Cookie Cutter vs Custom Lube Equipment: TPL’s Fundamental Difference

The fundamental difference between TPL and other lube truck manufacturers is the intention behind our business model. We don’t build lube equipment simply because there’s market share available, or because we acknowledge its necessity in the mining, construction, and municipal industries. Our purpose is driven by the desire to understand and identify our customer’s actual needs so their business remains profitable.

The million-dollar question: what do you really need?

Identifying your business needs includes asking questions like: What’s going to help you thrive as a business? What challenges have you faced with past or current equipment? What potential losses could you incur from a lube truck or skid that isn’t reliable and efficient? What’s your bottom-line budget?

While other companies may offer a similar set of questions, their next step looks very different from ours. Instead of taking your identified needs and trying to make them fit an existing product (often times resulting in compromise on one or more of your needs), we take your needs and start from scratch on a design that meets every single one. This is just the first step in our build process.

Better planning, better results.

After needs are identified, we begin the designing your equipment. While CAD drawings are available upon request, we’ve discovered that an old-fashioned “pen and paper” medium works best. This allows for easy adjustments and doesn’t require our customers to have specific software or even be at a desk! We simply scan the layout and send it directly to your email or cell phone for viewing/approval. This step is crucial to ensuring you get what you really need from ergonomic, function, and efficiency perspectives.

Prioritizing the details.

Once the layout is approved, our teams begin work on your equipment. In contrast to our competitors, each order is built-to-suit. Your lube truck, skid, trailer, or system installation is meticulously constructed by our four teams on-site at our location in Concord, NC. The close working environment of all teams is beneficial as it eliminates the need to freight equipment parts/pieces from one location to another, and drastically decreases build time by a few weeks.

We do offer standard layouts for our lube skids and trucks, should that layout meet your requirements; these usually have a fast turn-around time, as our teams are already familiar with their design and assembly setups. However, if your needs require a unique or adjusted layout, we strive to match our standard layout turn times to ensure you get the product as quickly as possible.
 

Thorough testing is our standard.

After your equipment build is complete, our foreman completes a 43-point in-house inspection. This includes checking the functionality of all pumps, reels, meters, hoses, tanks, tool boxes/drawers, fittings, and mounts.

Pride and Production

The last – and best – part of our process (at least from our perspective) is the delivery of our products to our customers. Whether you need it shipped across the country, picked up directly from our location, or finally get to open your service shop for business, we love to see our customers impressed by our craftsmanship and proud to do business with us.
 

Have more questions about our process or products? Send us a contact request or call us directly.