Innovative manufacturer Verbom increases productivity
April 18, 2018 | By MRO Magazine
Sherbrooke, QC – The governments of Canada and Quebec have granted nearly $11 million in financial contributions to Verbom to support an investment project at its sheet metal processing plant in Sherbrooke. The project will help create around 100 jobs in the Estrie region.
Verbom can rely on $4.8 million in support from the Government of Canada, while the Government of Quebec is granting the enterprise a loan of $6.1 million through the ESSOR program.
Verbom is a supplier of sheet metal tooling and component services for the automobile industry. The company specializes in aluminum thermoforming.
It should be remembered that, out of this total amount, the Government of Quebec had granted a loan of $3.6 million to the enterprise in February 2017 to support the first phase of this project, namely expanding the Verbom plant in Sherbrooke to implement a production line for aluminum auto body parts for the Tesla Model X, a fully electrical propulsion sport utility vehicle. The Government of Canada had awarded two financial contributions totalling $3.8 million to the company to help it complete this phase. An initial contribution of $2.6 million was granted in April 2016 through ISED’s Automotive Supplier Innovation Program and a second repayable contribution of $1.2 million was awarded by CED in January 2017 through the Quebec Economic Development Program.
Verbom then added a second phase to this project, which involves the acquisition of specialized equipment so that the business can produce larger aluminum auto body parts and increase its productivity. The company plans to manufacture the largest aluminum auto body part using a high-speed aluminum thermoforming process.
The second phase, which brings the total investments to $19.43 million, provided the impetus for the Government of Quebec to add $2.5 million to the 2017 loan and CED to award a new repayable contribution of $1 million through the Quebec Economic Development Program.
The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Member of Parliament for Compton-Stanstead and Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, acting on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED), as well as Stéphane Billette, Minister for Small and Medium Enterprises, Regulatory Streamlining and Regional Economic Development, acting on behalf of Dominique Anglade, Deputy Premier, Minister of Economy, Science and Innovation and Minister responsible for the Digital Strategy, made the announcement.
