Heroes of the Highway

SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2020 5 SPECIAL SECTION HEROES HIGHWAY OF THE #THANKATRUCKER YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE ON THE ROADS, BUT WE DO. WWW.JADETRANSPORT.COM Thank you to all the truck drivers out there working nonstop to deliver essential and critical supplies during this difficult time. T hat might come as a surprise to compan- ies that have shipping contracts with rail, ship or air cargo providers but Terry Shaw, executive director of the Manitoba Trucking Association, says trucks are as omnipresent in your business as your entrepreneurial spirit, your products, your customers and the air we breathe. At minimum, trucks are responsible for the "first and last miles" of every shipment in the province. "No boats are pulling up to a shipper in Winni- peg and delivering to Walmart," he said. "There's no transportation service provider that operates entirely independently of trucks. We show up at a shipper and deliver to a receiver." Trucking provides critical services to every one of Manitoba's economic sectors, including manufac- turing, retail, agriculture and construction. In fact, 53 per cent of the province's GDP is reliant on trade and the majority of that activity moves by truck. "Trucking is absolutely critical to the prov- ince's economy," said Chuck Davidson, president and CEO of the Manitoba Chambers of Com- merce, which represents 71 chambers through- out the province and nearly 10,000 businesses. If the trucking industry's value wasn't obvious before the COVID-19 health crisis hit North America in March, it has become abundantly clear since governments around the continent imposed jurisdiction-wide lockdowns. Trucking has been one of the few industries able to operate at anything resembling full capacity for the past few months. As an essential service, it has played a critical role for commun- ities outside the Perimeter Highway, particularly in the province's north, delivering much-needed groceries and supplies. "A lot of sectors would be significantly im- pacted if there wasn't a reliable trucking industry in Manitoba," Davidson said. Indeed, the sector represents a lifeline to com- panies ranging from mom-and-pop shops to multi- national giants, said Loren Remillard, president and CEO of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce. "We know the vital inputs for most sectors aren't made in Manitoba and we need those products to come here," he said. It would be easy to think agriculture doesn't depend much on trucking but while the growing happens here, fertilizers and other inputs into the process need to be brought in from beyond the province's borders, he said. "If you're a manufacturer and you don't have the component pieces you need, your pro- cesses effectively grind to a halt. We look at auto manufacturing as the gold standard of the North American supply chain. You can apply that image to almost any sector in Manitoba," he said. Chris Lorenc, president of the Manitoba Heavy Construction Association, said the trucking system is designed to move people to jobs and products to market. "If you don't have an efficient system, it adds significantly to the cost of movement. At the end of the day, we all pay for it," he said. The MHCA relies on trucks to move gravel from the pits and quarries to construction sites and to bring new equipment from the manufac- turers to wherever it's needed. "It affects everything we do. All of our sup- plies get to our project sites by truck. Other than the heavy equipment, which moves masses of earth, everything else is truck transportation- dependent," he said. There are nearly 250,000 jobs in the province that are either directly or indirectly related to trade. If you can't move your products to where they need to go, you can't have a functioning economy, Lorenc said. "Whatever you bought at a store, it got there by truck. If it costs the truck more (to ship it), the store pays more and you pay more as a consumer to buy it," he said. Trucking is poised to become an even more crucial part in the supply chain when the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end, whenever that may be. Both Shaw and Remillard agree that businesses will be leery of having all-important components and supplies coming from overseas. "You're going to see companies keeping their supply chains a lot closer to home," Shaw said. "The movement of goods and services throughout this province (by truck) will most likely increase. It's going to show exponentially the impact this indus- try has (on the Manitoba economy)." Added Remillard: "A lot of companies post- pandemic will be taking a hard look at near-shor- ing a lot of their supply chain. A good portion of it will be connected via land and the value of trucking will only be amplified." Whether you're a shipper, receiver, retailer or construction worker, you owe your very employment to the trucking industry. SUPPLY CHAIN MORE VITAL THAN EVER BY GEOFF KIRBYSON I A N S M A R T P H OTO G R A P H Y As an essential service, trucking has played a critical role for communities outside the Perimeter Highway. Trucking provides critical services to every one of Manitoba's economic sectors, including manufacturing, retail, agriculture and construction. M TA P H OTO S

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