The Manufacturing Strengths of Canada

Canada is a manufacturing powerhouse. Manufacturing makes up 10% of the country’s GDP to a sum of nearly $175 billion. Manufacturing exports also represent almost 70% of Canada’s merchandise exports. 

What’s more, the Canadian manufacturing industry employs 1.7 million people in full-time financially lucrative positions. 

The Canadian manufacturing industry has grown more sophisticated over the years, with innovation, creativity, and technological advancements, driven by highly skilled people in multiple provinces across Canada.  

Let’s look at some of the country’s leading manufacturing experts:

Composite Industry

As you probably know, composites are two or more materials combined to form one superior material. An early example of composite would be plywood. Modern composite materials include fibre reinforced polymers, fiberglass, or reinforced concrete.  

More customers worldwide turn to composite manufacturing experts in Canada because of class-leading companies in the country that serve industries such as defense, marine, transportation, aerospace, medical, industrial, energy, construction, etc. 

The best Canadian composite manufacturers, like the world-renowned Spartec Composites, use world-class equipment and technologies, have over four decades of experience in custom composite manufacturing, have an established reputation of success for projects of various sizes with full-service design and engineering services. Of course, their record of excellence is due to a dedicated staff, incredibly product quality, and the right attitude. 

Here are some of the services a Canadian composite manufacturer may offer:

• Production Composite Manufacturing
• Part Trimming & Composite Tooling
• Kit Cutting & CNC Cutting
• Composite Engineering
• Quality Inspection
• Composite Problem Solving

Automotive Industry

With heavy investments from businesses like Ford Motor Company, Honda, Fiat Chrysler Autos, General Motors, and more, Canada has one of the world’s most prominent automotive manufacturing industries.  

In fact, automotive manufacturing accounts for 10% of Canada’s GDP and 23% of manufacturing trade. Most of Canada’s automotive manufacturing occurs in Ontario, including 100% of the country’s light vehicle production. Meanwhile, Manitoba is known for buses, specialty vehicles, and cold-weather testing. At the same time, British Columbia is renowned for fuel cell EV clusters, and Quebec manufactures trucks, buses, and electric vehicle components. 

Here are a few strengths of Canada’s automotive industry:

• Lightweight parts
• Sophisticated safety systems
• State-of-the-art software 
• Artificial Intelligence 
• Cybersecurity
• Emerging power trains like electric and fuel cells
• World-class vehicle safety and testing

As the world shifts towards electric vehicles, the Canadian automotive industry is expected to stay on top of market trends thanks to a robust network of search centers, foreign investment, and government support. 

Oil and Gas Industry 

You can’t talk about manufacturing in Canada without mentioning the oil and gas industry. Canada has the third-biggest oil reserves globally and is the planet’s fourth-largest oil producer and exporter. 

97% of Canadian oil manufacturing occurs in Western provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador in the East. In 2019, the oil and gas industry provided $110 billion to the national GDP and supported countless jobs. 

Although oil and gas manufacturing has experienced a downturn of late, it’s still a critical part of the national economy. It’s also the biggest reason why the country is so prosperous. 

As Canada heads into the future, you can expect the composite, automotive, and oil and gas industry to continue to play an integral role in the economy.