Manufacturing
Manufacturing Issues are Steel Issues
Canada’s steel companies are leading manufacturers, upgrading and adding value to key raw materials such as iron ore and coal, recycled steel, and energy. Making use of world-class technology, steel production is a capital intensive industry which has made very significant gains in productivity over a number of years.
The value-added benefit of Canadian steel production is only realized when quality finished steel products leave the mill, destined for further fabrication or end use by manufacturing customers in Canada or export markets.
The vast majority of our customers are part of the larger value-added manufacturing supply chain in North America—in sectors as diverse as metals service centres, consumer durables, automotive, energy extraction and transportation, mining, packaging, construction and infrastructure.
At the same time, the manufacturing sector,including steel producers, is also a significant customer for the Financial, Information Technology, Transportation and Logistics, Process Engineering and other key service sectors, thus generating even more mutually beneficial value across the wider economy. Canadian steel producers are significant users of the St. Lawrence Seaway system, particularly for the sourcing of raw materials.
The health of North American manufacturing as a whole is critical to sustaining both a successful steel industry and the broader benefits this creates for Canada and Canadians.
Key Policy Issues for Manufacturing
- Fiscal, Tax and Regulatory Policy. As manufacturing grows increasingly global in scope, with supply chains spanning continents and oceans, Canadian manufacturers require a distinct and sustainable economic advantage to remain competitive. In an increasingly globalized industrial environment, Canada must offer the conditions necessary to attract investment capital.
This advantage has to include progress in key areas such as: - Access to capital on competitive terms through lower interest rates and sound public financial management
- A regulatory regime that promotes investment and capital formation—implementation of a comprehensive Smart Regulation strategy.
- Competitive tax rates on all aspects of manufacturing operations, including R&D, capital investment, and training.
- Training. Skilled employees are the lifeblood of manufacturing industries. CSPA members work through the Canadian Steel Trades Employment Congress (CSTEC) on steel sector labour force requirements. Along with other manufacturing sectors, the CSPA supports measures to address skills issues including tax credits for training and increased government attention to immigration policy and skills accreditation
- Energy. Manufacturing requires stable, reliable and cost-competitive sources of energy.
Government policies in key areas such as electricity generation and transmission, natural gas drilling and distribution, and demand side management/energy efficiency can go a long way towards helping—or hindering—this fundamental part of doing business. - Fair Trade. In addition to opening new markets for their products, Canadian manufacturers depend on access to trade remedies at home to counter illegal foreign practices such as dumping and subsidization. The CSPA is engaged with the Canadian government to ensure a strong, rules-based trading regime for both steel producers and their manufacturing customers.
- Environmental Policy. Manufacturers have made tremendous progress on reducing their environmental footprint for a number of years.
The Canadian steel industry has a long-term, demonstrated commitment to environmental improvement.
For example, we have reduced our total GHG emissions by 16% from 1990 to 2005, and our GHG intensity by 24% over the same period. These achievements are far beyond Canada's Kyoto target of 6% reduction by 2012.
In order to maintain momentum in this area, governments should be a partner in developing a fair, consistent and efficient regulatory regime that promotes both economic development and a cleaner environment.
