This month’s issue of PRO features our annual Buyer’s Guide, a directory of the products and services that set you up for success in the portable sanitation industry. The handy listing of our advertisers is a good reminder of one of the gratifying facts about restroom providers and the companies that serve them with supplies: When you hire a portable restroom operator, you’re buying American.

For years now, it seems like every product you pick up on a store shelf is coming from some place across an ocean. And most of the time, these goods — from the clothing on our backs to the small appliances in our kitchen — are made in China. At the risk of getting too political — something I never want to do in this column — many folks don’t want their dollars to support a communist regime that doesn’t seek to do our nation any favors.

I know I sound like an old-timer when I say this, but I remember a time when whatever we needed could be provided by an American manufacturer. Clothing, work boots, household goods, appliances — you name it, we made it. Manufacturing of all of these products created family-supporting jobs and the supply of these necessary goods would never be interrupted by shipping logistics issues or political strife somewhere across the globe.

There is currently a big push among our federal elected officials to bring critical manufacturing back to the United States. They say we should be more self-reliant, return to the skilled labor that built America into the strongest economy in the world. 

Personally, I believe we never should have ceded our position as the leader in quality manufacturing of so many products. And I welcome the challenge to retool our factories and train our new workers to bring those jobs home as much as we can, realizing — of course — that we also live in a global economy.

It should be a source of pride for PROs that the majority of supplies and equipment they use on a day-to-day basis were designed, engineered and manufactured in America (or in a few cases, our friendly neighbors to the north in Canada).

IT STARTED HERE

First off, the concept of portable sanitation was invented in America. The first PROs were entrepreneurial individuals who served longshoremen on the California coast. They constructed plywood outhouses that were placed at the ports so workers would have a dignified way to relieve themselves. The cumbersome wooden units were replaced by fiberglass, then molded lightweight plastic variations, built by a handful of forward-thinking companies, mainly in the Midwest and South. 

Over the years, these restroom manufacturers branched out to a variety of related products — including hand-wash sinks, holding tanks, restroom trailers and deodorizers — and built a sizable niche industry that thrives today. The same origin story holds true for our vacuum trucks. The tanks are rolled and welded, and all the accessories are added by American workers at regional truck-building companies across the country. 

Some of these trailblazing companies are the advertisers you see in this issue of PRO. And in what seems like a novel concept in today’s marketplace, some of these companies export their products to all corners of the world. 

I know there are some exceptions; foreign companies that manufacture their quality products in the U.S., and some companies that build equipment and accessories outside of the U.S. and export them here. But unlike the greater retail world, the lion’s share of industry products are produced right here.

SPREAD THE WORD

And doesn’t it feel good that you can share this message with your customers?

Consider the construction company or event planner who calls on you to provide restroom service. You can assure them their dollars are going to support American workers. This includes the technician that will deliver and service the restroom, the office workers who process their billing and answer customer service questions, and your small local business. It also includes the workers who built the restrooms, the truck driver who delivered the shipment of units to your door, and the companies that furnished the raw materials used in manufacturing these products. 

It’s good to share this message with your team as well. They can be satisfied knowing they are strengthening American manufacturing and working skilled jobs where the wages are generated and spent locally, enhancing your community.  

As you turn through the pages of this issue, I hope you are reminded that all of the featured PROs and their workers are supporting their local communities and helping build the infrastructure of the nation. And keep in mind that when you support our advertisers, you are typically supporting American manufacturing jobs.