Two Ottawa-based crane rental services have joined forces to create a new company, which will consolidate and expand services in the local and Eastern Ontario markets with a larger fleet of cranes and experienced operators.
"I want our customers to know that we are expanding," said Michael Barrie, president of Barrie Crane Rental Ltd.
"We hope to serve them better, both our customers and Ottawa Crane’s customers."
Barrie Crane Rental Ltd. announced earlier this month that the company had acquired Ottawa Crane Rental.
The actual legal date of the transaction was Sept. 9, which started the process of integrating two of the leading providers of crane services in Ottawa into one company.
"We bought all the shares from Ottawa Crane, so it was an acquisition, but we are keeping it as a division of Barrie Crane," explained Barrie. "Everybody is on board. No one lost their job, we took everybody. It’s business as usual, but now we are working on the same things."
Ottawa Crane Rental is operating as a separate division of Barrie Crane Rental.
"Barrie Crane was growing fast and Ottawa Crane had been our best customer for years, so we knew each other very well," said Barrie.
"One of the main reasons we wanted to do it (the acquisition) was Barrie was a smaller company, and we wanted to take advantage of their existing staff."
The acquisition created a larger company with an expanded fleet of cranes and experienced operators, who will service the Ottawa and Eastern Ontario markets.
"We are still operating in the same geographic market, but now we can go out and work on a different range of work," said Barrie.
"Previously Barrie’s biggest crane was 50 tonnes. Ottawa has 90-tonne, 60-tonne and 50-tonne cranes, which allows us to bid on larger projects."
Under the new company, administration, such as invoicing, payroll and accounts receivable and payables, taxes, WSIB websites, are being consolidated at Ottawa Crane’s office at 37 Bentley Ave.
The new company will continue to operate its cranes and trucks from two different yards, with Ottawa located on the west side of the city and Barrie in the east.
"What is really separate is Barrie’s customers still call me and I dispatch cranes, and Ottawa’s clients still call them and cranes are dispatched," said Barrie.
"There isn’t one dispatch, but I hope one day there will be. We do a lot of inter-company work which is nothing new."
Another benefit of the acquisition is the integration of two established companies with very similar business cultures.
"There are no surprises in terms of business culture, we knew there would be no issues, because we worked together," said Barrie. "That is one of the reasons they were interested in selling, because I was compatible with their culture and we have the same values."
Ottawa Crane Rental Services Limited was a family-owned and operated business, which has serviced Eastern Ontario since 1970.
The company provided a wide range of services including hoisting, rigging and heavy industrial machinery moving to commercial, industrial, contractor and residential sectors. It covered most areas in the Ottawa Valley and Eastern Ontario including Prescott, Kingston, Cornwall, Perth and Pembroke.
Barrie Crane Rental Ltd. also offers an assortment of rigging services in the Eastern Ontario region including: Ottawa, Kemptville, Smiths Falls, Kingston, Brockville, Cornwall, Hawkesbury, and surrounding areas.
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