News

Congratulations to Dannette Szydlik at JDSmith for winning the prestigious Clif Bar Supplier Award for this past year.  The Clif Bar & Company Supplier Awards recognize the people and companies that have helped Clif Bar grow and thrive and to celebrate their dedication and excellence.

Clif Bar partnered with JDSmith in 2012 to manage their supply chain including operating the Canadian Distribution Center, managing transportation outbound across Canada, and freight management of inbound loads from across North America.  Dannette is one of the primary contacts for Clif Bar.  Dannette manages the receiving and order transactions, inventory control, daily reporting and customer service. 

Internal Clif Bar input, describing Dannette and leading to this Outstanding Achievement Award includes: Dedication, pride, thorough, organized, efficient, high quality of service, friendly, personable, quick to respond, accurate, reliable, flexible, making the job at Clif Bar easier and more fun.

Congratulations Dannette - Way To Go - We are Proud of You !!!!
  

JDSmith is thrilled to have been awarded and recognized as a Top Fleet Employer for 2017 by Trucking HR Canada.

 
We are proud of the programs we have around our culture including:  employee recognition, employee engagement, professional development, recruitment and retention, culture and lifestyle.

We pride ourselves on leading by example and showcasing our leadership and demonstrating that the trucking industry offers a great place to work!

Trucking HR Canada will honour the 2017 Top Fleet Employers at its annual Gala Dinner on October 12, 2017 in Toronto.

JDSmith, a leading provider of third party warehousing and transportation services, has won the Barilla Award for 4^th Quarter 2015 as the highest rated 3PL partner in their North American supply chain.

The Barilla scorecard rates the performances of their 3PL providers across North America. The scorecard evaluates results of Net and Absolute Inventory Accuracy, Detention Prevention (On-Time Shipping), Damage Prevention, Cost Control at various levels, as well as accuracy of CHEP Pallet management.

This marks the third time JDSmith has won this award in the past three years. JDSmith services Canada for Barilla and highlighting this achievement is 100% inventory control accuracy, 100% damage prevention and 100% CHEP pallet control accuracy.

Congratulations to Kevin Paquette, Distribution Centre Manager, Derek Robertson and Bill Burgess, Supervisors, Jennifer Drepaul, Customer Service along with their dedicated logistics Team for providing exceptional level of service.

JDSmith is a full service third party warehousing and transportation provider based in Vaughan, Ontario.  JDSmith services several markets including Consumer Packaged Goods, Fulfillment, Food Service / Food Processing, Packaging, Retail, Apparel, Automotive, Electronics, Health & Beauty, Medical, Pharmaceutical and Pulp and Paper.  JDSmith offers a single source solution to their broad customer base.  Since 1919 JDSmith has been committed to providing its clients with flexible, innovative and elevated services.

JDSmith is HACCP, SQF (GFSI certified), operates Federal Establishments registered with CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency), has Organic certified operations, as well as Kosher operations.  

For more information, please visit www.jdsmith.com or email sales@jdsmith.com

JDSmith, a leading provider of third party warehousing and transportation services, has hired Brenda Norwich as Director of HR and Continuous Improvement.

In this position, Brenda will oversee HR as well as Continuous Improvement.  She will work with JDSmith Industrial Engineering, Quality, Customer Service, IT, Operations and Business Development to help increase efficiencies at every point of the distribution and logistics process and deliver even greater advantages to JDSmith client partners.

 Brenda brings a wonderful energy, impressive skills and a collaborative style to JDSmith.  Most recently, Brenda held several progressive roles at Cara Operations Ltd (Canada's largest restaurant Co.) including playing a key role on the Cara Leadership Team.  

 JDSmith is a full service third party warehousing and transportation provider based in Vaughan, Ontario.  JDSmith services several markets including Consumer Packaged Goods, Fulfillment, Food Service / Food Processing, Packaging, Retail, Apparel, Automotive, Electronics, Health & Beauty, Medical, Pharmaceutical and Pulp and Paper.  JDSmith offers a single source solution to their broad customer base.  Since 1919 JDSmith has been committed to providing its clients with flexible, innovative and elevated services.

 JDSmith is HACCP, SQF (GFSI certified), operates Federal Establishments registered with CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency), has Organic certified operations, as well as Kosher operations. 

 For more information, please visit www.jdsmith.com or email sales@jdsmith.com

JDSmith Logistics took part in the Paul Coffey Celebrity Hockey Classic to raise money for kids with disabilities. JDSmith initially teamed up with Easter Seals three years ago on a Committee to help launch this event and three years in it has raised nearly $550,000. 

NHL Alumni playing in this years tournament included Paul Coffey, Wendel Clark, Dale Hawerchuk, Gary Leeman, Al Iafrate, Ron Duguay, Petr Klima, Rick Vaive, Tom Fergus, Billy Smith, Ric Natress, Dennis Maruk, Dave Ellett, Kevin Maguire, Craig Muni and Kraig Nienhuis.

Easter Seals enhances the quality of life and self esteem of Canadian Kids with disabilities. JDSmith is thankful to its' employees for their leadership and community involvement, and thankful to all our generous supporters of this great cause.

    

All dressed up and ready to go, where’s everyone headed?

It was a special milestone for some, and for others, a chance to catch up with some old colleagues. Every year, including this year, JDSmith has hosted a dinner for the Quarter Century Club to celebrate current and past employees, who has worked with JDSmith for 25 years or more. 

Celebrations were held at the Toronto Cricket Club on May 29^th, 2015, and the room was quickly filled with laughter and festivities as the night began. On the day of the event, 66 of JDSmith members attended, which made it the biggest turn-out to date, with new and familiar faces all around.

“It was great to see old friends and catch up” said John Spagnuolo.

At the Quarter Century Club celebrations, Brian and Scott Smith took the stage to acknowledge and celebrate newly inducted members to the club for their outstanding achievement and dedication to the company. Celebrations were a must, because without the contributions and active participation from each employee, JDSmith would not have been able to continuously provide quality results to our customers over the last 96 years.

But, members do not just get a pat on the back for all their years of hard-work. JDSmith has a yearly tradition, where newly inducted members also received a watch as a gift, engraved with the phrase “thank you for twenty-five years,” to signify their commitment to the JDSmith family. 

The first ever held Quarter Century Club celebrations occurred on October, 24, 1997. The Quarter Century Club was created by Scott Smith and at the very first dinner, there were only 11 members who attended the occasion. Since then, the Quarter Century Club celebrations have ran for 18 years and JDSmith has no plans on stopping that tradition.

Members that were recognized for reaching their 25^th year, as of 2015, were: Danni Ianni, David Barrett, Miguel Hernandez, Charles Ryan, John Spaguolo and Mark Masters. Also, a little late to the party, but nonetheless a well-deserved colleague, James Donnelly worked at JDSmith for 41 years before his retirement.

“Once you’re in the club, you’re in for life” – Brian Smith

Thank you to all who attended and we look forward to seeing everyone at the next Quarter Century Club dinner!

 

On November 14^th, 2014, the Ontario Trucking Association held its annual OTA Convention & Executive Conference in Toronto. It was a huge celebration for all, especially when our very own, Scott Smith, received the Shaw Tracking-OTA Service to Industry Award of 2014. His passion and determination to change and campaign ongoing issues within the trucking industry has encouraged many to follow in his footsteps to operate in a safe, socially responsible manner, while running an equally successful organization. 

Scott Smith exemplified all the traits of a leader as he is not only the President and CEO of JDSmith, but during 2004-2006, he was also the Chairman for OTA. During his term, he helped to raise awareness for necessary road legislations to ensure the safety for both drivers and members of the public. He was also considered one of the youngest to ever sit on the OTA board, but that never stopped him from pursuing his vision and letting his voice be heard.

What made the event even more special was that Scott’s father, Doug Smith was also presented the award in 1983. Essentially, this would make the two, the first father/son recipients of the OTA Service to Industry Award.

“It was a tremendous honour, and a very humbling experience to be announced as the recipient of the Shaw-Tracking Service to Industry Award. Growing up, it was ingrained in me that a strong association often means a healthy industry and business environment in which to operate. I also feel strongly that it’s important to give back to an industry that has been such a part of our family fabric. My involvement over the years at OTA has been very interesting, enjoyable, and has provided me some very close friendships as well.” – Scott S.

Congratulations to Scott for being the receipt of the Shaw Tracking-OTA Service to Industry Award and thank you to all who came out to support the event. 

What is the key ingredient to sustain and attract happy customers?

Surprise! It’s a well-known fact in the service industry, but excellent customer service is absolutely essential for any business to be successful. But what does excellent customer service entail?  At JDSmith, our customers are a vital component, and we’re always interacting with our customers. We always welcome and encourage feedback from our clients because addressing to our customers’ needs and concerns is one of our priorities.

JDSmith has worked with Cambro Manufacturing for several years, and on April 15^th, 2014, staff members received a surprise visit from one of Cambro’s representatives. Travelled all the way from the west coast, where the sun never goes away, Michael J. Dunn, Cambro’s Logistics Key Manager, presented JDSmith, an emerald class, gold level award, to recognize our outstanding service as a transportation vendor.

In order to be eligible for the Cambro Emerald award, carriers are evaluated on several categories. These categories include:

On time pick-ups at the warehouse: Being late is never a good thing, which is why JDSmith ensures that the drivers, the warehouse department, and dispatch are all aware of which freight needs to be loaded to go and conducted all in an efficient and timely manner.  

On time delivery to the customer: The other half of the job is getting the freight to its rightful destination and delivering them when they are scheduled to go. We work relentlessly around the clock to ensure that our customers’ shipments such as Cambro’s are processing thoroughly and properly.  

Exception free deliveries: It is important that deliveries are prepared for every stage of production and so JDSmith is constantly tending to our customers’ freight and monitoring the number of exceptions. We try to reduce the number of exceptions, so that our customers receive their deliveries when they ask for it, with little to zero delays.

Freight claims filed to the carrier: Following procedures and taking proper care of our equipment and freight is that JDSmith goes through every day in order to keep the work environment safe for all. Working alongside Cambro Manufacturing, JDSmith has been able to demonstrate excellent performance levels, while looking out for everyone’s health and safety.

Timely responses to Cambro inquiries and emails: Whether it’s the drivers or customer service representatives, everyone that interacts with our customers understand that informing our clients about their products and maintaining visibility is key in establishing trust amongst one another. Therefore, we’re always a phone call or email away from answering any of our clients questions!

As Michael J. Dunn, from Cambro Manufacturing, states “JD Smith had the highest on time delivery percentage of all of the carriers that we have under contract in North America. That, along with the cooperation we receive from your customer service team, stood out above all others. Cambro Mfg. is honored to be able to give this award to JD Smith. Their efforts have made our customers extremely happy with our selection of using JD Smith as our carrier in the Greater Toronto Area.”

The rest of the JDSmith family would like to say a huge thank you to Cambro Manufacturing for choosing JDSmith as their Transportation Vendor of 2014.

JDSmith previously received the Transportation Vendor Award from Cambro Manufacturing in 2013, for our service excellence. 

August 10th, 2012
Toronto, Ontario

JD Smith is the proud recipient of Barilla America's "Warehouse Partner of the Quarter" Award.
Barilla tracks performance amongst their North American network of 3PL partners on a monthly basis and the highest performance over throughout the quarter is awarded this honour. The Key performance Indicators used in the evaluations are:

 

Detention
Net Inventory Variance
Absolute Inventory Variance
Damages
Cost per case, throughput and handling

 

Craig Gillis and Blair Freedman from Barilla, USA were on hand recently to present the award to Kevin Paquette and Jason Grimmer of JD Smith.

VAUGHAN, Ontario, April 17, 2012 – Axios Mobile Assets Corporation (CNSX: AXA) recently completed a six-month pilot program with J.D. Smith and Sons, one of the leading third party logistics firms in Canada.  Axios provided 50 of its 47-pound, 2800 edge rackable, continuous-use composite pallets enabled with Axios proprietary tracking software for a trial with one of JD Smith’s key clients, a major manufacturer of packaged food.

Delivering Axios’ sustainable logistics solution encompassed both its RFID-enabled pallets and tracking technology, which enabled enhanced visibility and monitoring of pallets throughout the supply chain.  To facilitate this, Axios leveraged mediums such as RFID, an Axios-developed mobile app for JD Smith drivers and its web-based logistics portal.  Tying into existing systems at JD Smith was key to the process, including integrating with its pick/pack, staging and shipping processes.

“Our goal was to enhance operational efficiencies at JD Smith, which would translate to a better service offering for their customers,” said John Psihos, vice president of technology and sustainability for Axios.  “Deploying our best-in-class pallets, coupled with our innovative tracking solution, gave JD Smith a more detailed understanding of care and control of pallets within the supply chain and positively impacted order throughput.”

During the Axios pilot program, there was a significant reduction in pallet related packaging damage.  Given that JD Smith’s client is a leading supplier of bagged food, products were previously susceptible to damage during transport, as items could shift on wood pallets, catching chards and nails, causing packaging to sometimes tear and contents to be lost.  Further, Axios’ continuous-use pallets replaced one-way pallets, slip sheets and disposal fees.

Additionally, the Axios platform provided JD Smith with an enhanced level of data that allowed the company to better serve its clients.  Information on real-time delivery and distribution patterns was translated into increased efficiencies and valuable problem-solving resources that provide competitive advantages for JD Smith.

“The partnership with Axios resulted in very real benefits for us and our customer,” said Scott Smith, president and CEO, JD Smith.  “The pilot program helped us to identify ways to further enhance and streamline the logistics and delivery process, saving time and money while providing even better customer service in the process.  The Axios platform has proven value, both in dollars and cents and in improved client relationships.  We are planning to offer the Axios solution to other customers in the marketplace.” 

In addition to savings realized on both cost and time, the Axios pilot program with JD Smith and its client will be in a position to deliver environmental benefits as well, such as carbon offsets or carbon credits, which can be used to help achieve corporate sustainability goals or be monetized through a number of exchanges.

About Axios Mobile Assets

Axios Mobile Assets Corp. is a logistics enabler, featuring next generation, composite pallet technology, which can be bundled with its proprietary tracking and information system that helps improve the value chain in the logistics market.  The Axios bundled offering is gaining market acceptance based on its unique attributes: lower total cost, longer useful life, customized configurations and a revenue stream through carbon credit generation, monitoring and the monetizing of carbon emissions reductions.  Axios was incorporated under the Business Corporations Act (Ontario) and is a reporting issuer in the Province of Ontario. Axios is traded on the Canadian National Stock Exchange (CNSX) under the symbol AXA.

Further information concerning the Company can be found at www.axiosma.com, www.sedar.com and www.cnsx.ca.

Peter Jackson, Logistics Program professor with Humber College  approached JD Smith with the idea for this tour.  The 90-students arrived from China in August 2011 and will complete their logistics and business program studies in May.   Peter chose to tour JD Smith to represent the Canadian logistics industry for its long-standing reputation as a quality third-party logistics and distribution provider.

Coordinating the tour took some planning to demonstrate the wide range of customized warehousing and transportation solutions in operation for JD Smith clients.  The 90-students rotated through various stations spread out across different facilities.

Humber students exhibited a keen interest in subject matters including:

•Information Technology solutions
•Racking concepts, maximizing space
•HACCP CFIA, commitment to quality
•Commitment to truck maintenance
•JD Smith’s global logistics solution for a leading garment manufacturer

JD Smith has proudly supported Humber College for several years and remains committed to playing a role in educating our future logisticians

Dan Goodwill, of Dan Goodwill & Associates Inc., writes in his blog on the Canadian Transportation & Logistics website that concerns about the global economy have discouraged carriers from making investments in their fleets, and burdensome government regulations and a shrinking pool of qualified drivers means there’s uncertainty in the marketplace. Shippers looking to ensure their freight will move when they want it should look to dedicated contract carriage as a possible solution. Click here to go to Mr. Goodwill’s blog for the full story.

Could a small Canadian firm be the first to effectively employ waste heat recovery in the transportation sector?

Trucknews.com reports on the progress being made by EnerMotion on a diesel engine waste heat recovery system. Jim Menzies of Trucknews.com reports that the Hyper (Hybrid Power and Energy Recovery) storage system, designed and patented by the Bolton, ON company, is able to use the waste heat generated by a diesel engine to power an auxiliary power unit. The APU will be powered solely by waste heat recovery, capable of providing heating, cooling and hotel load power for trucks for up to 10 hours without any fuel consumption.

J.D. Smith has donated a truck to EnerMotion for test trials and is looking forward to putting the unit through the first field trial of the APU.

Click here to go to trucknews.com for the full story.

JD Smith announced the opening a new distribution facility in Vaughan, Ontario on November 1^st, 2011.

The facility is located in the heart of JD Smith’s campus of facilities and transportation yard. The facility is a multi-client facility and will support the distribution of consumer products.

Clients in the facility have selected JD Smith to develop, execute and manage warehousing, inventory management and transportation solutions. .

March 23, 2011

In JD Smith’s ongoing focus on quality service, and providing a diverse range of flexible service offerings, we have obtained CFIA certification to operate a registered establishment at our Bowes Road facility.

Robert Krolak, Manager of Quality and Transportation summarized it as follows: “Supported by our ISO 9001:2008 certification, and a newly implemented HACCP plan at Bowes, the CFIA establishment license enables us to service current and future customers who have a strong focus towards food safety and handling”.

May 6, 2010

Safety achievements of over 150 employees of JD Smith were celebrated on May 6, 2010 at the annual Safety Awards presentations. As long time members of the THSAO Safe Driver and Safe Worker program, JD Smith recognizes the hard work of its warehouse workers, mechanics and drivers each year for maintaining its enviable reputation for safety and dependability.

The Transportation Health and Safety Association of Ontario (THSAO) sponsor a safety recognition program - to be eligible, workers must go all year without a compensable work injury; and drivers must go all year without a preventable collision. Based on these criteria, over 150 workers received their THSAO Safe Worker pin, while 74 drivers achieved a collision-free year for their Safe Driver pin.

President & CEO, Scott Smith presented the awards to the winners and provided insight on a number of significant milestones that were reached this year within the JD Smith family;
Clarence Mackinnon reached 20 years of Safe Driving, while Paul Costello received a jacket and trophy to go with his 25 year Safe Driving pin. Ross Baker has 36 years of safety under his belt, and Ken Strickland reached the 37 year milestone.

A number of employees, both warehouse and driver, reached 20 years of safety in the industry. Bill Burgess, John Haines, Rob Harland, Bill Mortlock, Vince Panacci, and Jim Turner all received gifts as well as their 20 year pin.

The highlight of the day was the crowning of ‘Warehouseman of the Year’ and the ‘Driver of the Year’ recognizing those who go above and beyond the call of duty in safety and all around performance on the job. As strict as the criteria was in choosing the winners, almost 20% of the driving force qualified for the honour. The candidates were voted on by management and past winners of the respective awards.

The 2009 Warehouseman of the Year was presented to David Sparkes, from the Basaltic Road warehouse and the 2009 Driver of the Year was presented to Don Bone, who works at ASA Alloys on behalf of JD Smith.

Congratulations to all of the Safe JD Smith employees, Dave Sparkes and Don Bone for their outstanding work over the past year.

In keeping with our ongoing commitment to education opportunities, JD Smith entered a partnership, in 2004, with The Toronto Catholic District School Board to support the “Transportation Program” at James Cardinal McGuigan CSS. This particular school-work transition program provides students with opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills required for direct entry into the work force immediately after high school. The students are able to complete their secondary school diploma or certificates required to allow entry into a specific industry. Overall they develop employability and industry-specific skills and obtain experience in the workplace. The hands on experience helps the students decide if they have chosen a rewarding career.

Mr. Derrick Siaw was such a co-op student. He started as a full-time employee at JD Smith in June of 2008 as a trailer mechanic apprentice. His apprenticeship began in March of 2008 as a co-op student under the careful training and sponsorship of our Maintenance Department.

Pictured here is last year’s coop student, Sherwayne Charles who is seen being presented with a cheque by Brian Death of JD Smith at the 2009 graduation ceremony for James Cardinal McGuigan Catholic Separate School. Sherwayne plans a career in auto mechanics as we were unable to convince him to stay with heavy trucks.

JD Smith is proud and committed to be an encouraging force in the successful implementation and development of programs that assist young students find their way to success in the transportation industry.

Vaughan, ON – In the last year of World War I, John D. Smith and his uncle started a freight cartage business with two trucks called Bennett and Smith. Today, that same business now known as J.D. Smith and Sons Ltd., celebrates its landmark 90th anniversary. Founded in 1919, the family-run company has grown into an industry standard bearer for commercial transportation and logistics management.

Since inception, the Smith family has owned and operated J.D. Smith and that tradition carries on today with Scott, President & CEO and Brian, Senior Vice President. Regardless of evolving scope and breadth, the company’s family-centric philosophy and attention to detail has allowed it to implement stringent customer service expectations into its processes.

Throughout its long history, J.D. Smith has perpetually expanded and refined its services. A renowned and frequently abetted fleet, process-driven approach and topnotch warehousing, transportation, and technology divisions, have made it a preferred instrument of Canadian organizations of all sizes.

In a highly flexible and dynamic industry, J.D. Smith has not only persevered but excelled. Its longevity stems from an ongoing commitment to providing multi-pronged, efficient solutions. Constantly updating and fine tuning its services, it has anticipated and evolved with its customers’ changing needs.

Building and maintaining long-lasting and tenable client relationships, J.D. Smith uses its wealth of resources to cater to the specific concerns of individual customers. Despite its range, its approach is uniquely personal and precisely conceptualized.

Not content to rest on its reputation and storied history, J.D. Smith looks forward. With award-winning environmental policies and ISO certification, the company balances quality and conscientiousness. J.D.Smith enters its 10th decade by retaining its standards of excellence and continuing to offer innovative and proficient third-party distribution and logistic strategies to clients.

Said Scott Smith, President & CEO of J.D. Smith, “We are very excited about this achievement. It’s a credit to our continued investment in leading-edge processes and to our employees who have worked extremely hard to please our customers. I am particularly proud of our people. For 90 years, the bar has constantly been raised and they continue to rise to the challenge.”

J.D.Smith and Sons Ltd. today announced that it joined the SmartWaySM Transport Partnership, a innovative collaboration between U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution.

J.D.Smith will contribute to the Partnership’s goal to reduce 33 to 66 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxide per year by 2012 by improving the environmental performance of our freight operations. Carbon dioxide is the most common greenhouse gas, and nitrogen oxide is an air pollutant that contributes to smog. By joining SmartWay Transport Partnership, J.D.Smith demonstrates its strong environmental leadership and corporate responsibility.

J.D. Smith and Sons Ltd. has made significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions through a number of initiatives, including in-cab heaters that reduce vehicle idling levels, electric light retrofits in three facilities that have lowered electricity consumption, energy-smart roof replacement, and a building automation system that has reduced natural gas consumption. Other green initiatives include recycling and more efficient heating systems.

“We have had a significant culture shift at J.D. Smith and Sons. Our employees have embraced these challenges, and recognition from U.S. EPA SmartWay Transport Partnership is a testament to the tremendous strides we have made to reduce our impact on the environment,” said Scott Smith, President of J.D. Smith and Sons Ltd.

Launched in February 2004, the SmartWay Transport Partnership aims to achieve fuel savings of up to 150 million barrels of fuel per year. The Partnership brings together major freight shippers, trucking companies, railroads, logistics companies and trade/professional associations to pursue mutually beneficial efficiencies that result in emissions reductions and other environmental improvements, as well as cost savings to the companies. The Partnership currently has more than 1,000 partners.

Celebrating it’s 90th year in business, J.D. Smith and Sons Ltd. offers a unique blend of integrated third-party distribution and logistic services that combine the pride of a family-owned company with leading-edge technology. Its infrastructure includes a network of modern warehousing facilities, an extensive, well-maintained fleet, and state-of-the-art I.T. systems. The company’s unwavering commitment to customer service and its creative and innovation solutions have helped to establish long-term relationships and provide clients with a competitive advantage.

JDSmith and Sons Ltd., a leader in transportation and third-party logistics, proudly announces that it has been named Business of the Year by the Vaughan Chamber of Commerce.

The award is presented to a company that demonstrates leadership and entrepreneurship, sales growth, productivity and quality improvements and product innovation and technology.

“On behalf of the Vaughan Chamber of Commerce I would like to extend our congratulations to JDSmith and Sons for winning this Business Achievement Award,” says Chamber President and CEO Deborah Bonk. “For 20 years, the Chamber has been honouring the business leaders of our community – companies such as JD Smith and Sons. The outstanding records and achievements by these top performing firms have contributed significantly to our city’s growth and prosperity.”

Company President Scott Smith says, “It is a tremendous honour to be chosen Business of the Year by our local business peers and a testament to the dedication of our employees. Through their hard work and their commitment to excellence, we have remained among the leaders in logistics, careful handling of goods and superior customer service. By embracing technological advances and striving to be innovative, JDSmith and Sons continues to lead the way.”

The Chamber award is the latest in a number of industry awards presented to JDSmith and Sons in recent years. The company also received Hewlett Packard’s first ever Transportation Carrier of the Year Award as well as Less Than Truckload Carrier of the Year for the second time by Colgate Palmolive Canada.

A few years back, JDSmith and Sons received the first-ever SCL Green Supply Chain Award, presented to the company for setting and exceeding high standards for environmental friendliness, operating in an ethical manner and actively seeking ways to improve environmental performance by reducing fuel consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions from its network of distribution centre operations.

In December, the company further demonstrated its commitment to reducing greenhouse gases by joining the SmartWaySM Transport Partnership, an innovative collaboration between U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution.

Celebrating over 90 years, JDSmith and Sons offers a unique blend of integrated third-party distribution and logistics services that combine the pride of a family-owned company with leading-edge technology. Its integrated infrastructure includes a network of modern warehousing facilities, an extensive, well-maintained fleet, and state of the art IT systems. The company’s unwavering commitment to customer service and its creative and innovative solutions have helped to establish long-term relationships and provide clients with a competitive advantage.