Midland Vegetation Management Joins Asplundh Canada, Inc.

ACI's new Midland Vegetation Management Division maintains
a fleet of specialized Hi-rail spray trucks like this one, ready to
control vegetation for a railroad running along the Canadian Rockies
in Jasper, Alberta. Midland's fleet also includes roadside units,
light trucks and heavy-duty ATVs.

Another important acquisition that was completed in January, is expected to spur new growth for our subsidiary to the north—Asplundh Canada Inc. (ACI).  Midland Vegetation Management, a large and successful Canadian-owned company, is now a new division of ACI, serving the railroad, utility and petroleum industries.

With offices in the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario, Midland provides primarily herbicide application services to large customers such as CP Rail, CN Rail, BC Rail, Ontario Northland, Trans Canada Pipeline, Sask Energy, Sask Power, ATCO Electric, Utilicorp and TransAlta. Vegetation management for refineries, oil and gas production facilities and highway departments is also offered.

For ACI, the acquisition of Midland expands its already extensive herbicide capabilities and broadens its customer base. For Midland, becoming a part of the Asplundh organization will provide a strong infrastructure and improved access to specialized equipment.

Meet our Midland Management Folks

Manager Dan Eddy brings to ACI more than 20 years of experience in the Canadian vegetation management industry, including five years as a supervisor for Asplundh Utility Services (the predecessor to ACI) in Alberta. In fact, Dan was working as a sales representative for Molsberry when Asplundh acquired the company in 1983 to establish a presence in Canada.

In 1989, Dan joined Midland Vegetation Management, a company that began as a one-truck brush control operation in Saskatchewan in 1968. As Midland grew and changed, he rose to the rank of company president and chief operating officer. Dan earned a degree in agricultural chemicals technology from Olds College in Alberta and is a member of several provincial vegetation management associations in Canada.

Midland also employs three regional supervisors—Don Everitt, Keith Sanftleben and Brad Walter—who oversee crew operations, serve current customers and market the company’s services to potential clients in their area. Equipment resources and personnel are shared amongst the supervisors as needed, depending on the workload in each area.

Supervisor Don Everitt joined Midland in 1999 with 20 years of experience working for the Canadian National Railway. Originally from Saskatchewan, Don’s office for Midland is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba and his area covers that province, as well as northwest Ontario. He is responsible for overseeing Midland operations for CN Railway, CP Railway, Manitoba Hydro, TransCanada Pipelines, Centra Gas, Union Gas, Manitoba Highways and the Canadian Dept. of National Defense.

Supervisor Keith Sanftleben joined Midland in 1997 with 12 years of experience in the Canadian vegetation managment industry. He earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from the University of Saskatchewan in 1985 and worked in sales for a major chemical company. He moved into the design and implementation of industrial vegetation management programs in 1995 and currently oversees Midland operations for various governmental, utility and petroleum industry clients in Alberta and British Columbia.

Supervisor Brad Walter has been employed by Midland since 1992 where he started out as a helper and operator in his home province of Saskatchewan. By 1997, Brad had advanced to operations supervisor and last year, he was promoted to area supervisor and safety coordinator. He oversees Midland operations for various utility, roadway, railroad, pipeline and oilfield companies. Brad is working toward a business certificate from Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Sciences.