Ambulance Manufacturer Increases Production 

April 25, 2023 – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (SK): Crestline Coach Ltd., a global ambulance manufacturer, is proud to unveil an additional 30,000 square feet of manufacturing space at its existing facility in Saskatoon, SK, marking the completion of a major initiative to address the critical supply of ambulances to its EMS/Fire based customers across North America.

This expansion responds to a strategy to bring lead times back to pre-pandemic levels and address the serious ambulance shortage resulting from the successive crises that have hit the industry over the past two years. Supply chain and logistics issues, escalating raw material costs, labour availability challenges, and a lack of predictable chassis availability have prevented ambulance manufacturers from delivering the expected volume to meet the demand. This expansion will help Crestline accelerate its production to fulfill a large backlog and continued growth in demand while progressing back to pre-pandemic and chassis crisis lead times.

“This project began in 2020 when we had no idea what was ahead of us as we entered the pandemic. The investment was focused on gaining efficiency and optimizing production to support our commitment to providing the best value to our customers through advancements in the product line and feature enhancement. Despite the turmoil and economic uncertainty, Crestline remained focused on its core mission and maintained this investment initiative to ensure we would be ready to face the reality of the ongoing post-crisis challenges so that we could deliver our products in a proper timeframe. Today, our company is proud to announce this milestone of our strategic plan, demonstrating our commitment to our customers and the leadership role of Crestline and its partner brands in the industry.”, said Steve Hoffrogge, President Canada, Demers-Crestline.

Crestline’s manufacturing process is complex, starting with a simple aluminum sheet and ending with a complete ambulance, integrating the latest innovations. “Expanding our plant enables us to optimize each workstation along the production line for a more effective manufacturing process. Ultimately, this major investment allows us to speed up the production process while improving the working environment of our employees”, adds Steve Hoffrogge. In addition to the increased plant size and the investment in new equipment, the production line and fabrication processes have been completely redesigned. The powder-coating capacity has been doubled to maintain the level of expertise required for the durability of Crestline ambulances paint, which is covered by the industry-leading warranty. The message is clear: more volume same attention to detail.

Crestline expansion sets the stage for process efficiencies and productivity gains, enabling Crestline to increase production volume in support of shorter lead times. “Given the national ambulance shortages, this news comes at a critical time for us,” said Kerri Walker, Vice President U.S. Commercial Division. “We are committed to minimizing disruptions for our dealer partners, and we hope this brings a much-needed sigh of relief for our customers.”

Crestline recently partnered with EMS World to examine the reasons behind the ambulance procurement crisis and explored practical solutions which EMS/Fire services can deploy to minimize disruption to their fleets until the universal shortages improve. Click here to download the eBook.