The Bombardier Story: Planes, Trains, and Snowmobiles

By Larry MacDonald

Book Overview

"Bombardier was under attach again. This time, the flack was coming from the president of Berlin-based Adtranz, the rail equipment subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler AG. In 1999, he traveled to Toronto and made a speech in which he warned that Adtranz was coming to challenge Montreal-based Bombardier on its home turf of North America. His motive was retaliation: he did not like Bombardier's invasion of Adtranz's European markets. So he was going to put the upstart from the hinterlands in its place. 'The major player in the United States of the future will be, I believe, Adtranz, ' he predicted." "In the spring of 2001, Bombardier acquired Adtranz. The purchase more than doubled annual revenues at Bombardier's rail equipment division and catapulted Bombardier into the number one spot in the railway equipment industry, ahead of the rail divisions of Franco-British conglomerate Alstom and German industrial giant Siemens." "What made Bombardier's progression in rail equipment all the more remarkable is that it occurred while yet another progression was under way at Bombardier's aerospace group. In 1986, the company decided to enter the aerospace sector by acquiring business-jet maker Canadair Ltd. of Montreal. This was followed by acquisitions of several other ailing aerospace companies, including world-renowned Learjet. Turning around these floundering assets, Bombardier came out of nowhere to become, in a little more than a dozen years, the third-largest member of the civil aerospace manufacturing industry. Only US giant Boeing and European colossus, the Airbus consortium, are larger." -- from The Bombardier Story

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471646407
• ISBN13: 9780471646402
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
• Length: 293 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.4" x 1.1" x 6.4"

Customer Reviews

Good, but not great, business history

Strengths of The Bombardier Story:* Comprehensive, but non-controversial, chronology of company from J.A. Bombardier's Quebec garage to an international conglomerate* Complete review of the company's entry into snowmobiles, trains, and aerospace* Straight-forward analysis of strengths and weaknesses of the company looking forward to the market challenges of future yearsWeaknesses:* Even though the author writes early in the book that he will explain some of the company's innovative management methods, these parts come up short. The explanations of the Bombardier Management System and the employee-centric culture do not give the reader a lot of information that could easily transfer to their own businesses* While I know little of the company's history beyond this book, I do believe that some of the less flattering portions of the company's history are played down or left out. This would include the company's investment in, then quiet exit from, the 100+-seat commercial jet business.Recommended for those interested specifically in Bombardier's history or as a secondary reference for those interested in the business of recreational machines, trains, or civil aircraft.