Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company 85th Anniversary

CONGRATULATIONS!

LeeBoy proudly salutes our friends and partners at Ruffridge Ruffridge-Johnson -Johnson Equipment Company in celebrating this historical milestone.

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Tere e x MPS & EvoQuiip would like to

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85 5th anniver anni errsary rsar We’re proud to have you as part p of our teamss and we look forward to o many more years success together.

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Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company Still Growing After All These Years

CEG CORRESPONDENT

ahead of ourselves,” said Hosch. “We want to be careful our growth doesn’t outpace our ability to take care of our customers.”

Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company is steadily growing as a road construction and mining aggregate machinery dealer. Yet executives of the Minnesota company aren’t feeling an urgency to expand.

Comes the question: Can a company of outwardly modest aspirations really succeed in the long run?

Answer: It already has.

The Minneapolis equipment dealership is celebrating 85 years of success. Since its founding, the company has been meeting and exceeding customer expectations as a dealer of industry-best heavy equipment and a reliable provider of the attendant services that keep machinery and contractors working.

“We’re growing,” company owner and President Dave Hosch assured, pushing back against any mistaken notion of Ruffridge-Johnson being in a holding pattern. “We had the best year in the history of the company this past year.”

The president simply wants Ruffridge-Johnson to remain well-positioned for the long term, a strategy that has served it well so far. The road to long-term success, after all, is littered with the remains of companies that reached too far too fast.

“As a small company, we just want to make sure that we don’t get out

** The year was 1936 and gasoline was a dime a gallon when Clarence T. Johnson opened his C.T. Johnson Equipment Company in Minneapolis. The company sold rock crushers that turned raw aggregate into road construction material. It was an increasingly important product across America because both the asphalt and concrete paving industries were coming into their own.

Johnson set up his sales office at Fifth and Hennepin Avenue. The company still was located there when Lester C. Ruffridge joined the firm in 1945. One year later, he and Johnson became partners, renamed the enterprise Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company Inc. and moved it around the corner onto South Fourth Street. Eight years later, the office was moved again to Fourth Street Southeast. It clearly was a company on the move.

As Ruffridge-Johnson sought out the best machinery in the market, its offerings of road construction and aggregate-handling equipment evolved. The dealer early on represented such manufacturers as Iowa Mfg., Thurman Scale and Cleaver-Brooks boilers. Brands that rolled through the dealership in the intervening years included Buffalo-

By Giles Lambertson

The Ruffridge-Johnson crew — past and present employees.

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Springfield, Ottawa Hydra Hammer and Koehring.

Some brands succumbed to market pressures and disappeared. New brands were introduced.

Still others were absorbed by competing companies and rebranded. Iowa Mfg. is one of those.

The company began producing equipment in 1927 and became a mainstay in the RuffridgeJohnson lineup before becoming known as Cedarapids. Terex bought the Cedarapids crusher and screen line of equipment in 1999, so Ruffridge-Johnson sells it now as a Terex Cedarapids product.

“We’ve been a Cedarapids dealer for a lot of years,” said Hosch.

One of its longtime buyers of the brand of equipment is Intex Corp., a custom crushing company. Each year, Intex produces more than a million tons of processed quarried stone and recycled concrete and asphalt for clients in Minnesota, Iowa and the two Dakotas.

“With the variety of materials we handle, we’ve found the Terex cones and screen perform very well from a standpoint of production, ease of maintenance and durability,” said Greg Buhl, CEO of Intex. Today, the company operates six Terex MVP 380s and eight Terex 6x20 screens.

By whatever name, the Iowa Mfg.Cedarapids-Terex line impresses. A portable crusher recently promoted to customers by the dealer is a good example — the 2021 model MVP380X HLS. It is a 300-hp, 70-ton, four-

Jon Pederson (L), late owner and president, with Dave Hosch, current owner and president of Ruffridge-Johnson. Hosch considered Pederson a “great mentor and friend, not only to me and others in the company, but across the industry.”

(L-R): Nick Ender, Bob Dousette, Shawn McGowan, Scot Ender, Dave Hosch, Mark Bjoralt, Doug McDonald, Bill Egeberg, Dan Brzozowski and Delton DeMarce.

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CHEERS TO 85 YEARS!

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Congratulations Ruffridge Johnson on 85 Years!

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Jon Pederson joined the company in 1978 as a salesman.

He became company president in 1983 and sole owner of Ruffridge-Johnson in 1990.

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Jon Pederson

Jon Pederson was larger than life. A tall, solidly-built and gregarious man, a Boy Scout leader and former U.S. Marine, the former owner of Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company “filled up a room both physically and with his personality. He definitely was a force,” said company owner Dave Hosch.

Pederson joined the company in 1978 as a salesman. He became company president in 1983 and sole owner of Ruffridge-Johnson in 1990. When he died 29 years later, Pederson left behind a near unanimity about his positive impact on the firm.

Sales manager Scot Ender spoke to Pederson’s character: “He was well known and everyone who knew him respected him. He was a nice guy and that’s not always the case.”

Bill Egeberg knew Pederson for more than 35 years. He became a Ruffridge-Johnson employee in 1986 after associating with the firm for several years as a district sales manager at an equipment financing company. Pederson brought him aboard to manage a transition in the office from index cards to computers. Five years later, Egeberg became the company’s controller.

“Jon was very outgoing, had a big laugh, was a great guy to work for,” Egeberg recalled. “He knew people in the industry throughout the country and people knew Jon. Coming from a crushing-equipment background, he was well-versed in the equipment and well-respected.”

The first new jaw crusher that Intex Corp. bought at RuffridgeJohnson — a 1988 Cedarapids 3054 model — was purchased after Pederson and Jim Bowers, who was president of Intex at that time, traveled to the plant where the machine was being manufactured.

Said longtime Intex owner and President Greg Buhl: “The two company presidents developed a very friendly working relationship that has carried over to the current owners of the companies.”

Hosch considered Pederson a “great mentor and friend, not only to me and others in the company, but across the industry. I would say he was instrumental in developing the company’s culture of integrity and commitment. That culture is what makes working at Ruffridge-Johnson special.”

Hosch himself joined the company sales force in 2002 at the urging of a friend who told him he was missing his calling by not being an outside salesman. He moved up to vice president of marketing and then became a business partner with Pederson in 2015. Three years later, Hosch was named president. At Pederson’s passing, Hosch assumed full ownership.

Egeberg considers Hosch a worthy successor in the line of capable people leading the company.

“He is another knowledgeable individual, having been in the industry a long time. He has a big job, working with customers and factories and everything else, and taking a long view of where the industry is going and how the company should respond to it. He’s a positive guy and good to work with.”

That positive view of the company president aligns with how Hosch believes customers view the company.

“If asked, I think customers would say we are very honest and easy to do business with. I think they walk away feeling very well taken care of.”

Buhl concurs. The Intex owner said Ruffridge-Johnson “gives each customer a sense that you matter to them and that they are there to help you. They’re honest about what their equipment can do and stand behind customers when it comes to warranty issues. With Dave Hosch at the helm, an excellent surrounding cast, their modern facility in Centerville and good products, Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company will remain a force in the industry for many years to come.”

CEG

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Company Controller Bill Egeberg believes a small work force is more responsive: “You don’t have the big departments to run things through. All of that is a plus for the company and the customer.”

axled unit with air-ride suspension and a 42-in.-wide main conveyor.

On the construction side, another venerable RuffridgeJohnson brand is Rosco road maintenance machinery — notably, its oil distributors and sweepers. Rosco dates to 1928, was in the dealer’s lineup almost from the start and now is sold as a LeeBoy company. On the lot this spring was a Rosco Sweepro II, which is a rear-steered, 74-hp directional sweeper with joystick controls and a heated and air-conditioned cab.

Other iconic equipment at Ruffridge-Johnson includes Bomag asphalt compactors and mainline asphalt pavers. Its commercial-class pavers for small and midsize asphalt work are manufactured by Carlson.

“We are pretty well known as a commercial paving equipment dealer,” Hosch said.

The dealer is not standpat in its offerings. It regularly introduces new brands and machine-types.

“We constantly look to take on new product lines — we’ve done that multiple times in the last few years alone,” the president said.

Two examples of new brands reflect the construction industry’s continued fascination with downsized machinery: Revolver (of Canada) and EvoQuip (a Terex company in

A Masaba/Cedarapids wash plant is set up at Barton Sand and Gravel.

(L-R) are Al Brevig, Jim Ryan, Don Thompson and Jon Pederson — all previous owners of Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment.

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Northern Ireland). Revolver builds small, very portable, trommel screens and EvoQuip specializes in compact, trackmounted crushers and screens.

Another brand is the Huber line of graders, a product that pushed its way into the construction industry way back in 1920. Now Huber has reemerged as a compact unit for small commercial contractors.

“We also are just starting to take on something on the environmental side,” added Hosch.

He speaks of Ecoverse, which is headquartered in Cleveland. It offers a full line of environmental processing equipment such as shredders, trommel screens, star screens and windrow turners. These machines lend themselves to applications in a variety of industries, including compost sites, landfills and transfer stations.

The entire portfolio of RuffridgeJohnson products — other prominent brands are ESCO, Beuthling, HD Industries and Masaba — serve three main concentrations of customers: Half of

This Rosco Maxi II oil distributor is one of many products available at Ruffridge-Johnson.

company sales are to aggregate industry clients; another quarter to road construction contractors; and the rest to municipalities, which need machines primarily for street maintenance.

Equipment in 2021 is ever more efficient, productive and technologically complex. Operators of the primitive equipment of 85 years ago would be astonished at contemporary machines.

“You’re starting to see specs on thermal characteristics of different asphalt mixes and how they affect the speed and quality of the mat laid down,” Hosch said.

“On the crushing side, sensors monitor how equipment is running and aggregate is being handled. Telematics can track everything on an operating machine.”

Several years ago, Hosch turned the whole construction-aggregate equipment category served by the company into a mantra. Displayed on the home page of the company website, it reads: “Crush it … Screen it …Wash it …

Stack it … Pave it … Mill it … Tack it …

Compact it … Patch it … Sweep it …

DOING IT SINCE 1936”

Dave Hosch (second from L), owner and president of Ruffridge-Johnson, with the sales team of (L-R) Nick Ender, Mark Bjoralt, Doug McDonald and Scot Ender.

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This ad from 1945 announces RuffridgeJohnson as the exclusive Cedarapids dealer.

This Ruffridge-Johnson ad from the 1990s shows how the company has played an important role in its customers’ businesses for decades.

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The Ruffridge-Johnson service department performs repairs.

Delton DeMarce starts up a Cedarapids MVP 280 crushing plant.

** “I’m very proud of the people that work at Ruffridge-Johnson” said Hosch.

“Our sales guys are out on the front lines every day engaging with customers. It’s a hard job and they are excellent at it. Our parts staff is the best in the business. They do a great job being the middle man between customers and the manufacturers we represent. Our sales manager and controller make sure everything is running smooth behind the scenes. It just wouldn’t work without them.”

Let’s not forget about the company’s service technicians. Hosch is high on them.

“They can do it all,” he said. “I am exceedingly proud of our service guys.

They are talented, can work on anything we have and are some of the best representatives of the company to put in front of our customers.”

Keeping techs up to speed is a challenge at any dealership. RuffridgeJohnson does it by periodically sending technicians to factory training programs or inviting manufacturer trainers to the dealership. Because service techs are unionized, they also stay current through that venue.

The techs look after company-owned and rented machinery, as well. Like the rest of the industry, rentals at RuffridgeJohnson are a growing part of the business proposition, constituting about 15 percent of business.

“It used to be that companies would plan ahead more. You know, ‘Here is what our capital budget is and here is the equipment we need to replace,’” Hosch said. “Nowadays, companies are basing equipment needs on workload, acquiring machinery as they gear up for big jobs.

Because of that, we see more and more

The crew of ACI Asphalt with the Carlson paver purchased from Ruffridge-Johnson.

Larsen Dirtworks runs an EvoQuip 230R crusher on a job site.

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Ruffridge-Johnson’s previous location in Minneapolis.

contractors getting equipment on an as-needed basis and the rental market keeps growing.”

Asphalt and paving contractors usually rent a piece of equipment for a week to two months. Aggregate machinery customers typically opt for longer rental contracts, perhaps three to five months. Longer rentals bode well for a dealer because the rental is more apt to become a sale.

“We are not a rent-to-rent dealership. We are a rent-to-sell house,” Hosch said. “We want to convert that rental into a purchase. The customer can do the calculation pretty easily. He already is investing X amount of money into a piece of equipment, with most dealers applying rent toward an eventual purchase.” ** The strategy of not rushing to grow the company footprint dovetails with Ruffridge-Johnson’s policy of developing personal relationships with customers. Hosch is personally invested in the process.

The parts warehouse at Ruffridge-Johnson’s Centerville location.

Barton Sand and Gravel runs a Cedarapids crushing plant.

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Wm. D. Scepaniak runs a Terex 3255 jaw plant on site.

“I believe strongly in being close to our employees and being close to our customers, in being approachable and open. My phone is on 24 hours a day and I always answer it, to the chagrin of my wife,” Hosch said with a smile in his voice. “We are not one of the Big Box Storetype of equipment companies. Whether we want to or not, building relationships is how we survive.”

He said company personnel “sit down and break bread together. We know each other personally. That closeness ends up being seen by people on the outside and we carry that same attitude to them. When you are a bigger company, you lose some of that.”

Company Controller Bill Egeberg believes a small work force is more responsive.

“You don’t have the big departments to run things through. Things are more easily discussed. If there is an issue with a product or a piece of equipment, the salesman usually can handle it. Service people can react quicker. All of that is a plus for the company and the customer.”

The first wall of the new Centerville, Minn., facility going up.

Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment, Centerville, Minn.

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One of Ruffridge-Johnson’s longtime customers is Intex Corp., a custom crushing company. Each year, Intex produces more than a million tons of processed quarried stone and recycled concrete and asphalt for clients in Minnesota, Iowa and the two Dakotas.

Shawn McGowan (L), parts specialist, and Bob Dousette, parts manager, keep the parts department stocked with the items customers need.

Bill Egeberg, controller, called the Centerville service center a “state-of-the-art facility with a shop set up that lets a crusher come in one end and out the other and is large enough to work on multiple crushers at one time. The warehouse is huge.”

Bill Egeberg (L), controller, and Jon Pederson, late owner of Ruffridge-Johnson. Pederson brought Egeberg aboard to manage a transition in the office from index cards to computers. Five years later, Egeberg became the company’s controller.

The company strategy of “not overextending ourselves” is evident in the focus on serving Minnesota customers.

“Ninety-nine out of a hundred” new equipment sales are in-state along with 90 percent of used equipment sales, according to company sales manager Scot Ender.

Hosch puts it this way: “For new equipment, we are focused on the state of Minnesota. We are dedicated to the state of Minnesota.”

This dedication to staying “small” necessarily leads one to ask, what is small?

“Interesting question,” Hosch responded. “I would say that a small company to me is $25 million or less in annual sales volume.”

He quickly added that managing company growth does not mean he and his

Ruffridge-Johnson hosted a paving school at its previous shop in Minneapolis.

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“Ninety-nine out of a hundred” new equipment sales are instate, along with 90 percent of used equipment sales, according to company sales manager Scot Ender (R), with a customer.

team aren’t ready to take advantage of growth opportunities, an acquisition, for example.

“We absolutely would consider that. If the right opportunity arose to acquire another small company where we could implant our philosophy, yes, we would look at it.”

A broad customer base — “from big quarry operations to the smallest driveway-paving guy” — is a stabilizing factor for Ruffridge-Johnson, particularly in uncertain economic times like a pandemic. Not until recent months has the firm felt much impact from the virus. Supply chain issues finally have begun to emerge as manufacturers scramble to return to full production.

“Our industry was considered essential in this state,” Hosch said, looking back over the last 13 months. “There is a

The Ruffridge-Johnson crew starts up a new wash plant for Johnson Materials.

Customer running a Carlson paver.

Making sure customers’ machines stay up and running are Dan Brzozowski (L), shop foreman, and Delton DeMarce, shop foreman.

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Bob Dousette, parts manager.

decent amount of work out there and housing is very busy and that kept us busy. The biggest impact was on the sales force. Our salesmen were pretty much on lockdown. They couldn’t go out and engage customers — and virtual contact only works so long. It’s hard to develop and maintain a relationship when you can’t see people in person.” ** An indicator that Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company is 85 years strong was a decision in 2018 to move the dealership to the Minneapolis suburb of Centerville. The five-acre property features an 8,000-sq.-ft. building; a 20-ton overhead crane moved from the previous location; and heated floors.

“We built the facility very needs specific,” Hosch said. “The shop and office are under one roof. We didn’t have that at the old place.

Communication is better this way.”

Egeberg called it a “state-of-the-art facility with a shop set up that lets a crusher come in one end and out the other and is large enough to work on multiple crushers at one time. The warehouse is huge.”

With almost a million dollars in parts and supplies on site, it needed to be large.

Located just off Interstate 35 East, the dealership is easily accessible for customers trucking in large pieces of equipment for servicing.

“That was not true at the other place,” Hosch said. “One of the biggest improvements is that we have a lot larger yard here so customers can get their equipment in and out easier.”

As often happens, a new and larger place of business can turn out to be not quite big enough.

“Our service work has increased over the last couple of years and there are days when I walk out into the shop and realize we are jampacked. But we do have room to add onto the building. We have extra office space. We have land not yet developed.”

Ruffridge-Johnson Equipment Company. Still growing, after all these years.  CEG

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