Summary
On this International Women’s Day, we connected with Francesca Apruzzese, technical manager at Domtar’s Skookumchuck Mill, who was just named to the Pulp & Paper Canada’s Hall of Fame.
Francesca Apruzzese, technical manager at Domtar’s Skookumchuck mill, was recently celebrated by Pulp and Paper Canada when they accepted her into their Hall of Fame. The honor is reserved for exemplary individuals whose contributions over the course of their careers have had a significant effect on the industry’s direction.
On this International Women’s Day, we connected with Francesca to hear her thoughts on being part of the Hall of Fame and her career in the pulp and paper industry.
What attracted you to the pulp and paper industry?
I always knew I wanted to study science. But when I arrived at the university, there weren’t too many women studying chemical engineering and people said, “There are no women, you won’t work in the industry.” But the stubborn person in me decided I was going to go and do it.
I never thought I’d go into pulp and paper. It was kind of a fluke. I studied near‑infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) as part of my PhD at the University of Toronto, and at that time, Tembec Industries, Inc., a Canadian paper company, was implementing NIRS at the time. So after few years working in their Temiscaming facility, I moved out west to the Skookumchuck mill when Tembec was operating it back in 2006.
How do you combine deep technical training with hands‑on mill leadership?
I started as a technical person. I came to both environment and safety through process engineering. As a process engineer, you are responsible for you. In 2013, when I became a manager, I learned to be responsible for other people. When I read the article about my place in Pulp and Paper Canada’s Hall of Fame, it felt really good to hear the I made a contribution to development of the younger engineers I worked with. I feel proud of that.
You spend some time working at our Howe Sound Mill. While there, you worked with The University of British Columbia (UBC) to study worker exposure to total reduced sulfur (TRS). What did you take away from this project?
It was very interesting. The partnership was with UBC’s industrial hygiene program. It inspired me to go learn more myself. In 2020, I went back to school to study industrial hygiene for a couple of years.
Pulp mills are really big chemical plants. In pulp and paper, we always have a health and safety department that focus on “safety” things like lockouts and working from heights. But industrial exposure is different; it is more long term. The result of the study was that during normal operating conditions, the TRS concentration was below the exposure limits and wouldn’t cause long-term effects to employees. It was a good piece of work for employees’ peace of mind — there was no significant concentration of TRS gases affecting their health while they were at work. In studies like this, the ability to share the information—openness and willingness to share data with workers — is the important piece.
On a personal level, what did it mean to be named a Pulp & Paper Canada Hall of Fame honoree?
I was very honored and humbled that people went out of their way to celebrate me. My personality is that I don’t like to talk about myself. I’m the most proud of helping people develop in their careers. It feels pretty good. This industry has given me a lot, and I appreciate it. I would also like to give back.
What’s one practical piece of advice you’d give young women considering engineering careers in industrial settings?
Don’t give up, and don’t get discouraged. My path was tough and challenging. When I started at Skookumchuck Mill in 2006, there weren’t a lot of women. Coming back to Skook now, 20 years later, a lot has changed. There are more women and a lot of young talents, which is great to see.
To men and women, I say you might hit a roadblock or find things don’t unfold as you expected, but keep going, find a mentor, and never stop learning. Despite all the challenges, pulp and paper is a great industry to be in, with a lot to learn every day.
