Business View Magazine
3
Brains of the Operation
Jeff Parrett, V.P. of the Wheeler Lumber division in
South Dakota, knows first-hand the value of company
history and how it translates to a prosperous future.
“I’ve been here 28 years and when I came in there
were a lot of older gentlemen I got to meet. With his-
tory, comes a lot of brain power. We’ve learned from
our mistakes. When we talk to people, we let them
know we’ve done this thing before – we know what
the issues are, what to avoid and how to approach it.
This experience applies not just on the lumber side,
but with engineering and other facets of the business
we’ve developed.”
Corporate-wide, Wheeler has a labor force of about
125. That number fluctuates with the seasons. The
treating plant, for example, has between 12 and 30
workers, depending on product demand at different
times of the year.
While Wheeler’s core business is centred in the up-
per mid-west, Parrett notes, “Our Erickson Engineer-
ing division for structural design pretty much sticks to
the Minnesota office, but we do sell nationwide. Our
AT A GLANCE
WHO:
Wheeler
WHAT:
Providing quality building materials and
services for a variety of construction segments in
public and private infrastructures.
WHERE:
CorporateHeadquarters–DesMoines, Iowa
Major Facilities Locations–SouthDakota,Minnesota,
Kansas
WEBSITE
:
Jeff Parrett
