International expansion in the mid-90s
In 1995, Valiant was the only Canadian company chosen to bid on a global project to develop closure assembly lines for a new Ford platform in Europe. Our team committed significant resources to create a thorough and polished presentation demonstrating our capabilities to Ford’s North American and European teams. Following an evaluation process that included suppliers from around the world, Ford selected Valiant to provide all door assembly equipment and closure installation tooling globally.
At the time of this big win, we realized we would need additional resources and strategic international partnerships to deliver a project of this scale successfully, so we formed an alliance with a leading supplier in the Netherlands.
Our company’s further global expansion included adding Valiant International NV in Belgium and Avco Tech in the UK to the group of companies. We established a strong relationship with Anton Bauer in Germany to add hydroforming machines to our product portfolio.
One of the most significant projects TMS worked on in the 1990s was the Rohbau 2000 program for Daimler Truck, which included a cab-in-white assembly system that accommodated five different models. This decade-long project enabled our customer to produce 280 cabins per day with 333 subassemblies across two shifts. Upon completion, the TMS global workforce had grown to over 800 employees, significantly enhancing the company’s capacity and expertise in developing systems with increased complexity and higher production volume.
In 1998, Valiant moved into a newly built 240,000-square-foot facility, which would also serve as our new corporate headquarters at 9355 Anchor Drive in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, to accommodate our continued growth in the automotive body-in-white sector.
The same year, we acquired E.R. St. Denis Inc., a leader in hemming and metal-forming technology. Hemming is a critical process that joins inner and outer closure panels to produce parts such as vehicle hoods, deck lids, doors, and fenders. The hemming process aligned strategically with our expertise, allowing us to deliver turnkey closure assembly systems.
Meanwhile, in Europe, TMS was building on strong momentum and established its new headquarters at Gaisbergerstraße 50 in Linz, Austria, in 1999. It also leased manufacturing space near the new headquarters to support the company’s rapid growth.
Accelerated growth throughout the 2000s
In the early days, Valiant’s engineering rooms were filled with large drawing boards, layout tables, and tools like slide rules and mechanical pencils. Our engineers designed with their Mylar, sepia, blueprints, and other forms of drawing media under bright fluorescent lights.
Computer-aided design matured from the early 1990s to the early 2000s, and designers transitioned from manual drafting to 2D CAD design and then to 3D modelling, simulation, and computer-aided manufacturing in a relatively short time. This shift enabled faster and more frequent vehicle model introductions for automotive companies while allowing full-service integrators like Valiant to increase engineering throughput and leverage advanced tools such as finite element analysis (FEA), throughput analysis, robot simulation, and digital human interface ergonomic studies.
Valiant Machine & Tool Inc. was one of North America’s first companies to comply with the QS 9000 TE (Tooling and Equipment) Supplement after we passed final auditing in 1998. Our team took a proactive approach to quality management in the early 1990s and invested substantially in employee retraining, additional services, and capacity to achieve compliance.
On the other side of the ocean, TMS reached the milestone of 1,000 employees in 2001, solidifying its status as a leading supplier of body-in-white assembly systems, final assembly, material handling, and automated guided vehicles.
Throughout the 2000s, TMS was honoured with numerous customer awards and certificates. Daimler Chrysler awarded TMS a certificate for integrating a body-in-white production system for the Mercedes-Benz C-Class in Sindelfingen and Bremen, Germany. The 2002 Porsche Supplier Award was received following the successful integration of material handling systems to support the Porsche Cayenne project in Leipzig and Zuffenhausen, Germany. In addition, TMS received the 2003 BMW certificate for successfully delivering a body-in-white assembly system for the BMW 5 series in Dingolfing, Germany.
In 2003, Valiant launched an automotive Tier-1 business unit to focus on generating new opportunities with vehicle parts suppliers.
At the same time, Valco Manufacturing began low-volume production of components for leading heavy industry companies. The team expanded rapidly, gaining new customers each month. Major clients like Caterpillar, John Deere, Volvo, Skyjack, and Manitowoc valued Valco’s ability to supply quality parts on a just-in-time basis. Valco offered an advantage by providing services in addition to fabricating, including heavy machining, metrology, and painting. With resources to design and build custom fixtures, Valco offered a full-service solution to our customers in the heavy industry sector.
In 2004, Valiant received the Ford World Excellence Award for social responsibility. The award recognizes suppliers that demonstrate the exemplary performance required to ensure Ford continues to be successful in a highly competitive global environment.
Valiant’s further diversification and acquisition of TMS
As the automotive industry showed signs of slowing down in 2004, Valiant’s management team reassessed the company’s diversification strategy, exploring how our core competencies could apply to new sectors. Having previously delivered successful projects in the aerospace, construction, and forestry industries, it became evident that we needed to expand our presence in these areas. Later that year, we also added trim, chassis, and final assembly applications to our automotive portfolio.
The industry-wide challenges also impacted TMS in Europe. By 2004, TMS had reduced its headcount to just over 700 employees across Austria, Germany, France, Spain, Brazil, South Africa, the Czech Republic, and the USA.
In 2005, members of the Valiant management team visited TMS in Linz, Austria, and discovered many similarities to Valiant. A year later, in 2006, Valiant acquired TMS to join forces and enhance our ability to serve global customers in Europe and North America. By forming a new global company, Valiant TMS, we achieved our goal of regional diversification, splitting our revenue almost equally between North America and Europe.
In 2006, our company introduced innovation to the body-in-white assembly process with the ValuFlex®. This concept used an innovative quick-change Geo-Pod® and Geo-Dock® system to provide tooling flexibility for up to six vehicle models on one assembly line. This system reduced floor space requirements and offered automotive manufacturers a scalable production approach. The same concept was later applied to fender-setting and flexible robotic roller hemming applications, accommodating multiple vehicle models in a single cell to maximize capital equipment investment value for our customers.
One year later, in 2007, our Automation and Assembly group secured its largest contract to date from the Chrysler Corporation to deliver cylinder block, cylinder head, and crankshaft manufacturing automation to support the Chrysler Phoenix engine program. New technologies included robotic flexible washers with industry-exclusive Water Hammer® pulse nozzles, leak testing machines, bearing cap assembly cells, various other assembly processes, material handling systems, and an unprecedented number of roller conveyors.
Making our mark in aerospace
In February 2006, we received a contract to design, build, and integrate five Tail Support Stands (TSS) for the rear-loading 747-400 LCF (large cargo freighter) aircraft, later named the Boeing Dreamlifter. Once completed, these TSS units were delivered to airports in Nagoya, Japan; Grottaglie, Italy; Everett, Washington; Wichita, Kansas; and Charleston, South Carolina. Our R&D, engineering, and manufacturing teams overcame many challenges to develop robust, sophisticated equipment to withstand harsh airport environments.
With no time to waste, we designed and tested the massive TSS systems at our Anchor Drive facility in Windsor. Our aerospace team simulated all test conditions in-house, including slippery and uneven ground surfaces and wind force of up to nine tons, to ensure the fixture’s performance in real-world conditions.
All five systems successfully passed testing and were delivered and integrated at their designated locations. This project established Valiant TMS as a world-renowned provider of innovative specialty equipment for the aerospace sector.
After receiving several Boeing Performance Excellence Awards, we were honoured with Boeing’s prestigious Supplier of the Year Award in 2007 for our commitment to superior performance and customer satisfaction.
Closing the decade with optimism
In 2008, the Valco Manufacturing team was honoured with the Caterpillar Welding Excellence Award, highlighting their commitment to quality and customer satisfaction.
After navigating the 2008 global recession, Valiant TMS had an eventful year in 2009. We celebrated 50 years in business and were named GM’s Supplier of the Year. Recognizing the importance of emerging markets, we established Valiant TMS Systems Pvt. Ltd. in Pune, India, to leverage cost advantages and enhance service capabilities for customers expanding into these regions. On the other side of the world, we built a new facility in the Southpark area of Linz, Austria, to support our continued growth in Europe.
Valiant TMS entered the new decade with strengthened resilience as a global company. In the final chapter of the Valiant TMS 65th anniversary blog series, we’ll explore the highlights of our operation from 2010 to the present. Be sure to return for the series finale in the next few weeks — you won’t want to miss it!