Both sides of the coin: inside the values driving Blanchard Machinery Company’s next chapter of growth
When hurricanes strike the South Carolina coast, most people are focused on getting their families to safety – likewise the technicians at Blanchard Machinery Company (Blanchard Machinery), who then head straight for local hospitals and remain there for the duration of the storm. In a place where babies are born, patients are on life support, and surgeries cannot be delayed, the company’s job is to make sure the hospital generators keep running – without fail. “At Blanchard Machinery, you’re not just a technician,” says Brad Fultz, COO. “You’re also saving people’s lives.”
That sense of responsibility runs through the company’s history as a family business, initially founded as a Caterpillar dealership in central Florida in 1952 by Joseph Rozier. His son-in-law, Robert Blanchard, ran the Central Florida operation next, expanding the company into South Carolina in 1982 alongside his own son, Joe Blanchard. They ran both dealerships concurrently until 1987 when they decided to focus solely on South Carolina. Following Joe’s passing four years ago, his son Boyd Blanchard now serves as President and CEO, working alongside brother Rozier and sister Katherine. With five members of the fifth generation already born, succession is a daily mindset at the firm. “Our owners are actively engaged and view themselves as stewards of the business,” Brad says. “We’re one great team with a family feel.”
Selling and renting new and used equipment through its machine division, the business serves multiple industries including landscaping, plumbing, residential and commercial construction, utilities, road construction, aggregates, and mining, while its energy division supplies prime and backup power solutions for a wide variety of industries and applications. A third core part of the business, Brad explains, is its parts and service team, which supports both divisions. We run the entire business with the following order of strategic priorities: safety, employees, customers, markets, and financial performance. “Our people know they have both the right and the responsibility to stop work if it’s unsafe, looking out for their colleagues and themselves,” says Brad. “We give them all the support and authority they need to do what’s right and get home safely every day.” Over the past five years, sizeable investment has gone into training, development programs, and career mapping. “When people thrive in their jobs and have the skills to deliver outstanding customer experiences, we perform well in the markets we serve,” he explains. “That allows us to achieve our financial goals and reinvest in our people, business, and communities.”
Customer service guaranteed
In Gaston, South Carolina, a 62-acre campus, which opens in October, is being built to consolidate statewide parts distribution, machine and component rebuilds, heavy equipment service, hydraulics, and undercarriage repairs under one roof – nearly triple the footprint of the current 22-acre site. “The new campus is a generational investment,” says Brad. Unlike the current campus, built up piecemeal since the 1950s, the new facility is designed to flow like an assembly line and is fully climate-controlled, protecting both parts and people through South Carolina’s increasingly hot summers. As Brad puts it, “cooler heads prevail” – a philosophy that applies as much to safety as to comfort.
At the heart of the operation is a new warehouse management system enabling traceable parts management throughout the facility. Anchored by three 35-foot vertical lift modules, they bring parts directly to pickers who place them directly onto conveyors, rather than staff walking thousands of steps to retrieve parts throughout the warehouse. Blanchard Machinery’s new parts warehouse will be 1.5 million cubic feet compared to 252,000 cubic feet today. The building is the brainchild of Facilities Manager Richard Trotter, who has run nearly every service and parts operation at the company over 39 years, and Brad says intentional design has impressed visitors from Caterpillar and other dealers. As the company’s 16th location, the campus will not only improve parts and service for customers in the Columbia, South Carolina region but will also improve them for other locations by sharpening response times statewide, with the same warehouse management system rolling out to every branch by the end of 2027.
Blanchard Machinery’s dedication to day-to-day customer service matches its growth ambitions. Quick-fill and evacuation tanks will improve its technicians’ ability to serve more customers per day, while 24-hour lockers let customers pick up parts outside branch hours. The company’s boldest commitment, though, is financial: under customer value agreements, it guarantees having repair parts in stock or having a machine back up and running within specified time frames, else the customer receives up to $1000 – something none of its competitors offer.
Shaping a better tomorrow
Another significant investment is Cat Compact. “Caterpillar launched the Cat Compact brand last fall, and we were the pilot dealer,” adds Brad. “The goal is to help customers understand everything Cat Compact and Cat Rentals have to offer, bundled together to reinforce that we’re a one-stop shop for parts, service, new and used machines, and everything they need to rent to complete their jobs. We want the opportunity to prove their business will be more successful with us as their partner than with anyone else in our marketplace.”
With South Carolina among the fastest-growing states in the US – driven by industrial growth as well as retirees and Northeastern transplants drawn to the coastline – Blanchard Machinery’s investment reflects this environment. “We’re seeing significant net migration, and that trend will continue,” says Brad. “Our state and federal governments have increased infrastructure spending, which touches nearly every part of the economy, particularly quarry and aggregates, and road construction and paving.” While this demand runs along the industrial corridors fed by the ports of Charleston and Savannah and the I-85 corridor, the energy sector shows the sharpest upward curve. “We’re seeing a higher concentration of data centers in the state, along with the recent announcement to bring two additional nuclear reactors online. Right now, there’s still significant infrastructure spending on streets, highways, and bridges, but looking toward the horizon, energy has the biggest opportunity to expand exponentially.”
For all its investment in machinery and technology, the company measures itself by a different metric. “Our goal is to be the best place to work in South Carolina,” Brad declares. “Not just the best equipment dealer, but the best workplace overall.” Every employee who learns the company’s vision, mission, and values receives a Blanchard Machinery values coin, which Brad himself carries daily as a reminder of why he’s there. “Our company vision is building, powering, and shaping a better tomorrow,” he finishes. “And we do our best every day to live up to that.”
