Today we’d like to introduce you to Bryan Ericson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Bryan. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
We were started as an oilfield fluids company by brothers Phillip and Allen Bryson in late 2006. In 2009, we added our first crane. In 2013, we opened our Houston location and increased our capabilities by adding a 550 ton capacity to our fleet. By 2014, we had 78 cranes ranging in capacity from 50 tons to 550 tons and five locations across Texas and Oklahoma. Today we have approximately 200 employees and just took delivery of our 81st crane, a Grove GMK5150L 175 ton capacity crane.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
All of our locations except for Houston have historically derived their revenue exclusively from the oilfield, so when the activity in the oil and gas sector declined in 2016 we saw a significant decrease in work and, likewise, in the prices we were able to get for our services. Fortunately, in 2013, in an attempt to diversify our customer base, we opened our Houston location which focuses on the commercial, refining, power, and chemical markets. By the time the 2016 downturn in the oil & gas sector occurred, our Houston yard was already well established in the commercial and industrial markets. Additionally, we were able to take our experience in serving these markets in Houston and apply that experience to diversification of our Corpus Christi branch into commercial and industrial markets there. During the short time between the founding of Circle 8 and the downturn in the oilfield, we grew so rapidly that we didn’t really have the time to think about how we were handling certain aspects of our business. During 2016, however, we focused on running our business much more efficiently and put a great deal of thought and effort into developing and implementing better processes. The result is that we are now a much better run company in every aspect and are better positioned to take advantage of the next opportunity to grow our company.
Please tell us about Circle 8 Crane Services.
Circle 8 Crane Services provides operated cranes up to 550 tons in capacity. We have the newest, best maintained fleet in the industry. Our defining characteristic is our dedication to the safety of our employees and our customers. We were just awarded the Diamond STEP safety award by the Houston area chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors which is the highest level for the STEP safety award.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite childhood memory is spending summers fishing on the Trinity River at my Paw Paw’s house.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.circle8services.com
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