NETWORKING CORNER
Meet a
Piling Professional
Michael Baxter,
BAUER-Pileco
Describe your current job.
I’m the director of sales, parts and service support for all
BAUER products (Bauer, RTG, Klemm, MAT, Pileco and Fambo
Products) in Western Canada (Manitoba, Saskatchewan,
Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon and Northwest Territories).
How did you get to where you are now?
I took the Trans-Canada from New Brunswick via Quebec
and Ontario, etc. On a serious note… I started with Ingersoll-
Rand after graduating from Mount Allison as a sales trainee. I
spent the better part of my first year working out of Montreal
and traveling to our various factories around North America,
as well as spending four months in Northern Ontario working
on the Trans-Canada Pipeline.
From there I moved to Winnipeg for two years, where
my primary focus was on rock drilling and air compressors.
We also tested the very first 42-inch cluster drill just east of
Winnipeg in the Whiteshell.
Then I moved to Edmonton as regional manager for all
Ingersoll-Rand products in the prairies and northern Canada.
I remember flying in to Diavik when there was only a runway
and they were just starting the open pit mine. After eight
years in Edmonton, I moved to North Carolina and became
marketing manager for Asia Pacific with the air compressor
division as well as industry manager for oil and gas and
product manager for the high-pressure compressor line of air
compressors.
Then, on to Milwaukee as vice president and branch
manager of our upper Midwest operation. The Milwaukee
operation had North American responsibilities for our downhole
hammer operation, which focused on large diameter
drilled holes, primarily within the foundation market. We
also administered our corporate military spare parts contract
out of Milwaukee for all of Ingersoll-Rand.
When Ingersoll-Rand divested of its construction equipment
business, I moved back to Canada and ran the newly
acquired Atlantic Rentals operation for United Rentals.
In 2010, I was offered a fantastic opportunity with BAUERPileco
and moved to Houston where I worked with Dan
Dragone to grow BAUER’s presence in Western Canada. The
Western Canadian market had changed considerably since I
left in 2000, and one market that had expanded greatly was
the foundation sector. The opportunities for BAUER and
BAUER-Pileco have been exciting. The diverse geology and
expansive geography are challenging, but also allow for some
exciting opportunities, which have allowed BAUER to work
CONTINUED ON PAGE 75
LEKSUSTUSS / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
PILING CANADA 73
/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
