Winnipeg, Manitoba is home to a world-recognized entrepreneur, Mr. Ed Van Humbeck, and is the foundation on which Vansco Electronics LP, his brainchild, is built. Since its inception, Vansco has grown by more than 30 per cent per year and is continually listed in the Manitoba Business Magazine as one of the 50 fastest growing companies. In 2004, Mr. Van Humbeck was awarded the Prairies Region “Entrepreneur of the Year Award” in manufacturing, sponsored by Ernst and Young, Global, La Presse, National Post, and CBC.

From humble beginnings in the basement of his Charleswood home, Vansco has become an internationally recognized force in the design and manufacture of electronic modules and wire-harness assemblies for use in heavy equipment. Founded in 1978 by Mr. Van Humbeck and his very capable partner and wife Terry, Vansco provides custom electronic solutions for agricultural, transportation, and construction equipment manufacturers around the world. The company has design and manufacturing facilities in Canada and the United States, and has sales and application engineering offices in Canada, the US and Europe. It has service depots in Canada, the US, France and Australia.

Vansco, which has now established itself as a world leader in the design and production of rugged electronic equipment for original equipment manufacturers, currently boasts sales figures in excess of $100 million dollars. Van Humbeck affirms “Our success has come from understanding our customers’ needs then helping them improve the performance and reliability of their machines through the use of electronic hardware and software.”

Van Humbeck says “After graduating from the University of Manitoba’s Electrical Engineering program, I worked for several different employers before starting Vansco.

Through this I garnered valuable experience in design, manufacturing, management, and sales.

My employer for the 1972-73 and 1973-74 school years was Red River College where I was an instructor in Electronic Technology.” He adds, “My time at RRC helped me greatly, not only because it honed my training skills, but because I learned first hand how valuable RRC graduates would be to a budding entrepreneur. When I started Vansco I quickly began hiring RRC grads.”

Van Humbeck believes that the success of his company came from hiring well-qualified people who adhere to the company’s core values of: customer focus, honesty, respect, fairness, trust, loyalty, responsibility, creativity, and teamwork.