Tourism Winnipeg

When the pandemic struck, it forced businesses to re-evaluate their day-to-day operations in nearly every industry. Partner that with supply chain shortages and it made for unprecedented times in already-volatile markets. We discovered many of the operational changes—while intended to be temporary—proved beneficial and will remain part of companies' long-term business strategies. TECHNOLOGY & INDUSTRIAL MANUFACTURING As major cities across North America report declines in public transit use during the pandemic, business hasn't slowed for NFI Group, a leading global bus and motor coach manufacturer with operations in 12 countries. "The pandemic was eye-opening for a lot of people in our industry. It became very apparent the extent to which frontline workers—retail, construction, manufacturing, health services, personal care homes—rely on public transit," said Stephen King, Group Director, Corporate Development and Investor Relations, NFI Group. "Even though ridership dropped with a lot more people working from home, a lot of those frontline folks were still on buses or subways or light rail every single day." With the focus on safety amid the pandemic—from touchpoints on and inside a bus to air quality throughout—NFI implemented new measures to ensure greater public safety for transit vehicles. "We launched something called NFI Parts™ Clean and Protect," said King. "It was designed around trying to make a safer bus environment and includes air purification, cleaning and disinfecting the vehicle so that people feel safer on public transit. A lot of our customers have purchased the solution and had great success with it." NFI Group's innovation and exploration have also birthed new, environmentally friendly technologies, including seven new zero- emission products launched in 2021 and North America's first level four automated bus. "Our industry is changing because we're really on the cusp of the transition from diesel and natural gas to battery-electric and fuel cell-electric vehicles," said King. "It's a journey that will take over 20 years, but we're really starting to see that transition where more customers are looking at and buying battery- electric and fuel cell-electric vehicles." As businesses utilize evolving technology to manage their operations efficiently, implementing or upgrading systems often becomes costly. So, it can be beneficial to find a company to understand the "internet of things" as PSB Integration does. A solutions provider of audio-visual communications, security and lighting control, PSB boasts clients such as Manitoba Museum, Royal Aviation Museum and 201 Portage. They work in concert with the design and contracting community to Transforming setbacks into success REAL OPPORTUNITY 22 THE WINNIPEG INVESTOR REAL OPPORTUNITY

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