CAMBRIDGE, Ont. –In an interview with local media, a Koch Transport executive lamented the state of the economy and explained how Ontario’s manufacturing struggles are impacting his company. John Schneider, director of corporate development with Koch, told local newspaper The Record that the company has laid off two-thirds of its workforce in the past year-and a-half and will shutter its Ontario LTL service March 26.

“We’ve been losing money. You can only lose for so long,” Schneider told the paper.

Koch’s LTL service accounted for about 40% of its revenue, Schneider said. Schneider wasn’t ready to declare the recession over, saying there were “no real positive signs on the horizon as far as improvement is concerned.”

Koch has downsized from more than 100 employees in October 2008 to about 35 today, according to the article in The Record. Unionized workers have reportedly helped out by restructuring their contracts.

Koch will continue offering LTL service outside Ontario, including in Quebec and the US, according to the article and full truckload services to all regions in its coverage area. Schneider added the company will be ready to take advantage when the economy does rebound.

“The trucking industry is cyclical. There will be a boom time again,” he told The Record.