Feb 2019 Best in the West: CK Mechanical (Part 1)

Network and build.

Kevin Maston was working for another plumbing company and was constantly getting calls from his family, friends and acquaintances requesting plumbing work. Not comfortable working for an employer and doing side work, Maston started CK Mechanical at age 34 with $1,350 in his bank account.

He went door-to-door, introducing himself, and the business he was starting. He eventually reached out to contractors and met a homebuilder. Maston got into business with a homebuilder, and started building new homes within the first year he began his business.

Listen to Feb 2019 Best in the West: CK Mechanical (Part 1) with Kevin Maston

In that first year, Maston worked out of his house. He spent long hours Monday to Saturday in the field, leaving Sunday for paperwork. When a competitor complained to city officials, Maston moved into a commercial building, which was a little storage unit. In its second year of business, CK Mechanical plumbed more than 100 new residential homes and had a growing clientele.

In 2006, Maston got in touch with the largest commercial construction contractor in Casper, Wyoming (a longtime acquaintance), and acquired his first two commercial jobs, which were settled and agreed upon over a handshake. That is how CK Mechanical started doing commercial construction projects. In 2008, with 10 additional employees on board, CK Mechanical outgrew the storage unit and moved to its current location in Mills, Wyoming.

During this time, CK Mechanical had established strong service, new commercial construction and new residential construction divisions, and became a well-known plumbing contractor throughout Wyoming. By 2010, the service department was really taking off. Through strong branding and exclusive trademarked programs, CK Mechanical had become a household name in Casper.

In 2010, an experienced project manager from northern Colorado reached out to Maston through mutual acquaintances. Together, they expanded CK Mechanical into much larger construction jobs, including schools.

“We have built 10 new schools in Wyoming to date and have undertaken major remodels on several others,” says Terra Nevins, office manager at CK Mechanical. “Between 2010 and today, Kevin has bought four plumbing companies and integrated them into CK Mechanical, which has also really helped our company grow and foster its client base. We are celebrating 15 years this year.

“Kevin has been really inspired by industry leaders such as Flank Blau, Al Levi, George Brazil, Kenny Chapman, David Heimer and other big names in the plumbing service industry. Leading us to join and actively participate in many affinity groups, helping CK Mechanical grow and solidify the service department.”

CK Mechanical currently has more than 20 employees, between the office staff, master plumbers, journeymen and apprentices. With four service vehicles and four trucks, the company works throughout every municipality in the state of Wyoming and is involved with IAPMO, RPA and Service Roundtable.

To read more about CK Mechanical and learn what trucks they have, be sure to check out the March print issue for Part 2 of this feature. RJ 2.0

This article was originally posted on www.reevesjournal.com.

KEYWORDS: business strategy

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Nadia Askar is the former group multimedia editor for BNP Media’s Plumbing Group. She was responsible for leading the direction of the brand’s digital and social presence by ensuring the brand websites and social media outlets are consistently updated, and interacting with readers and followers.