Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/236097
2014 Business Outlook Report ("A Prevailing View" continued from page 41) equipment is down to zero for capex today. "There are three big jobs going on in St. Louis," Glynn said, "and all three are being done by a contractor in Chicago! None of the equipment is being purchased here." A modest amount of replacement activity was not enough to sustain his company anymore, so Glynn decided it was time to expand his territory, with OEM lines that permitted stretched boundaries, adding Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Iowa to his market DON'T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE OTHERS HAVE MADE. IT WILLCOST YOU COST YOU IT EVEN MORE. PORTLAND, OREGON EDMONTON, ALBERTA JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI SEE YOU AT CON-EXPO IN LAS VEGAS 42 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | January 2014 WWW.PIERCEPACIFIC COM 800.760.3270 RCEPACIFIC.COM 80 MARCH 4-8 EXHIBITOR coverage. "It's paying off for us. If we hadn't made that move I don't know what we would have done," he said. "I have customers going places they've never been. [They say:] 'We have to go outside our comfort zone and go do something different if we're going to make it through this.'" Now that he's spread into three more states with less emphasis on the home front, Glynn's road and highway-focused rental business is down, (A) because the work is down, and (B) because rental is very much a home-market business – and Glynn is simply not home anymore. Oklahoma Ditch Witch Dealer. Gary Bridwell from Ditch Witch of Oklahoma indicates that 2014 will be a little slower for his company, and that's just what he's hoping for in a region that goes fast and furious with oil and gas. "We went absolutely full tilt in 2012 and we matched it year-for-year with less than 1 percent difference [in 2013]," he said. So having a flat year would be excellent, he says – "It's kind of like Thanksgiving; we ate so much we need to digest it a little." Product availability hasn't been ideal over the last few years though it has improved. "What I think happened is that as we started ramping up in 2012, there were a lot of vendor people that supplied the OEMs that were behind and I think they are finally catching up to where the manufacturers can meet their lead times. His rental business is growing, which he attributes to the "nature of what's happening in the oil field." The sector prefers straight pure rental versus rent-to-buy. Bridwell sounds like he's got ideas for growing his business but it's premature to discuss his plans. Meanwhile, bumps in an otherwise smooth road are seen mostly connected with Tier-4 Final, he says. The unprecedented industry makeover is all about education, and "if we can understand it then we can start working with our customers and counseling them on times to change