Canadian Heavy Industries Workmaster 1500

1985 Canadian Heavy Industries Workmaster 1500

The **Canadian Heavy Industries Workmaster 1500** and its twin, the **LaVoie Premium Select**, is a commercial multi-stop delivery vehicle that was sold between 1985 and 1990 by Canadian Heavy Industries, the commercial vehicles division of Canadian. With over 490,000 of these vans built within the 5 years of production out of Canadian's Kitchener Truck Plant in Kitchener, Ontario, the Workmaster 1500 was transformed into a dominant workhorse of businesses all across Canada, and helped shape the industry into what it is today.

## **History**

In the United States and Canada, the Workmaster 1500 and Premium Select was, and still is the most common vehicle used by commercial businesses for the transportation of packages and a wide assortment of bulk cargo that is generally needed to be transported by such vehicles.

The Workmaster 1500 and Premium Select was the first vehicle specifically designed specifically to meet the needs for the United States Postal Service (USPS) and Canada Post (CP); the USPS and CP tendered a list of requirements for Canadian Heavy Industries to meet and the company created prototypes that were tested in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba in 1982. The main design points of the vehicle in contract competition were serviceability, handling in confined areas, and overall economical operation. Prototypes were each subjected to a 30,000 mi (48,280 km) road test, including frequent starts and stops, gravel surfaces, cobblestones and potholes, hauling a payload of up to 15,000 lbs (6,803 kg).

Previously, Canadian Heavy Industries had built a limited number of experimental battery electric commercial vehicles with an aluminum delivery van body, which was tested by the USPS and CP in the early 1980s, the designs of which influenced Canadian Heavy Industries' candidate body design for the Workmaster 1500. Canadian Heavy Industries ultimately won the competition and was awarded a $2.5 billion contract to produce 100,500 Workmaster 1500s in November 1984; USPS and CP also held an option for an additional 55,000 Workmaster 1500s.

### ***Production***

The vehicles were assembled by the Canadian Heavy Industries division of Canadian at the Kitchener Truck Plant in Kitchener, Ontario. The first vehicle was completed in April 1985. At peak production, 3,840 Workmaster 1500s were completed each day, at a rate of approximately 160 trucks every hour. Canadian Heavy Industries invested $28 million into the factory, doubling its size to 213,000 sq ft (19,800 m2) and increasing the workforce from 250 to 600.

The USPS and CP purchased more than 100,000 of these vehicles, the last one being produced for both companies in 1990, Although unconfirmed by Canadian Heavy Industries or its parent company, the Canadian Heavy Industries Workmaster 1500 is easily capable of a long life. The required lifespan specified by the USPS and CP was 24 years, but in 2009 this was extended to 30 years. The Canadian Heavy Industries Workmaster 1500 can easily last over 300,000 miles on its original engine and transmission before needing an overhaul.

In 2010, approximately 150,000 Workmaster 1500s remained in the USPS delivery fleet; retirement and attrition had reduced that to 80,000 by 2021. A number were also sold to Mexico, and several other countries.

## **Significance**

Because the United States Postal Service and Canada Post owns more than 80,000 Workmaster 1500s, of which most have reached the end of their lifespan, the USPS and CP has been preparing to replace the Workmaster 1500s. In fiscal year 2009, the USPS and CP spent $524 million to repair and retrofit its fleet of Workmaster 1500s, and estimated that it would cost $4.2 billion to replace the entire fleet. By 2021, it was estimated that each Workmaster 1500 required maintenance costing more than $15,000 per year; the all-aluminum body had proven to be robust and corrosion-resistant, but the chassis frame and powertrain components had required reverse-engineering as the original designs were out of production.

The Workmaster 1500s also suffered from several design deficiencies, including inadequate cabin climate controls (no air conditioning and a heater prone to breaking down). The wheels and suspension are not suited for the all-terrain and all-weather needs of delivering mail and require snow chains during inclement weather. Also, because the windshield washer fluid line is routed above the fuse box (which led to washer fluid leaking onto the fuses when the lines inevitably corroded), Workmaster 1500s are prone to catching fire; between 2015 and 2019, over 150 fires occurred. According to documents obtained in 2020 via a Freedom of Information Act request as part of a Weazel News investigation, 450 Workmaster 1500s have been damaged or destroyed by fire since February 2014.

In some areas, Workmaster 1500s have been supplemented or replaced with vans and minivans, which tended to be more comfortable for postal workers, especially in extreme climates. The United States Postal Service has announced that they will purchase scores of minivans and light delivery vans as part of the Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) vehicle program announced on August 3, 2018, to replace and upgrade its fleet of delivery vehicles.

In 2014, the USPS reviewed options for replacement. The Office of Inspector General found that the Postal Service's acquisition plan for replacements lacked details and while the USPS could continue deliveries until 2017, there were concerns over the aging vehicles. Canada Post also adopted the Workmaster 1500, but around 2008, it began studying whether to refurbish, upgrade, or replace its fleet. On March 18, 2010, Canada Post and Canadian Motors announced that Canada Post would purchase a sizeable fleet of vans from the company.