Precision Fab Inc. Awarded Over $2M in Canadian Manufacturing Grants

Precision Fab Inc. (PFI) is an ISO 9001 certified manufacturer of metal racking for the automotive, aerospace, and material handling industry. Headquartered in Aylmer, Ontario, the company operates three North American manufacturing facilities and continues expanding its operations through strategic investment projects. In recent years, Precision Fab has used Canadian manufacturing grants to help spur their growth plans; this has led to accelerated performance and the ability to address new opportunities.

Some of the government funding programs PFI has used successfully over the years include the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund, Investing in Business Growth and Prosperity, the Automotive Supplier Competitiveness Improvement Program, and the FedDev Ontario Training Program. Used strategically, these programs can offset a large portion of project costs and enable businesses to achieve their growth plans more efficiently.

In the last year-and-a-half, Precision Fab Inc. has leveraged over $2 million in Canadian manufacturing grants through four successful funding applications.

One of the driving forces behind PFI’s government funding success is its ability to execute a government funding plan. PFI partnered with Mentor Works, the Canadian Government Funding Planners, to educate them on the government funding landscape and support the application process. By identifying programs that aligned to Precision Fab’s upcoming projects, Mentor Works helped PFI uncover and access their government funding potential.

Canadian Manufacturing Grants Support Precision Fab’s Growth

Precision Fab Inc. manufactures auto-parts racking solutions for North American OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers. By focusing on technology-driven improvements to product quality and shortened lead times, PFI has secured itself as a leading provider of reusable metal racking and supplies leading automotive firms like Magna International, Tesla, BMW, GM, Volkswagen, Toyota, Chrysler, and White Freightliner.

Scaling production to become more efficient and innovative is key to Precision Fab’s continued success and global expansion.

When the company’s leadership group started learning about Canadian manufacturing grants, it knew that government funding would help them achieve their ambitious growth goals. This led to a multi-year pursuit for funding that has led to four successful funding applications to date:

Project 1: Facility Expansion and Technology Adoption

• Southwestern Ontario Development Fund (SWODF): Accessed $325,000 in manufacturing grants to build a new 70,000 sq. ft. facility.
• Investing in Business Growth and Prosperity (IBGP): Accessed over $1.5 million to invest in automated equipment for new facility.

Project 2: Technology Adoption and Employee Training

• Automotive Supplier Competitiveness Improvement Program (ASCIP): Accessed over $90,000 to address productivity challenges by adopting an integrated data collection and management system (ERP), additional design software capacity, and automation in welding processes.
• Yves Landry Foundation Funding for Training Via the Government of Canada: Accessed over $75,000 to train employees on operating advanced manufacturing software.

PFI successfully accessed the four programs listed above using a government funding strategy known as “stacking,” which is a great way to leverage an optimal amount of government grants and loans for your project. While most companies approach government funding by matching one funding program to a project, proactive funding applicants can use multiple funding programs (to a certain limit) to offset an even greater portion of project costs.

By completing large projects in multiple phases and aligning project spends to several government funding programs, Precision Fab optimized its use of Canadian manufacturing grants. As a result of its government-funded projects, PFI expects to:

• Significantly reduce lead time;
• Adopt flexible manufacturing processes;
• Expand exports;
• Create new jobs;
• Increase purchase volumes from Ontario suppliers; and
• Grow company revenues by almost 100% in five years.

How PFI Deployed a Successful Government Funding Strategy

Precision Fab’s use of government funding programs is a relatively new strategy being deployed by the company. Since submitting its first government funding application in January 2018, it has accessed over $2 million in support of its growth projects. This isn’t merely good fortune; rather, it’s an outcome of PFI identifying great projects and following a government funding plan. Government funding plans identify grants and loans that can directly offset project costs, which helps business leaders manage application timelines and stack multiple programs together.

“[Mentor Works] guided us towards the right programs. [They] understand how the programs work and how our strategic plans fit the objectives of the program.”
– Herbert Hildebrandt, V.P. Business Development, Precision Fab Inc.

Once PFI had a roadmap for their business’ upcoming projects and government funding applications, they returned to Mentor Works to support the application process. The companies worked together to build a competitive government funding proposal, then submitted it for review. This process was repeated many times to build a solid track record of funding success.

“Mentor Works helps streamline the funding process. I was impressed by their tenacity to keep up… Very comprehensive knowledge in terms of what’s needed to get everything done.”
– Herbert Hildebrandt, V.P. Business Development, Precision Fab Inc.

Government funding plans constantly evolve. As company priorities and the government funding landscape shift, government funding plans become outdated. Although they’re a beneficial tool that can help optimize a business’ funding potential, they need occasional rework to identify great funding opportunities. PFI and Mentor Works will continue to develop and implement a government funding plan to access additional future programs.

Ready to access government funding? Discover multiple ways to approach applications through Mentor Works’ Navigating the Government Funding Process slide deck.