rapid growth at Delta T Systems
Customer service and ensuring a quality product may be business buzzwords, but to Art Kunde and Chuck Snyder, the words are guiding principles. With the conviction that whatever big companies could do, they could do better, the duo set out to do just that when they formed the Richfield-based Delta T Systems, a manufacturer of liquid circulating temperature-control systems, in 1990.
It was a belief that turned out to be profitable as the company saw an average growth rate of 30% per year, earning it a place on the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce’s Future 50 list of fast-growing companies.
“What we do is not rocket science by any means, but we do build good, quality equipment at competitive prices,” observes Kunde. “Our approach to the marketplace is that we build our equipment with all off-the-shelf components that blend aesthetically well in the workplace, and not to get involved with proprietary designs and re-invent the wheel, so to speak.”
Starting from scratch
Kunde’s nuts-and-bolts background began at Sterling, Inc., a larger manufacturing company based in Milwaukee, where he worked with his future partner, Chuck Snyder. It was after an investment group purchased the company in 1988 that the two realized that they needed a change. “I left with my partner, Chuck, because we didn’t agree with the philosophies of big business,” says Kunde. “We stayed with them for about a year and a half before we realized what was going on, and felt that we really didn’t want to be a part of all that.”
Although the two had the technical know-how, they lacked the practical business knowledge they would need to begin their venture. Not to be discouraged, Kunde and Snyder began contacting and gathering “pro-tips” from various accounting firms and small business assistance organizations in order to gain the management foundation necessary for their endeavor. “They helped, but you have to kind of take a step back to realize that the business as it was, was just the two of us at that time,” says Snyder. “But as you grow, you start to get into problems in handling different things.”
Delta T Systems started out primarily as a service-oriented company, doing repairs, maintenance and upgrades of temperature-control equipment. It later moved on to actual manufacturing. Snyder explains that while the start-up company was successful in servicing equipment, many customers were asking if they could buy new components directly from Delta T, rather than have existing equipment repaired.
The two turned to Sterling in an attempt to serve as a distributor of their former employer’s equipment. But failing to make a deal with Sterling, Snyder and Kunde decided that they would simply go ahead and manufacture their own equipment.
“That’s why we said, ‘Well, we’ve got all the knowledge we need in order to create a product, let’s buy it.’ And it kind of evolved from there, and we ended up changing our whole direction, 180 degrees, to where we actually make and manufacture parts.”
And the growth has continued for Delta T Systems, which has now moved into the refrigeration side of the temperature-control business by manufacturing liquid process chillers, a move that has literally doubled its business. In order to deal with the increased volume, the company recently expanded its facility from 10,000 square feet to 20,000 square feet.
The duo maintains that the quality of their products is what keeps the customers coming back. “It all goes back to that whole philosophy where we try to provide a high-quality product at a reasonable price and try to give value-added service to the customer,” says Snyder. “If they have any questions, or if they don’t understand the equipment, they are always welcome to call and talk to a live individual.”
