Trailcon Leasing Expands Again in Western Canada with the Purchase of Stewart Trailers

BRAMPTON, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - July 12, 2016) -

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Trailcon Leasing Inc., a Canadian leader in trailer rental, leasing, service and dedicated fleet maintenance, has strengthened its presence in western Canada with the acquisition of Stewart Trailers, one of the largest welding, mobile service and trailer repair facilities in the Greater Vancouver Area.

With this latest acquisition in British Columbia, Trailcon continues along its planned path of expansion. Two years ago, Trailcon purchased Calgary-based Hubs Trailer Service, a move that Trailcon President Alan Boughton said began to change the landscape of fleet leasing and support services in Canada's western provinces.

"Our mission was to fully integrate Hubs into the Trailcon business model while retaining all the Hubs customers and employees," he said. "Once we accomplished this, we proceeded with a new acquisition that fit well with Trailcon's long-term progression. As a friend once said to me, 'You can do it fast or you can do it right.' Trailcon believes in always doing it right and the time was right for the Stewart Trailers acquisition."

Boughton also said that Trailcon will bring all of the advancements it has made in using technology to improve service and combine those with the existing talent and strong customer base already in place at Stewart Trailers.

Right fit acquisition

Last year, Trailcon hired Brian Jones as Branch Manager in Vancouver. Jones was tasked with finding the right fit business and facility for Trailcon's expansion. Boughton said Jones certainly succeeded.

"Stewart Trailers gives us a top-notch facility on a popular trucking route in the Lower Mainland and the opportunity to serve a solid group of customers established by the great people at Stewart over the past 56 years."

Located on what has become Vancouver's busiest truck artery - the South Fraser Perimeter Road, just north of the Trans-Canada Highway on Highway 17.

Mike Krell is Trailcon's Vice President, Sales & Marketing. He says the B.C. market has been growing steadily.

"Trailcon has been escalating our dedicated full-service lease fleet in British Columbia for several years now. With our Stewart Trailers acquisition, we will be in an even better position to offer a full range of services to our customers locally and nationwide."

Combining two rich histories

Stewart Trailers, originally known as Stewart's Welding and Mobile Repairs, was founded in 1960 by George and Doris Stewart. The company was purchased by Randy Drake in 1981, who changed the name to Stewart Trailers. Drake moved to a larger facility in Burnaby in 1995 and then to the current facility in Surrey, which features 18,500 square feet of shop space, a 4,000-square-foot office building and 15 bays on three acres of land. Five additional acres are available for future expansion. Stewart Trailers employs 15, including 12 licensed shop and mobile mechanics who can repair and maintain trailers and temperature controlled units.

Drake said he is confident the sale to Trailcon will offer value and the highest respect to current customers and staff.

"For the past 35 years, we have received great support from our customer base, many of whom have become friends. Our clients will benefit from the cutting edge technology Trailcon offers, as well as the long-term leasing and local rental options. We will be able to provide Trailcon customers with our in-house shop capabilities delivered by our professional maintenance technicians. It's easy to see how bringing Trailcon and Stewart Trailers together will create a complete service operation for our mutual clients."

Alan Boughton was the sole employee when he founded Trailcon in 1992 in Mississauga, Ontario. Today, with more than 135 employees in five Canadian branches, Trailcon owns a fleet of more than 7,000 units servicing many of Canada's largest for-hire carriers, private fleets and major grocery and retail chains. Its mobile repair fleet is the largest in Canada, with almost 100 licensed trailer technicians, along with a wide reaching list of service providers within North America. Trailcon also services over 10,000 customer-owned units across Canada.

In April 2015, Trailcon moved to a new 75,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility, consisting of 30,000 square feet of office and parts, and 45,000 square feet of maintenance on 15 acres in Brampton, Ontario. With 15 Ontario Ministry of Transportation licensed stations in the Greater Toronto Area and branches in Cornwall, Ontario; Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta; and now in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, the mobile repair technicians dispatched from the 24/7 Customer Response Centre are ready to perform any kind of maintenance or repair work.

"Trailcon and Stewart's integration will take place over the next two months," Boughton said. "Customers from both organizations will continue to receive the high quality services they've come to expect over the years and with this merger, we will be able to provide even more offerings to every one of them."

For more information, visit www.trailcon.com. Follow Trailcon on Twitter @trailconleasing or find them on Facebook.

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