Think of vehicle manufacturing in North America and Quebec is not top of mind. Vehicle-related employment is more likely to involve dealerships than production operations. That said, the engineering skills cultivated in the province by such aerospace companies as Bombardier and CAE and by the power and mobility operations of Siemens are well known — Siemens located its first office in Canada in Montreal in 1912.
Those skills are central to the operations of Prevost, a member of the Volvo Group and North America’s leading motorcoach manufacturer, known for supplying buses to transit systems and tour operators as well as custom coaches for touring musicians whose price tags can approach $2 million. Prevost manufacturing facilities in Sainte-Claire, Quebec, employ around 1,500 people. The company celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2024.
In December 2023, Prevost announced the largest contract in its history with an order from the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) for the manufacture of 381 coaches, including a firm order for 250 coaches to be delivered between 2025 and 2026. In April, the company announced MTA will take delivery of its 1000th Prevost coach this year.
“Through cross-border partnerships, integrated supply chains and world-class manufacturing, companies like Prevost create good jobs and drive growth on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border,” said Dominic LeBlanc, minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, intergovernmental affairs, internal trade and one Canadian economy. “Prevost’s success in New York is a testament to the excellence of Quebec engineering and the strength of our ties with one of our most important partners,” said Christopher Skeete, Quebec minister of international relations and La Francophonie.
François Tremblay, President, Prevost and Volvo Group Canada
“This is a historic milestone for us,” said François Tremblay, a former leader at Bombardier and Rotax Engines who today serves as president of Prevost and Volvo Group Canada. I caught up with Tremblay that week as he also celebrated the expansion of a service center in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, part of a growth spurt that also includes relocation to a better site in Chicagoland, a new service center coming to North Carolina and expanded service in Las Vegas. But Quebec is where the company’s heart beats, even as tariffs have their impact.
“Of course they are affecting us,” Tremblay says. “This year alone it’s over $15 million. We are hoping the new USMCA negotiations will bring us back to a good level. Hopefully things will ease up in the future.”
From a manufacturing standpoint, he says the company’s main plant two hours north of Montreal is a good place to be with access to New York and the rest of the northeastern U.S., where the company has strong market penetration. Prevost’s factory is welcoming a major investment that will involve some consolidation, bringing various operations closer to the factory. “It will be much easier to manage,” he says. The company operates two service centers in Quebec City and Montreal, the latter also undergoing an expansion.
Tremblay praises the good technical skills sets, creativity and resourcefulness of Quebec employees, including the 150 or so who staff the company’s R&D center. “There are a lot of inventors, a good pool of thinkers for the product of the future,” he says.
