A local manufacturer is benefitting from an economic investment from the federal government.
FedDev Ontario has provided more than $580,000 in funding to assist Archmill House, an Ancaster-based manufacturer of architectural millwork and store fixtures, in expanding its operations.
Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas MPP Filomena Tassi made the announcement on Wednesday afternoon at the company’s facility at the Ancaster industrial park.
“The new state-of-the-art machinery … has enabled increased production while improving efficiency and reducing cost,” said Tassi. “And as a result, Archmill House has better accommodated larger contracts, maintained competitiveness in Canada, and seized opportunities for growth in the U.S. markets.”
One of those larger contracts is with Tim Hortons, according to Mike Donnelly, director of sales and marketing with Archmill.
“We did 177 renovations in Ontario, and supplied product across Canada to 406 Tim Hortons,” said Donnelly. “That’s a five-year program that Tim Hortons is going to be re-imaging and re-branding all of their locations. So we’re part of that program and we’re really excited about it.”
The funding has also allowed Archmill to hire 25 full-time employees and add a 20,000-square-foot expansion of its existing facility, as well as an additional facility in Brantford.
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Archmill managing director Brad Buchan said the funding has enabled the company to increase its capacity and production ability by 84 percent since they applied for the FedDev grant nearly two years ago.
“We’re hoping to grow another 50 per cent over the next three years,” said Buchan. “And with this equipment that we’ve invested in, it’ll really help us compete on the world stage.”