Bauer Equipment America by North American Constructors Journal

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Bauer Equipment America:

Carving A Niche In America

BEA is part of the Bauer Maschinen Group, owned by Bauer AG of Germany, and offers a full range of specialist foundation engineering equipment and equipment. Written by Kevin Doyle Produced by Stephen Marino

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stablished in the United States in 2005, Bauer Equipment America (BEA) can trace its lineage back more than 200 years to the founding of its parent company, Bauer AG, in Germany in 1790. BEA is part of the Bauer Maschinen Group, one of three silos including Bauer Construction and Bauer Environmental, operating under the Bauer AG umbrella. Bauer Maschinen is the manufacturer of the construction equipment for BEA. The company specializes in foundation construction equipment like rotary drilling rigs, diaphragm wall equipment, and all related tools. Through its expansive dealer and distributor network, BEA provides the full range of specialist foundation engineering equipment and equipment for exploration, mining, and safeguarding of valuable natural resources. Its product lines include Bauer Foundation Drilling Rigs, Klemm, MAT, and Obermann,

Bauer Equipment America | 4 the Pileco business is no longer part of our offering,” explains Shaun Nelson, Director of Sales. North American headquarters are located in Conroe, TX and the company services the 48 contiguous U.S. states as well as parts of Canada. While there are no immediate plans for expansion, Nelson says that could change in the longer term. The customer comes first. Period. “What I try to instill into my team is that we are servants of our customers. We approach every day with the mentality of a humble servant and we want to make sure that we’re taking care of their needs. The most important drilling rig is the one that’s out in the field working because if my customer is working and he’s making money and he’s happy with it, then that will drive the next sale. And it’s not always about how good we are but how we react to a situation when there could be an issue,” Nelson states. “Technologically it’s just a superior

“The original company here in America was called Pileco, started in the ‘60s by a gentleman named Otto Kamerer, who came over from Germany and started building and selling diesel hammers and was very successful. In 2005 Bauer bought Pileco out. We eventually became Bauer Equipment America and in the last two years we sold off the diesel hammer business so

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“What I try to instill into my of our customers. We app mentality of a humble serva that we’re taking care of the drilling rig is the one that’ - Director of Sal

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machine in the quality of design, and the quality and strength of the steel. Everything is built to a high, exacting quality,” he says.

Meeting Challenges In general, the overall pace of the construction industry has accelerated

y team is that we are servants pproach every day with the ant and we want to make sure eir needs. The most important ’s out in the field working.” les Shaun Nelson

dramatically in the past 25-30 years for a variety of reasons. “In the foundation world, it’s larger diameter shafts, more complex geology, more complex technology, shorter production schedules. And costs have of course gone up, so we have to manage that. Really, that’s what’s happened with all this new technology, and it is a big challenge,” Nelson says. “Everything is higher horsepower, faster, stronger, able to do more, faster than before, so the General Contractor wants it done yesterday and that puts a lot of demand on the equipment manufacturer to deliver,” he adds.

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But deliver they do, thanks to their trusted network that includes Equipment Corporation of America (ECA), with multiple locations in the US and Canada; Traxxon Foundation Equipment of Burnaby, BC; and Jinnings Equipment of Fort Wayne, IN for drilling, piling, vibratory drivers, and hydraulic equipment.

handles everything West to the Pacific Ocean on a direct basis.

Traxxon covers Western Canada, ECA is responsible for the East Coast and much of the Midwest, and BEA

“We build very complex machinery and there are going to be times when the need for service and the need for

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“We have regional salesmen, we have key account and business development people, and we have our dealer development network that deals directly with ECA and Traxxon,” Nelson says.

Bauer Equipment America | 7 a quick resolution to an issue is going to arise, and how you deal with those issues is what sets you apart. We have a tremendous parts and service department as well as what I feel is a great sales department, and we work hand-in-hand to make sure the most important guy in the whole room is the customer and that he’s taken care of,” he continues. The company engages in an exhaustive vetting process on those occasions when it brings new dealers or distributors on board. “You’re going to want to know what Bauer’s goals are and what we’re about and we want to know the same thing about you – what do you stand for, what are your principles, and why

Foundation Equipment

Sales

do you want to partner with us? What attracts us to you? We want to make sure that what we’re offering fits into everyone’s plans. When it comes time to make a partnership, both of us have to be set up for success,” Nelson notes. “Bauer has over 200 years of history and we’ve gotten pretty good at picking partners. When you go to market, you want to be able to sell all you can but you don’t want to put yourself in the position of selling the wrong thing to the wrong guy,” he stresses.

The ConExpo Effect The company manned a large booth with eight pieces of equipment on display at the recent ConExpo 2020

Rentals

Parts & Service

Pittsburgh 412 264 4480

NY/NJ 732 528 5477

Philadelphia 610 626 2200

Toronto 800 760 0925

Washington, D.C. 301 599 1300

Greensboro 336 854 1220

Jacksonville 904 284 1779

Milwaukee 262 345 5715

More than machines.

SOLUTIONS. 1 800 PILE USA ecanet.com

Boston 508 821 4450

Authorized Dealer:

ECA-NACJ-Directory-Ad-8.75x5.25.indd 1

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Bauer Equipment America | 8 Show in Las Vegas. “I’ve been to every ConExpo since 1999. It’s a great show for industries such as ours, the heavy, heavy equipment, complex type equipment that we offer. ConExpo is the perfect platform to kind of show off what we do, to put ourselves up against other manufacturers and show why we know we have a superior product to offer the marketplace,” Nelson says. Prominent in the display was one of the company’s RTG 19 rigs. “It’s the Swiss Army knife of drilling. They can do anything. With technology that will push the envelope or safety and efficiency on the job site even further. What we do is a dangerous process, a complex process, and we want to make it is as safe as possible. We stress speed, efficiency, and horsepower as well as the safety of the operator. It’s critical,” Nelson says.

Staff Training And Retention Nelson says BEA’s outstanding company culture goes back to its predecessor, Pileco. “We have a very good team here that’s almost a family. If you talk to guys that have been here a long time, you’ll hear that in their voice. Pileco had a great culture and most of the people who work at Bauer say it’s the culture that

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keeps them coming back every day. It’s very nurturing,” Nelson says. The company is dedicated to the ongoing education, training and support of its employees. “If you go to your boss and say ‘Hey I’m a welder and I want to work more on overhead welding,’ no problem we’ll send you to school. If you work in the office and you’re a little weak at Excel, we’ll find you an Excel class to help make you better at what you do,” Nelson says. All new hires attend the company’s Bauer Operating Training Center in Germany. “It’s an intense two weeks and when you’re done you will be a certified licensed operator. If you’re going to go out and sell our equipment then you need to know what it is you’re doing, and Bauer is very much behind that. You can’t get enough training in their opinion,” Nelson points out.

Looking Forward BEA is just getting started and, with the ability to draw upon the more than two centuries of expertise and experience, as well as the resources, of its German parent and proud partners, it seems poised to be a major player in this field for decades to come. Expansion plans may make sense at

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“

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“We have a very good team If you talk to guys that have her that in their voice. PileCo of the people who work at B keeps them coming back ev - Director of Sal

www.bauer-equipment.com

m here that’s almost a family. e been here a long time, you’ll o had a great culture and most Bauer say it’s the culture that very day. It’s very nurturing.” les Shaun Nelson

Bauer Equipment America | 11 some point in the future but, for now, North America remains BEA’s sphere of influence. Nelson knows this much to be true. “I think the first thing a customer will tell you is the tremendous support they get from our people is what keeps them coming back. I’ve been selling equipment long enough to know that for our subcontractor-driven marketplace, which is a large part of our customer base, you have to set them up so they can shine for the General Contractor they are working for. We want to hear that Bauer Equipment is the best equipment they’ve ever seen,” he concludes.