Tulsar Canada continues to grow panel board biz

The move to Brant County, Ontario has supported a period of unprecedented growth for Tulsar Canada — and there is more to come in 2019, according to company president George Micevski. A leading designer and manufacturer of custom, hand-assembled electronic control panels, Tulsar relocated in the spring of 2017 and brought with it 32 employees. 

The workforce has since grown to roughly 100, with some exciting projects expected in the coming year, Micevski says.

“It has unquestionably been a good time for Tulsar since moving to the Brant County,” Micevski adds. “We will have some new product launches and be introducing direct to consumer sales through a major retailer over the next few months that we expect will create even more jobs. One of the biggest challenges we have had is filling the jobs we have available.”

Tulsar is a manufacturing firm that specializes in custom control panels designed to address specific and unique water and wastewater challenges, each one expertly handcrafted in Canada. But at its Brant location is also the Canadian sales hub for its parent company, Zoeller Pump Company, located in Louisville, Kentucky— a manufacturer of water pumps.

Since relocating to Brant, Tulsar has:

• Created a dedicated research and development team to drive innovation and new product development. This created five jobs, with plans to add two more, and leading up to 20 new assembly positions.
• Took on manufacturing control panels for one of its sister companies, Flint & Walling, which added 10 jobs in Brant.
• Acquired one of its suppliers, Arrow Radio, and moved its entire production from Etobicoke to Brant, adding 30 jobs to the local area.
• Experienced natural growth driven by increased demand for Tulsar and Zoeller products.

Looking ahead to 2019, Tulsar will be launching the Aquanot series, a battery backup control system for residential sump pumps. The Aquanot unit will be part of a pump package that is expected to be on the shelves of a major chain store in the United States in the coming months — the first time Tulsar products will be seen in a major retailer.

Tulsar is also looking at growth in new sectors where its control panels could help improve operations and increase efficiencies, such as agriculture. A custom control panel on the farm could help manage feed and water for livestock and better control wastewater management.