Manufacturing in Ontario works: Pupatello

TORONTO: Two concrete messages came from the Revitalizing Canadian Manufacturing conference held yesterday at the Ted Rogers School of Management.

The first is that Canada desperately requires a national manufacturing policy similar to the policies enacted by all of the countries we compete against.

This policy should contain sector-specific planning and be devised to encourage investment in emerging markets, not the overly-commoditized, ailing markets of years past—those have already been lost.

“You can’t create wealth in an economy by spinning people’s debt. You eventually have to make something people want to buy,” said Jayson Myers, president and chief economist for the Canadian Manufactures and Exporters.

Jim Stanford, an economist for the Canadian Autoworkers Union, says such a policy must include something for all sectors of manufacturing, citing the federal focus on the oil sands as an impediment to progress.

“Digging stuff out of the ground and selling it to someone else to process makes you a ‘swack’ of money up front but doesn’t further the knowledge base, which is inherently more useful,” Stanford said.

John Galt, president and CEO of Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd. in Bolton Ont., offered the most salient suggestion of harmonizing all provincial tax credits and incentives.

“From a manufacturing perspective, there are great programs provincially and nationally. They are very competitive internationally but they are complex,” said Galt. “There are about 14 or 15 programs today that we feel we need to be involved in to receive the tax credits we need to properly position ourselves for the future.”

Galt adds that the consumption habits of the emerging middle class from many developing nations over the next 15 years provides a massive opportunity, and the right policy will aid Canadian companies in taking advantage of that opportunity.

The second message imparted by the industrial luminaries and politicians at the event is that manufacturing in Ontario still works.

Ontario’s Minister of Economic Development Sandra Pupatello spent her portion of the proceedings parading gadgets manufactured in Ontario by successful companies that are competing for and winning market share around the globe.

One product was even made by an automotive supplier—an air bag built by Chatham, Ont.-based Autoliv, Inc. installed in Volvos.

Pupatello made the point that all of the products she brought for show-and-tell were manufactured using the most advanced methods by highly trained employees, the exact model that she thinks manufacturing in Ontario should follow.

“Low level manufacturing is not for us—it hasn’t been for some time. Our manufacturers must continue to ratchet up this technological advancement because so many jurisdictions around the world are catching up to where we were,” said Pupatello, barely perched on the edge of her leather club chair.

“Being able to handle the research and development is key because where companies develop new products using advanced technology is where they will manufacture them. If we can encourage the partnerships with governments to make capital investments easier here, to encourage more automation and higher skill sets we will continue to move up the value chain in manufacturing and our sector will continue to be the best in the world.”

Two concrete messages came from the Revitalizing Canadian Manufacturing conference held yesterday at the Ted Rogers School of Management.

The first is that Canada desperately requires a national manufacturing policy similar to the policies enacted by all of the countries we compete against.

This policy should contain sector-specific planning and be devised to encourage investment in emerging markets, not the overly-commoditized, ailing markets of years past—those have already been lost.

“You can’t create wealth in an economy by spinning people’s debt. You eventually have to make something people want to buy,” said Jayson Myers, president and chief economist for the Canadian Manufactures and Exporters.

Jim Stanford, an economist for the Canadian Autoworkers Union, says such a policy must include something for all sectors of manufacturing, citing the federal focus on the oil sands as an impediment to progress.

“Digging stuff out of the ground and selling it to someone else to process makes you a ‘swack’ of money up front but doesn’t further the knowledge base, which is inherently more useful,” Stanford said.

John Galt, president and CEO of Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd. in Bolton Ont., offered the most salient suggestion of harmonizing all provincial tax credits and incentives.

“From a manufacturing perspective, there are great programs provincially and nationally. They are very competitive internationally but they are complex,” said Galt. “There are about 14 or 15 programs today that we feel we need to be involved in to receive the tax credits we need to properly position ourselves for the future.”

Galt adds that the consumption habits of the emerging middle class from many developing nations over the next 15 years provides a massive opportunity, and the right policy will aid Canadian companies in taking advantage of that opportunity.

The second message imparted by the industrial luminaries and politicians at the event is that manufacturing in Ontario still works.

Ontario’s Minister of Economic Development Sandra Pupatello spent her portion of the proceedings parading gadgets manufactured in Ontario by successful companies that are competing for and winning market share around the globe.

One product was even made by an automotive supplier—an air bag built by Chatham, Ont.-based Autoliv, Inc. installed in Volvos.

Pupatello made the point that all of the products she brought for show-and-tell were manufactured using the most advanced methods by highly trained employees, the exact model that she thinks manufacturing in Ontario should follow.

“Low level manufacturing is not for us—it hasn’t been for some time. Our manufacturers must continue to ratchet up this technological advancement because so many jurisdictions around the world are catching up to where we were,” said Pupatello, barely perched on the edge of her leather club chair.

“Being able to handle the research and development is key because where companies develop new products using advanced technology is where they will manufacture them. If we can encourage the partnerships with governments to make capital investments easier here, to encourage more automation and higher skill sets we will continue to move up the value chain in manufacturing and our sector will continue to be the best in the world.”