Photo courtesy of Linder Industrial Machinery Company
B.R.S. purchased its first Terramac RT14R crawler carrier in 2018, and now has three — one for each of its pipe crews.
B.R.S. Inc. is a family-owned utility construction company that has a long history of serving North Carolina, with operations ranging from small residential services to multi-million-dollar water and sewer main projects. The company has seen significant growth and transformation since it was founded in the early 1930s as Barringer Brothers.
"My grandfather started out building chicken pads, ponds and clearing back in the early days," reflected President John Barringer. "Over the years, the company took on projects in a wide range of construction sectors, and then we dove into the utility divisions. In 1986, we renamed the company B.R.S. Inc., which is Bradford, Ruby and Sons — my father, my mother, and my brother and myself. Since then, we've been focused on water and sewer utility work."
Photo courtesy of Linder Industrial Machinery Company
Located strategically in Richfield, N.C., the company is well-positioned to serve the Greensboro, Charlotte and Salisbury areas, typically bidding for work within a 100-mile radius of its headquarters. Barringer highlights the company's adaptability and willingness to take on challenging projects as a key factor in its success.
"Typically, we take on the tougher jobs that other companies don't know how to approach," said Barringer. "We've found a niche in the utility industry and have built a team capable of handling those unique projects."
"We'll do anything from a small residential service, which could be $4,000 or $5,000, up to a $60 million transmission water main and everything in between," added Vice President and Project Manager Will Isenhour.
With approximately 75 employees, the company places a strong emphasis on creating a family atmosphere, offering competitive benefits and pay, and treating its employees well.
"Our success is our folks," stated Barringer. "At B.R.S., we'd like everybody to know that we are a family-owned company. We believe that nobody works for B.R.S., they work with B.R.S."
Enhancing Local Infrastructure
Currently, B.R.S. is working on the Irwin Creek Basin to Remount Road Sanitary Sewer Replacement, which is an ongoing project for the city of Charlotte that is critical for residential expansion.
"We're replacing and upgrading approximately 15,000 feet of sanitary sewer pipe," noted Isenhour. "The pipe ranges in size from 30 inches down to 12 inches. Over the life of the project, we've worked with several other local contractors to bore multiple tunnels, including passing underneath I-77 to install 120-inch storm drain."
Isenhour continued, "This project will provide some of the necessary infrastructure to complete the new duplexes and high-rise apartment projects going up around South Boulevard and the light rail corridor. This entire basin is falling away, so all the pipes had to be upsized to allow for increased water management and demand."
Photo courtesy of Linder Industrial Machinery Company
B.R.S. has found that investing in efficient machinery, such as Terramac crawler carriers and Komatsu excavators, is essential to completing projects.
"The Terramacs are a big part of our pipe laying jobs now," said Construction Operations Manager Jerrod Hatley. "They eliminated the need to run loaders up and down the right-of-way and tear up the surface. They're neater and more efficient than what we were used to."
B.R.S. purchased its first Terramac RT14R crawler carrier in 2018, and now has three — one for each of its pipe crews.
"The Terramacs are workhorses for us," emphasized Hatley. "The RT14R's rubber tracks keep rights-of-way clean by pressing out mud and water, and their ability to rotate 360 degrees and dump into holes or stone boxes makes the process more efficient, especially in wet and muddy environments. They can also dump right off the side of the road around our machinery."
Isenhour added, "We frequently use the Terramacs to transport material to and away from the ditch, and to move contaminated soil from the ditch to a location where it can be loaded on the back of our tandems. This is particularly important when dealing with 57 and 67 stones, especially on outfalls — not necessarily in the road, but anywhere we encounter wet conditions."
B.R.S. also utilizes a fleet of Komatsu equipment to complete its jobs.
"We typically use a range of Komatsu excavators, from the PC88 to the PC490," noted Hatley. "Most of the time, we have three 490 models in our possession to lift trench boxes or excavate a deep trench. We also have multiple PC238 models for backfill, especially in street work. Then there are small contracts that we have, where service contracts require the zero tail swing in the street. So, the 88s, 138s, 238s are the workhorses. The minimum downtime that we have across all of our Komatsu equipment has kept us coming back."
Linder Support
B.R.S. understands the importance of sales, service and support to keep its operations running smoothly. That's why the company turns to Linder Industrial Machinery Company and sales representative Michael Moore to find the right machines.
Photo courtesy of Linder Industrial Machinery Company
"We rely on Linder for a majority of our maintenance," noted Hatley. "We haven't had any issues outside of operator-induced errors, and Linder stepped up to get us running again quickly."
"Linder has been a great asset to our company," Barringer added. "We like their equipment, our folks like to run their equipment, and they service their equipment well. We just have success with Linder and appreciate their partnership."
Barringer also appreciates the responsiveness of Moore.
"Michael really takes care of us," said Barringer. "If we call him, he's going to get us an answer. If he doesn't know it immediately, and if we need a piece of equipment, he's going to do all he can to get one to us or make whatever needs to happen happen."
Future
Barringer has a hopeful outlook for the company. His vision for the future is not just about the continuity of the business, but also about its impact on the community. By preparing the next generation to lead, Barringer is ensuring that B.R.S. can continue to provide for its employees and their families.
"We have a fourth generation — my nephew, Gunnar Barringer, came into the business 10 years ago and is doing very well," said Barringer. "And my son, Gage, is a junior at NC State earning his engineering degree before he joins the company in a couple years. Hopefully, they will continue to grow the business and keep 75 to 80 more families happy for many years to come."
(This story was reprinted with permission from Linder Link magazine.)
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