Trico Equipment, Vineland, N.J.

History: Trico was founded by Joe Pustizzi Sr. in 1952, after he responded to an ad in a Vineland newspaper seeking dealers to sell Case farm equipment. Although he lacked capital, the manufacturer trusted Pustizzi and gave him equipment to sell on consignment. As Case focused more on construction equipment, Pustizzi put his focus on that side of the business. Son Joe Jr. joined the business during the 1960s.

During the late 1970s, Trico began to rent aerial work platforms, beginning in the then-booming Atlantic City market. Younger brother Ken Pustizzi took over the rental division in the early 1980s and has been the driving force in its growth. Today Joe Jr. runs the overall business with Ken concentrating on the rental operations.

Locations: Case dealerships in Vineland, Freehold, So. Plainfield and Totowa, N.J. Aerial and dirt rentals are also conducted from those locations. Stand-alone aerial rental branches in Marcus Hook, Northampton and McKees Rocks, Pa., Beltsville, Md., and Cincinnati.

Trico also participates in the operation of an operated equipment rental company called LRC, out of its Marcus Hook, Pa., branch.

Key executives: Owner and CEO Joe Pustizzi Jr. and owner Ken Pustizzi. Vice presidents of rental operations Chris Carmolingo and Andrew Volponi, vice president of dealership operations Gerry Crouch and chief financial officer Mike Timken.

Philosophy: “When customers talk about rates, we say, ‘Rates are not your issue, but cost. If two electricians are relying on a machine and it breaks down, it's costing you a dollar a minute per man, so what is that costing you?’ Our philosophy is customer service. We're an uptime company, we do whatever we have to do to keep the customer up and running. Our father grew up working with his hands as a mechanic and that's how we grew up, learning to pull wrenches and fix things and sweep floors and do whatever had to be done to take care of the customer.”