12/19/2011

Evan MacKinnon vows to restore MTI as "premier flatbed TL carrier"

GUELPH, Ont. -- MacKinnon Transport Inc. (MTI) today confirmed its voluntary filing of a Notice of Intent under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act in order to restructure its operations.

The company noted 95% of the jobs at MacKinnon Transport have been preserved, thanks to an agreement with Laidlaw Van LP to acquire the van division of MacKinnon Transport. In a statement, Evan MacKinnon, president and CEO of the company, said "I am pleased to announce as part of our restructuring we are in the process of selling the van division of MacKinnon Transport Inc. to Laidlaw Van LP. Our objectives were to ensure the future existence of MacKinnon Transport, while preserving as many jobs of all those who work here as possible."

MacKinnon said the filing was predicated by a "perfect storm" of events brought on by "market conditions" and "an unsuccessful acquisition." MacKinnon purchased LE Walker in the summer of 2009 and in December of that year placed it into creditor protection from which it did not emerge. He stressed MacKinnon Transport will continue to operate and serve its customers as it goes through the restructuring process.

"I'm especially excited that through our business deal with Laidlaw Van LP we have jointly achieved preservation of 95% of the jobs of the MacKinnon employees and independent contractors - a huge success in these challenging times of excess unemployment," MacKinnon said. He added the company's focus will be to return to its roots and core competencies as a "premier flatbed truckload carrier."

"I remain confident that our goal of achieving financial stability of MacKinnon Transport as a strong flatbed player in the North American trucking industry will be preserved," MacKinnon said.