Some local businesses looking to expand were given a hand by the province Wednesday.
The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation gave three Thunder Bay businesses a total of $1.5 million for expansion plans that include new jobs and facilities.
While not all businesses that are granted part of the $100 million fund, most recently Tornado Medical Systems, end up being successful MPP Bill Mauro said these businesses are all established in the community already.
And the heritage fund has a rigorous process in place to determine who gets the money.
“We respect that occasionally they don’t all work as is the case when private sector financial institutions fund private sector businesses as well,” Mauro said after the announcement at the Knights of Columbus.
The largest grant went to True Grit Consulting.
President Eric Zakrewski said the $1 million will be part of a $3 million expansion that is already underway.
By late October, the company’s Innova Park site should have a state-of-the-art engineering and materials testing complex that will be able to attract professionals from all over the world to complement the 40 staff already at the Thunder Bay business.
“Our plan is to strategically recruit engineers, scientists, chemists, technologists and surveyors from national and international markets to a beautiful place like Thunder Bay,” he said.
The six-year-old company is also developing a new IT system that will allow its employees to exchange information all over the world in order for the consulting company to compete on a global level.
Digital Engineering received $390,000 to renovate and expand while Loch Lomond Equipment Sales got $107,500.
