Winnipeg, MB, Friday June 15, 2012 – Bison Transport is excited to announce a $95 million investment in equipment upgrades, its expansion in BC and Ontario, and the launch of a new LTL service.
“This has been an extremely busy 18 months for us as we have invested approximately $95 million to renew our tractor and trailer fleet,” says Rob Penner, Executive Vice President & COO at Bison Transport. “We also launched a new LTL service, purchased a successful US carrier in 2011, opened a terminal in Langley, BC, and we just purchased 19 acres in Mississauga, ON, to construct a state-of-the-art terminal to strengthen our position in the East. It is an exciting time here at Bison as we continue on our aggressive growth path.”
Penner says Bison used the struggling economy to look for new opportunities, “During the recession, we were committed to no layoffs and we took the economic downturn as an opportunity to evaluate every component of our business. At the same time, our customers were being challenged and they needed Bison to expand our services to meet their changing needs. As a result of our internal efforts, Bison is now positioned to fully capitalize on the current business conditions.”
Equipment upgrades:
In the last 18 months, Bison has purchased 625 trailers, each of which are LCV (Long Combination Vehicle) compatible, furnished with fuel saving technology, including side skirts and low rolling resistance tires. The new trailers add to Bison’s 3000+ fleet of dry, heated, refrigerated, and multi-temp trailers. The new additions also include 75 converter dollies for the LCV operation. The new trailers include 400 heaters, 25 multi-temp reefers and 200 dry vans.
In addition to the trailer growth, Bison Transport has aggressively upgraded their tractor fleet, replacing 515 tractors with EPA 2007 technology with today's newest environmentally responsible equipment. We have also positioned ourselves to grow our fleet by an additional 100+ units by year’s end
Property acquisitions:
Bison recently purchased 19 acres in Mississauga, Ontario. Construction of the state-of-the-art terminal is planned to be completed in 2013. The new facility is located near the Dixie/401 interchange and will become the primary Eastern Canadian hub for Bison's growing highway and regional fleets that serve the Ontario & Quebec marketplace.
In April 2012, Bison took possession of a new truck terminal facility in Langley BC, which is situated on 6.5 acres and is equipped with a 12,000 square foot office building, a full service maintenance shop with five trailer service bays and a cross-dock . The new Langley terminal increases Bison's presence in the BC marketplace, and provides a firm foundation to grow the business and service customers.
Launch of the new LTL service:
Although Bison is most commonly know as a full truckload carrier, a new LTL (less than load) service was recently launched to extend our award winning services. Bison has a strong terminal network and cross-dock facilities across Canada, so launching an LTL services between Eastern & Western Canada was a great fit. The LTL service compliments Bison's dry, heated & refrigerated truckload services, and builds on Bison's rapidly growing Logistics Division, called Bison ABL (Asset Based Logistics).
About Bison Transport
Bison Transport is one of the largest Carriers in Canada, offering award winning transportation solutions to the industry for over 41 years. Recognized by the TCA (Truckload Carrier’s Association) as North America’s Safest Fleet, Bison is a high-service, dependable and value creating supply chain partner. Bison offers full truckload service, full service logistics, Intermodal, LTL, dedicated fleet operations, yard management and warehousing & distribution. Bison is an active member of Natural Resources Canada's FleetSmart Program, as well as a SmartWay Transport Partner, a national and voluntary partnership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
For more information, please contact:
Jeff Pries
VP, Sales & Marketing
T: 204.833.0130
F: 204.833.0112
C: 204.795.7584
E: jpries@bisontransport.com
Lionel Johnston
Corporate Marketing Manager
T: 204.833.0307
F: 204.833.0112
C: 204-250.1074
E: Ljohnston@bisontransport.com
