Liquid assets
Propane company one of few still in family hands, 3 generations later
Propane company one of few still in family hands, 3 generations later
By Adam Wilmoth
Published: June 29, 2007
SEMINOLE — Much has changed since the propane and butane industry sold fuels in storage tanks built by welding shut the ends of a pipe.
"In the early years, propane and butane were just a byproduct,” said Ken Green, the third-generation owner of Seminole-based Oklahoma Liquefied Gas. "They were vented into the atmosphere or burned until somebody figured out it has more value than that.”Advertisement
Family ownership
OLG also is one of the even smaller number of propane companies still under family ownership into the third generation.
"I came in at a time when I enjoyed this and I felt like (I) would be part of it,” Ken Green said.
Ken grew up around the company. He began working at his father's store when he was 14 and drove a truck for the company when he was 18. Ken took over the company when he was 22 after his father died.
Many companies have been sold because the children or grandchildren of the founders didn't want to stay in the business.
"It's amazing how many propane dealers' children went on to be doctors, lawyers or other professionals,” Ken Green said. "They've moved up a rung or two above mom and dad. We've had a lot of people who did well on their own and chose not to go into the industry. I think that is a compliment to the business that the industry was able to give children other opportunities.”
Ken's children are in high school and college. It is still unclear whether they will continue the family business.
"They may take an interest,” he said. "I think it's hard to say.”
Reducing costs
OLG has sought to remain competitive by drastically reducing costs during the past decade. Improved efficiencies have allowed OLG to reduce its fleet to 12 trucks, down from 20 just a decade ago.
"We've focused on getting our personnel motivated to sell more per truck,” Ken Green said. "We encourage customers to keep their tanks full. Propane in your tank is better than sitting in our storage tanks. And we've improved the efficiency per truck. We've pumped more through the truck than before, and we've tried to reward people through compensation.”
OLG also is relying on computer programs to help coordinate shipping schedules to make them more efficient. The effort has reduced the company's annual mileage by about 50 percent.
"We've added equipment to our trucks so that when our drivers pull up to customers' houses, the meters will tell the driver where we are at, who the customer is, how much they owe, when they paid last and how much their tanks should hold,” Ken Green said.
The technology is designed to speed up the driver's work. It also allows new or substitute drivers to quickly and easily fill in for regular drivers.
OLG has about 40 employees. The number has fluctuated, but remains relatively stable.
The company now has eight sales locations and four additional storage sites. The company serves 12,000 customers throughout central Oklahoma.
Efficiencies are becoming increasingly important throughout the industry.
"The industry is changing,” Hess said. "It's becoming more competitive. People have to be able to exist on small margins, and to exist on smaller margins, you have to be efficient.”
The Oklahoma Propane Gas Association offers a series of trainings to help its members become more efficient.
Efficiencies may be becoming increasingly important, but current operators already have an advantage, Hess said.
"We're down from 1,700 dealers to 230, so obviously these 230 are the better-skilled business people,” he said. "You're competing with the people with the skills, so you'd better be skilled as well. Those dealerships that are still around today are better trained and better equipped to compete.”
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