Tariff relief was granted to London and Stratford firms on Thursday in the form of federal government cash. A $1.6 million fund will help Armo Tool and MVA purchase new machinery and, in at least one case, potentially hire more workers. “You need good equipment to make sure that happens, and the equipment purchased for this investment allows for that,” said London Centre MP Peter Fragiskatos at an announcement in Stratford. Fragiskatos was standing in for the Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon. The Federal Economic Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev) awarded $886,000 to MVA, a plastic injection mold producer, and $750,000 to Amro Tool in London. The money is part of the Liberal government’s $100 million Regional Tariff Response Initiative. Leaders from both firms say the funding will help keep their workforce stable amidst the pain of tariffs. “We expect it to both ensure that we keep the jobs we have, and we expect growth of, my estimate would be 10 people over the next year,” said Armo Tool President Ben Whitney. “Automotive has always historically been our largest market, and it’s been quite challenging since Trump’s disruption,” he added. “So, to be able to stabilize the workforce and to have modest growth over the next two years is actually a very strong achievement.” Eric Wheal, MVA general manager, adds that, “Knowing that we have equipment that will be reliable, puts us in a position to be able to secure our relationships and our partnerships with our customers.”
