Tindall owes a great deal of its success to the many talented individuals it has employed over the past 60 years. And while plenty of tenured employees have been with Tindall for a while, no full-time employee has been here longer than Danny Hollifield. Originally a member of the maintenance crew, Danny started with Tindall in 1976, and over the years, his position has evolved into the one he has today. Now a Maintenance Supervisor, Danny has had the opportunity to witness the tremendous growth and more challenging moments that Tindall has experienced over the years.
So, as we celebrate our 60th anniversary, it is only fitting that we take the time to recognize the contributions of employees like Danny, who helped shape Tindall into the thriving precast concrete company it is today. Danny’s path is one of hard work and dedication; here is his story.
Growing up, Danny was always fascinated by machines. “I learned how to mechanic fairly young,” says Danny. “I was curious. I had a passion for how things worked, so it was natural I’d follow that path out of school.” He took odd jobs at first around his hometown. When he was 14 years old, he did work peach packing, farming, and cutting grass. These experiences, though seemingly random, instilled in him a strong work ethic, which would serve him well in his future endeavors.
It wasn’t until high school, however, that Danny’s passion for mechanics took off.
“I worked selling parts at a NAPA store and the machine shop some too while I was there. I learned how engines worked and were designed. It made me want to learn more.”
After graduating high school in 1972, Danny attended vocational school and the local community college, where he learned to weld. And although he enjoyed building things, he didn’t want to pursue welding as a career.
Danny’s first job after school was working for a company that repaired forklifts. “We serviced and repaired them at various manufacturing facilities,” Danny says. “I even had a truck.” But when the economy took a downturn in the mid-1970s, Danny was laid off. He worked several jobs in the interim before discovering an opening at Tindall. He applied, was accepted, and was immediately impressed by the opportunities the company had to offer.
“When I started at Tindall,” he says, “I was the one that liked working on the ‘big stuff.'” The bigger the equipment, the better Danny liked it, which led him to develop experience working on all types of machinery. “I worked on forklifts, loaders, trucks, cranes, and various conveyors, mixers, and other types of machinery.”
Danny’s continued expertise and dedication afforded him many unique opportunities. Something he never thought he’d get the chance to do? Travel.
“Traveling the States became common for me,” he says. “As newer Tindall facilities were opened, I would be asked to participate in training opportunities, inspect equipment for possible purchases, and ensure onsite manufacturing equipment was safe and efficient.”
His work with Tindall even led him abroad, allowing him the chance, more recently, to go to Denmark. Danny remarks, “I never expected to need a passport, but I was asked to be a part of the team researching the possibility of a new product, and the whole experience was unforgettable.”
This product was T-SLAB®, and the opportunity Danny had to work abroad stayed with him for years. “Visiting another country was truly an experience I will not forget.” For all of the positive moments that Danny’s been a part of, however, there’ve been some challenging ones as well.
“In 2005,” Danny says, “Hurricane Katrina created a completely different set of challenges than we’d ever faced before.” The Mississippi facility for Tindall at the time was in Biloxi, near the water’s edge. When Hurricane Katrina made landfall, the entire plant was destroyed.
“I was in Ohio when we received the call that the plant was gone.” But in true Tindall fashion, this challenge, though daunting, was met with an eagerness to serve, not just by Danny but the company as a whole. “Immediately, we started making calls and plans to purchase supplies and equipment to take to Mississippi. Eighty-eight people had recently lost their place of employment, many of whom had also lost their house and their vehicle. So, we purchased tents, chairs, bottled water, frozen meats, anything we could think they would need after losing all they had.”
Getting the facility back up and running was an eight-week process, which would not have been possible without the help of the entire Tindall family. “We were making trips from Spartanburg back to Biloxi with supplies and donations from our Tindall family and local businesses in the surrounding communities. Mr. Lowndes even sent cash with us to pay employees and help clean up the mess.”
And it was this attitude, this family environment, that Tindall readily offered to its employees and the surrounding community that inspired Danny then and continues to inspire him today.
Danny’s been with Tindall for over 47 years, and when asked why he’s stayed so long, he never once mentioned job security. Instead, it’s the family environment, the opportunities, the culture, and the way Tindall cares for its employees that have mattered in the long run. “I am proud of the company I work for and the support Tindall provides for every employee and their families.”
But it’s because of employees like Danny that Tindall stands out. Our commitment to being “Engineered to Serve” isn’t just a phrase but a set of actions that are reflected in everything we do. So, as we celebrate our 60th anniversary, we celebrate our employees as well.
By fostering a culture of growth and assembling a team of exceptional individuals who take pride in their work, Tindall continues to lead the precast concrete industry with innovative solutions. We owe our accomplishments to their dedication, and we are profoundly grateful for our exceptional team members and their incredible contributions.
