Gainesville, TX-based US Helicals is a young, fast-growing company offering new construction foundation solutions for residential, commercial, and industrial/oil & gas applications.
We spoke with sales VP Grant Russell and asked him what sets US Helicals apart from his competition?
“We’re faster, stronger, and less expensive than other helical piling companies.”
Because US Helicals supports multiple industries, they are diversified and always busy. Their heavy workload contributes to cost reduction, thanks to volume discounting from manufacturing. As a distributor themselves, they can be aggressive on pricing where other helical companies will be constrained to whatever discounts they receive based on their manufacturer or distribution contracts.
“We hear from structural engineers all the time who love the technology but have the (valid) concern about cost,” said Russell. “We’re regularly coming in 15-25% lower than our competition for a stronger product that gets installed quicker. Our pricing is creating new opportunities for engineers to design using helicals.”
Price isn’t the only factor driving US Helicals’ growth. The strength of their piles is another contributor to the interest and rapid adoption from structural engineers.
“Most of our competitor’s helicals can support 55-60 KIPS in compression. Our smallest 2-7/8″ helical piles can support 117 KIPS in compression,” said Russell.
This increased strength means US Helicals can install one 2-7/8″ whereas another company might need to install a 3.5″ OD pile or sometimes larger to achieve the same load. Using fewer piles per project translates into a significant material expense reduction.
The cost-saving and material strength advantages are attracting a lot of new clients. As such, the design, engineering, and installation teams have been working hard to meet the demand. When asked about keeping up with increased demand, Russell had this to say,
“Like any growing business trying to maintain high customer satisfaction while simultaneously taking on more work, we’ve had our share of growing pains. It has forced us to create and adopt more efficient processes.”