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Goodbye Woodpile

The last pile of firewood lying on the concrete floor in front of the wood-fired boiler house at the Viettung factory, under a blue sky with white clouds

This photo was taken on a bright, sunny afternoon. Blue sky, white clouds, and sunlight slanting through the tin roof onto a few logs scattered across the concrete floor. That was the last woodpile at Viettung’s food factory.

Since April 2025, we have fully replaced our wood-fired boiler with an electric resistance boiler.

Why we made the change

The wood-fired boiler served us well, but it had limitations a food factory cannot ignore:

  • Smoke and ash were released every day, affecting both the workplace and the surrounding area.
  • Firewood had to be stored and split before use. The work was slow and labor-intensive, and in the rainy season damp wood made the boiler burn poorly.
  • Temperature and pressure depended on the operator’s experience and were hard to keep stable throughout a shift.

What the electric resistance boiler brings

No more smoke at the factory. An electric resistance boiler burns no fuel, so there is no smoke, ash or dust. The boiler area is now clean, and our neighbors no longer have to put up with the smoke.

Stable, precise temperature. Pressure and temperature are set and maintained automatically. Sterilization is consistent from batch to batch, which makes product quality more consistent.

Simpler, safer operation. No more bringing in firewood, stacking it or lighting the fire. Our boiler operators now monitor readings and keep operating logs instead. The work is lighter and cleaner, and they no longer breathe in smoke every day.

No wood burning. The factory no longer uses wood as fuel.

Being clear about “green”

Much of Vietnam’s grid electricity still comes from thermal power plants. So switching to an electric boiler does not mean our production is completely emission-free. What it does mean is that we have eliminated smoke and wood burning on site. It also means we now run on an energy source that will keep getting cleaner as renewables take a larger share of the national grid. A woodpile, on the other hand, will always be just a woodpile.

Heading in the right direction, even if we’re not there yet, beats standing still.

Goodbye, old wood-fired boiler. Thank you for burning your heart out.