Meet Matt Harris

I remember when Kevin hired Matt (pictured in the middle), who was just 19 at the time, back in 1999, to be in charge of Preventative Maintenance.  The office staff, myself included, quickly took a liking to him, and we all not only went out of our way to mother him, but we also peppered him with our sage wisdom.  Over the years, we watched Matt grow into a responsible man, a talented mechanic, a devoted husband, and a doting dad.  Those last two are especially important given that he married the boss’s daughter!

Matt spent about two years doing Preventative Maintenance before Kevin transitioned him to repairs and then ultimately installation.  While Matt has attended a few training sessions, most of his training has been on-the-job with some of the best in the industry.  Today, Matt likes nothing better than to walk into a job, having no clue what to do, face the challenge head on, and then ultimately figure it out.  And the bigger the job, the better.  Here are a few recent examples of big jobs with challenges that he, of course, solved:

• In 2015, a dry cleaner in Raleigh experienced a devastating fire, so Tri-State installed an entire plant’s worth of new dry cleaning equipment in a temporary location.  Just a short time later their new facility was completed, so Tri-State then moved and reinstalled the equipment at the new store.  He spent about a year practically living in Raleigh.
• Then there was the time a broken-down boiler installed in a boiler room was too large to take out through the doorway, so Tri-State had to bring in a crane to remove the old one through the exhaust hole in the roof as well as bring in the new boiler the same way.
• “And it’s always fun,” explained Matt, “When the dry cleaning machine won’t fit through the door.”  But these are the problems Matt enjoys solving.  “No two jobs are ever the same,” he went on, “and each one always teaches me something.”
• Lately, Tri-State has been doing equipment work in Maine with a few linen and uniform companies in dealing with massive washing machines that are 80 feet long.  Matt said it is hard and heavy work, and I hope to share more about that in our next post. 

Of course, even when you love what you do, there are tasks that aren’t so much fun, and for Matt it’s installing conveyors.  Why?  “It is labor intense, there are lots of parts, and everything is overhead,” he shared.  “My arms get really tired.”

With 18 years in this industry, I wondered what sorts of changes he’s experienced.  “Laundry equipment is definitely more computerized than it used to be,” Matt explained.  “A few years ago, washing machines lasted longer and could be repaired with a $30 part.  Today when there’s a problem, it’s usually computer-related and costs significantly more to repair.”

Lastly, I asked him if he had any parting words of wisdom to share.  “I guess to remind folks to always take care of their equipment and to follow the manufacturer’s suggestions on proper care and maintenance,” said Matt.  “Typically equipment that’s really well taken care of doesn’t require nearly as much attention as equipment that’s neglected.”