Calgary, Alberta – Expertec, an Edmonton-based custom vehicle upfitter, recently announced that their first year of operations in Calgary has been an unequivocal success. A longtime fixture in the Edmonton area, Expertec opened their second location in April, 2016 to continue their expansion into the custom and upfitted truck and van market segment they have been a leader in since 2005.
In an interview last week regarding the one year anniversary, Account Manager Steve Hope discussed some of the key factors in the success of the Calgary location. “I’d have to say it’s the complete service that we have to offer, whether someone wants a basic shelving unit or whether they need a full outfit with power inverters, flooring, storage cabinets and insulation. It’s all done here in house which allows us to control the quality of work that goes out the door. I think that’s the key to success, turning out good quality products and solutions.”
Branch Coordinator and Vehicle Technician Keelon Thompson agreed, especially given the economic doldrums that affect western Canada as the oil and gas segments of the economy continue to struggle. “We’ve had a lot of success catering to the smaller commercial and trades businesses, including plumbing, electrical and appliance companies to name a few. We can build upfit solutions using equipment specific to their requirements,” thus providing vehicle solutions to many small businesses that may not be aware of the options available to them.
Hope concurred on that point, citing an uptick in what Expertec considers to be emerging markets in western Canada, including fiber optics and telecommunications. While both Hope and Thompson agree that the fossil fuels industry will return, in the meantime, these smaller, newer businesses were actively growing and played a large role in the business model for the Calgary location.
Interestingly, the most popular units that Expertec has been building in the Calgary area are not standardized vehicles, but fully custom projects. Says Hope, “People are looking for something that is specific for their needs. We are able to come up with the ideas, put them into concept drawings and then manufacture and install these concepts to meet the requirements of our clients.”
Thompson spoke with an obvious appreciation of these vehicles when he cited one of the most popular ones he had helped transform, a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van that Expertec outfitted for a mobile service vehicle. “It was completely decked out. It had the VanAir system which is an air compressor, arc welder and generator unit. The project also included a nice little work-bench setup, Ez Stak cabinets, a couple of spools for an extension cord that could coil out the back as well as some spools for their welding cable. It was a pretty slick setup.”
About Expertec
Expertec is an innovative and custom van and truck outfitting company in Alberta providing personalized up-fitting packages using top quality products from warranty backed manufacturers. Expertec’s core business is aligned with optimizing and standardizing fleet and service vehicles; enhancing existing trucks and vans with custom designed equipment for operational use along with functional components like mobile lube skids, slide-in service bodies, flat decks, Spacekaps and van shelving.
The primary business model at Expertec is to use a consultative approach with any given client to create the vehicular solution that is correct for the job. Expertec feels that up-fitted trucks and vans are essential business tools for mobile operations; supporting workflow and storing essential tools and equipment. As a result, the products they carry and packages they assemble are tailored for each client, providing high impact solutions that can be easily installed, removed and transferred to other vehicles.
They have two locations in Edmonton and Calgary. Contact Expertec to find out how you can enhance and improve the performance of your fleet.
