Change is a constant in life, and with change comes inevitable evolution. It’s human nature to create a better way of doing things through creative innovation. Successful companies move with the times, but Chilliwack’s TYCROP Manufacturing takes that one step further with innovative solutions for the present and the future.
A humble start and a modest man
In the beginning Gary Teichrob had an idea to improve existing farming technology on his family’s Rosedale farm and that intitial spirit of improvement through innovation is still where the company focuses — on a larger scale. It’s all about bringing IDEAS to life (Innovate, Design, Engineer, Actualize, Support). But how does one idea become make a leading industry innovator?
Back in 1978, Chilliwack was well-known for its agricultural industry — and still is today — and it’s on one of those farms that the multinational company started. When Gary Teichrob was a young, newly married man, he was working on his family farm in Rosedale, figuring out what he wanted to do for a living. Although he’d grown up on the farm, he knew it wasn’t his calling. “I was a kid with an active imagination – always thinking about how to do things better,” he says.
Working with his dad, he realized their forage wagon had a few flaws — it got stuck in the mud, took too long to unload, and worse, its weight was damaging the fields. Gary turned his agile mind to figuring out a better design. Commandeering the farm’s dirt-floored machine shed, he got to work.
The result was a wagon that “floated” on larger aircraft tires. It could carry 1.5 times the load, and by adding a hydraulic drive, unloading time was reduced to a mere 3o seconds! Gary and his young bride, Elaine, put in every extra minute they had to design and build it in just one month.
Word soon got around that Gary’s machine was superior to others on the market. One thing led to another, and with some local prompting, he took his new machine to the Chilliwack Farmers’ Fair. Soon enough, Gary knew what he wanted to do for a living, and with a growing company, he was giving others a living too while making work on the farm faster and safer.
Still, Gary doesn’t take much credit for his role. “I can take credit as the founder, but as soon as you get past Day One, it’s all about the people who work for you. It’s those people who grew the business.”
From wagons to trailers
It seems an obvious connection between producing goods on a farm and moving it across the province and beyond. If you’ve been on the open road, chances are, you’ve been behind a TYCROP trailer moving goods of many kinds to facilities and ports. TYCROP started building trailers in the early 80s and currently operates out of a facility in Sardis.
If you build it, you know best how to repair it, and TYCROP started their Trailercraft division, where parts, service, and professional restoration are available for their own and other products.
From wagons to trailers to golf greens
Never one to let the grass grow under his feet, Gary continued to pursue ways to grow the business, beginning to build highway trailers in the early 80s in Sardis, and developing turf equipment for golf courses in 42 different countries. The trailer-manufacturing side led to work in the oil and gas sector under Propell in Calgary, Alberta and Grandbury, Texas.
Moving into the future the spirit of innovation that shaped TYCROP in Rosedale moves with the times, implementing environmentally friendly, energy-efficient , new ways of moving industry forward, helping to bridge the gap to a cleaner tomorrow.
Find your future here too
Gary is proud of what TYCROP has become over its 43 years. “Our most valuable asset is our people – and it shows. The people that work at TYCROP come here, learn here, and stay here for many years. It is this collective expertise and a never-ending pursuit of improvement through teamwork that gives our company a proven ability and sustainability,” he notes. “We are currently hiring for a variety of roles. Come explore a career with us and let’s see what we can do together.”
Learn more about TYCROP and the career opportunities available at tycropcareers.com.
