Like most entrepreneurs, by the time Bill Guthrie founded Guthrie Heli-Arc in 1991 he had already amassed a great deal of experience in his chosen field. His enthusiasm to learn new things and further refine his abilities has led all the way from doing repairs on the family farm to running a successful business – with a stint as president of the Rochester Chapter of the American Welding Society thrown in for good measure!
Bill began his welding career on his family farm in Pavilion, NY. A strong desire to learn new techniques and methods led him to begin specializing in repairing aluminum. This ability opened new doors in the repair of dump trailers for several local companies. With few shops in the area performing aluminum repairs, Bill soon began doing repairs for local tank lines. Learning the ropes of repairing aluminum and striving for quality had begun to grow the customer base beyond his expectations.
New Federal DOT regulations arrived in 1991, specifically 49 CFR 180.413, which required that repairs of DOT/MC specification tanks be performed by the holder of a National Board “R” stamp. The “R” stamp qualification process was begun in preparation for the new regulations. At this time Bill was joined in the business by his daughter Meg. She spearheaded the creation of the necessary welding procedures and set up an approved internal Quality Control System. In addition we also completed the requirements to become a federally registered inspection facility for DOT/MC specification trailers. Further changes that year involved forming the corporation and moving to our current location. What a whirlwind of activity!
With the continued growth of Guthrie Heli-Arc, Meg became our outside sales representative. Her broad range of experience in the truck equipment industry has given us a tremendous advantage.
With the addition of Matt Ryan as our General Manager we further expanded our business to carry a full line of Street Sweepers, Refuse, and Recycleable Collection Trucks. We also offer custom refined fuel delivery trucks and trailers as a distributor for the Progress Tank, Brenner, Garsite, Beall, and Walker tank lines.
In early 2012 Meg assumed the presidency of Guthrie Heli-Arc. We are excited to be moving into the future as a woman owned business.
Throughout the years our commitment to safety, continued training for our workforce, and dedication to quality workmanship has helped set us apart from the competition.