Bombardier Inc.
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| Public | |
| Traded as | : BBD.A, BBD.B OTCQX: S&P/TSX 60 component |
| Industry | Aerospace, Defense, Railways |
| Founded | Valcourt, Quebec, Canada (29 January 1942) |
| Founder | Joseph-Armand Bombardier |
| Headquarters | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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Pierre Beaudoin (Bombardier Inc. Chairman) Alain Bellemare (Bombardier Inc. CEO) Laurent Troger (Bombardier Transportation President and COO) |
| Products | Aircraft, trains, trams |
| Revenue |
 CAD$ 16.34 billion (2016)
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CAD$ -268 million (2016)
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| Total assets |
CAD$ 22.87 billion (2016)
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Number of employees
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61,900 (2016) |
| Website | www.bombardier.com |
Bombardier Inc. (French pronunciation: [bɔ̃baʁdje]) is a Canadian multinational aerospace and transportation company. Starting as a maker of snow machines or snowmobiles, over the years it has grown into a large manufacturer of regional airliners, business jets, mass transportation equipment, recreational equipment and a provider of financial services. Bombardier is a Fortune Global 500 conglomerate company.
Bombardier was founded by Joseph-Armand Bombardier as L'Auto-Neige Bombardier Limitée (loosely translated to "Bombardier Snow Car Limited") on January 29, 1942, at Valcourt in the Eastern Townships, Quebec. A mechanic who dreamed of building a vehicle that could "float on snow," in 1937 Bombardier designed and produced his first snowmobile in a small Valcourt, Quebec repair shop.
Bombardier's technological breakthrough in the design of bush vehicles came in the mid-1930s when he developed a drive system that revolutionized travel in snow and swampy conditions. In 1937 Bombardier sold 12 snowmobiles, named the B7 and, in 1942, created l'Auto-Neige Bombardier Limitée company.
The first snowmobiles were large, multipassenger vehicles designed to help people get around during the long winter months. Snowmobiles were used in rural Quebec to take children to school, carry freight, deliver mail, and as ambulances. His invention filled a very particular need in the region and soon business was booming. In 1941 Armand opened a new factory in Valcourt. Then a major setback hit the growing business: the Second World War was well underway and the Canadian government issued wartime rationing regulations. Bombardier customers had to prove that snowmobiles were essential to their livelihood in order to buy one. To keep his business going, Armand shifted his focus and developed vehicles for the military. After the war, Bombardier experienced another setback in his snowmobile business. In 1948, the Quebec government passed a law requiring all highways and local roads to be cleared of snow; the Bombardier company's sales fell by nearly half in one year. Armand Bombardier therefore decided to diversify his business, first by producing tracked snowplows sized specifically for use on municipal sidewalks (replacing horse-drawn vehicles), then by making all-terrain vehicles for the mining, oil, and forestry industries.
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Wikipedia