When Schlouch Incorporated launched its paving division in 1998, owner Barry Schlouch knew that only one thing was needed for the division to succeed: quality.
Since its inception, the paving division of Schlouch Incorporated has laid approximately 8,000 tons (7,200 t) of pavement each year, using strictly Caterpillar equipment purchased from Giles & Ransome, Allentown, PA.
“Our goal as a company for our customers is to provide quality and safety,” said Frank Barwis, asphalt paving coordinator. “In order to deliver that, we have to have a good piece of equipment and good people to operate it. Quality has pushed us forward from day one.”
Schlouch focuses on commercial, residential and township paving and has customers in six cities. The paving division employs approximately 30 of the 280 employees in the entire company. The division has performed 70 to 80 paving jobs each year and runs two crews every day.
“A five-day job is a long job for us. It’s nothing for us to be in Chester County one day and Lehigh County the next,” Barwis said. “We’re very mobile.”
According to Barwis, 80 percent of the business the paving division of Schlouch does is repeat business. “What that tells me is that we’re on the right track. Our customers want to see quality as well as efficiency,” he said. “A lot of credit for that goes to the crew, as well. We’ve been successful in finding employees that care about their jobs from day to day and they take pride in their work.”
Barwis credits much of the division’s success on keeping up with the latest trends in the industry and giving his employees cutting edge training. “There’s a lot of new technology to take advantage of. Those that don’t keep up with it today are left out in the cold,” he said.
“Giles & Ransome’s customer support is a big part of why we buy Caterpillar equipment,” Barwis said. “For me, it’s important to give my employees as many training opportunities as possible.”
Barwis said that Schlouch has a unique way of choosing the equipment the company ultimately purchases. For instance, when Schlouch purchased the Cat AP650B paver from Giles & Ransome, the company had solicited three pavers from three different manufacturers. “Once we had used all of the pavers,” Barwis explained, “we had the crews evaluate each paver. With that feedback we factored in the price of the machine, as well as the dealer’s service, training and product knowledge. Giles & Ransome was our hands-down choice.”
Giles & Ransome Inc., headquartered in Bensalem, PA, is the authorized distributor for Caterpillar in Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and Northern Delaware.
For more information on, visit www.ransome.com. C
