Spotlight on Tribute Customer TriHQ - Celebrating 50 Years in Business

Celebrating their 50th anniversary in business September 17, 1971, TriHQ – Hose Headquarters was one of Tribute’s first Canadian customers and has been running their business on Tribute software since 1994.  Established as Hose Headquarters Limited, TriHQ has evolved into a complete solution provider for the fluid power and hose industry while retaining the original family-owned personal service philosophy, operating out of a 14,000 SQ FT facility in London, ON.

The TriHQ team specializes in providing innovative custom solutions, repairs, and quality hydraulic, pneumatic, instrumentation and hose and fittings components. Their focus is on increasing uptime and reducing operating costs by providing high-quality solutions and services. They distribute Parker, Dixon, BVA, Klondike and Wika among many other major manufacturer products.

TriHQ strives to bring expert knowledge to each project they serve; ensuring optimal performance by understanding the details and challenges unique to each application.

 About the TriHQ Team & Culture

TriHQ opened their doors with two employees, owners Millard & Camy Tilley, and shortly thereafter, was joined by Mike Tilley, who now serves as president of the company.  To date, the family-owned business has grown to a team of 18 employees.  Long employee retention is not unusual at TriHQ.  In fact, many of their employees garner more than 20 years of service and many have retired with 30 years of service.  This longevity speaks to the culture and 3-core values that TriHQ operates on daily. 

• People First: TriHQ operates on a people first mentality. They recognize their employees and customers have families and other responsibilities that need to come first.
• Integrity: Continuing with Millard Tilley’s mission, people know when they deal with TriHQ, they will be treated right at all times.
• Customer Service Driven: They exist to make their customers better and to help them achieve their goals and they do that with quality people, quality products and a level of passion and caring that leaves them always knowing they matter to TriHQ.

Dan Barnes, Project Coordinator & Quality System Manager, is their current long-standing employee with 30 years and counting. 

Dan shares, “When I started at TriHQ (Hose Headquarters) in June 1991, I had no idea that it would be the start of a career-spanning journey which is now thirty years old, as of August 2021.  Since my beginning in shipping/receiving, I’ve done many other roles including customer service supervisor and outside sales on the road.

Why am I still on this journey?  Ownership and management that has supported and mentored me constantly over that time with compassion and realistic expectations that have been recognized countless times.  Co-workers who respect and encourage one another, and an overall sense of family and togetherness that I’ve not seen anywhere else during my 45 years in the workforce.”

Bill Smith, Vice President & General Manager shares some additional insight on industry changes observed over the past 50 years and how Tribute software has been a steady force along the way.

What significant industry changes have you seen over the last 50 years?

“Technology is the easy answer, but the biggest change is in the thought process of our customers regarding their equipment and the role we fulfill for them. In the beginning, it was about getting things back up and running as quickly as possible. Today it is about how can it be better, faster, stronger, more reliable. It is today’s proactive, always be improving, approach versus the reactive approach of the past that is the biggest change.”

What significant changes has TriHQ made over the last 50 years?

“We began providing hose and fittings to the construction industry to fill a market void in London, Ontario, but today our focus is much more widespread as a complete supplier of fluid power products and services across many markets including automotive, defense, food and beverage, and agriculture.”

TriHQ has been running their business on Tribute software since 1994.  Find out what they find most valuable about our company and ERP solutions…

“’Stability’ is the key word with Tribute. We have been a customer for many years and it’s a workhorse. We have utilized many key features that Tribute has to offer like the job module for in-house work orders which helps streamline our internal processes.”

The Tribute team congratulates TriHQ on its 50th anniversary in business.  We are proud to serve as their ERP software solution partner for 27 of those years (and counting)!