MBiz

SPRING 2019 35 "We collect and refurbish approximately 200,000 cylinders each year. Reconditioning tanks keeps them out of the landfills." He has stayed close to his roots since starting his business from the farm that belonged to his parents, Eugene and Denise. Vouriot attended school in La Salle and graduated from Winnipeg's Tec-Voc High School with a welder's certificate. After investing in a few Winnipeg properties, including the King's Head Pub, he established Vomar Industries. He first offered sandblasting and painting service for bulk tank owners as well as reconditioning tire rims for Beavis Rims, Conestoga Tire and Ford New Holland. "I call myself a business junkie," he jokes. When Vomar began refurbishing propane cylinders for another company, Vouriot saw a new business opportunity and established Tank Traders in 2001. At that time, it was the only tank exchange program in Manitoba. Starting slowly, he piloted the program in La Salle, then moved into the Winnipeg market. He approached hardware stores, grocery stores and gas stations to set up outdoor displays containing filled 20-pound cylinders. While customers can buy a new tank without bringing an empty one, he says about 85 per cent of sales involve tank exchanges. "Once you're in our program, you never have to buy another tank." Unlike other companies offering a similar service, Tank Traders controls the entire vertical integration — filling and transporting the cylinders to customers, picking up used cylinders and reconditioning them for reuse or decommissioning them to recycle steel and brass. "We are now the largest recycler of propane cylinders in the country," he says. "We collect and refurbish approximately 200,000 cylinders each year. Reconditioning tanks keeps them out of the landfills. Each used tank is inspected, the valve is replaced and a stamp with the date is added, since a cylinder has a 10-year life." The majority of his propane is purchased from Alberta. Because the Canadian demand for propane peaks in fall and winter, when it's used for heating and grain drying, Vouriot is able to negotiate on the price since 80 per cent of Tank Traders' sales are made during the warm summer months. The company has about 150 employees in busy months and 80 in the off-season. Approximately 20 employees work at the La Salle headquarters. "We focus 100 per cent on emotional intelligence and culture," Vouriot says, adding that switching to a performance- based hiring system has greatly reduced employee turnover in the past three years. As well as expanding in the U.S. market, Vouriot has his sights set on growing his business in other areas, such as possible sales of new equipment developed by his research and development department. As a marker of the company's success and future prospects, Vomar Industries recently built and moved into a new three-storey building on La Salle's Rue Principale. ■

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