reduce fugitive emissions of volatile chemical compounds from surface preparation and rubber adhesives such as transitioning paints applied to finished pipes to almost 100% water-based.
  • Enhanced dust filtration for rubber buffing with the introduction of a two-part filtration system.
  • Eliminated the welding stack emission source by redirecting welding fumes to individual extractors with filtration inside the facility, releasing them through roof vents, doors, and windows.

Weir is committed to ongoing emissions reductions through continuous improvements of all parts of their manufacturing process. 

For more information, please see the Metro Vancouver Environmental Protection Notice.

Results of Our Assessments

The air quality modelling report confirms the preliminary conclusions presented at our public meeting in April 2017, and shows that emission concentrations in the surrounding area fall well within Metro Vancouver objectives. For certain air contaminants Metro Vancouver does not have objectives so predicted concentrations  of these contaminants were compared against other criteria from Alberta, Ontario or Texas. These are also well below the published jurisdictional limits. Jurisdictional limits are typically established based on a given concentration level for an adverse affect on the surrounding environs, such as health, soiling, corrosion, vegetation damage, and/or visibility.

In addition to air quality modelling, deposition models were conducted with a selection of potential contaminants to assess the potential for these contaminants to affect soil conditions in the area near our new facility. The results of this deposition modelling indicate that soil concentrations of these contaminants are all less than 0.1% of the agricultural land soil standards and that predicted 30-day deposition values are more than 1000 times lower than Alberta and Ontario dustfall criteria which were used because British Columbia no longer has objectives for dustfall deposition.

Based on these results, it is predicted that our facility will generate insignificant deposition of contaminants and negligible impacts on surrounding water sources including aquifers and surface waters, fish habitats, and soil for agriculture.

We recognize that particulate matter has also been of particular interest to some residents. Agricultural activities and diesel emissions are the largest sources of particulate matter in the local area near our site. Of the small amount of particulate matter emissions from our facility, almost 75 per cent comes from burning natural gas to heat water and create steam, much like boilers in multi-family residential buildings or institutions. The other 25 per cent comes from welding, buffing and grit-blasting, primarily iron dust. Our studies conclude that these emissions drop rapidly with distance from the facility. Within 300 metres of our facility, particulate emissions contribute 0.5 to 1 per cent to background particulate levels.

For more information the following documents are available for download: