For nearly 50 years, Russ Edwards has a been a fixture in Canada’s manufacturing and agricultural industries.
Now, the founder of WGI Westman Group Inc. has become a fixture at Assiniboine Community College in Brandon.
At a ceremony held in late September, the college gave its school of agriculture a new identity.
It’s now known as the Russ Edwards School of Agriculture and Environment.
“(This) is the legacy that my wife, myself and my family wish to leave for Western Canada,” Edwards said in a release. “We believe that the proper education students will receive in this school will be tremendously important going forward. Brandon is an agricultural centre of the West and this school is right in the heart of Canada.”
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Edwards is the founder and owner of WGI, which includes Meridian Manufacturing, Armtec, Behlen Industries, Convey-all and Westman Steel.
Meridian may be the best known of its brands. It makes fertilizer bins, grain dryers, corrugated bins, augers and stainless steel tanks, among other products.
Edwards, 90, grew up on a farm near La Broquerie, Man., and started his company in 1976, manufacturing riveted culverts with six employees at a plant in Winnipeg.
Now, WGI has more than 2,000 employees at 79 locations in North America.
“With Westman Steel and Behlen Industries both headquartered here in Brandon, some of the early seeds of WGI Westman Group’s success were planted right here in this community,” Edwards said in 2022.
The new name and Edwards’ ambition matches nicely with ACC’s goals for its agricultural school.
The college is based in Brandon and has satellite campuses in other communities in Manitoba. It offers training in agribusiness for agricultural equipment technicians, sustainable food systems and other ag-related courses.
In recent years, the college has been expanding its agricultural training to meet strong demand from employers across the Prairies.
As well, ACC has been raising funds to build the Prairie Innovation Centre for Sustainable Agriculture. The proposed facility would include programming in robotics, industrial automation, food science technology, food processing technology and other courses.
The Edwards family contributed $4 million to the Prairie Innovation Centre last year.
“Assiniboine is thrilled to establish the Edwards School. Agriculture is key to the Manitoba economy, and has long been a foundation of our programs,” said Mark Frison, ACC president. “When you look at the amount of private sector investment we’ve had in Manitoba, we know that we need to have more people prepared to take those jobs, work in that sector and continue to leverage that investment for the future of the Manitoba economy.”
