FMA Acquires Canadian Metalworking, Canadian Fabricating & Welding

Manufacturing industry leader Fabricators and Manufacturers Association, Intl. (FMA) has acquired the media brands Canadian Metalworking and Canadian Fabricating & Welding from Annex Business Media, based in Simcoe, Ont., Canada. The brands will be part of FMA Communications Canada, a media subsidiary of FMA, which already delivers print and online products and sponsors in-person events in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

The addition of 110-year-old Canadian Metalworking (CM) and the new offering Canadian Fabricating & Welding (CFW) gives FMA the leadership spot in Canadian metalworking media, and advances FMA's service to all of North America. The publications will be run by FMA’s new Canadian subsidiary, FMA Communications Canada (FMACC).

"This acquisition is all about us delivering on our mission to advocate for the growth and sustainability of the North American metal processing, forming, fabricating, and welding industries," says FMA president Ed Youdell. "Canada is a large part of that, and it is both independent of and interdependent on the rest of the North American markets. Our newly acquired brands—magazines, digital products, and in-person events—allow us to scale up our delivery on that mission."

FMA’s existing Canadian brand, Canadian Industrial Machinery (CIM), will be transitioned into the two newly acquired brands. Certain parts of CIM's print and online coverage will remain as editorial linchpins in the two acquired brands. The "Made in Canada" feature, which each month covers a Canadian business making something of note, will remain, as will the ongoing feature coverage, columns, and news.

The acquisition results in a rich blend of editorial and sales talent from Canadian Metalworking, Canadian Fabricating & Welding, and Canadian Industrial Machinery, according to Youdell.

“Relative to publishing in the Canadian manufacturing sector, this merger provides a long overdue consolidation of publications serving the Canadian metalworking industry,” states Mark Hoper, vice president of media and expositions at FMA. “The consolidation of talent and resources into the new CM/CFW publication will provide Canadian manufacturers and equipment suppliers with a new, unmatched publication serving the Canadian manufacturing industry.”

"We are very excited to bring on these two brands and two talented individuals as well," notes Dave Brambert, group publisher of FMA Communications. "We welcome Rob Swan as publisher of Canadian Fabricating & Welding, and Rob Colman as editor, and we're proud to have them on the team."

Swan was formerly the associate publisher of Canadian Metalworking; Colman was editor of Metalworking Production & Purchasing, the precursor to Canadian Fabricating & Welding. Swan will mainly sell for Canadian Fabricating & Welding and will also support Canadian Metalworking.

Current FMA Communications Director of sales and marketing, Jim Gorzek, also will serve as publisher of Canadian Metalworking. Kathleen Fitzgerald, now associate publisher of Canadian Metalworking, will continue her sales presence for the publication.

Of the current FMA Communications editorial team covering Canada, Joe Thompson becomes editor of Canadian Metalworking, and Sue Roberts is now associate editor of both publications. Dan Davis remains editor-in-chief of all FMAC media products.

Annex Business Media president and CEO Michael Fredericks states, "We think this is a good move. We are able to sell two excellent products to a team that solely focuses on fabricating and metalworking. Much as we will miss our two colleagues, they will continue to grow in the sector they know so well and continue to make great contributions to the industry."