Company
Company History
A history of success...benefiting thousands of vehicle owners in Quebec!
Discover the story of a great Quebec family business: Metropolitan Rust Proofing.
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1975 - The Old Man and Rust
Ovide St-Onge, a retired mechanic from Saint-Louis-de-France, noted that his car was being attacked by the “metal cancer”: Rust. He decided to act, putting his many years of experience in the automotive sector to work. As no person or company had addressed the problem of car corrosion, he invented a cure: A mineral oil-based rust proofing treatment.
It worked! His product stabilized the existing rust and prevented the formation of new corrosion. The good news spread quickly, and 75 people asked Mr. St. Onge to treat their vehicles. The retired mechanic built a treatment ramp, but he couldn’t treat all the cars by himself. He quickly called on his two sons to help him out.
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1976 - Two Men and an Idea
After discussions with his sons Bruno and Laurier, Ovide St-Onge decided to pass on the rust proofing torch. With an investment of $ 500 each, Bruno and Laurier St-Onge founded Metropolitan Rust Proofing. Rust’s malevolant reign had come to an end...
That autumn, mayhem set in: No less than 1300 satisfied customers left the St-Onge family’s small garage with their vehicles well protected from corrosion. People came from all over!
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1981-1999 - Expansion Across Quebec
The two brothers involved in the new company named Metropolitan Rust Proofing decided to let the rest of Quebec enjoy the revolutionary anti-corrosion treatment invented by their father. They opened a second location in Quebec City. Again, success was in the air.
In 1984, they built a location in Longueuil, and two years later another in Laval. Over the years, nine other locations, including one in Ontario, enabled more people to enjoy the rust proofing cure.
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1999 - Early 2000s - Collaboration with Scientific Partners
Far from resting on their laurels, the Metropolitan Rust Proofing directors decided to make their product even better. They formed a partnership with the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières and the Centre de recherche industrielle du Québec for several research programs, of which they contribute a major investment and a grant obtained from the National Research Centre of Canada.
Result: Customers are always offered a high quality product. Subsequently, Metropolitan Rust Proofing pursued research at the same university and in collaboration with other scientific partners to remain at the forefront of the market.
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2003 - Heavy Vehicles are Treated
The company began offering treatment for trucks, vans and heavy vehicles and recreational vehicles, as well as to institutional and commercial fleets. This service is offered at the Anjou location, which has been specially adapted to receive and process these large mobile assets.
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2006 - Opening of Sherbrooke Location
The Sherbrooke location begins testing a new service: A “self-serve” car wash.
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2008 - Present - New Rust Proofing Product, New Services, and a New Generation of Directors
Over the years we have achieved significant national accreditation and registration to international standards: CAA-Quebec Recommended Garage and Registration to ISO 9001 (quality) and 14001 (environment). These certifications confirm Metropolitan Rust Proofing’s leading position as the only company specializing in automobile rust proofing in Quebec.
The President of Metropolitan Rust Proofing, Bruno St-Onge (his brother Laurier retired in 2000), decided to entrust the reins of the business to a new generation: Jean-Luc St-Onge and Christine, Pascal and Manuel Champoux.
New generation, new energy and new services for customers! Metropolitan Rust Proofing has launched complimentary services to restore headlights, windshield treatment with Aquapel and the installation of windshield wipers. Customers are happy, and business continues to grow!
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1986
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1986
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1986
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1986
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1986
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1982
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1949
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1949
