Robby Causey is a laid-back, simple guy. He’s lived in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, his whole life. His mom lives right down the road from him. He doesn’t travel much and prefers to stay around the house. If he needs to get away from it for a while, he’ll spend time at Garden City Beach – less than 30 minutes away.

Even though he’s an even-keeled guy, Robby has worked tirelessly over the years to build his construction company, RL Causey, by hiring the right crew and taking care of them.

“When I was in middle school and high school, I worked for my dad,” Robby said. “He was in the lawn business and then we ventured out into the landscaping business. I went out on my own in ’95, and I grew it from the landscaping business to where we’re at now. It’s been a pretty wild ride, and I’ve enjoyed it.”

Behind the scenes

Today, RL Causey employs nearly 100 people. Despite its growth, the company has kept the feel of a tight-knit, family business. Robby’s “better half,” Annette, works in the office and helps run day-to-day business operations. In fact, Robby and Annette grew up together and went to the same high school.

“Without Annette, I probably wouldn’t be here,” he said. “She’s very important to me. I’ve known Annette all my life, and it just clicked and works.”

Randy Pettit is another team member keeping RL Causey on track.

“Randy is our head estimator,” Robby said. “He helps run the office and has been with me since the beginning. He is very well respected throughout the site work industry.”

Perhaps the friendliest employee in the office is Moose – Robby and Annette’s 115-pound, a 9-year-old chocolate lab. Annette takes Moose to work every day.

“If he’s in trouble, it’s her dog; if he’s not in trouble, it’s my dog,” Robby laughed. “Doesn’t matter what kind of day I’ve had, when I come home, he’s wagging his tail and he’s happy. So, it’s just us three – Annette, Moose and me – and that’s what I like.”

Playing in the dirt

While Annette, Randy and the team run the office (with Moose’s supervision, of course), Robby’s out in the field with his guys.

“I’m not much of an office guy,” he said. “I talk with them probably five or six times a day, but I’m just not an office person. Never have been and I probably never will be. I’m an outside guy. If I don’t get a phone call before 6:30 a.m., it’s normally going to be a pretty good day. If it rains that night, well, then I know it’s going to be a little bit of a rocky start because if you don’t have plan B, C and D in effect, you’ve got problems.”

If you’re on an RL Causey job site, you can almost guarantee you’ll spot a Hitachi excavator working. Robby has run an all-Hitachi excavator fleet since the beginning.

“We play in the dirt,” he said. “We do clearing, earthmoving, utilities – water, sewer, pipe – everything is pretty much done in-house, except for curb and asphalt. When I first decided to start clearing lots, I tried buying Hitachi. Mr Roddy Stanton with L.B. Smith was my Hitachi dealer, and he got me hooked up with the guys at Hitachi. That’s when I bought my first one, an EX200. I didn’t forget that because he helped me greatly in getting it, and I’ve just kept right on with them.”

Robby has worked with his current sales rep, Bob Simmons (formerly with L.B. Smith, now Flint Equipment), for more than 20 years. They play golf every Sunday and give each other a hard time.

“Bob has been great to work with over the years; just don’t listen to anything he says about what happens on the golf course,” Robby smiled.

RL Causey’s Hitachi fleet consists of roughly 50 excavators ranging from a ZX35U-5 compact up to the ZX470LC-6. They still have an EX200 working on jobs.

“Hitachis are smooth and very reliable”

Robby said.

“We’ve still got some of the older machines and we use a lot of them for clearing, so that’s why you see a few bruises on them. They just keep right on running, though. When you’ve got an engine that’s got 15,000 hours on it and you’ve never been into it, that’s good in my book.”

Putting people first

While Robby enjoys his work, he’s thankful for his crew and makes them his first priority.

“I’ve got a great group of guys that work for me and have been with me for a long time. That means a lot to me,” he said. “I’m a people person and I try to take care of my guys. It’s not about me, it’s about them. One that stands out is Joe Turbeville, who has been with me since the landscaping days, and has operated Hitachis for the company for all these years.”

When it comes to equipment, Robby keeps his guys happy with Hitachi.

“My guys do not like to share; they keep their own equipment and I’ve accepted that,” he said. “They take care of it and if something goes wrong, they know what happened and how it happened.”

Bill Barber, an operator for RL Causey, currently runs a shiny, new ZX350LC-6 and is a fan of it.

“This machine is sweet! It’s as smooth as silk, really strong and stable, and has great power and speed”

he said.

“We’ve got a long stick on it since we have to dig down about 18 feet. It cuts through all the material like butter. The cab is so comfortable; it’s like sitting at home watching a Green Bay Packers game.”

Charles Johnson, another long-time operator for RL Causey, runs a ZX470LC-5 on a D.R. Horton residential development that will include 1,000 home sites. RL Causey is moving about 500,000 tons of dirt for the project, and Charles said he has the right machine for the work.

“Hitachi’s are smooth and move a lot of dirt – fast! Can’t ask for anything better than that”

he said.

At the end of the day, Robby said it’s his family and his guys that continue to inspire him to keep moving forward.

“I enjoy seeing the guys that work for me prosper,” he said. “Whenever one comes to me and says, ‘I just bought a new house,’ it makes me feel great. Or ‘I’ve got a new vehicle thanks to you.’ I like that. To me, it’s not about the money. I just like doing things for people, and it’s just the way I was raised. I grew up with a loving family – not wealthy, not rich – just a great family. I’ve been well blessed. It’s all good.”

Source: Hitachi

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Ferlin Kang didn’t always know he wanted to go into the construction industry. Born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, he was exposed to the energy and opportunity that comes with living in a growing, evolving city. Ferlin knew he could pursue different paths in life, but he also knew how unique it was to have the opportunity to carry on his father’s business as a first-generation Canadian.

“My father had humble beginnings, immigrating from Asia. He had been in construction since the 1960s before starting Kang Construction Ltd. in 1982 in Calgary,” Ferlin said. “When I was in my teen years, I started working with the company and thought there was no way I’d be doing this.”

But for Ferlin, the opportunity to carry on the family business was something he grew interested in, and soon began to enjoy.

“My father came here, established himself, started a business and became an entrepreneur. Being able to grow the business to this point is not something to take lightly,” Ferlin said. “I didn’t want that legacy to go away.”

And that legacy will remain intact. Ferlin is now the vice president of the 60-employee Kang Construction, as his father, Alvin, gradually steps back.

Forged from orange

Initially, Kang Construction began carving out a niche in the petroleum industry. Due to an industry need for excavation, Kang Construction purchased its first excavator in early 1988: a Hitachi EX200LC. It was the first excavator of its kind to operate in Alberta.

“For us, the Hitachi brand loyalty reaches all the way back to our beginnings as a company when we first purchased our EX200,” Ferlin said. “Hitachi’s always been known for manufacturing heavy equipment that is tried, tested and true. They’re very reputable and providing the right equipment for the right job is always very important to us.”

The EX200 wasn’t the only “first” for this company. In December 2018, Kang Construction was also the first company in Alberta to purchase the ZX345USLC-6.

“Our fleet of Hitachi excavators ranges from a 470, which is our largest, to the 225, 160, 135, 85, all the way down to the minis. We also have a 350 that has a long-reach telescopic boom mounted to it for deep excavations, or we can change it to a 60-feet-long-reach boom,” Ferlin said. “Just from our fleet, you can see the versatility that Hitachi equipment provides.” 

While Kang Construction began with a niche in the petroleum industry, they have since grown drastically. Their growing fleet is a result of growing services.

“We started to go more into the earthwork side of things and away from the petroleum side toward the 2000s,” Ferlin said. “We got into more detail and mass excavations for commercial, retail and industrial projects.”

Bringing an edge to the fleet

Soon, Kang Construction expanded to offer installation of water and sewer underground utilities to their projects. This is where the 345’s versatility really shined.

“With the inner-city job sites, we deal with some tighter areas,”

Ferlin said. “Accessibility of the 345 is definitely positive.”

As it has grown, Kang Construction has tackled larger, high-profile jobs within the area. Recently, the company has been working at the Foothills Hospital Calgary Cancer Centre connector, providing earthworks, and water and sewer utilities to the project.

“The 345 worked out really well for this project in the sense that we have a new Tier 4 engine in there, which just gives minimal emissions,” Ferlin said. “A new machine like the 345 is perfect when working near a sensitive hospital environment.”

Another advantage of the 345 is the power it brings to tight spaces as a reduced-tail-swing model.

“The fact that it’s a reduced-tail-swing and has power, that’s just an added bonus,”

Ferlin said. “It’s perfect for our fleet.”

Productivity is the name of the game

If Ferlin had to choose one word that is most important to Kang Construction, it would be “productivity.” As technology advances and the needs of their clients become more stringent, he has to rely on equipment that can deliver.

“If the equipment works efficiently and safely, that’s paramount,” Ferlin said. “Breakdowns or reliability issues are critical in our business. I find that for us, Hitachi works.”

For their Hitachi equipment needs, Kang Construction turns to Wajax, one of Canada’s longest-standing and most diversified industrial products and services providers.

“Our dealer support from Wajax has been fantastic. We’re able to get anything we need from them quickly to keep us up and running,”

Ferlin said.

Along with contributing to the bottom line, Hitachi excavators are a favourite among Kang Construction operators, too.

“Getting a new piece of equipment is always like Christmas to everybody,” Ferlin said. “They love the 345. They find that being inside the machine, it’s quite roomy. They’re not crunched like they are in some other machines.”

The future of Kang

Ferlin has hopes that the company will continue to grow in Calgary, a city which he describes as “opportunistic.” And he is grateful for the growth Kang Construction has seen thus far.

“We’ve always been aggressive, ever since our small beginnings. But I couldn’t have envisioned us being involved in the types of jobs we’re working today, 15 years ago,” Ferlin said. “We are excited to see the legacy continue for our company.”

As for the company’s culture, Ferlin plans on keeping a family mentality at the core.

“I think in our current society, some-times family might be overlooked. Family is very important to me and has always been,” he said. “We always try to treat our company and employees like family, and I don’t see that changing in the future.”

Source: Hitachi

The post Forging the generation of Kang Construction with Hitachi fleet appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.