Edmonton businesses get federal funding to automate homebuilding, manufacturing

By April 17, 2026
From left to right: Jon McCallum, CEO, Flexxaire; Heather Thomson, Vice President of Economy and Engagement, Edmonton Chamber of Commerce; Minister Eleanor Olszewski; Hersh Gupta, President of Housing, Akash Group of Companies, and Chris Goodwin, President, Weldco-Beales Manufacturing.
Several projects include a focus on automating workflows, integrating AI.

The Government of Canada today announced $8.4 million in financial support for several Edmonton-area businesses, several of which will see funding accelerate automation. 

Edmonton-Centre MP Eleanor Olszewski, who is the minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan), announced the funding on April 17 at Flexxaire, an Edmonton-based manufacturer of fans for heavy-duty diesel engine machinery. 

Funding, which comes via the federal government’s Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI), will support seven projects in the greater Edmonton area, with a focus on easing the impacts of US tariffs and global trade uncertainty. 

“Investing in digitization, automation, and infrastructure, that positions us to compete at a different level.”

Hersh Gupta, Akash Group of Companies

“We’re encouraged to see the Government of Canada partnering with manufacturers and builders who are adapting, innovating, and creating jobs right here in our region,” said Heather Thomson, the vice president of economy and engagement with the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce. “When businesses can modernize and diversify, our entire economy becomes more resilient.” 

Several of the announced projects centre around automation and artificial intelligence (AI) integration as part of the efforts to buttress the companies against instability. Akash Homes, a housing development company, received $1 million through the RTRI to incorporate AI into its operations that it says will scale homebuilding efficiency. 

“Investing in digitization, automation, and infrastructure, that positions us to compete at a different level,” said Hersh Gupta, the president of housing with the Akash Group of Companies. “It’s been many months of painstaking heavy lifting for our entire team, but we’ve achieved something that organizations talk about and very few actually do: built a data foundation we can rely on to drive productivity and empower AI through our processes.”

Weldco-Beales Manufacturing, a manufacturer of heavy equipment attachments, received funding to expand and accelerate automation in its operations, with $1 million going toward integrating automation into specialized welding processes to increase capacity and sales growth in Latin America. 

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Flexxaire’s funding is coming via two phases. The first phase, valued at a $1 million investment, will advance the company’s Edmonton warehouse automation to enable 24-hours-a-day production. The second phase is a $2.4 million investment to expand automated production systems and add specialized technical staff in order to scale output. 

“We’re increasing our in-house capability, improving productivity, and positioning the business to scale globally while keeping high-value engineering and manufacturing jobs in Canada,” Flexxaire CEO Jon McCallum said in a press release. 

Funding is expected to support more than 150 jobs in Alberta. A full list of funded projects can be found here. 

BetaKit’s Prairies reporting is funded in part by YEGAF, a not-for-profit dedicated to amplifying business stories in Alberta.

Photo by Jesse Cole for BetaKit.

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