Southern Ontario Manufacturer Celebrates Successes through Federal Partnership

SCARBOROUGH, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jan. 16, 2014) - Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

Today, Minister of State for FedDev Ontario, Gary Goodyear toured the facilities of Automatic Coating Limited. The Scarborough company is set to celebrate the re-launch of its Flex Line which combines the abilities of several locating lines into one line. This will provide greater flexibility and opens up space in order to build automated pipe line coating equipment. The development of the company's Flex Line was made possible by a $50,000-contribution through the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters' (CME) SMART Prosperity Now (SPN) Program, for a total investment of $403,360.

SPN is supported through FedDev Ontario's Prosperity Initiative, by an investment of up to $18.9 million. CME's SPN Program is designed to allow manufacturers with an export focus to commercialize new technologies, enter new domestic and foreign markets, invest in sustainable and green technology, purchase new or upgraded equipment and technology, and implement efficiency improvements.

Quick Facts

• Automatic Coating utilizes an environmentally friendly line of pipe coating equipment which uses no solvents, is safer than the conventional manual coating systems and provides an increased level of quality as they are fully automated systems. In addition, this machine will be exportable worldwide.
• The manufacturing sector is a significant industry sector in Ontario. According to Statistics Canada, manufacturing revenues for Ontario in 2012 were $272.2 billion.
• Since August 2009, FedDev Ontario has invested more than $1.1 billion, resulting in partnerships with more than 5,300 organizations and more than $1.5 billion in additional leveraged investments from almost exclusively non-government sources to support businesses, organizations and communities in southern Ontario.

Quotes

"Our Government's investment in SMART Prosperity Now is a step forward in helping manufacturers in southern Ontario to improve productivity and reach global markets. I am pleased to see innovative companies like Automatic Coating Limited make the most of these opportunities."

Minister of State for FedDev Ontario Gary Goodyear

"The changes we have made in the plant have set the foundation for the next 10 years and allow us to focus on the pipe line coating industry as well as naval and manufacturing. Automatic Coating Limited's automated pipe coating equipment will be a game changer in the industry. The automated girth weld system will provide state-of-the-art, efficient, safe and environmentally friendly ways of coating pipeline. We appreciate FedDev Ontario's support of Ontario manufacturing. It is helping us to bring innovation to Canada and the global marketplace."

Brad Bamford

President, Automatic Coating Limited

"Automatic Coating is a perfect example of how an innovative Ontario manufacturer can win new customers in Canada and around the world, boost sales, and create highly skilled jobs by developing a technology that is simply best in class. CME is proud to have been able to partner with FedDev Ontario in supporting Automatic Coating Limited's investment through our SMART Prosperity Now Program. It's a great success story for Automatic Coating and its employees, for Ontario manufacturing, and for Canadian entrepreneurship."

Jayson Myers

President, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters

Related Products

Backgrounder

Associated Links

- Prosperity Initiative

- New FedDev Ontario Programs

- Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters

- Automatic Coating Limited

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Backgrounder

Agency Funding Initiatives

FedDev Ontario supports the southern Ontario economy by building on the region's strengths and creating opportunities for jobs and economic growth. The Agency has recently announced over $530 million in funding, available through the Southern Ontario Prosperity Initiatives:

- Investing in Business Innovation

- Investing in Business Growth and Productivity

- Investing in Commercialization Partnerships

- Investing in Regional Diversification

As well, the Agency recently launched the $200-million Advanced Manufacturing Fund for Ontario, and an investment of $48 million for the renewal of the Eastern Ontario Development Program.

Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters

Canada's manufacturing sector has to deal with a number of economic challenges including the increasing globalization of markets and supply chains. All of these factors continue to have a significant impact on Canadian manufacturers' ability to compete in the marketplace.

On January 10, 2012, FedDev Ontario announced an investment of up to $18.9 million through the Prosperity Initiative to support the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters' SMART Prosperity Now (SPN) Program. This Program is designed to allow manufacturers with an export focus to commercialize new technologies, enter new domestic and foreign markets, invest in sustainable and green technology, purchase new or upgraded equipment and technology, and implement efficiency improvements. SPN is now fully subscribed with a total of 283 projects which focus on both business assessment and productivity enhancement.

The Program builds on the success of the SMART Program, which was established to help small- and medium-sized manufacturers in Ontario improve their productivity through lean design/manufacturing, quality improvement, energy efficiency, IT best practices, and environmental impact reduction.

The CME SMART Program has been supported by FedDev Ontario through a total of three investments: the first in 2009 for $15.75 million through the Southern Ontario Development Program; and the second in 2011 for $4.2 million through the Prosperity Initiative; and the aforementioned $18.9 million through the Prosperity Initiative.

At $38.85 million, the CME represents the Agency's largest funding investment, which has leveraged an estimated $92 million. In total, more than 680 recipients have received support through FedDev Ontario's investment in the CME programs.