American Truck & Trailer Repair

Our next guest, we've been asked by our community to branch out in more than just automobiles because many of you have commercial equipment, toys, boats, RVs and different t And our next guest is one of those businesses, Wes Gwynne with American Truck and Trailer and they specialize in semi truck and trailer repair and service and their corporation, their company has been in our community for a n It's an honor to welcome for the first time on our show Wes Gwynne, general manager of American Truck and Trailer. Wes, welcome. Thank you, Mitch. I appreciate having me on. Tell us a little bit about the owners are Kevin Campbell and Melinda Campbell. About 15 years ago, me and Kevin worked together at a local dealers So he employed me and we basically opened the company together along with Melinda obviously. You just mentioned work et I mean, t When you shared with me earlier the business model that you work be Yeah, me and Kevin both kind of came up with this one years ago that we just do what we say we're going to do and what we mean by that is obviously we're going to do what we say we're going to do but if nobody's perfect, so if there's any problems, anything arises there, we just j We get the customer on the road and we deal with the mess later on. Well, and you just said it. That's et That's integrity. Just acknowledging the fact that even in a perfect world there's going to be h I mean, it's not always even your fault. It could be the part was defective that you put in and yet it's in the light of those failures that really defines a business. How they act. Do they act with velocity with integrity? Do they do the right t Do they do it with velocity? And that's when you really find out what you have. And t It's evident when you walk in the shop that what you get is a commitment to integrity and quality in everyt And you said about 11 years ago, American Truck and Trailer started, but t So tell us a little bit about the whole company. Yeah, certainly. And funny when we did start back 11 years ago, it was the two owners and then just three of us mechanics out running around. And we've grown it to 10 mechanics at American Truck with four other office staff, including myself. From there, a few years had gone by and we do a lot of local fleet. We're more of a fleet maintenance type company. We really thrive on doing that type of work. We can handle the engines and transmissions and stuff, but we'really committed to helping people be on the road safely and not be red tagged at scales and that type of stuff. So these companies eventually started bringing us their company pickups and type stuff. And hey, can you help me out here? So after a few years have gone by and we just were overwhelmed with that, Kevin and Melinda opened up Dynamic Diesel. W And I want to separate the two because American Truck and Trailer Repair is for your big rigs, your semi tractors and semi 18 wheel trailers. And those regards. And let's get back to the services that you do provide at American Truck and Trailer because you have both on and off site capabilities. Certainly. Three mobile trucks and we cover quite a wide area. I do not go into California, but we'll run out to Stead, Fernley, down to Carson, Menden area. So we cover pretty good area for the customers there. And you recently just started to cover more of that Carson, Menden, Gardenerville end of the area, w And I'm glad that you're expanding out into that area for our community. Yes, that's correct. And with doing the fleet type stuff, when I tie into a fleet company, we really try to concentrate on sending the same service truck to them. So they got a familiar guy they're dealing with. And I kind of look around their yard and realize what type of lights they're using and what kind of wheel seals and brakes are going to be on their ve So we stock those on our trucks and have them with us when we show up. Well, we talked about t Huge parts inventory. And this is a really big item because having the stuff in stock, I mean, these commercial cons It's everyt And you carry a lot of t And what goes into that? Yeah, that's correct. We became a Dayton distributor quite a few years back, w And we're able with that, that I'm carrying brakes and chambers and springs, airbags, all that type of suspension type products for these trucks, along with we have other product lines where we can handle all the normal type stuff, carrying belts and shocks and whatnot. So I carry a pretty good inventory for just about any make on the road. As far as you break a spring and show up or blow an airbag, there's pretty So we can just pop it in and get you going down the road again. W It'll be here tomorrow and you're down another day or two or over a weekend for making your money. And that's, again, the livelihood to realize on having that truck on the road operating. And you mentioned it. I really saw t You have trailers full and indoor area, full of these components. I walked out into the yard and you have axles ready to just with brake systems already on them, ready to go on ve Correct. Correct. There'services out there that can repair axles. And It's just how much time you want to spend down to get that facility going. So we lose a spindle on a, say a trailer. I've got an axle sitting right there. We basically bring in that day, roll it in there, do whatever welding and have you back out on the road that same afternoon. And these were Units, not They were already assembled with components on them. Right. Right. And then the, the springs that go with them, we carry that type of stuff in stock, the U bolts, the shocks, the torque arms, whatever. There are parts it takes to get t We have them on stock. And you were mentioning that, Correct. We actually have a display flywheel sitting around ready to go that fit most trucks that are already ground. So I'm not waiting on the time for somebody to resurface t I'll send it out. But in that amount of time, I've got a new flywheel going into your truck. We carry, We've, you know, we've, a lot of these trucks are designed with cat C So we carry rear main seals for those in the miscellaneous parts that we're seeing all the time. I keep that inventory also. We've really jacked up our inventory over the last couple of years because we noticed inventory going down in t Well, and that, that's one key to a good business is that they're prepared to meet your needs as a cons That's, but then there's another part of it that really, I t And that gets into your technicians and their qualifications. And, and you really have a lot to boast there. So I'll let you share some about that. Yeah. Actually, we, we So I have a Hunter laser alignment mac I've got three guys that have been certified through Hunter on that. I have a Volvo tech we pulled in. And you mentioned t I mean, these are really I mean, to get the job done right the first time. There's very little requirement, So the quality of the company that they choose can really vary, So tell us a little bit about the new regulations in your shop's qualifications. Yeah, certainly, So there's really nobody out there that's certified, so to speak, to doTs or licensed by the state to do. Exactly. Most people is we, we physically invite the Nevada department of transportation and do our shop once a year to train our guys, how they're doing the inspections. So I can look at this vehicle and know what they're going to look at when they've got him pulled over alongside the road or sitting on a j So I can get those problems corrected and know what they're going to go after before they get out there and get tagged and stopped or. I want our trucking community to visualize t Correct. Open book. T Correct. Yes, that, that's correct. So due to the fact that most of our customers are going over the hill, we, we follow with the California's, So just because you passed here with Nevada standards, does it, So we try to follow those standards as well. I am certain of one t You know, I wish I saw them that I got red flagged at one of these scales because that was a requirement that the shop that I took it to didn't, I was going over the I mean, that's just catastrop I mean, you can't move it from the site. That's correct. And I did want to make sure that we didn't, And you have three mobile trucks that you can go out and do roadside repairs and get these guys back on, on the road again. And how do they get ahold of you for any of those? We're at a 775-351-2881. And, And if you are not getting the level of confidence that you're hearing on t We're proud to have you on our show and I'm glad that you made it for our first time and welcome you back for in the future. Thank you. Thank you, Wes.