Umicore may be a multinational company with more than 14,000 employees worldwide, but when its Canadian operation calls, clients still know it by its previous name—Imperial Smelting and Refining.
That’s because Imperial has been a staple in the Canadian jewellery industry for the past 100 years, 2014 being its centennial year.
“Even now, when we speak with a customer and identify ourselves as Umicore, people ask, ‘Who?’ because we only changed our name two years ago,” says Thelma Chuakay, managing director of what is now Umicore Precious Metals Canada. “It was hard to transition from a Mom-and-Pop operation to a global company. You still have to have that personal touch with your employees and customers, and yet, everything has to be a higher calibre.”
Now located in Markham, Ont., the refiner got its start in 1914 in downtown Toronto when Sydney Bromwich impressed the company’s original owner with his work ethic. Three years later, the young immigrant bought the business and renamed it Imperial. In 1929, Bromwich’s son, Fred, took over the reins, followed by his grandson, Tim, in 1963. It was a family-run business until Brussels-based Umicore bought it in 2007.
Today, its 60 employees work to provide precious metal products like sheet, casting grain, and wire, as well as tubes and seamless wedding bands. For long-time employees like Chuakay, celebrating 100 years is especially significant. Although plans are still in the works on how exactly to mark the occasion, Chuakay says staff will have a say on what form the celebration takes. One suggestion so far is an evening cruise around Toronto’s waterfront. Whatever shape the festivities take, Chuakay—herself a 35-year employee—says they will time the event with a visit from the head of Umicore’s unit.
Since the acquisition, things have changed. Although Imperial shared similar values with Umicore on customer service and maintaining quality, the company’s ‘closed loop’ philosophy on environmental responsibility required it achieve certification for International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 9001- 2008, Quality Management Systems and ISO 14001-2004, Environmental Management Systems. Following extensive third-party audits, Umicore achieved both in 2011.
“I’ve been with the company for more than a third of its existence and it feels really good to see how it has evolved,” she says. “We have changed our mindset in terms of being more involved in sustainability. It’s not just a matter of being profitable, but more importantly, it’s about giving back and ensuring we’re protecting the environment. Our staff is equally important. It’s what gives us our foundation and makes us who we are. Over the last 35 years, you can see a definite evolution— we’re trying to be an example for other companies to follow.”
