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nancial backing of his late brother, Bud. Tim, in explaining how the company built on give it. It kind of washes through the whole
its success. organization.”
“He wasn’t just a great brother but a great
partner,” he says, explaining the business Transchem Group now employs approxi- He admits trying to separate work and fam-
didn’t really start to take off until the early mately 70 people between its locations in ily can be difficult at times, especially when
1980s as more products were developed. Kitchener, which houses its equipment di- there are pressing issues that need to be ad-
vision, and its 62,000 square-foot Franklin dressed, even while on vacation.
These products became sought after by Boulevard manufacturing and warehouse
trucking and industrial cleaning companies, facility. “Often it’s just mind over matter,” says
which in turn ignited the commercial sale of Murray.
Transchem Group products. That building, which they moved into in the
fall of 2011 after outgrowing their previous Nathan agrees.
In 1984, Murray sold the truck washing busi- location on Werlich Drive, sits on the site of
ness to focus solely on Transchem and its a former tire recycling facility. The Ewings “There can always be a discussion going on
growing list of cleaning products. managed to ‘reclaim’ part of the founda- around work and it’s difficult at times to
tion and steel from the original building and separate that,” he says. “This is certainly not
Around this time as he transitioned from turned their office into a showplace. an 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. business, it’s 24/7.”
the truck washing business to the chemical
cleaning business, Murray asked his son, Na- “We take a lot of pride in it,” says Tim, re- Tim says these personal-style discussions
than, to join him in this new venture about ferring to the work that went into creating outside of the office can often be very ben-
a year after he finished studying economics the building which they expanded by 30,000 eficial at times.
and political science at Sir Wilfrid Laurier square feet in 2017 to provide more ware-
University. house space, a training room and a touch- “I think one of the keys to our success is
free car wash testing facility. we’re able to be open and honest with each
“I had about a year of doing some financial other,” he says.
stuff then I started knocking on doors selling Innovation plays a big role at Transchem
truck washing soap,” says Nathan. Group and the growth of its technological Transchem Group is also dedicated to the
division. Cambridge community and has been a big
The business began to grow over the next supporter of a variety of charities, scholar-
few years, adding administrative and deliv- “We’re not just making soaps and deter- ships and sports teams for many years. As
ery teams, many of whom continue to work gents for car washing. In some cases, we’re well, they have committed funding towards
for the company. making some pretty unique things,” says a mental health room in the new wing of the
Murray. Cambridge Memorial Hospital.
A major turning point came in 1990 when The company has created such successful
the Ewings attended their first International apps as CarWash Connect, which lets car “That was a commitment we talked about
Carwash Association trade show in New Or- wash owners interact with their clients, and years ago when we turned a corner,” says
leans. is working on the advancement of water re- Nathan, referring to their charity work. “We
“We went, even though we weren’t really in claim technology. thought we wanted to do a little more and
the car wash industry at all,” says Nathan. committed a certain amount of funds to
“We decided to give it a shot.” “Water is so precious and there are a lot various charities.”
of people disrespecting that,” says Murray,
The visit paid off and a year later Transchem adding environmental concerns are a driv- “I think we can do more. I think everybody
began exporting car wash and truck wash ing force at Transchem. can,” adds Murray. “But there’s a lot of peo-
chemicals to the U.S. ple in this town that do a lot more than we
“Once you get into the car wash industry But besides helping the car wash industry, do.”
you realize it’s a good-sized business and a he sees this new technology having an even
very relationship-based type of business,” greater impact. He also says there is much more he can do
says Nathan. “It’s a niche market and very in the business and currently has no plans
competitive, but it’s a great business to be “Our next step is let’s be able to take the to retire.
in.” worst water and turn it into safe drinking
water,” says Murray. “All technology, in ev- “I love to travel. But how long can a person
To stay competitive, Murray’s youngest ery aspect, is advancing so quickly. It’s pretty travel?” jokes Murray. “I just don’t have to
son, Tim, joined his father and brother in exciting.” work as hard as I once did.”
the business in 1997 and was instrumental
in starting a manufacturing division which However, the one thing that has remained PHOTO: The Transchem Group is a leader in their field.
meant creating all their products in-house. the same at Transchem Group is a tight bond At the reins are, left to right, President Nathan Ew-
between not only the Ewings, but their em- ing, Executive Vice President Tim Ewing, and company
founder and CEO Murray Ewing.
The company also took over the industrial ployees and customers.
carwash brand Turtle Wax Pro from Turtle
Wax Inc. in 2015. “One thing our customers, suppliers and
employees understand is that we have a like
“We’ve all had our hands into every part of mind, and that’s called respect,” says Mur-
this business from the grassroots up,” says ray. “I command that and demand it and

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Spring 2019