Pelco Structural, LLC - Claremore, Oklahoma

Its Oklahoma roots are as much a part of Pelco Products, Inc. as its innovative and entrepreneurial spirit. In fact, the company was so satisfied with its milieu in the Sooner State, it recently opened affiliate Pelco Structural, LLC in Claremore.

Pelco Products, Inc. is a family-owned business started in 1985 by Phil Parduhn, an Oklahoma native, and his son, Steve. Originally a manufacturer of traffic signal hardware, Pelco has grown its product line to include decorative lighting and utility hardware. Affiliate Pelco Structural, LLC in Claremore (which made its debut in February 2005) produces made-to-order steel pole assemblies for the utility, lighting, and communication industries.

Through the years, Pelco has pioneered the way in offering new and unique products to the industry. The company is fully equipped to respond to every city, county, state, and federal roadway traffic control project requiring the equipment it manufactures. Always at the forefront, Pelco has 33 patents and is constantly providing new products to help its customers solve their problems.

Oklahoma Boom or Bust
"Because our customers are located throughout the country, establishing our company in Oklahoma made sense because of its central location," says Gordon Andersen, public relations and special projects manager (who incidentally is from Ohio, but as he puts it, has been "Okiefied" during the past 33 years).

"Most of our products are delivered by truck," Andersen says. "And since two of the country's most active interstate highways (I-35 and I-40) intersect Oklahoma, delivery to other states is much easier to accomplish."

Pelco is represented by distributors in all 50 states, as well as Canada, the Caribbean Islands, United Emirates, Pacific Rim, and other foreign countries.

" Oklahoma's outstanding labor market, transportation, work ethic, and reasonable cost of living make a convincing case for setting up and maintaining a business here. It's been an ideal fit for us!" Andersen says.

Regional Support System
New business owners are faced with enough challenges as it is--which brings up another very important advantage of establishing a business in Oklahoma:

"The state of Oklahoma offers various financial incentives to local businesses, some of which are specifically designed to assist smaller-sized companies," Andersen says. "This supportive network of services is there for the asking for Oklahoma business owners - it provides a tremendous advantage."

Several organizations that offer incentives to Oklahoma business owners include:

• The Oklahoma Small Employer Quality Jobs Program(SEQJ) is designed specifically for small companies. The program is industry specific, applicable to manufacturing, research and development, central administrative offices, and selected service companies.  It provides quarterly cash payments of up to 5% of newly-created payroll to qualifying companies, although the qualification criterion differs among industries. 
• The Oklahoma Alliance for Manufacturing Excellence is a not-for-profit organization providing a variety of support to Oklahoma industry. Through a network of manufacturing extension agents and applications engineers, the Alliance provides hands-on resources for improving productivity, increasing sales, and reducing costs.
• Workforce Oklahoma is a network of statewide offices where employment, education and training providers integrate services to assist customers in finding jobs and qualified workers, making career decisions and accessing training opportuniti es.

At One with the Community
Another key component of Pelco's success is its commitment to community partnering. "Getting out in the community and letting folks know your company is essential," Andersen says.

In keeping with this mindset, both Pelco Products, Inc. and Pelco Structural have dedicated portions of their real estate to the creation of sports venues with soccer fields in Edmond and future lighted Little League sports fields in Claremore.

What's more, employees at Pelco Products, Inc. in Edmond partner with the community each day as they work alongside clients of Dale Rogers Training Center, the local vocational training employment center for those with disabilities. The Dale Rogers group comes to the Pelco facility every workday to package hardware kits for traffic signal hardware.

"The disabled clients work side-by-side with Pelco's employees, taking breaks and lunches together," says Phil Parduhn, president of Pelco. "The interactions have been rewarding for both Pelco and its Dale Rogers workers."

Tomorrow's Employees
As any forward-thinking and proactive businessperson knows, keeping ahead of the competition means continuing to attract skilled and highly-trained employees.

"In Pelco's case, where the majority of jobs are in the manufacturing area, it's critical to get the word out about the wide variety and number of quality jobs this field offers," Andersen says. A general manufacturing company offers opportunities in areas such as accounting, sales, human resources, and engineering , as well as variations of production.

"We like the fact that all of our employees are from within the surrounding areas. In order to continue employing these local people, we want to reach the next generation early on before they've decided on a career path," Andersen says.

With this goal in mind, Pelco is partnering with other manufacturers in the Edmond/Oklahoma City area to inform kindergarten through 12 th grade students and their parents about career options available in manufacturing in Oklahoma and the advantages of early skill development, which lead to rewarding careers in that arena.

To contact Pelco: Gordon Andersen: 405-340-3434 or gordon.andersen@pelcoinc.com.