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 Southern Tank Leasing became and remains an industry leader because of its people. Boyd Duckett is quick to tell you that the people of Southern Tank Leasing are excellent at what they do because they have a long history in the industry.
Duckett has been part of the tank trailer industry since he was a teenager working in his father’s two-bay shop in Charlotte, North Carolina in the 1970’s.
He stayed in the industry - working first in repair and later sales - for more than 15 years. And then in 1991, Boyd and a former partner, James Suttles, started Southern Tank Leasing.
From the beginning Duckett had eyes on expansion, but the company initially established its base in Demopolis, Alabama. The company has since established terminals in Tennessee, Texas, Illinois and Florida – but Southern Tank Leasing’s headquarters remain in Demopolis.
Also from the beginning, Southern Tank Leasing approached the tank trailer business from a different perspective. The company offered a short-term rental program, which was not standard operating procedure in 1991.
“Back in ‘91, I saw what I thought was a great opportunity in our business. Because of the rising cost of equipment and the ever-changing environment that exists in the industry generally, I felt there was a need for short-term rentals. It was an idea that met a need for a lot of customers,” Duckett said.
Southern Tank Leasing started with a fleet of roughly 50 used tank trailers. Many of the tanks needed repair before they were roadworthy, which leads to another of Southern Tank Leasing’s primary services.
“The short-term rental program was the basis for this business. But simultaneously, when we started the business, I knew that we would have to either pay outside vendors to service our fleet – or we would have to build our own repair shop, Duckett said.
“We certainly wanted high-quality servicing, and we wanted to control our own quality. So we hired people some good people, and ‘boom,” that put us in the repair business as well as the rental business.”
Duckett said, “We’ve done it right. There are many repair shops in the country, but I think we offer more experience than anyone in the industry. We are ASME welders. We know how to handle wreck repairs. And we know how to design a tank trailer that will meet what our customers need.”
Southern Tank Leasing’s Quality Service centers employ more than 40 specialists.
Southern Tank Leasing offers full-service sales, rental and repair terminals in Demopolis, Alabama; Springfield, Tennessee; and Houston, Texas. The company also offers tank trailer leasing services in Chicago; and Valrico, Florida.
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