We're Celebrating Our 50th Anniversary!
Check back every month to find a new story written by Larry Kerkstra, the Chairman & Founder of Kerkstra Precast.
Picking up from where we left off last month—I had told you about the first year of Kerkstra Septic Tank, Inc. Each month I’ll continue to explain how this small, sole proprietorship has expanded into a 50 year old company.
In 1963, we were using so many septic tanks we decided to buy a form so we could make them ourselves. We didn’t have a plant, so we put it on my father’s farm, in Hudsonville. It took about 1 ¼ yards of redi-mix to fill both bottom and top sections. Since we had to pay a premium for ordering such a small load, I decided to order two more forms so we could order a five yard load. This way we could keep our quality better.
My new customer list was growing every month, so I bought a new Ford diesel tractor-backhoe and an A-Frame truck to strip and haul the septic tanks. By this time, I hired two men to help me install septic tanks and drain fields. We would begin each day, at 7:00a.m. stripping the tank forms and be done pouring by 8:30a.m. After loading up the truck with concrete and tiles, we’d stop and have coffee, then proceed to the job site. We’d usually finish up one job and depending on the size of the drain fields, we’d start on another. We had about 20-25 jobs a month. Our customer base was expanding; our equipment inventory was growing, so in result our employee numbers were increasing. We were no longer just installing septic tanks, but we were producing them ourselves.
-Written by Larry Kerkstra, Chairman & Founder of Kerkstra Precast