Ont. electronics company relocates manufacturing facility

By Zahraa Hmood, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, MuskokaRegion.com

A longtime audio electronics company based in Peterborough, Ont. is relocating its manufacturing operations up north to Dwight in Lake of Bays and plans to hire 20 new employees.

The company, Bryston, has been designing and manufacturing specialty electronics like speakers, amplifiers and analog converters for over 40 years, used by consumers and professionals.

The company’s former vice-president James Tanner announced on Feb. 2 he acquired Bryston in partnership with Axiom Audio, based in Dwight on Highway 60.

Tanner and Axiom Audio’s president, Ian Colquhoun, decided to purchase the company around six months ago.

Tanner, who’s been with Bryston since 1976, is replacing Chris Russell, whose family founded Bryston, as the new CEO. Russell is retiring but will support the company with future decision-making, Tanner said.

The bulk of Bryston’s manufacturing process is moving from their assembly line facility in Peterborough to a factory three times its size in Dwight, which will manufacture and assemble all equipment pieces in-house, something of a “super-factory,” said Tanner.

“One of the advantages of joining the companies together was … most companies of our size are assemblers, not manufacturers,” he said. “It makes sense that if we were to actually invest in the machinery to produce these products, we could become much more of a manufacturer and much more of our own master.”

Tanner said production has already started in Dwight with COVID-19 protocols in place. “One of the advantages of a factory system is you can maintain the requirements of a COVID system. You’re not having a bunch of people in the same room at the same time,” he said.

Tanner said the company plans to hire 20 new employees for the Dwight location throughout its transition period of a year. They will work in manufacturing and the company’s new customer support service.

“There seems to be a really good employment capability up there,” he said. “People want to live there.”

Their work in research and development will remain at their Peterborough facility.