LAS VEGAS -- More than 80% of petroleum equipment distributors and manufacturers described themselves as extremely optimistic or optimistic about their businesses during the next three years.
“It is a wonderful time to be in business,” Petroleum Equipment Institute (PEI) Executive Vice President and General Counsel Rick Long said during his state of the industry presentation Oct. 9 at the 2018 PEI Convention in Las Vegas, the equipment association's 68th annual convention and trade show.
In an industry survey, on a scale of 1 to 10, petroleum equipment distributors ranked current business conditions a 7.45, with construction, EMV (EuroPay, Mastercard and Visa) upgrades and testing and compliance performing especially well. More than 14% of surveyed distributors said everything was going well.
Manufacturers rated 2018 a 7.49, citing upgrades and replacement of aging infrastructure as the year’s brightest spot.
Long said PEI members reported finding fewer skimmers this year than last year. He also shared a slide showing the level of interest PEI distributors have in installing electric-vehicle (EV) chargers. “Distributors are saying, 'I'm going to get in the game,'” Long said.
Of surveyed distributors, 3.5% said they are actively engaged in installing EV chargers, 15.8% plan to install EV chargers, 52.6% are considering involvement, and 28% said they have no plans to get involved with EV chargers.
At the event, PEI members elected Charles Burns, president of the Oscar W. Larson Co., Clarkston, Mich., president of the organization. Burns most recently served as PEI vice president. His one-year term will begin Jan. 1, when he will replace current PEI President Robert Peavey, president of PumpTex Inc., Beaumont, Texas. Burns is a member of the PEI strategic long-range planning committee and has served as PEI treasurer and on the PEI education and convention committee and chaired the PEI safety committee.
William Mascott III, president of Mascott Equipment Co. Inc., Portland, Ore., was elected vice president of the association. His term will begin Jan. 1. The association’s board of directors also appointed Stephen Dixon, president and CEO of P.B. Hoidale Co. Inc., Wichita, Kan., as treasurer, effective immediately. Mascott most recently served as PEI treasurer. He previously served on the PEI board and executive committee, and he is on the association’s insurance and strategic long-range planning committees. Dixon is a three-time member of the association’s education and convention committee. He served on the board and executive committee, and he is a former Young Executives member.
Founded in 1951, Tulsa, Okla.-based PEI is made up of more than 1,600 companies engaged in manufacturing and distributing equipment used in the fuel and fluid handling industry. Members are located in 50 states and 81 countries.
Photograph: Shutterstock
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