The federal government has announced $9 million in funding for six southern Alberta projects under the Regional Tariff Response Initiative, aimed at helping small- and medium-sized businesses affected by American tariffs, including steel tariffs.
Funding recipients and amounts
Lethbridge Iron Works, Oyen Regional Rail Company, Southland Trailers, TCB Manufacturing, and Triple M Housing are each receiving $1 million. Southland Trailers is also receiving an additional $4 million in repayable funding for the second phase of its project.
“These investments will help them improve productivity, strengthen supply chains, reach new markets, and create good jobs,” said Eleanor Olszewski, Emergency Management and Community Resilience minister and minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan), which delivers the program in the Prairie provinces.
Project details
Lethbridge Iron Works is upgrading to an automated moulding system to increase production capacity and improve efficiency while reducing waste and emissions. “The company will improve production efficiency, quality consistency, and manufacturing capacity. This will allow the company to respond to existing customer demand while pursuing new opportunities in North American industrial supply chains,” said Dylan Davies, Lethbridge Iron Works president.
Oyen Regional Rail Company is expanding its railyard, building a covered transloading facility, a dedicated loading area, and additional rail infrastructure to handle more commodities.
TCB Manufacturing, located in Brooks, is adding specialized equipment and AI-driven technologies at its metal fabrication facility to streamline production. “These upgrades will improve efficiency and productivity, enabling the company to grow sales in Canada, the United States, and other international markets,” the news release states.
Triple M Housing, based in Lethbridge, will add new equipment to improve material flow, address production bottlenecks, and increase efficiency. “These upgrades will boost capacity to meet growing demand, including housing projects for First Nations and expansion into Ontario markets,” reads the PrairiesCan release.
Southland Trailers two-phase project
Southland Trailers has a two-phase project under the initiative. Phase one involves using AI-driven systems to automate inventory, sales, finance, and internal operations. Phase two leverages AI tools from phase one to improve manufacturing processes and re-engineer trailers for easier transport.
The funding is part of the $1.5-billion Regional Tariff Response Initiative, which supports businesses impacted by tariffs through investments in productivity, supply chain strengthening, market diversification, and job creation.
