The story of VMAC began in the fall of 1986 when Jim Hogan secured a opportunity to build disposable jet engines for Canadian military drones. Needing a partner with entrepreneurial instincts, Jim called his university friend Tony Menard, who had coincidentally been laid off from his job just the day before. Tony packed up his family and relocated across the country to Kitchener, Ontario, to pursue the venture. However, a sudden recession soon gripped the economy, costing the partners their military contract before the project could fully get off the ground.

    Refusing to quit, the duo relied on their complete machine shop and a rigorous work ethic to produce custom tooling, prototypes, and low-volume parts for local businesses. Their definitive pivot came in 1988 when a loyal customer, service truck builder Parker Sturdy Manufacturing, asked them to design a solution for vehicle air compressor mounting brackets that kept fracturing on the highway. Despite Jim's initial hesitation, Tony eagerly took on the challenge. The success of these new designs prompted them to rename the business VMAC, standing originally for Vehicle Mounted Auxiliary Components and later adjusted to Vehicle Mounted Air Compressors.

    In 1990, Tony bought out Jim’s share of the company and relocated VMAC to his hometown of Nanaimo, British Columbia. Without Kitchener's deeply rooted manufacturing ecosystem, the business quickly fell on hard times and neared outright closure. Just as Tony was preparing to shutter the operations, a local salesman visited the office and convinced him to persevere. Days later, a turning-point contract arrived from IMT to design and manufacture engine-mounted compressor brackets and installation kits, providing the steady revenue stream needed to stabilize and ignite the company’s growth.

    With the business back on track, Tony focused on building a team of character, and Jim returned to the company in 1996 to lead his true passion: engineering research and development. Under their combined guidance, VMAC pioneered the industry's very first vehicle-mounted rotary screw air compressor and went on to launch its highly successful UNDERHOOD® product line. These breakthroughs allowed the company to weather global economic downturns and solidify an international reputation for high-performance mobile air compressors.

    Tragedy struck on July 4, 2010, when Tony passed away in an unexpected accident. While the loss of its foundational leader deeply impacted the organization, the workforce rallied behind the shared family values, innovative drive, and relentless perseverance Tony had instilled in the corporate culture. Today, VMAC's team continues to honor that legacy by facing industrial challenges head-on, standing up after failure, and manufacturing world-class mobile power solutions built to endure.

 

Year Founded: 1986

Main Products: Vehicle mounted Air Compressor

Brand: VMAC

Country of Origin: Canada

Facebook Account: https://www.facebook.com/VMACair

Website: https://vmacair.com/

Address: 1333 Kipp Rd, Nanaimo, BC V9X 1R3, Canada

Contact No.: +12507403200

Email: https://www.vmacair.com/contact