Vancouver, Wash.-based Harlen’s service, attention to detail, quality and versatility set it apart from competitors.

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Vancouver, Wash.-based Harlen’s Drywall has more than 30 years of service in the Pacific Northwest region, and says it has built solid relationships with clients and suppliers.

Over the years, these relationships have allowed the company to become increasingly competitive and offer quick job starts, faster turnarounds and product support.

Owner Tim Hiller started the company with his father soon after he graduated from high school. Since then, it has diversified its services and markets.

“We’re more medical now,” he says. “We’ve diversified into all aspects of interior/exterior finishes, door frames and hardware.”

“We specialize in providing the highest quality of service and commitment to our clients in the commercial and industrial market,” the company says.

“Whether it’s a small wall patch or a multistory high-rise project, Harlen’s Drywall is committed to providing the best-skilled and safest craftsmen available.”

The company works primarily in Oregon and Washington. It occasionally takes on projects in Alaska, including one recent 14-month job.

Hiller says Harlen’s service, attention to detail, quality and versatility set it apart from competitors. “We’ll do everything from demolition to accessory installations, wainscoting – whatever is required,” Hiller says.

“Whatever clients ask us to do, we can take care of it, all the way to concrete work. We’re not scared to just do anything. If we can figure out how to do it, we’ll do it.”

Safety First
Harlen’s Drywall says safety is its first and foremost commitment. “We not only meet OSHA and WISHA standards but we pride ourselves on exceeding their standards,” it states. “When our employees are safe we are more productive and responsive to our clients’ needs.”

The company says it believes that individual employees have the right to “gain personal satisfaction from his/her job, and that prevention of occupational injury or illness is of such consequence to this belief that it will be given top priority at all times.

“It is our intention here [at] Harlen's Drywall to initiate and maintain complete accident prevention and safety training programs,” the company says. “Each individual, from top management to working persons, is responsible for the safety and health of those persons in their charge and co-workers around them. By accepting mutual responsibility to operate safely, we all contribute to the well-being of personnel.”

Repeat Clients
That do-anything attitude keeps customers coming back. “Our repeat customers are some of the biggest players in the Portland and Vancouver areas,” Hiller says. “They’re contractors like Skanska, Howard S. Wright and Anderson Construction.”

Harlen’s Drywall recently completed work on a new headquarters facility for The Columbian newspaper in Vancouver.

The $2.3 million project included exterior structural framing, and interior build-out and finishes, Hiller says.

“We built a Fred Meyer store in Juneau last year,” he says. “It was a $2.2 million, 14-month retail store job. We also do all the work at the Nike World Campus in Beaverton, Ore., working with Howard S. Wright. We do a lot of hospital work, as well as tenant improvement.”

Complete Service
As part of its commitment to customers and ‘do anything’ attitude, Harlen’s Drywall strives to offer a wide range of services.

The company’s complete list of services includes:

• Light-gauge metal stud framing
• Heavy-gauge metal stud framing, including welding
• Drywall
• Insulation
• Stucco
• Veneer plaster
• Acoustical ceiling tile
• Doors and panels
• Sound panels
  

Maintaining Quality
Despite an overall industry slowdown, Harlen’s Drywall remains committed to its core values. “As things tighten up, we still need to maintain quality and service to remain competitive,” Hiller says. “We still have to have something that other people don’t have.”

The company maintains its level of quality and service through field supervision, he says. “I have quality people running the men, who pay attention to details and observe things in the field,” he says. “We put responsibility on the project foreman.

“We always have an open-door policy, from the low man on the totem pole, all the way up,” he adds. “There are no closed doors. We treat our people as equals.”  

Hiller says he expects Harlen’s to continue as a competitive force in the market. “At this time, our workload is coming in faster than we can bid it,” he says.

“There is still a lot of work in our area. I don’t see a slowdown on our end as long as we can maintain service and quality in what we do best.”