Crest Truck started out in a four-bay shop in 1972. Today, not much more than 30 years later, the family-owned business has expanded to four locations serving the industry throughout the Mid-Atlantic region through sites in Bowmansville, Abington, and Seneca, PA, as well as Mt. Airy, MD. “We began as just a father-son operation — Norm Ziegler Sr. and Norm Ziegler Jr. — to service the construction industry as an installation and distribution point for Reading Body Works,” said Kris Ziegler, sales manager specialty equipment. “In the beginning Crest Truck’s focus was on standard equipment. When we began expanding the range of our services and products, things took off. We got more involved with fleet services as well as heavy mechanic’s equipment, mobile hydraulic equipment, cranes, and aerial buckets and much, much more,” added Scott Ziegler, marketing manager Crest Truck is known up and down the East Coast by many operators as the “Mega Supermarket of Truck Equipment,” offering a full-line of services and products. Crest Truck Equipment is a full-line truck equipment distribution and installation center with 100,000 sq. ft. of total production space, and 65 state-of-the-art work bays. It represents literally hundreds of products, specializing in service bodies, dump bodies, snowplows, mobile hydraulic equipment, cranes, and much more including truck accessories. Products include air compressors, cable savaging equipment, cargo equipment, clutch pumps, conversion hoists, cranes, dump bodies, generators, hose and fittings, hose reels, hydraulic systems, inverters, ladder racks, liftgates, lift axles, lighting, lube trucks, power takeoffs (PTO), reel loaders, rodders & rodder pullers, service bodies, snowplows, spreaders, stake bodies, tarp systems, tire bodies, tool boxes, towing, van bodies, van interiors, winches and pre-wet systems. “If your truck needs it, we got it. If we don’t have it, odds are your truck probably doesn’t need it,” said Scott. “Literally any customer can come into here and can get anything they need in truck equipment and we mean anything.” Not only does it have everything for trucks, Crest Truck custom builds trucks to meet customers’ specifications. “With 20 plus years of combined fabrication experience, the fabrication shop can handle just about any request. From specific parts to complete bodies, Crest will build it. Whether in steel or aluminum, we can offer a wide variety of products that we have already built, or we can build to your specifications,” said Kris. He said Crest uses AutoCAD to design specific items prior to their actual construction, which allows customers to review the design before any fabrication begins, virtually eliminating any rework. “With over 40 years of combined engineering experience, Crest’s engineering department can perform all engineering services for your specialized vehicles,” Kris added. He said this includes proposal drawings, production drawings, precise layout drawings, custom parts fabrication prints, electrical and hydraulic schematics, and weight and center of gravity calculations. “With AutoCAD 2000, we can also help with specifications and recommendations on equipment to decrease the cost and increase the performance of the vehicle,” he added. “We perform center of gravity analysis, stability analysis to prevent over weight problems and to ensure that what goes onto the trucks will work right and be safe.” Crest’s 100-plus experienced mechanics, all ASE-certified technicians, can often be considered artists as they literally build a truck from scratch for customers. “In this business everyone has different needs for their various truck equipment. There are different applications for every machine. It is a challenge we welcome. It is very creative and fun. We’re good listeners. We have to be,” said Kris. Listening to the customers not only gets new business, but also retains old customers and strengthens customer loyalty,” he said. “We are constantly notifying our customers about changes that could impact their business or their vehicle. We keep them up to date on changes we are making with our equipment from year to year. We fill them in on what types of new equipment are available that might interest them,” said Kris. He said there have been a lot of changes, especially with underhood-type of accessories, such as welders or compressors. “It varies literally from month to month, especially under the hood, because of the widespread use of onboard computers. For example, there is a very large excavating company right down the street that just this year we had to change their whole configuration because of all the changes. But everything went well, because, with more than 100 mechanics, we have the experience, expertise and resources needed. Our 100 mechanics means there are a lot of wrenches turning in our shops in all four locations every day,” Kris explained. Scott said that the company’s retention program, which has been written up in several publications, helps them keep more loyal and hard-working mechanics on staff. “We sometimes don’t see our customers for months or years. But, the technicians stay on the ball. They are very knowledgeable and provide quick service and advice on how to meet all regulations and safety inspections. No one wants to get held up on a job and our mechanics make sure the trucks will pass muster before they leave here,” said Scott. “You can’t just put equipment out the door as quick as you used to because of the complex equipment. Everything is inspected very closely — from decals to chassis —and everywhere in between. We are fully aware of the ramifications of noncompliance and keep our customers up to date and on top of things,” Scott added. Crest will build any truck, but specializes in trucks for demolition, utilities, heavy construction, mining, and transportation authorities. “We enjoy taking a raw product and turning it into a masterpiece that will make a customer’s job successful. We might combine 100 manufacturers’ pieces and parts and marry them all together to make a machine that profits much for our customers. We enjoy making one harmonious unit,” said Scott. “We handle the most premier lines in the industry. The true Mercedes in this business. This draws a lot of people to us. We build all types of heavy equipment. We build equipment for some of the largest contractors in the country,” Scott added. They also have units pre-assembled and “ready to roll,” he added. In this case, Crest buys the chassis and components so another machine is ready to roll in case of an accident or long-term breakdown. The Zieglers say that Crest Truck pays attention to every little detail — including the truck’s appearance. “We have our own in house paint facilities. Trucks are great showpieces and help our customers get more work,” said Scott. Crest utilizes an environmentally-friendly Electro-Static paint process that helps ensure complete coverage of even the most difficult top coat. Crest has five available paint booths. In addition, they also cover multi-tone applications and handle all decal applications. For more information, call 800/848-3102 or visit www.crest-trucks.com. This story also appears on Construction Equipment Guide.
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