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Thunder Bay’s Bombardier Plant Experiences Growth! Continued From Previous Page “ We have a talented group of people here in Thunder Bay, especially in terms of manufacturing product. The tooling plays a vital role in our business. We have tool designers and makers that are the cream of the crop with 20 to 30 years experience. We are fortunate to have some employees like that here. Today we are hiring new people as well that bring new talent and skills that are often more in the virtual and electronic world. We work very closely with Lakehead University to hire students and work on R & D from the Faculty of Engineering. We see a lot of connections between our two organizations. We are also very strongly connected with Confederation College to provide us with a lot of the talents we need to check and test our products, what we call methods or industrial engineering. We are using a lot of talent right now. We have jobs for all the welders they have graduating right now at Confederation College. We decide what the recipe is for the cake we are going to have and these people decide how we are going to make the cake,” smiles Rene.
“ This is a world class plant. When we compare ourselves we compare to the rest of the world, to our competitors and the other 40 plants Bombardier has in the world. We have a Bombardier system measure that is an objective measure of where we stack up in terms of the other plants so that is one way to measure ourselves. We compete with other international firms such as Siemens and also benchmark against them,” noted Lalande. “ We are doing well right now, working on all the mass transit that is happening in Ontario right now. We think we do it well and our customers are happy with what we are doing. We do respect the customer and our jobs are only made possible because we satisfy the needs of our customer. This is very much at the heart of our business.” Bombardier Thunder Bay has made many
investments in the last 2 years in term of tooling and equipment and are now putting together that new line for the light rail vehicle as well as the test track that is required to test the product because they always test each vehicle at Bombardier. They are also investing in the next generation of Bi Level, spending over $20 million. That product should start production in the middle of 2013. When Bombardier finish the current bi-level production they will have made over 1100 units in the last 30 years and certainly hope this new generation version will be as successful in the long term. “ We may not be at 1300 or 1400 employees here in Thunder Bay for ever as there will be fluctuations. This year and next year will be excellent years for us and after that we have to find additional contracts. The beauty of that is we now have two strong platforms that will prevent us from going flat or to 500 employees. We are healthy, at a peak and want to stay as close as possible to this peak. Comparing ourselves to a construction company right know we are building three skyscrapers at once. Two of them will repeat but one is the subway cars for Toronto that once we finish is over and there may only be a requirements for a few more units.,” said Lalande. “ I love Thunder Bay but I ‘ll be honest, I spend the vast majority of my time working. I come to work at 7am and leave at 7or 8pm each day. I do love my job and what I am doing and think it is important to deliver these products well to the customer. We have challenges as you could imagine. Not all these projects are easy to make but I feel I owe it to my people to work these hours and solve problems. It is a little bit more than just a job,” notes Lalande. “ I do like the outdoors and absence of traffic in Thunder Bay compared to Montreal and Toronto. There are all the services that you need so it is a very good balance between nature and freedom. Services like restaurants and boutiques
Top: The Bi Level has been a mainstay for Bombardier Thunder Bay The Thunder Bay plant is over 500,000 square feet in size! provide everything you need to enjoy yourself except time. The sun is up until 10 pm in the evening which is good for a guy like me who comes home late.” Bombardier Thunder Bay is undergoing a lot of growth which is very nice but also full of challenges at the same time noted Rene Lalande. “There are a lot of people here not used to introducing 600 people into our culture and training them on how we do things, never mind their specific
job. Our growth is faster that we thought so we have imported some managers from the outside including Austria, Mexico, France, Quebec and from here in Thunder Bay. We are all working together to make this plant grow and are trying to make this Thunder Bay plant succeed.” smiles Rene Lalande.
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Lots of History At Bombardier Transportation
The Bombardier plant in Thunder Bay has had a long, very interesting history. In the peak years there were over 5000 employees when automation was limited. Today they employ 1300 in a very modern hi tech plant!
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About Bombardier, The Company About Us Bombardier is the world’s only manufacturer of both planes and trains. Looking far ahead while delivering now, Bombardier is evolving mobility worldwide and making it easier for people to connect with one
tion everywhere. Our vehicles, services and, most of all, our employees are what make us a global leader in transportation. We partner with customers, local organizations and all stakeholders to help build communities and improve quality of life wherever we do business.
another. However people choose to travel, they’ll find a Bombardier product ready to transport them. Our vast offering of products
includes high speed trains, public transit that’s smarter than ever, category-defining business jets and commercial aircraft designed for the realities of today. Bombardier answers the call for more efficient, sustainable and enjoyable transporta-
Bombardier is present in more than 60 countries, with 76 production and engineering sites among them. Our 70,000 employees push mobility forward by creat-
ing aerospace and rail transportation products adapted for the travellers of today and tomorrow. Bombardier is headquartered in Montréal, Canada. Our shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD), and we
are listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America indexes. In the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011, we posted revenues of $18.3 billion USD. Bombardier Aerospace
With more than 33,600 employees and a leadership position in global markets, Bombardier Aerospace designs, manufactures and supports innovative aviation products for the business, commercial, specialized and amphibious aircraft markets. We have the most comprehensive aircraft portfolio and we hold the number one position in business and regional aircraft. Our high-performance aircraft and services set the standard of excellence in several markets, including: • Business aircraft Learjet, Challenger and Global aircraft families • Commercial aircraft new CSeries program, CRJ Series and QSeries aircraft families • Amphibious aircraft Bombardier 415 and Bombardier 415 MP aircraft • Jet travel solutions Flexjet • Specialized aircraft solutions - Bombardier aircraft modified for special missions • Aircraft services and training - aircraft parts, maintenance, comprehensive training, technical support and publications, and online services Bombardier Transportation
With 62 production and engineering sites in 25 countries and more than 40 service centres at customer premises across the world, Bombardier Transportation is the global leader in the rail industry. We cover the full spectrum of rail solutions, ranging
from complete trains to sub-systems, maintenance services, system integration and signalling. Our installed base of rolling stock exceeds 100,000 rail cars and locomotives worldwide. Our 36,200 employees continue a proud tradition of delivering ingenious rail transportation solutions, including: • Rail vehicles - automated people movers, monorails, light rail vehicles, advanced rapid transit, metros, commuter/regional trains, intercity/high-speed trains and locomotives • Propulsion and controls complete product portfolio for applications ranging from trolley buses to freight locomotives • Bogies - product portfolio for the entire range of rail vehicles • Services - fleet maintenance, operations and maintenance (O&M), vehicle refurbishment and modernization, and material management • Transportation systems customized “design-build-operate-maintain” transportation system solutions • Rail control solutions advanced signalling solutions for mass transit and mainline systems
THUNDER BAY BUSINESS JUNE 2012
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Bombardier Celebrates 20 Years of Making World-Class Planes and Trains in Ontario Bombardier, the world’s leading manufacturer of planes and trains, today celebrated its 20-year history in Ontario with a special event held at the company’s aerospace facility in Toronto. Bombardier CEO
Pierre Beaudoin, joined by Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, held a conversation with the company’s more than 6,200 Ontario employees gathered in Toronto and at the company’s manufacturing facilities in Thunder Bay, North Bay and Kingston. “In 1992, during a global economic downturn, Bombardier acquired the de Havilland Canada aerospace plant, and the Urban Transportation Development Corporation (UTDC) in Thunder Bay and Kingston,” said Mr. Beaudoin. “Bombardier invested in the facilities and employees in Ontario, believing that they had what it takes to help us become a world-class maker of planes and trains. Today I am proud that our 6,200 employees in Ontario contribute more than $2.7 billion to the Ontario economy, and generate more than $650 million of business for nearly 300 Ontario-based suppliers.” "Just as Bombardier employees can point to trains and planes around the world and say: 'I built that,' we can look at the partnership between Ontario and Bombardier and see that we've built a lot, together,” said Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty. "Ontarians have invested in skills, education, infrastructure and a strong society. Bombardier -- with its advanced manufacturing, strong R&D and world-class products – has not only made the most of Ontario's competitive advantages, it added to them." “We are very proud that the planes and trains Bombardier makes right here in Ontario move thousands of Ontarians and people around the globe, every day,” added Mr. Beaudoin. “Here in Toronto, as the largest manufacturer in the Greater Toronto Area, we build the planes that Porter Airlines flies, as well as those flown by Jazz and Sky Regional under the Air Canada Express banner. We look forward to seeing our airplanes flying for WestJet soon. In Thunder Bay we make the GoTrains and Rocket Trains used by commuters throughout the Greater Toronto Area at a rate of nearly one a day. Bombardier’s 300-strong team in Kingston is part of a centre of global excellence in
monorail research and rail system design; our transit service team in Mississauga manages technical assistance, fleet operations, maintenance and vehicle modernizations for North America, and our iconic yellow water bombers that help firefighters
Learjet 45 XR, and key components of the CSeries commercial aircraft. Bombardier Transportation designs, manufactures, maintains and operates the BiLevel GO Trains, the new TTC Rocket subway cars, the new Toronto streetcars and Metrolinx
turer of both planes and trains. Looking far ahead while delivering today, Bombardier is evolving mobility worldwide by answering the call for more efficient, sustainable and enjoyable transportation everywhere. Our vehicles, services and, most of all, our
all over the world come from our facility in North Bay. We at Bombardier are celebrating our 20-year history in Ontario as we invest in the continued evolution of mobility, making transit and transportation more efficient for travellers and greener for the environment.” About Bombardier in Ontario In Ontario, Bombardier’s more than 6,200 employees at five facilities manufacture, assemble, service or conduct research and development on world class planes and trains including the Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft, the Global 5000, Global 6000 and soon to be the Global 7000 and Global 8000 business jets, the Bombardier 415 amphibious aircraft, the wing for the
Light Rail Vehicles, the O-train in Ottawa and the INNOVIA monorail system and metro. Passenger rail vehicles and systems designed and built in Ontario are moving people all over the world while Bombardier commercial aircraft built in Ontario are flown by more than 120 operators in 50 countries around the globe. Through direct employment and a network of nearly 300 suppliers, Bombardier contributes more than $2.7 billion annually to the Ontario economy. About Bombardier Bombardier is the world’s only manufac-
employees are what make us a global leader in transportation. Bombardier is headquartered in Montréal, Canada. Our shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD) and we are listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America indexes. In the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011, we posted revenues of $18.3 billion. News and information are available at bombardier.com or follow us on Twitter @Bombardier.