Established in 1981, Ozark Utility is a franchised dealer of Utility Trailer Mfg, a producer of refrigerated trailers. Based in Springfield MO, the company is a full-service truck trailer dealership offering sales, repair services, and parts.
Mike Loveland, service manager at Ozark Utility and 25 year-company veteran, says it’s not unusual to have seven or eight wrecked trailers serviced every month at the repair facility. His team of technicians depends on Touch ‘n Seal’s customer service, 17-gallon Refillable Foam System, and Liner Bond trailer adhesive to return damaged reefer trailer trucks back to their original condition as quickly as possible.
For years, Ozark Utility had been using a competitor of Touch ‘n Seal’s foam systems and were satisfied with the product’s performance. The status quo was altered when Chuck Bahuriak, director of sales–IBM Division specialty markets at Touch ‘n Seal, entered the picture.
When Bahuriak first met with Loveland to introduce him to Touch ‘n Seal’s line of polyurethane foam systems, Loveland said they were content with their current foam system. But Bahuriak suggested Loveland contact the service team at Craftsman Industries, a Utility franchise in St Louis using Touch ‘n Seal’s foam systems to repair reefer trailers.
Loveland took Bahuriak’s suggestion and contacted Craftsman. “I liked Chuck’s non-pushy approach. He genuinely wanted me to get some honest feedback from someone who was using Touch ‘n Seal’s products so I could form my own opinion,” said Loveland.
For almost a year, he gathered feedback on Touch ‘n Seal’s customer service and product performance. Impressed with what he heard, he decided to give Touch ‘n Seal a try, citing “outstanding customer service” as the number one reason for finally placing an order for the company’s 17-gallon Refillable Foam System and Liner Bond trailer adhesive.
“Deciding to place that order was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” said Loveland. “The level of service provided by Chuck and his team help us quickly get the trailers at our facility repaired and back on the road. For example, they typically will have a rep on site within 24 hours if we experience any type of issue.”
One of Ozark’s Utility’s most common reefer trailer repairs are to damaged sidewalls of 53' x 102" Utility trailers. The company uses Touch ‘n Seal’s 17-gallon Refillable Foam System to apply foam to repaired sidewall panels as well as floors and ceilings, when needed. Designed for efficient dispensing of Class 1 fire-retardant spray foam, the system is a cost-effective alternative for high-volume users like Ozark Utility that don’t wish to invest in a full-scale foam rig.
Ozark Utility also uses Touch ‘n Seal’s portable, ready-to-use Liner Bond trailer adhesive to bond fiberglass liners to the prepared spray foam insulation. Five times stronger than other foam adhesives, Liner Bond offers total liner adhesion with a 30-minute open time.
“We used to use an adhesive with a 72-hour cure time,” said Loveland. “Liner Bond has a 24-hour cure time, which significantly reduces our down time and gets the trailers back on the road sooner.”
According to Loveland, his service team can typically restore damaged trailers back to original structural strength and insulation efficiency within a 10-day period.
More information is available at www.touch-n-seal.com or www.ozarkutility.com.
