Water Well Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/740475
W ork and hobbies have always had Todd Hunter, CWD/PI, moving around the globe. While working for the U.S. Geological Survey in the 1990s, he was seemingly always bouncing around the United States, even doing jobs up into Alaska. The incoming National Ground Water Association presi- dent has even represented the Association in China, Russia, and Italy. And in his free time, Hunter can be found flying over the backcountry of Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming, and Utah in his own plane. But when offered an opportunity to purchase the Ground Water Pump Systems business in Boulder, Colorado, came from its owner who gave him his first opportunity in the industry, Hunter decided to put down roots. "With the Survey, I was on the road quite a bit," he says. "I traveled a lot, and I think that's one of the reasons I settled back down in Boulder and bought the company." Hunter describes him- self as a true "motorhead." For as long as he can re- member, he has always been interested in how machines work. He started flying with his grandfather when he was about 10 years old and spent years flying with his grandfather, father, and uncle. Hunter also spends a lot of time riding his motorcycle and exploring the mountains in Colorado. "(My hobbies) are things that require a different level of focus," Hunter says. "I like them because they allow me the opportunity to look away from the day-to-day." This interest in all things mechanical is also what drew him to the drilling industry in the 1970s. Hunter was working for a California-based restaurant restoration company in the 1970s when a friend asked him if he would help out on a mineral exploration job for a couple of weeks in central Nevada. By the end of the project, he was bitten by the drilling bug. "The mechanical aspect and the electrical aspect of the job really appeals to me," Hunter says. "I like being able to see progress at the end of the day more than everything. It's one of those things where you get a great deal of satisfaction from building a project or solving a problem." He worked in mineral exploration for the next year before joining Ground Water Pump Systems in 1980. Ground Water Pump Systems, originally known as Orson Sons Drilling Co., started in Boulder in 1948. "I went to Colorado to learn how to ski and ended up stay- ing," he says. "When I first started in the industry, I liked tak- ing these big machines and putting them in the backcountry. Often, you were the first person on that site with a new home. It was thoroughly enjoyable." After working at the company for 10 years, he left to join the USGS. There, he did research drilling, mineral explo- ration, and water projects across the United States. He also focused on core drilling for climate change studies. "It was a really fun experience," he remembers. "I even did the first coal bed methane research hole for the state of Alaska in Wasilla." When the constant travel started to wear him down, he could think of no better place to settle down than Colorado. In the late 1990s, he took a management agreement with Ground Water Pump Systems and purchased the pump com- pany in the early 2000s. Today, it does a variety of projects from small residential systems to large-scale residential and commercial projects. "We do most of the water districts here on the Front Range of Colorado in some fashion or other," he says. "But my pri- mary focus is large-scale residential, which are often ranch and farm properties that are 1000 acres or larger." A lot has changed in the groundwater industry since he took over the company. Technology, drilling and safety ad- vancements, along with rules and regulations, have changed the way contractors do business. "I've been at it for 37 years and it's totally different," Hunter says. "When you take a look at where you started and what you did in your 20s versus what you are doing in your 50s, it has markedly changed in a number of ways." For one, consumers are more educated than ever. "I believe the best consumer is an educated consumer," Hunter describes it. "I try my best to educate any consumer we work with to the best of my ability. I want them to under- stand what they're getting and why they're getting it." There's no doubt, though, that a greater access to informa- tion has changed the way contractors work with consumers. In some ways, it has made the job easier. In other ways, it has made it more difficult. "How do we, as contractors, sell our products to these in- formed customers?" Hunter asks. "How do we provide the best value that we can?" It's an area where he feels NGWA can help. Learning from other members and working to improve the industry is one reason Hunter joined the Association. "I think it's very good to be a part of something larger than yourself and the NGWA is exactly that," he says. "For me, what NGWA represents is a large group of individuals doing CHAMPIONING PROFESSIONALISM Always learning and growing is key for incoming NGWA President Todd Hunter, CWD/PI. By Jennifer Strawn HUNTER continues on page 48 Twitter @WaterWellJournl WWJ November 2016 47