The Ontario government has announced funding to support a $15-million expansion by Windsor's Cavalier Tool and Manufacturing.
The province is supporting the investment by providing the company with $2.25 million through the Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Competitiveness stream of its Regional Development Program.
The investment will help the company adopt new technology to increase production at their Windsor facility and create 30 new jobs.
Tim Galbraith, General Manager of Cavalier Tool and Manufacturing, says this is the culmination of a nine year journey in repatriating offshore work and building it in Windsor and Essex County.
"The cell that you see behind you is the first stage it's going to be bigger but it's the first stage and it's operational at this point," says Galbraith. "I can tell you that 100 per cent of our complex components that we used to build in low cost countries are now manufactured right here in Windsor and Essex County."
He says their molds have a lot of small intricate and exact designs components, which required several machines and stages to get it done.
"These machines will run consistently 24-7, 365 make manufacturing finished components that go to our molds," he says. "So where before we would have 15 machines doing it, now we have a cell and a robot feeds it so there's no down time so this is the culmination of that."
A new piece of equipment on display at Cavalier Tool & Manufacturing in Windsor, September 14, 2023 (Photo by AM800's Rob Hindi)
Vic Fedeli, Ontario's Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, says this will help strengthen the supply chain which has been an issue since the COVID-19 pandemic.
"This is going to expand the supply chain right across Canada by helping companies reduce their compliance on imported tools and molds," says Fedeli. "They are going to be made right here."
The company manufacturers mid- to large-size molds used in several sectors, including the automotive sector.
Cavalier Tool & Manufacturing's investment will also help the company expand its product offerings to include larger tools and molds.
A release from the province says this will strengthen supply chains across Canada by helping companies in the automotive, agricultural, manufacturing, recreational and commercial sectors reduce their reliance on imported tools and molds, while also creating good-paying local jobs.
— with files from AM800's Rob Hindi & Rusty Thomson