BRP inaugurated its new modernized manufacturing facility in Valcourt, Quebec. The installation of a new ultramodern production equipment for Can-Am Spyder vehicle and Ski-Doo snowmobile assembly lines increases the facility’s efficiency, flexibility for innovation and engineering and optimizes its manufacturing infrastructure and logistics.
After the opening of one of the largest design studios in Canada 10 years ago, and the exhaustive renovation of BRP’s products development center two years ago, BRP announced the intention to invest $118 million within five years in Valcourt manufacturing activities. Three years later, BRP invested 80 percent of the total budget to modernize the manufacturing facility, which was key to strengthening Valcourt’s strategic role as the centre of expertise for design, research, development and manufacturing for all BRP activities worldwide.
“Valcourt has always been at the heart of BRP’s innovation and modernizing the plant was critical to ensuring its efficiency,” said José Boisjoli, president and CEO of BRP. “It’s the combination of small-town support with world class know-how that puts us in such a unique position: updating our facilities with a major investment like this means we are not only providing state-of-the-art tools and technologies to our local workers, but we are being more efficient, more productive and more innovative than ever.”
The facility’s modernization was part of BRP’s strategic growth, agility and lean objectives. Thanks to the flexibility of the facilities and the modularity in the design, manufacturing and assembly processes, the new plant facilitates the development of new concepts, from start to finish, in conjunction with the design and engineering departments. The facility also allows BRP to produce snowmobiles and three-wheel vehicles on the same production line and to produce them quicker and personalize them.
Not only have the improvements made to the facility put the plant in the 4.0 industry, they are also consistent with cutting-edge sustainability practices while minimizing environmental impacts, the modernization project maximizes sustainability, efficiency and the workers’ well-being, both in terms of comfort and health and safety at work.
Link: BRP
