When co-founders Dan Echino and Lawrence Duchesne sold their highly successful operation in 2004 to National Oilwell and Foremost Industries, they dreamed of semi-retirement and a life without the pressures that had helped build Corlac Inc. into a multi-million-dollar oil-field equipment manufacturing company. That dream didn’t come to fruition. Sure, the two men eased up a bit – Echino took up the habit of driving fast cars and Duschense “dabbled” in producing oil wells. But the two were largely unsatisfied until they met up again years later in another start-up venture – this one called Calroc Industries. “We started Calroc Industries three years ago in 2011,” states Echino, who adds that the name is “Corlac” spelt backwards. The venture started with a few trucks and a shop located in Lloydminster. “We were bored and wanted to get back into business.” Calroc Industries may have started as an oil-field equipment rental business but the same entrepreneurial spirit that fuelled the growth of its predecessor is working its magic here as well. “We began as a rental operation and then started a trucking division to satisfy our own transportation needs,” explains
Echino. “We have since started manufacturing certain oil production products. And we also have an online ‘buy and sell’ Internet site. Right now, the business is split between these different divisions.” Calroc Industries has three dedicated people in Calgary to handle the Internet equipment site. It also has a 100,000-square-foot shop in Medicine Hat, a 20,000-square-foot shop in Lloydminster, and a rental office in Kindersley, Saskatchewan. A presence in Grand Prairie could be next. Innovation first and foremost At the heart of Calroc Industries is a drive to succeed; a need to innovate. “Our previous company, Corlac Inc., had won numerous awards for innovative products and entrepreneurship,” explains Echino. “A lot of people thought that was due to Lawrence and myself. But we were smart and surrounded ourselves with good people who were better than us. That’s the key. To hire people who are brighter and smarter than you.” And it looks like Echino’s strategy is paying dividends yet again. Calroc Industries is in the midst of launching two new products that have the potential to help benefit the industry.