High-performance rail for Ontario?
There may be faster trains southwest of Toronto, Ontario, requiring improved and possibly new infrastructure, but it appears that they will not be high-speed rail (HSR). The new Ontario Progressive Conservative government has broadened the scope of an environmental assessment (EA) for the previous Liberal government’s $11 billion-plus HSR plan. …
Construction equipment trends 2019: KOBELCO
By Brendan Read Construction lays the foundation for business, including the market for equipment and the financing of these assets. To understand what is happening, Canadian Equipment Finance recently interviewed Denis Martin, who is district business manager, KOBELCO USA (www.kobelco-usa.com). Canadian Equipment Finance (CEF): What is your forecast for the …
Infrastructure, incentives in new B.C. budget
British Columbia’s provincial government brought down its 2019 budget Feb.19 that includes substantial new money for measures aimed at spurring, ensuring and supporting long-term growth. The Ministry of Finance has assembled a three-year fiscal plan in which the province is expected to spend and see about $31 billion invested from …
Why open banking matters
By Gary Schwartz Open banking is the creation of well-defined protocols and standards for sharing and exchanging real-time data in a secure and in a trusted manner between financial institutions, third parties and customers. Department of Finance Canada has been conducting a review of open banking. The Canadian Lenders Association …
Foundation: Independents excel in construction, other niches
Specializing in construction and materials handling appear to be helping U.S. independent finance companies grow their market share against banks and manufacturer-owned captive finance firms. The independents have also been targeting corporate aviation, healthcare, IT, office machines and trucks and trailers. A new study, Independents: Banking on the Non-Banks, released …
SME investment shifts to tech: BDC
Investment intentions amongst Canadian entrepreneurs are expected to remain stable, but more of their dollars are likely to be spent on technology. The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC)’s fourth annual survey of small-midsized enterprises (SMEs), released Jan.15, reported that 73 per cent of SMEs are expecting their revenues to …
Infrastructure projects streamlined, more responsive
The federal government is making its $180 billion-plus 12-year public infrastructure plan more responsive to the needs of provinces and territories. Infrastructure and Communities Minister François-Philippe Champagne outlined changes Feb. 21 to the integrated bilateral infrastructure funding agreements with each of the 13 provincial and territorial governments. Simplifying the …
Continued non-res construction & M&E growth: Statistics Canada
Anticipated higher capital outlays on non-residential construction assets are driving an expected third consecutive year of growth in capital spending, according to Statistics Canada. The Capital and Repair Expenditures Survey1, released Feb. 28, reported that capital expenditures on non-residential construction and machinery and equipment (M&E) are expected to rise 2.5 …
Planning for change
By Jay Mehra In 2019, the concept of there being “technology companies” and “other” companies is gone. Every company must also be a technology company. The marriage between development and operations impacts all business verticals, and it requires constant experimentation to navigate the ever-changing business landscape. The key imperative for …
The 9 important LMS purchase factors
By Agneta Venckute If data loss has made you start questioning the effectiveness of using a simple spreadsheet, perhaps it is time to consider buying a new lease management system (LMS). But as software solution acquisition is a time-consuming process, requiring a large investment, you should consider these nine important …