Page 30 - RB-94-20-3

USA
need it. Also, how they like for communication to flow, and how to handle deliveries.
What is your outlook for the balance of the year? Expansion, new equipment, additional employees etc.
Shane – Craig and I need a “crystal ball”. We have a plant expansion in our plans. After having a million plus dollar expansion at our plant two years ago, and more last year, we
employees recently and hope and pray they work out. We have very tight standards on who works for us. If they don’t have the same care for quality as our family does, then they don’t last long. We also have a new location property bought, but like everything right now, we are just trying to work through all the mess. Craig and I are extremely fortunate that each of us has two kids out of college. All four of them work in our company and have the same values
What vocations have you serviced the most during the pandemic?
Our big focus was on Construction, Dump Trucks and Regional.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, what if any support have you received from your suppliers?
Some new tyre manufacturers gave small spiffs in April, May and June.
How has COVID-19 affected the way you go to market?
For the last few months, we have been unable to go to market and make cold calls, which we do religiously in today’s world. Our salesmen had to work from home some days to talk to customers and others they allowed us to deliver to with proper precautions. So, it changed the way we do business and probably will be that way going forward for a good while.
Since trucking was deemed as essential, have you seen an increase in road service calls?
It was essential, but only 65% of trucks are running if it wasn’t Waste, Food or essential fleets, and others are parked. Everyone’s business is different. Our service was off slightly, but I am sure if you did national account work you might have been busier than others, again depending on who you service.
How has the pandemic affected your plant operations?
With the reduction in sales, we ran most of them four days a week on 10-hour days and built extra inventory, hoping for an increase later, especially when customer pickups were light on the days our trucks ran their routes.
Commercial sales reps play a critical role under normal circumstances so, how are they navigating through the pandemic?
We did not let anyone go. We believe with them just working the phones we kept our customers reassured we would be there when this ended, and if they needed anything while it was going on, we made it happen. We had few salespeople with family members with health issues, so we didn’t want them out every day exposing their loved ones to this virus.
What is your outlook for the balance of the year? Expansion, new equipment, additional employees etc.
We never stopped with our capital purchases. We stayed on budget and bought new trucks, added
moulds and retread equipment through all of this. We just believe this to be a bump in the road of the big picture. We just tried to stay focused and safe for the future.
We feel our offering of AcuTread (Mold Cure), Marangoni Ringtread and Pre-Q Galgo (Precure) gives our customers the best options, and they can’t find this anywhere else in the industry with equal quality in all processes. It’s not the processes that make the product, it’s the people, and we have the best people.
When do you expect a rebound to happen?
We have seen June come back pretty good, but every day is different, and a lot of businesses are still 50% or less. I believe this will take 18-24 months for a comeback to 2019 numbers.
Have you experienced an interruption in your supply chain?
No, our vendors did a good job, but we didn’t need as much since our business is off 24%.
Wilks Treading, Inc. Albertville, Al.
were specing out additional equipment when all this hit. We have been running at about 110% capacity with what we have without a night shift, which we are not a fan of, so equipment and people are the answer.
We just hired three additional
as we do. They understand what hard work is and what it takes to get and keep good commercial accounts. This is our 68th year in business and we are looking forward to 68 more.
Sumerel Tire Service, Hancock County Tire and Wilson County are three independent commercial tire companies working together as one
Left: Bob Majewski/CTO Sumerel Tire Service and Right: Joe Disser/ President Sumerel Tire Service
Responses provided by; Bob Majewski/CTO Sumerel Tire Service:
How has the COVID-19 pandemic and the local and federal actions impacted your overall business?
We have been running as it happened, but we can feel the reduction in business since March. Business has dropped 24%.
Were you forced to shut down? If so, for how long?
No, we were able to keep running, suppling essential businesses who could still operate.
Have you seen a switch from New TBR tyres to retreads during the pandemic due to the economic and environmental benefits of retreading?
No, we have seen a significant drop in both new and retread through May, around 24%. We do a lot of dealer work and many customers who haul for the Automotive Group which have been down until June 15th.
Were you forced to furlough and or lay off employees due to the COVID-19 pandemic?
No, we are very lucky, and thanks to PPP we stayed fully employed and worked every day.
30 Retreading Business