Dearing Compressor Returns to Full Employment
By Becky Wall, vice president, Dearing Compressor
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – It takes guts and grit to do business in the oil and gas arena. The 2016 downturn was not Dearing Compressor & Pump Co.’s first rodeo. But guided by the company philosophy to be responsible and reject wasteful actions, we weathered the downturn by doing facility repairs and tool maintenance, and investing in worker training and efficiency improvements.
All of this put the Dearing in a solid position to accept a very competitive multiple unit order that launched us back to work in 2017. In the second half of the year, other hard-fought orders shipped from our plant in Youngstown to the Utica and Marcellus Shale regions and outside our traditional markets to destinations in Texas and Colorado.
The year began with another flurry of hiring and tentative financial projections. At the end of 2017, the workforce was back to 220 skilled professionals and revenues rivaled 2015 with all eyes on problem-solving and customized solutions for our customers.
2017 was the year of professional hiring at Dearing. Historically, our focus has been on skilled trade production jobs, but that certainly changed this year. The company added managers, coordinators and sales professionals to meet the demands of an expanding business that gets more complex every day. We recruited additional engineers and human resources professionals from Youngstown State University’s schools of engineering and business. Eight YSU interns were selected from the STEM program in 2017. The students will gain experience in inside sales, aftermarket service, quality control, CAD drafting and applications engineering.
Dearing’s Industrial Compressor Distributorship remains regional and continues to grow by expanding our product offerings and introducing the industrial products into the energy sector. Firmly established in the Youngstown, Akron, Canton, Cleveland and Erie markets, we began planning last year for expansion into southwestern Pennsylvania. Also in 2017, this division doubled its field service team to keep up with client demands for service and preventive maintenance.
With a dedicated focus on future growth, Dearing intends to expand its geographical footprint in both the energy and industrial markets in 2018.
Editor’s Note: This story was published in The Business Journal’s Growth Report 2018. The 144-page edition features growth reports from more than 200 local businesses and organizations. It was published this week. If you are not a subscriber, CLICK HERE to purchase a copy or call Eileen Lovell at 330 744 5023 Ext. 1008.
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