Eastern Ontario Employers Creating a Thriving Business in Unsure Times

COVID-19 has disrupted workplaces and business operations globally. Creating a thriving business has been a challenge because of safety concerns, lockdown orders and stresses on labour pools.

Locally, eastern Ontario employers’ businesses have been able to remain sustainable. Some strengthened their existing business, providing essential technology to their clients. Others delved into new products to meet demands unique to the pandemic. Regardless of the motivation, businesses in eastern Ontario have worked together with their communities over the past year to maintain needed services and keep people working.

A Quick Look at 5 Thriving Eastern Ontario Businesses

1. Kingston Aluminum Technology Inc. (Kingston)

Kingston Aluminum Technology Inc. has created a product to help lessen the impact of bottling on wildlife, their habitats and human health. The company’s patented aluminum bottle is easier to recycle, reuse and transport than existing options. Even better, it’s customizable to help others grow their business.

Here’s some key features of their product:

The patent-protected technology uses just one third the space of a traditional bottling line;
The patent-protected technology uses significantly less electricity and natural gas versus a traditional line;
Businesses with products to bottle can design and buy custom bottles and labels; and
Businesses with products to bottle can get filling and capping services, too.

2. Ross Video (Iroquois, Ontario)

Ross Video designs, manufactures and delivers technology and services that power live video productions including hardware, software and cloud-based solutions. Its products power video productions for billions of viewers, helping create news, weather and sports broadcasts, and entertainment shows. Ross Video products serve educational institutions and include corporate applications. As an employer, Ross Video provides educational assistance, extensive training and mentoring for employees to continuously enhance and evolve their skills.

Find Ross Video Careers.

3. Wills Transfer (Smiths Falls)

Wills Transfer has been part of Canada’s Best Managed Companies program for the last four years, earning the Gold Status, awarded in 2020. It started with two small trucks shipping items in and around Smiths Falls and surrounding communities. Now Wills Transfer Ltd. has 185 employees and locations in Smiths Falls, Ottawa, Perth and Brockville. As a logistics and warehousing solutions company, Wills Transfer helps businesses find short- and long-term storage and manage order processing and distribution, plus they provide shipping and receiving, and inventory management and customer service functions, on behalf of their customers.

Find Wills Transfer Careers.

4. KE Solutions (Trenton and Smiths Falls)

KE Solutions is a fast-growing company branched out from Kilmarnock Enterprise. KE Solutions helps Canadian manufacturing by fabricating customized machines and process lines, and by providing end-to-end robotics and customized solutions. Right now, KE Solutions’ top customers are medical and pharmaceuticals, food and beverage, chemical, steel, biotech, fuels and automotive and renewable sources. And they’ve provided medical safety devices and equipment such as:

Partitions (Stainless and Lexan)
Sneeze Shields
Aerosol Boxes
Other custom-made equipment as required

Find KE Solutions Careers.

5. Dairy Distillery (Almonte)

The Dairy Distillery supports local dairy farmers and their communities by creating new uses for excess lactose, like producing vodka (called Vodkow). Focussed on locally sourced ingredients, Dairy Distillery strives to make a positive impact on the economy and community.

Here’s 3 ways Dairy Distillery helps the environment:

Lighter packaging (less waste),
Sustainable ingredients, and
Carbon neutral (because they purchase carbon offsets not eliminated in the production process to make every bottle of Vodkow carbon neutral).

During COVID-19, Dairy Distillery is producing Health Canada-approved sanitizer using naturally fermented alcohol that is carbon neutral, making it safe for the hands and the environment. And, through its "Buy 1 to Give 1" program, Dairy Distillery has donated over 30,000 bottles of hand sanitizer to frontline groups like the Shepherds of Good Hope, The Mission and the Children's Aid Society (full list). The Dairy Distillery has been awarded a World Travel and Tourism Council Safe Travels stamp and is therefore now recognized globally for having adopted proper, standardized health and hygiene protocols.