Top Fifty Fastest Growing Companies: Ira G. Steffy & Sons Inc.

Ira G. Steffy & Son Inc. has grown tremendously since its inception 20 years ago. The Ephrata-based company was formed by Dennis L. Steffy and his father, the late Ira G. Steffy in 1976, with the purchase of a local four-man welding shop. The new company boasted three full-time employees and sales revenues of $60,000 in its first year of operation. Since then, the business has not only expanded its focus and purpose, but grown in personnel and revenue.

The company fabricates and erects steel and miscellaneous metals, which include materials for stairways, handrails, mezzanines, catwalks and such. Originally, the business handled only general repair and industrial welding in the Ephrata area. Ira G. Steffy & Son now dispatches crews to projects in Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland, and employs 74 people. Although the business went through a tough time in the early 1990s, during a downturn in the construction industry, the company has witnessed steady economic growth and generated 1998 sales revenues just shy of $18 million.

Dennis Steffy says the company's growth can be attributed to hard work and the determination to provide his customers with quality products and services. Jim Bell, corporate controller for the company, elaborates: 'The only way you grow any business is to deliver quality products and services to your customer in a timely manner. if you're doing that within their budget and within their schedule, you develop a reputation for doing that and that will eventually lead to repeat customers and your name getting around as a quality company."

Bouras Industries Inc., a manufacturer of components for structural steel buildings in Summit, NJ., has worked with Ira G. Steffy & Son for 15 years. In that time, the company has come to experience first-hand the quality workmanship the Ephrata business imparts. "It's been a good business relationship, without a doubt, but it's also been a kind of friendship, too," says Tim Day, manager of sales for Bouras, which provides products that Steffy & Son uses for projects. 'The salesmen that I've had involved with their company have always become pretty close with the employees. Dennis Steffy himself has always been active in the day-to-day operations of the company. It's been a very positive experience working with them."

The Norwood Co., a construction management firm with offices in West Chester, Allentown and Harrisburg, has also worked with Ira Steffy & Son on several projects over the last few years.

"We had 13, 14 bidders from all up and down the East Coast, all over the place and they were the most competitive," says Ray Wright, senior project manager for the company. Steffy & Son also proved to be a flexible company to work with, offering extra help when a project fell behind schedule, "They worked with us and brought another erector on board to speed up the erection process so we gained a lot of time back. They worked with us and were very cooperative."

Along with its reputation for quality work, Steffy says recent growth comes from a successful restructuring process he instituted after a slow period in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He says he came to the realization that along with hard work, he needed to find quality project managers and began looking for ways to expand his management team. In finding qualified managers, he tried to make sure everyone in the company fully understood the goals and directions of the corporation. After he was comfortable with the management team he had assembled, he began delegating tasks that allowed each person to work in his area of expertise.

Steffy advises other business people to establish company goals early on and to devise a plan to reach them. He also thinks it's important to make sure all employees are fully aware of these goals and truly believe in the company's mission. After that is established, he says, success is a process of taking calculated risks and working hard to achieve them. He cautions, however, that smart business people recognize their own limitations along the way and get help when they need it.