Every champion has a corner. There’s the trainer who knows when to push, the strategist who reads the opponent, the specialist who patches things up between rounds. Nobody sees them under the lights, but no fighter makes it to round twelve without them.
Metal fabrication works the same way. Behind every great machine, vehicle, or piece of equipment is a team of specialists in bending, stamping, welding, and finishing. All keep a program on track even when the schedule tightens and the tolerances get tougher.
Canerector has put some of the best of them in the same corner. Meet The Champ Group, a growing network of North American metal fabricators ready to go the distance.
The Champ Group’s businesses each have the experience to take on complex, high-volume production for OEMs and Tier One suppliers across the continent. The idea took shape around a major opportunity in the data center space, and the chance to serve existing customers across Canada and the U.S. in a deeper, more capable way.
“Our customers don’t want to waste time piecing together a supply chain,” says Kevin Medwick, Group President of The Champ Group. “They need a partner who can deliver on tight timelines without compromising quality. We give them the expertise, the capacity, and the connections to make that easy, no matter how big or complex the project.”
On the roster today, each with a signature strength and the range to back it up:
- Champ Metal Fabrication – Medium- to high-volume fabricated parts and sub-assemblies.
- Industrie Lemieux – Stainless and carbon steel parts and assemblies, with design-for-manufacturability support and a specialty in pressure vessels.
- Phoenix Metal – Medium- to high-volume stamping and sheet metal components.
- RITZ Machine Works – Precision tube and pipe bending and forming.
The Champ Group isn’t a new company, and nothing changes about how these businesses serve customers today. Each keeps its own name, its own operations, and its own leadership — the same people and plants customers already trust.
What’s new is what Canerector calls a platform for growth: a home base where strong, independent manufacturers share know-how and capacity, with room for more to join.
For customers, the goal is simple: act as an extension of your production line, delivering the right part, sub-assembly or component under one unified standard of quality and performance. Facilities across Canada and the U.S. mean the capacity to absorb larger orders and demand spikes without compromising lead times, and the ability to meet Buy America requirements and Canadian ITB obligations within the same group.
Taken together, the roster covers a part’s full journey, from design-for-manufacturability support through cutting, forming, welding, and machining to the finishing touches of passivation and powder coating. Sourcing it through one group means less vendor management for procurement teams, fewer handoffs between suppliers, and a faster path from prototype to production.
Behind the scenes, the businesses refer work to one another and share knowledge and market intelligence, so customers benefit from ideas and benchmarks no single shop could generate alone.
“Now we can look at the big picture and bring the right combination of capabilities to every project,” says Cory Nostedt, Vice President of Sales for The Champ Group. “We’ve already aligned our sales teams around this, so a conversation with any one of our businesses can bring the whole group’s expertise to the table. When everyone’s working from the same playbook, customers feel it.”
“Canerector’s strategy comes alive when we see a strong growth plan paired with a strong team. That’s exactly what we see in The Champ Group,” says Amanda Hawkins, CEO of Canerector. “We’re eager to invest in teams like this, giving them the resources and support to grow while leaving them free to run their businesses the way that made them successful. We’re excited about where this group can go, and about the businesses that will join it along the way.”
Medwick sums up what customers can expect. “We’ve built this on businesses with real track records — decades of experience, quality systems customers can count on, and teams who take real pride in the work,” he says. “Our customers can hand us their biggest, most demanding programs and know they’ll arrive on time and right.”
Every champion needs a great corner. The Champ Group is built to be that corner for OEMs and Tier One suppliers across North America, with a deep roster, a network that keeps growing, and the capacity to go the distance.
Learn more about The Champ Group and follow along on its LinkedIn account.