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For Carl Thibault Fire Trucks, see Carl Thibault.

Pierre Thibault (pronounced tee-boh) refers to a fire apparatus manufacturer located in Pierreville, Québec, Canada. The company operated under various legal names from 1928 to 1992. Pierre Thibault (ca. 1898-1961) was also the founder of the company.

History[]

Pierre Thibault became involved in the fire truck industry in the years after the First World War as part of his father's business. Charles Thibault (1873-1958) made hand pumps in Sorel, Québec and built horse-drawn fire apparatus for small Québec communities. In 1932, Pierre formed Camions Pierre Thibault and moved manufacturing operations to Pierreville in 1938. The company built several crash trucks for the Canadian government during the Second World War and expanded its sales to municipal fire departments across Canada soon after. Pierre Thibault added custom chassis and aerial ladders to the company lineup during the 1950s.

When Pierre died in 1961, the company passed to his nine sons. The company continued to do well. However, by 1968, some of the sons wanted to leave the fire truck business, while others wanted to remain involved. Brothers René, Julien, Marion, Charles-Étienne and Yvon started Pierreville Fire Trucks in nearby Saint-François-du-Lac and the original company was sold to interests outside the family. In 1972, it went bankrupt, was sold and reformed as Pierre Thibault Canada (1972) Ltee.

In 1979, the company again fell on hard times and went bankrupt. Pierreville Fire Trucks had flourished and the brothers operating Pierreville decided to purchase the assets and order book of the old family firm. Brother René Thibault (1920-1982) was sent to negotiate and plan for the merger. However, René actually purchased the company for himself, leading to considerable discord among the family. René renamed the company Camions Pierre Thibault Inc.

Pierre Thibault continued to manufacture trucks and aerial devices after René's death in 1982 and Pierreville's bankruptcy in 1985. However, the company went bankrupt for a final time in 1992. Outside investors purchased the assets of the company and operated it as NovaQUINTECH Corporation. NovaQUINTECH received investment from Québec conglomerate Bombardier in 1994. A large order of fire apparatus for the Canadian Armed Forces were completed by NovaQUINTECH, but have gold coloured Thibault name plates on the front of the cab. In 1995, NovaQUINTECH stopped building pumpers, concentrating solely on aerial devices. In 1997, it sold its line of aerial products (the SkyArm, SkyFour and SkyFive line of aerial devices) to Pierce Manufacturing.

Companies owned by members of the Thibault family[]

Products[]

Thibault built all types of apparatus on commercial, custom and Thibault-built apparatus. Trucks were sold across Canada and throughout the United States (particularly in the Northeast). In addition, apparatus was sold to fire departments in Jamaica, Columbia and Chile, as well as a few to the Middle East.

Custom trucks[]

Factories and offices[]

Type City Address In Service Notes
Plant Pierreville 38, Rue Thibault 1938 - 1961 Demolished for the construction of a new factory in 1961.
Plant Pierreville 38, Rue Thibault 1961 - 1990 Used by Carl Thibault Fire Trucks since 2000.
Sales office Montréal 1559, Rue Jean-Talon Est In service in the 1950s
Sales office Quebec City 227, Rue Dorchester In service in the 1950s

External Links[]

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