ECA Celebrates 100 Years in Business In March, Equipment Corporation of America (ECA), a prominent distributor of specialty foundation construction equipment, celebrated 100 years as a third-generation family-owned business. During that time, ECA has morphed from a small purveyor of World War I surplus equipment to a large international dealer for some of the most advanced foundation equipment in the world. The Early Years "What has helped the company over the last 100 years is our ability to evolve,” said CEO Roy Kern. ECA spent the first part of the century providing and rebuilding equipment, such as boilers, steam locomotives, steam hammers, hoists and derricks. As electric and diesel supplanted steam, ECA shifted its equipment lines to stay current. Roy and then vice presi- dent of sales and marketing Ben Dutton plotted a deeper move into the international drilling market as 2000 approached. Ben explained, “The first thing was to change the vision, and the second thing was to really get out and build our identity in the new industry we were going to develop. We then filled it with key products and strong manufacturers.” This turning point started with a $5-million check written by Subsurface Construction drills a secant pile wall with a BAUER BG 20 H Drilling Rig Roy to Thomas Bauer in 2004 for ECA’s first BAUER drilling rigs. Today, ECA’s equipment lineup reads like a who’s who in global foundation equipment: BAUER Maschinen, KLEMM Bohrtechnik, Gilbert Products, ALLU, BAUER-Pileco, Betek, HPSI, Dawson, MAT, WORD International, Berminghammer and Prakla. Empowering Employees While ECA’s success has unfolded under the leadership of the Kern family, Roy defers the credit to his team. “I’m more of a consensus builder than a top down leader,” he said. “They (employees) all have skill sets and talents, and it’s important to let that shine, prosper from it, and allow people to do their thing.” At a time when many trade associations lament over declining participation, ECA has multiple employees giving back to the industry. You can find them serving in virtually every capacity in associations such as DFI, ADSC, PDCA and Associated Equipment Distributors. A common theme among the ECA team is a recognition and The ECA team at Coraopolis, Pa., headquarters for the 2018 Annual Sales Meeting The Kern family entered the picture when Len was hired as a secretary in the typing pool at the Pittsburgh, Pa., location in 1921. He increased ECA’s focus on pile driving equipment. Len’s son, Al, came to ECA in 1962 and took the helm when Len died in 1965. Under his leadership, ECA built relationships with manufacturers and began distributing new equipment. Al also focused on customer service and on expanding the firm’s locations. ECA’s drilling equipment specialty was born under Al. “I give my dad credit for getting us involved in the drilling industry in the 1980s before it was popular,” said Roy. “He got a head start, especially with small-diameter drilling.” Birth of a Global Distributor Roy would take things to a new level, transforming ECA into a global distributor. He and his brother worked at the firm as mechanic’s helpers while in high school. Roy returned in 1986 to sell equipment, and eventually earned the CEO spot in 2000. appreciation that the foundation construction business allows them to be part of something bigger. Roy ticks off a seemingly never- ending list of projects for which ECA supplied foundation equip- ment: World Trade Center, Vietnam Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Hoover Dam, Washington Metro System, the Big Dig, the Toronto subway system, and nearly every stadium east of the Mississippi. He said: “We’ve been all over the place, and it’s very gratifying to look at that finished product and realize that we provided the equipment.” The Future of ECA ECA has evolved into a large and complex enterprise over the past century, but Roy has not lost sight of its greatest achievements: long-term employees, relationships with customers and manufacturers, and the ability to adapt and survive. He also recognizes the importance of succession planning from the corporate office to the branches. “I would hope that the company continues to take care of its customers and employees and adapts in any way it needs to,” he said. “I’d like to believe we would be at the cutting edge of technology and remain very service and customer oriented.” Based on the past 100 years of ECA’s history, the odds are high that he will be right. Article written by Brian M. Fraley, Fraley Construction Marketing DEEP FOUNDATIONS • MAY/JUNE 2018 • 129
