February 2, 2005—The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) has opened an association office in Canada. Its goal is to raise the profile of the equipment manufacturing industry in public policy issues and to assist companies doing business in or with Canada.
The AEM office in Ottawa, Ontario will focus primarily on government affairs while other association programs such as statistics, technical and safety services, education and training programs, and workforce development will be coordinated out of AEM's Milwaukee, Wis., headquarters.
A number of lifting equipment manufacturers and AEM members are based in Canada. Lift and Access 360 spoke with David Bristow, sales manager for telehandler manufacturer Carelift Equipment Inc., Breslau, Ontario.
“It's nice to know there's a local office that can address concerns specific to Canada's business climate, the economy, as well as exporting issues. For example, as an exporter to the U.S. market, the Canadian dollar exchange rate is a huge problem right now. We went from a $1.40 a year ago to about $1.22 today,” said Bristow. “There's value in having AEM representation that can address Canadian concerns.”
The AEM Canada office can be reached at 613-566-7053.
