companies, Wallbank said. “If you drive a
Ford or a Chevy or a Chrysler, our parts are
somewhere in your car.” Their diverse cus-
tomer base includes telecommunications
companies, makers of all terrain and rec-
reational vehicles, agricultural equipment
manufacturers — the list is endless. “…
there’s almost nothing that doesn’t have a
spring or a fastener somewhere,” he ex-
plained.
Though the product may seem simple,
Wallbank Manufacturing is no stranger to
technological advancements. From about
1930 to 1980, there were few changes to
the company’s manufacturing equipment
but as soon as automation and computers
were introduced, the industry underwent
a revolution. Certain jobs were eliminated,
the cost of products came down and while
the initial investment in automated ma-
chinery was expensive, it became easier
to grow volume.
“We are a precision, high volume manu-
facturer,” Wallbank said. “We don’t make
one spring; we make 100,000 springs.
Everything we do is custom … the bolts,
6
business elite canada
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JULY 2015
