THE DISPATCH

The M&E Dispatch

So Mark Carney Has His Majority.

What This Could, and Should, Mean for Canada

So I'm heading to NHES this Thursday, dropping the kids off at the Academy in the morning and hitting the 401 to become traffic for 40-387 minutes, this range seems reasonable for that time of day.

Ahead of heading there I was perusing through the exhibitors list and thinking about how some of these exhibitors fit with where we're heading as a nation right now.

Bold assumptions here, but I think many attendants are going to be thinking the same sorts of things. CUSMA reopens in July. Tariff lists revise by the weekend. A strait on the far side of the world still decides the price of a barrel. The news watching has been the full-time job on top of the actual job.

I’ve rounded up a few below, each with a question. Not for the booth, but for you, to ponder. This is how I approach learning new companies, figured I’d share a bit of my process with you. Too much news today on the Iran front that I figured this would be a welcome read/distraction.

BTW, hit reply if you will be at NHES this week, I’d love to meet you.

The corridor and critical-minerals infrastructure

Northern Mat & Bridge — Booth 1216
northernmat.ca

They build access mats and temporary bridging for resource extraction, pipeline, and remote construction projects.

If the corridor story is real, mat supply gets tight fast. Where are you in the queue?

Cubex Equipment — Booth 2314
cubexltd.com

They build underground drilling rigs for hard-rock mining operations.

Your next drill rig could come out of Winnipeg or through a U.S. dealer. Priced the difference lately?

CANUN International — Booth 1211
canun.com

They build pneumatic rock drills for underground mines and quarries.

A shop in Val Caron sells rock drills on five continents. You probably didn't know. Why not?

Fourth Meridian Geo Supply — Booth 2254
fmgs.ca

They supply geophysical and exploration gear for mineral exploration crews.

Your exploration supply chain is either in a Canadian warehouse or it's in a container. One of those survives a bad week at the border.

Integrity Rail Products — Booth 4056
integrityrailproducts.com

They supply rail track and switching products for industrial sidings, ports, and rail-served facilities.

Critical minerals leave Canada on a train before they leave on a ship. Your siding plan ready for that?

Domestic iron

Craig Manufacturing — Booth 1226
craigattachments.com

They build attachments for dealers selling into construction, agriculture, and snow-and-ice management.

Your attachment fleet has a Canadian-built alternative for most of what's on it. Have you actually asked?

Trout River Industries — Booth 2210
troutriverindustries.com

They build live-bottom trailers for aggregate, biomass, and bulk hauling.

Your trailers cross the border twice to get to your yard. A factory in PEI does the same work.

Pride Bodies — Booth 2224
pridebodies.com

They build truck bodies — dump, service, platform — for work-truck fleets.

The body you're waiting eight weeks for could be built two hours down the 401. Somebody's making that call for you.

Luff Industries — Booth 2329
luffindustries.com

They build conveyor pulleys and idlers for mining, aggregates, and bulk material handling.

Primary conveyor fails at 2 a.m. Who's got the replacement on the truck by Tuesday — and are they on the wrong side of a tariff list?

Trackless Vehicles — Booth 2242
tracklessvehicles.com

They build multi-season specialty equipment for municipal and industrial operators.

Half your iron sits idle six months of the year. That's a choice.

Fleet productivity and the transition

Ivys Adsorption — Booth 1004
ivysads.com

They build pressure-swing adsorption systems for hydrogen purification, RNG, and carbon capture.

Hydrogen either shows up in your corner of the sector by 2028 or it doesn't. If it does, are you on a shortlist or making the last call?

Lubecore International — Booth 1423
lubecore.com

They build automatic lubrication systems for heavy equipment and industrial fleets.

Pull your unplanned-downtime number from last year. How much of it traces back to lubrication you're still doing by hand?

AgroEcoPower — Booth 1046
agroecopower.ca

They sell ECU software tuning for tractors, construction equipment, and heavy trucks.

New iron is more expensive than it was eighteen months ago. There's another 15% hiding in the iron you already own. Go find it.

Vestra Inet — Booth 2263
erpion.ai

They build AI-assisted ERP systems for industrial and manufacturing operations.

Your competitor runs AI-assisted operations by next summer. You're still in spreadsheets. Do the math.

Beyond the horizon

Canada Mining Machinery Sales (Lovol-Canada) — Booth 2213/2214
lovol-canada.ca

They distribute Lovol (Chinese-built) wheel loaders and heavy equipment for Canadian operators.

Chinese iron keeps your fleet economics working. Ottawa says diversify. One of those wins. What's your hedge?

Again, if you’re going to be there, hit reply and let me know.
Have a great week all.

-Lee

To see what the future holds, ask what your friends dream about.
-me, all the time, it’s my mantra.