The Thorps have a simple philosophy when it comes to maintaining a high-quality fleet: “We would much rather work it than work on it. Our customers expect us to perform and you can’t do that very well with outdated equipment.”
That focus on high standards is one of the reasons his family business, Tom Thorp Transport, has been operating for over 50 years, offering a wide variety of oilfield and construction services in the San Angelo, Texas area.
“The key to our success has been treating customers right and operating the newest, most modern equipment we can afford to buy,” said Wayne Thorp, who started taking over the family business with his brothers, Kevin and Jim, around the late 1980s.
“We spent a lot of money continuously upgrading the fleet and we’ve got maintenance schedules for everything we own. Maintaining it correctly is critical for our operations. And that’s why you see a bunch of really late-model stuff in this fleet. It’s a fairly modern fleet compared to others in the industry.”
The full dispersal for Tom Thorp Transport will be held on September 10, with over 200 items selling live on-site and online in an unreserved auction that features both live onsite and online bidding. Onsite inspection will be available starting September 2. The available inventory includes low-hour equipment such as: 2024 CPS 4B240 11 ft T/A Belly Dump Trailer, 2024 Peterbilt 548 6×4 T/A Dump Truck, a 2019 Caterpillar D8T crawler tractor, and much more.
Wayne’s father Tom started the business in 1972 with one hot oil truck and it eventually grew to become a 24/7 operation servicing the eastern Permian Basin in Texas. For decades, the family business withstood the typical boom-and-bust cycles well known in the oil and gas industry.
“If you protect yourself in those downturns, and be ready to go when it picks up again, you’ll be a safe player,” said Wayne. “We never overextended ourselves, grew at a pace we knew we could afford to grow on, never took on too much financial risk, and never got knocked out.”
Leaving the industry means Wayne, who enjoys flying his own airplane, will finally be able to enjoy some rare time off.
“It’s family-run and family-owned, and we were right in the middle of it every day. It will take some adjustment, but I’m at peace with it. I’m ok.”