Author

Steve Relyea

Steve Relyea has written for B2B publications for more than 30 years. He has specialized in reporting on skilled trades, small businesses and entrepreneurs.

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  • Equipment

    Before Speccing Service or Crane Trucks Consider These 16 Questions

    As you’re selecting the chassis and equipment for a new service truck or crane truck, you should also be thinking about your business, how it has changed since you last bought a truck, and how it may change over the next several years. Ready with that information, you will be better able to work with a truck builder to create a truck that will meet your needs throughout its operating life. Ten representatives of propane truck builders and truck equipment manufacturers shared with BPN some questions buyers should be prepared to answer when they sit down with a builder to spec out a new work truck . What Operations Will the Truck Be Used to Perform? Knowing how the truck will be used will help...

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  • Feature Articles

    Preventing Or Resolving Top Complaints By Propane Consumers

    When asked how they resolve complaints from customers, two propane marketers gave similar answers. “I try to satisfy the customer,” Steve Chase, president and CEO of FSi Oil and Propane (South Hadley, Mass.), told BPN. “I will bend over backwards, and I think most companies will. But if I can’t satisfy the customer, then we part as friends.” “I calm it down and actually have a discussion,” Tyler McCormick, president of Collett Propane (Xenia, Ohio), answered. “I very rarely lose a customer on bad terms. If they do want to end the relationship, I try to end it on positive terms.” Both Collett Propane and FSi Oil and Propane have A+ rankings from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), are BBB accredited, and have won awards...

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  • Feature Articles

    Suburban Propane, Oberon Fuels Bring New Fuels To Market

    While continuing to promote propane autogas as a clean fuel for transportation, Suburban Propane Partners LP (Whippany, N.J.) is also supporting the development of an even cleaner, renewable alternative. The company has acquired a 39% stake in Oberon Fuels (San Diego, Calif.), a development-stage producer of renewable dimethyl ether (rDME) transportation fuel. Suburban Propane has also committed to provide additional funding to support continuing development efforts to begin commercializing an rDME/propane blended product. The company will have the exclusive rights to work with Oberon to market and sell rDME and rDME/propane blends in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The initial customers for the blends are likely to be over-the-road transportation fleets, especially those that are in California and those that are already fueled by...

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  • Showroom Provides Propane Experience, Personal Touch

    At a newly opened propane appliance showroom in Virginia, visitors can enjoy a coffee bar with hot water supplied by a tankless water heater, view different fireplace vignettes, and relax under a pergola while gathered around a grill island or a fire pit. The showroom was the center of attention during an Aug. 1 open house celebrating Holtzman Propane ’s new location in Tappahannock.   The Tappahannock branch is the fourth retail propane location operated in Virginia by Holtzman Propane and it is the second opened just this year. All the branches offer fireplaces, inserts, space heaters, and hot water heaters. Each is a one-stop shop offering propane appliance sales, installation, service, and repair. Each also features a showroom to showcase the equipment that is...

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