Bags packed? Got your favorite RDO Equipment Co. hat? It is time for a summer road trip to find out more about what is happening at RDO stores across the country.
First up, we take a pit stop in Texas to catch up with the region’s Vice President, Cory Kosse. Want to find out more about RDO’s Texas region? Curious to know how construction progress is coming at RDO’s newest store in Buda? Wondering how the team handled the week-long snow and ice catastrophe earlier this year?
It is time to pull over at the next rest stop and take a behind-the-scenes peek at RDO in Texas.
Texas – A Region on the Grow
RDO’s Texas Construction region includes seven stores: Fort Worth, Irving, Hewitt, Laredo, McKinney, New Braunfels, and Pflugerville. Next year, the region will grow by one more, as the Texas region’s newest location in Buda is underway.
A New RDO Store in Buda
Located on the southwest side of Austin, Buda was strategically selected as the home of RDO’s newest Texas location to fill a gap north of the RDO location in New Braunfels and south of the one in Pflugerville.
“While the state of Texas is seeing a lot of growth, the Buda area is especially exploding,” Cory said. “In addition to that demand, companies working in and around this area are a bit far north for the New Braunfels store to be convenient, while the choice of heading north to Pflugerville means trekking through downtown Austin. That traffic is tough.”
The Buda store will bring much-needed equipment, parts, and service to customers in this already-busy area, known as the greater Austin-San Antonio corridor, and help support the new growth that Cory says will see the population boom to an estimated 6-7 million by 2030.
To those driving by the new Buda store site, it may look as though not much is happening. But plenty of work crucial to the new store is already complete.
“The majority of site work is done, we have drilled piers for the foundation, and recently began pouring concrete,” Cory said. The main building and components are scheduled to arrive early next month so customers will soon see the building really start to take shape.”
The Buda store really is hitting a stride now that summer has arrived. While the opportunity for year-round work might make it seem that Texas summers are no different than any other season, it is a unique and productive time of year for contractors.
Seasonal and Local Flavor
Many companies take advantage of the added hours of daylight to extend their workdays in the summer. It is common for contractors to work six-day workweeks to help catch up from more downtime in the spring due to seasonal rain.
Because of this, Cory notes that the summer months are especially busy on the aftermarket side of the business, and teams at every store across the region are poised to offer parts and service support in a timely manner.
Like other RDO stores, providing a full scope of equipment, parts, service, and technology support is something that the Texas teams are proud of and do well. This approach, paired with an “above-and-beyond” attitude that extends across the entire RDO footprint was key in helping customers and all local stakeholders rebound from an unexpected and intense winter storm earlier this year.
Recovering From More than a Pandemic
If 2020 did not bring enough challenges and unforeseen circumstances to everyone, one particular week of Texas’ 2021 winter season showed up as if its goal was to rival the pandemic. A weeklong storm in February brought record-low temperatures, dumped heavy snow and ice, cut off power, and tested the Texas Department of Transportation.
“Snow and ice are not unheard of in Texas but we don’t see them often,” Cory explained. “So, you can imagine that seven days of record cold, heavy snow, and power outages were not something anyone was prepared to navigate.”
Every available machine, motor graders specifically, needed to go out and get out quickly so that Texas DOT and contractors could tackle the snow and keep roads clear to the best of their abilities.
RDO team members at several stores stepped up and stepped in to help and ensure all capable machines were ready to go and delivered promptly in the extraordinary time of need. They also stayed on top of parts needs, getting replacement and wear parts out to customers quickly.
Cory described the team’s efforts as, “heroic,” and they played an essential role in battling the historic storm. “There was no power and the conditions were tough, but our team members did what they could to get to the stores and get these machines serviced, ready, and out,” Cory said.
Up Next for Texas
With the pandemic year and follow-up winter of 2021 in the rearview mirror, the Buda store takes center stage as a key area of focus for the region. While the store is not set to be completed and open until 2022, Cory hints that there may already be more expansion in the works.
“There is a vision of continued growth for RDO in Texas,” he said with a smile. “I think we will have more exciting news to share soon…stay tuned.”
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Follow along all summer as RDO takes a road trip across nine states to highlight our stores, people, and communities. Join our communities on
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