{"id":108882,"date":"2023-04-28T10:31:46","date_gmt":"2023-04-28T14:31:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wasteadvantagemag.com\/?p=108882"},"modified":"2023-04-26T10:31:53","modified_gmt":"2023-04-26T14:31:53","slug":"in-it-for-the-long-haul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wasteadvantagemag.com\/in-it-for-the-long-haul\/","title":{"rendered":"In it for the Long Haul"},"content":{"rendered":"
College HUNKS franchisee relies on easy-to-use hooklifts.<\/em> In 2008, Patrick Lombardi was among the thousands of college students graduating into a ridiculously competitive Tennessee job market. However, despite the challenges before him, that is where his success story begins. Instead of spending months struggling to land an interview, he decided he would rather create an opportunity of his own.<\/p>\n Entrepreneurial Spirit<\/strong> College HUNKS is often a steppingstone to other career paths, resulting in a high turnover rate. Instead of seeing this as a disadvantage, Lombardi aims to help employees grow and develop, and help them in the right direction for their future. \u201cWe understand doing manual labor and lifting furniture isn\u2019t sustainable, so our goal is for employees to walk out the door a better person than when they walked in,\u201d says Lombardi. \u201cWhether that\u2019s a better work ethic or a better understanding of the world, that\u2019s what we aim to do.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Hauling Never Looked So Easy<\/strong> \u201cInitially, we used cable hoists for our hauling needs, but pretty quickly switched to hooklifts,\u201d says Lombardi. He cites fewer components, better integrations and easier training for the shift to the hooklift.<\/p>\n Stellar was founded in 1990 in Garner, IA, and has since expanded operations to multiple U.S. locations. Stellar is an employee-owned and operated manufacturer of high-quality work trucks and trailers, in addition to service truck and van accessories. Through the innovative, growing product line and an expanding distribution network, the company has gained an international presence and become the number one productivity choice in many markets.<\/p>\n \u201cPat knows his business,\u201d says Tom Feverston, Director of Demountable Sales at Stellar, \u201cHelping him integrate his winch based cable hoist containers onto the hooklift platform was a privilege. The Flex unit has proven to be a workhorse in the Junk industry, and it\u2019s because we get to work with guys like Pat that we are able to continuously adjust to industry needs.\u201d<\/p>\n Strength and Efficiency<\/strong> Previously, Lombardi\u2019s crew had to run clutch pump hydraulic systems off the engine, instead of directly out of the transmission with a power-take-off (PTO) and hydraulic pump like the Stellar Hooklift offers. \u201cWith the direct system, you hit a switch, turn on the controller and guys don\u2019t even have to get out of the truck. Just drop the hook, grab the container, and put it back on,\u201d says Lombardi. \u201cWe\u2019re constantly training new employees due to our high turnover rate, so the increased safety and ease of just flipping a single switch is much better for us,\u201d says Lombardi.<\/p>\n The operator can stay in the truck throughout the entire process. Keeping operators in the cab eliminates the need for them to handle a cable to hook to a container, which can be a task that can lead to potential injuries. The hooklift system offers safer operation, mitigating any worry or uneasiness business owners may have. \u201cThe guys love them, they\u2019re easy, they\u2019re strong and they do exactly what we need them to do\u2014their job,\u201d says Lombardi. | WA<\/p>\n Tom Feverston is the Director of Demountable Sales for Stellar and is based out of Boyertown, PA. Tom has more than 15 years of experience in the heavy truck equipment industry in a variety of areas such as sales, parts, service and product management.<\/em><\/p>\n Stellar was founded in 1990 in Garner, IA, and has since expanded operations to multiple U.S. locations. Stellar is a 100 percent employee-owned and operated manufacturer of high-quality work trucks and trailers, in addition to service truck and van accessories. Through the innovative, growing product line and an expanding distribution network, the company has gained an international presence and become the No. 1 productivity choice in many markets. For more information, contact Kelsey Batschelet at (254) 291-9370, kelseyb@performancemarketing.com<\/a> or visit www.stellarindustries.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" College HUNKS franchisee relies on easy-to-use hooklifts. By Tom Feverston In 2008, Patrick Lombardi was among the thousands of college students graduating into a ridiculously competitive Tennessee job market. However, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1775,"featured_media":108883,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[95],"tags":[503,362],"class_list":["post-108882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-magazine-articles","tag-hauling","tag-truck-equipment"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nBy Tom Feverston<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nLombardi discovered the College HUNKS franchise and jumped in without hesitation. College HUNKS is a junk hauling and moving service that started as a small business. Now, it is comprised of many franchise locations across the country. Lombardi opened the Nashville location in 2012 with two trucks and four employees. \u201cI loved everything about the brand. As a recent college graduate, I was excited for the challenge of starting and growing a business,\u201d says Lombardi. Now, he oversees three locations, 22 trucks and 85 full-time employees.
\nEmployees can be trained on the job, allowing Lombardi\u2019s franchise locations to hire based on potential instead of experience. Many employees are college students looking for work over the summer, or young adults filling the gap between jobs. With a workforce primarily between the ages of 18 and 26, Lombardi is given the opportunity to mentor employees and help them navigate things like 401(k) plans, credit scores and car insurance.<\/p>\n
Photo courtesy of Stellar Industries.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\nThough he may experience turnover in his seasonal staff, Lombardi expects a much longer tenure from his equipment and suppliers. \u201cWe\u2019ve gone through a lot of different equipment vendors over the years, and the ones that last the longest are the ones that are always there to support you and deliver a sustainable product,\u201d says Lombardi. From an equipment standpoint, Lombardi looks for strength, productivity, and ease-of-use, and when his long-time truck builder recommended a hooklift from Stellar, he didn\u2019t hesitate.<\/p>\n
\nLombardi and his crew now rely on Stellar\u2019s Flex36-108 Hooklift. The biggest difference between his Stellar Hooklift and his old cable hoists is their strength. \u201cThe Flex36-108 is both bigger and stronger. That extra strength works in our favor when picking up and moving dumpsters. Each truck is still in perfect working condition, too, even when being used seven days a week for over a year now,\u201d says Lombardi.<\/p>\n