Ritchie Bros. receives award for in-house child care facility in Burnaby, B.C.

Richard T. Lee, MLA for Burnaby North, presents a 2014 Child Care Award of Excellence to the Company at its global headquarters on May 30

BURNABY, BC, May 30, 2014 /CNW/ - Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA), the world's largest industrial auctioneer, has been awarded a 2014 Child Care Award of Excellence for its in-house child care facility at its global headquarters in Burnaby, B.C. The Company is one of 15 child-care providers, organizations and a municipality to be recognized by the Ministry of Children and Family Development for its outstanding work on behalf of B.C. children and families. Ritchie Bros. is being recognized under the category of "Innovation", which recognizes individuals and/or organizations providing service innovation in a non-traditional setting. MLA Richard T. Lee (for Burnaby North) presented the award to the Company at its Burnaby headquarters on Friday, May 30.

"On behalf of the Province and the Minister of Children and Family Development I am very pleased to present this award to Ritchie Bros Auctioneers for the commitment and dedication it has shown towards its employees and towards our youngest learners in B.C.," said MLA Richard T. Lee. "Ritchie Bros. deserves our sincere thanks and special recognition."

The Ritchie Bros. Corporate Child Care facility was opened in September 2009 when the Company moved into its newly-constructed LEED-Gold certified building in Burnaby, B.C. The facility is licensed to care for 59 children, and child care fees are partly subsidized by the Company. The education curriculum offers a mix of early childhood development programs and techniques, including Montessori, Reggio Emilia and traditional early learning methods.

"When we were designing this building several years ago and thinking about what features it should have we knew we wanted a child care facility, but I don't think we could've ever imagined what a great success it has been," said Peter Blake, CEO, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers. "Ritchie Bros. is a family-centric company, you can feel it in the building. I love coming downstairs to our cafeteria and seeing parents eating lunch with their kids from the child care. It really adds to the atmosphere. It's a great honour to win this award and would like to sincerely thank MLA Richard T. Lee for coming to visit us."

The 5,000-square-foot (465-m²) child care facility features large classrooms, child-sized bathrooms and furniture as well as two outdoor playgrounds designed by Paul Dirks (architect of the Vancouver Olympic Village). Outdoor facilities also include gardens and variety of different types of vegetation.

"You don't see many facilities like this. Having an in-house child care is very innovative and hugely beneficial for employees," said Christine Clements, Corporate Child Care Director, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Child Care Programs. "As early childhood educators we are committed to providing top quality care by building strong relationships with children and their families and by providing them the experiences they need to grow and learn in a safe and clean environment. For us, it's a great honour just to be part of the Ritchie Bros. family and we would like to thank them for providing this wonderful facility for their employees."

To see photos of the child care facility and MLA Richard T. Lee's visit to Ritchie Bros.' global headquarters, visit www.rbauction.com/photos.

About Ritchie Bros.
Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. (NYSE andTSX: RBA) is the world's largest seller of used equipment for the construction, transportation, agriculture, material handling, energy, mining, forestry, marine and other industries. Ritchie Bros. ^TM solutions make it easy for the world's builders to buy and sell equipment with confidence, including live unreserved public auctions with on-site and online bidding (rbauction.com), the EquipmentOne^TM secure online marketplace (EquipmentOne.com), a professional corporate asset management program, and a range of value-added services, including equipment financing for customers through Ritchie Bros. Financial Services (rbauctionfinance.com). Ritchie Bros. has operations in more than 25 countries, including 44 auction sites worldwide. Learn more at RitchieBros.com.

ATTENTION MEDIA:

• High-resolution photos of MLA Richard T. Lee's visit to Ritchie Bros.' global headquarters are available for download at http://www.rbauction.com/photos
• For b-roll footage of today's presentation, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-bhm7CfV4E&list=UUVzvMzfdNfhowxuWRguZjBQ

SOURCE: Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers

Ian Malinski, Corporate Communications Lead, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers
Phone: [phone] | Email: [email protected]