Hershey Equipment Co. (HEC) began with the vision that staying down on the farm
is the best way to stay current with customer needs. In 1964 Don and Joyce Hershey
founded HEC to install and repair poultry equipment. For years the company was
operated out of their home and poultry farm, which they purchased in 1958 at
Coffee Street Acres in Millersville, Pa.
By 1973 Hershey Equipment had become the recognized specialist in installing and
servicing poultry equipment.
Big Dutchman, the leading manufacturer in poultry
equipment in the world, approached HEC to become their distributor for the
Mid-Atlantic States.
This partnership teamed HEC's installation and continuing service with
Big Dutchman's
line of equipment, a winning combination. Customer systems are designed for egg
production and pullet growing cages as well as floor systems for broilers, organic
layers and breeder layers.
After several interim expansions, HEC moved its headquarters to its present location
on Plane Tree Drive in Lancaster.
By 1980, HEC had become the largest distributor for
Big Dutchman in the United States
and supplemented its product line with turnkey project solutions for
steel buildings,
grain storage systems and feed mills. Now they could offer their customers one stop
shopping-from engineering and building construction to equipment sales, installation
and service.
Continuing the trend to offer more products and services, from 1987 to 1990, HEC
secured distributorships for
Chief Systems, Inc., designer and manufacturer of
quality steel buildings, and Grain Sytems, Inc. designer and manufacturer of grain
handling and storage equipment, making them a dominant force in the marketplace.
Also, HEC transformed its truck maintenance facility to include a Truck Repair Center and Pennsylvania Inspection Station
equipped to repair its fleet of diesels,
plus service and repair outside fleets. Our own fleet includes 30 service trucks and
3 cranes-all equipped with the latest tool technology.
HEC has extended its market coverage from the Mid Atlantic States, to include the
Midwest and the South, setting up satellite offices in both Ohio and South Carolina
to better service its ever expanding customer base in these areas.
Today we have 125 dedicated employees specializing in Sales, Design, Engineering,
Project Supervision, Welding, Millwrighting, Plumbing, Electrical, Installation,
Service and Repair Technicians, Crane Operators and Parts Sales.
Our in house
fabricating shop allows us to offer you custom work so you can utilize
your space more productively.
Sensitive to the timeliness of your needs, we carry a complete
parts inventory so we
can service and repair everything we sell. And our technicians are on call 365 days
a year.
True to their vision, Don and Joyce continue to manage the farm and the company-all the
while, keeping their customers’ best interest in mind.
It all started with a great idea.
