Scott Powerline & Utility Equipment

Tom Scott Jr. ventured into the power line and utility industry almost by accident; he noticed some unusual equipment taking residence in a field near Tallulah, La. The equipment was part of a power transmission line being built to Mississippi, and Tom Jr. eventually convinced his father to launch a power line division at the family company, Scott Equipment, even though he knew next to nothing about power lines. Almost 50 years later what started as a son’s dream division is now widely recognized as Scott Powerline & Utility Equipment (Scott), which operates as an independent supplier and service provider of heavy-duty equipment.

“We built this company so clients only have to call one place,” asserts Tom Jr., president and founder of Scott. Tom Jr. officially bought the company in 2000, but he has been with the division throughout its existence. Tom Jr. invested in a fleet of equipment for Scott that bridges the gap between heavy-duty staples and customized accessories and products for highly technical applications.

As it turns out, Tom Jr.’s intuition years ago was spot on, and the company has grown simply by serving as an equipment sales, rental and service specialty company boasting over 400 pieces of equipment specific to the electrical transmission industry. Crawlers, boom trucks, digger derricks, tracked vehicles and cranes are just a few types of equipment Scott offers from a selection of manufacturers, which reads like a roster of the industry’s most trusted brands. Among the companies Scott proudly represents are Tadano Mantis, Elliott, Morooka and National Crane for Vacstar as well as Skylift, Terex Utilities and TSE International.

Scott maintains a team of roughly 40 professionals at the company’s home base in Monroe, La., and a second branch location just south of Atlanta in McDonough, Ga. Both locations are supported by an adjacent manufacturing facility and repair shop stocked with replacement parts, where the team can manufacture custom accessories like hydraulic hoses for use on its equipment.

In a Class of Its Own

The company maintains over a dozen service technicians on staff, some of whom travel around the country in fully stocked trucks to service equipment and get clients back in business. Every Scott service technician is factory-trained and skilled in dielectric testing, making sure every piece of equipment, whether bought or leased from Scott, meets strict safety and performance standards. The company is also available to conduct product orientation sessions to the customer upon receipt of the equipment.

Scott happens to be one of a few companies of its kind in the U.S., and the specialized nature of its equipment doesn’t exactly slim its overhead costs. “The average piece of equipment here runs at least $500,000,” asserts Scott. Among the standout pieces of the fleet are a number of 100-ton cranes and bucket trucks capable of extending over 100 feet. Scott was also the first company to have Terex TM 125 Hi-Ranger in its arsenal, which combines a Powertraxx 18-H hydrostatically driven vehicle with over 350 horsepower with an insulated aerial mount, making it one of the largest units in the industry.

Scott does sell many of the products it represents, but the company’s primary focus has always been leasing the equipment out to contractors who may not want, or have the available liquidity, to invest in a fleet of its own. As one of the largest and oldest company of its kind in the country, Scott has been able to find substantial growth in recent years throughout the economic downturn.

From the Deep South to the South Pole

“Interest is cheap these days,” admits Tom Jr. “It’s not so much a question of how big we want to grow even; it’s a question of how much we want to borrow, and whether or not we can continue to deliver 100 percent on every job.”

Scott even had to turn away jobs in recent years as companies and public agencies all over the country scramble to keep up with the growing need for additional electrical infrastructure, simply because Tom Jr. and the Scott team refuse to provide any service that isn’t 100 percent up to par.

Scott has been a part of many major infrastructural development efforts. The company has sent equipment and service technicians as far away as Canada, Bermuda and South Africa. Other notable projects include shipping two cranes to the research station at the South Pole and shipping several pieces of equipment for use at the bottom of a salt mine.

The company has built itself a strong reputation by aligning itself with the needs of its clients, investing only in equipment and services that empower the clients to deliver projects faster, safer and of better quality than before. The Scott Powerline & Utility Equipment team will continue to find success by going above and beyond for the client and never sacrificing stability, safety or quality for the sake of growth.