Memories from the Past and Hopes for the Future - Palmer Power's 20th Anniversary

In 2001, Palmer Trucks officially opened its own fabrication shop, Palmer Power & Truck Equipment. Over the past 20 years, Palmer Power & Truck Equipment has grown exponentially, become the leading Beau-Roc dump bed distributor, and continues to provide our customers with world-class services and products.

We sat down with Chief Operating Officer Tom Kapitan to discuss the past 20 years. 

Tell me what you remember about the opening of Palmer Power.

Well, it actually started with a single upfit. We convinced John [Nichols] to allow for one stall in the current PacLease building to put on our first dump bed. Before we knew it, we took the whole building over. 

What are some of your favorite memories over the years? 

Our partnership with Beau-Roc definitely stands out. We paired the top-of-the-line Kenworth truck with the top-of-the-line dump bed. Since then, we’ve always been a top five distributor for Beau-Roc, but in 2021, we became the top distributor. 

One of the most fulfilling things is seeing our technicians build the custom trucks for our NTEA show each year. Not only is it amazing to commemorate causes such as breast cancer awareness and the military, but the pride those technicians have over that project is incredible. 

What has changed over the past 20 years?

It’s been amazing to see Palmer Power grow from just putting on dump beds to installing everything from wet kits to lift axles and everything in-between. We’ve made ourselves fully equipped to service the entire vocational market, which has been game-changing for our customers. We’re able to control the quality of our upfits from beginning to end.

We’ve also moved the fabrication shop four times over the past 20 years, so there have been a lot of changes in scenery over the years! 

What are your hopes for the future of Palmer Power & Truck Equipment? 

It will be exciting to see how we complement the new medium duty product line from Kenworth.  

We’re always looking to expand for the benefit of our customers, so we hope to eventually get into the Class 5 & 6 markets.  

To that point though, while we’re always looking to grow in ways that enhance our customers’ operations, we never want to be the biggest. We do want to be the best!