Southeast Industrial Services Helps Customers Reduce Plant Downtime

For Southeast Industrial Services, which serves South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, being able to respond to emergency calls and industrial cleanup depends on two things: employees and equipment.

“Our goal is to always keep good employees and good equipment,” said Trey Perry, Owner, Southeast Industrial Services. “Having those two is key because it helps you grow. We’re showing up with good equipment and good people. It’s good stuff.”

Developed in 2016 as a sandblasting and painting company, Southeast Industrial Services transformed over the years and began working in industrial cleaning. This transition helped Southeast Industrial Services scale and grow to the next level. The company now handles abrasive blasting, specialty coatings, hydro blasting, vacuum truck services, concrete work and a large variety for their customers.

As the team worked on cleaning out tanks, they knew it was time for an industrial vacuum truck, so they explored some options. They ultimately chose Guzzler.

“We felt like Guzzler was the right choice,” said Perry. “We felt like it was going to be good customer service, and they’re going to help with any kind of issues we have.”

Even though it was time for the change, Perry admitted to some hesitation regarding the transition.

“I’m all about simplicity, and I like keeping everything the same. I was real scared to buy that first truck, but then I went a few months and I decided it was the right thing to do,” said Perry. “A few months after I bought that first Guzzler truck, I was already renting another Guzzler. That’s when we decided to go ahead and purchase a second truck, and then it turned into another and another.”

In roughly two years, the team bought five Guzzler industrial vacuum trucks. Guzzler’s uptime is a huge part of their reliance on the industrial vacuum trucks. Its efficiency means they can move a large amount in a short amount of time.

As their equipment expanded, the company has also expanded its workforce. What began as a two-employee operation now includes about 50 people.

“Guzzler opened a lot of doors for us, and it has helped us grow,” said Perry. “Our goal is to do good quality work at a fair price, and then we usually get calls back after we work with a customer once.”

The Southeast Industrial Services team handles industrial cleanup during scheduled plant outages. Industrial plants they service include pulp and paper, wood products, sawmills, steel mills, food processing plants, agricultural plants, feed mills, pharmaceutical plants and large commercial general contractors. That includes moving bulk material, cleaning out tanks, painting tanks and more.

However, around 70 percent of their calls are for emergency cleaning response. Operating 24/7 365 days a year, the team prides itself on its fast reaction time for customers along with its good people and quality customer service.

“We don’t like to say no,” said Dustin Swindell, Operations Manager, Southeast Industrial Services. “Any time of the day, we provide that rapid response work.”

From failures at processing plants to upset conditions at mills, the team responds quickly to minimize their customers’ emergency downtime. Swindell knows the importance of the fast reaction time having been on the other side of the business and being the one making that call for industrial cleanup work.

“That makes the reliability of our equipment the most important thing,” said Swindell. “With Guzzler, we know it’s going to start. We know it’s going to work, and we can get to the customer before any other.”

One particularly tough job was at a sawmill. Southeast Industrial Services received the call at 7 p.m. on a Friday evening when a saw chip silo (called a fuel silo) hung up at the bottom but was filled to the top. The silo, which was the size of two 18-wheeler trucks, had to be completely emptied to get to the gear box at the bottom. The sawmill had another contractor, and it wouldn’t pump. Then Southeast Industrial Services showed up. The site estimated it would take three days to empty, but with their Guzzler truck, they emptied it in 13 hours.

“That was right at the beginning when we had one Guzzler,” said Swindell. “That company hasn’t called another company since then. That job right there saved them two days of operation. It goes back to bringing the right equipment to the right job.”

Guzzler’s ease of operation has also helped the team. The training was minimal. As a small business, the team has a “family” mindset and depend on one another with safety being the number one factor. That mindset and ease of operation is useful in a business where reaction time is essential.

“My guys can jump on any crew and go to any job. Every truck is the same,” said Swindell. “They know what to do, and that makes it a lot easier for me running all the operations to know I can split anybody anywhere and they know what’s going on, and they know the equipment. Everything is consistent.”

For more information on the Guzzler Classic, visit Guzzler.com. Tags: Guzzler