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It started in rural Quebec as a family-owned builder of snowmobiles almost 100 years ago. It then added Ski-Doos, Sea-Doos, trains and even commercial airplanes.

On Wednesday, Bombardier unveiled a new corporate logo it says will reflect the company’s current focus while giving a nod to its past. The logo was unveiled to employees during an event at the company’s headquarters in Dorval.

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“Bombardier has transformed extensively in the last four years,” said Ève Laurier, vice-president of communications, marketing and public affairs, who oversaw the rebranding process. “We thought now the time is right to put a visual to what it is we do, which is business aviation.”

The new logo, called the Bombardier Mach, represents four wings of an airplane overlayed to form a sort of sideways V, making it look like two airplane wings. The shape of a jet’s nose and fuselage is visible in the white space in the middle of the graphic.

“It features the silhouette of an aircraft breaking the sound barrier — an ode to the ambition and innovative spirit of our people — while the strokes of wind over an aircraft reference our heritage,” the company wrote in a statement.

While the company has used symbols in the past, most recently its main logo was just the name Bombardier, in all capital letters.

The new logo is accompanied by a new font for the company’s name, which will be displayed with a capital B and lowercase letters for the rest, to denote that Bombardier is the name of the family that founded the company. The curves in the semi-serif letters also emulate the curves in the Mach symbol.

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“We’re calling it the Mach because last year we flew our Global 8000 at Mach 1, which is a first in business aviation,” Laurier said. “Our engineers are really proud of having been able to take a Global to supersonic (speed).”

It wasn’t long ago that Bombardier’s future was unclear. Saddled with debt, the company announced plans in February 2020 to sell its rail division to France’s Alstom SA. In the same month, it also sold off its C Series aircraft to Airbus.

Laurier said the rebranding is a sign the company’s transformation and the hard work involved has paid off.

“We’ve gone through so much transformation and the company’s doing so well,” Laurier said. “We’ve been consistently delivering strong financial results, and signalling that with a new brand shows confidence.

“I think there will be a lot of pride associated with that moment, which is telling the world we’re looking toward the future. We’re happy and we’re proud of the brand. Our products are the best products of the world, so the brand needs to be able to stand with the best brands in the world.”

Mark Masluch, senior director of communications, said the logo also reflects the future, as the next generation of Bombardier aircraft will be blended wing-body planes. The more aerodynamic design will allow for significant fuel savings as companies look to lower their emissions and carbon footprints.

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