Oakville economic activity in 2022 spurred on by major employers investing in facility upgrades

While the pandemic resulted in less than average growth when it came to new businesses and jobs in Oakville last year, it was full steam ahead for several companies who already call the town home.

In an update provided by Town Staff at a recent Council meeting on the 2022 Economic Development Annual Report, local economic activity also took the form of existing company expansions with several major employers investing in facility upgrades to drive innovation and expand operational capacity.

Private and public sector investments in Oakville company growth created new jobs supported key sector development.

That was especially true of Zeton, who consolidated operation into their newly expanded 77,000 sq. ft. facility on Michigan Drive.

The expansion project for the local company, a world leader in pilot plant design and fabrication, was designed to house their full staff team and to support the fabrication of sanitary systems for the food, biotech and pharma industries.

Growth also continued in the local manufacturing sector. Collins Aerospace, a major employer in town, invested in upgrades to their South Service Rd. location to expand operational capacity.

The professional services sector also showed growth with Siemens Canada celebrating its 110 anniversary with a “reimagining” of their Canadian headquarters in Oakville. The company unveiled newly renovated office space to support hybrid work and a state of-the-art living lab to foster opportunities for co-creation.

Software company Questica continued to grow operations throughout 2022 resulting in the addition of local jobs.

Growth was also experienced last year in Oakville’s coworking market as Ace Coworking opened a second facility on Trafalgar Rd. The local company’s expanded operations create new flexible and dedicated office and meeting room space for entrepreneurs to start and grow their businesses in Oakville.

Several Oakville companies were successful in receiving major provincial and federal funding support to strengthen Ontario’s manufacturing supply chain and advance innovation:

• Burloak Technologies, in partnership with McGuire Aero Propulsion Solutions Inc., received $5.7M in funding through NGen: Canada’s Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster. The funding supports the development of new advanced manufacturing technology for parts applications, including high temperature and high-speed rotating parts, and is supported by the National Research Council of Canada.
• Canadian Hospital Specialties Ltd., a medical device manufacturer and distributor, received provincial funding through the Ontario Together Fund to modernize and expand operations in Oakville, creating 50 new jobs. Funding for the project will build the domestic supply chain of made-in-Ontario products and support emergency readiness.
• Fourmark Manufacturing, a family-owned manufacturer of recyclable packaging for the food, health, beauty, and industrial sectors, received $1.4M in repayable contributions from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev). The funding will be used to adopt new equipment, increase production capacity, and create new jobs.

The 2022 Economic Development Annual Report provides an update on economic activity last year and key initiatives in support of Economic Development strategy goals. Council approved the Oakville Economic Development Strategy in 2019.

In 2023, the department will undertake the development of a new strategy to further strengthen and diversify the Oakville economy over the next five years.