| B&G Equipment and Supply: The Source of Supply |
| Corporate Spotlight | |||
| Written by Eric Slack | |||
| Saturday, 01 March 2008 | |||
 Marty Hardin tells us how idle construction equipment spawned a new business.
 Marty Hardin, Director of Operations B&G split off from general contractors Brasfield & Gorrie in 1997. The history of Brasfield & Gorrie, ranked 28th in America in Engineering News-Record’s 2006 top 400 contractors list, dates back to 1921. Brasfield & Gorrie serves a myriad of industries, from healthcare, retail, and educational facilities to office buildings and water treatment plants. Prior to the launch of B&G as an independent sales and rental company, Brasfield & Gorrie took a warehousing approach to its equipment, acquiring assets through work on long-term projects. According to Hardin, the advantage of owning the equipment was limited to the job it was purchased for, leading to the creation of B&G. After its inception, B&G expanded beyond Birmingham to locations in Atlanta, Orlando, and Nashville. The reason for choosing these locations was simple. Brasfield & Gorrie is a major player in those markets. Although B&G is its own entity, the company’s first priority is to serve its parent company’s project needs by having locations inside Brasfield & Gorrie’s footprint. This allows B&G to move into an area where it can become self-sustaining. But the company doesn’t necessarily follow in all of its parent’s footsteps. B&G has yet to enter the Raleigh, NC market because Brasfield & Gorrie doesn’t do quite enough business there—yet. “We believe a territory needs to generate about $250 million in construction dollars to make an equipment location self supporting. We take a conservative approach from that standpoint,” Hardin said. Once established in a new market, B&G is able to take its services into the marketplace for contractors of all kinds. Its first obligation remains to Brasfield & Gorrie, but the company was given enough autonomy to run its own day-to-day affairs. Outside of supporting the parent company’s projects, B&G has subcontractors and industrial accounts to help diversify the business. In the case of subcontractors, many have worked with B&G on Brasfield & Gorrie projects. Once they leave for another job with a different contractor, many then turn to B&G for that job’s equipment needs. With industrial accounts, B&G steps in after Brasfield & Gorrie does initial contracting with the client. Once a job is finished, clients may still be in need of B&G equipment. The company remains involved to help support its clients’ efforts, integrating its services with the client’s industrial site. But with more locations and clients comes the need for more equipment. With B&G approaching $80 million in equipment assets, the company recently decided to invest in a state-of-the-art inventory control system. Software solutions allow B&G to track inventory and equipment utilization, as well as generating sales tickets. Hardin said the system also allows B&G to make informed decisions about future purchases. “We can look in the system to see what equipment performed well financially and what hasn’t, as well as what equipment has high maintenance costs, and what doesn’t,” he said. Driving values As B&G continues to chart its own course, Hardin knows the company needs to be able to offer value to its clients. Part of achieving this meant expanding its product lines to offer additional ancillary services. B&G has always provided clients with general equipment such as bulldozers and excavators, but many complimentary services were not available in the past. Now B&G can offer additional equipment such as heavy-duty water pumps and portable power generators. When it comes to choosing its equipment supply partners, B&G chooses carefully. According to Hardin, offering his clients cheap knock-offs is not the way the company can secure a reputation for quality. He knows B&G’s clients need to be able to trust in the equipment they rent, so the company looks to partner with established, branded vendors. “We’re not interested in offering the cheapest price just to try and get someone by,” said Hardin, noting B&G’s recent partnership with Thompson Pump, a leader in the portable pump industry since 1970. “We want to be sure we’re adding value. We try to attract vendors that allow us to sell our services effectively because clients know they’re getting a quality product.” While the company may end up in North Carolina and beyond, one of the immediate concerns is keeping up with staffing needs. Although B&G faces stiff competition from national rental chains, the company hasn’t had to invest as much in recruiting after establishing a reputation in its markets. Instead, B&G focuses on training and retention. Every year, the company puts 12 leaders through a 12-month leadership training program. It also has a year-long employee-in-training apprenticeship program for new hires. Employees are cross-trained in every department so they understand how each facet of the company functions. Combined with core values that supply employees with everything from competitive benefit packages to financial counseling, B&G strives to take care of employees and their families. Going forward, Hardin believes B&G must maintain an appropriate rate of growth rather than grow for growth’s sake. His parent company has grown into a $2 billion entity by achieving excellence through consistent performance. Hardin believes this is central to B&G’s own success, even if it occasionally means doing less business. “Sometimes to handle growth, you gear up and end up heavy on equipment and people. Those are your two largest expenses,” he said. “The only way we can smooth out the cyclical nature of the business is to spread out our growth over time.” |
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American Executive is a RedCoat Publishing publication.
American Executive is a RedCoat Publishing publication.
