Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/489028
F or James Tollestrup, run- ning the family business has included mastering the ability to transi- tion the company from one phase to another. The third- generation contractor has taken Lethbridge, Alberta-based Tollestrup Construction to new levels of growth while maintaining the iden- tity of his grandfather's company. A changing identity Founded in 1940, the company has avoided experiencing grow- ing pains that could pose poten- tial problems, simply because the company transformed itself several times, laying the groundwork for the future expansion of the firm. The company founder, Glenn Fredrick Tollestrup, started excavat- ing basements in Lethbridge with a single all-cable, non-hydraulic backhoe. As he prospered, he added strip mining and pipe jobs to his portfolio. In 1949, he purchased a Salt Lake-based coal processing facility, with the idea of processing the coal refuse to remove waste, and then selling the product. A crushing plant soon followed, and then an asphalt plant. James' father, Stephen, was now involved in the business and wanted to compete in the highway paving market. The early emphasis on strip mining gave way to paving when the company sold its coal refining plant. Still expanding, the company sold much of the paving division in the '70s and continued working primar- ily in Lethbridge, while also serving as the main supplier for sand and gravel products in the area. New leadership When Jim Tollestrup was old enough to become heavily involved in the family business, the com- pany had just two base crews and 25 guys. Today it handles a range of large construction projects in Lethbridge. Under the current Tollestrup leadership, the company has ex- perienced planned and controlled growth – 40 percent over the last 10 years. Jim says the company is now completely vertically integrated – mining and manufacturing different types of sand and rock products, including dry crush, washed rock, washed sand, concrete aggregates, red shale and asphalt. In addition to traditional road building and paving, the company is actively involved in asphalt recycling. "Our growth is based on economics," Tollestrup says. "We tried not to get too big too quickly. We had a game EquipmentWorld.com | April 2015 81 contractor of the year | by Amy Materson | AMaterson@randallreilly.com James Tollestrup Lethbridge, Alberta Tollestrup Construction Year started: 1940 Number of employees: 80 Annual revenues: $14 to $15 million Markets served: Vertically integrated construction, roadwork, subdivisions, parking lots. Third-generation contractor manages company transition by merging old values with new opportunities