Concrete Company Builds Solid Foundation by Putting People First

“We have a no-cussing policy here,” says Rob Pickinpaugh, owner of Rosedale Concrete Construction in Bakersfield, California. “We have good people. We do good work. We are in the people business because we want to develop lifelong friendships.” 

Curse-word-free construction – it’s just one small, but important, policy that every employee of his 45-person business practices on their jobsites. After all, a company that can keep four dozen grown-ups from using four-letter words certainly brings an unrivaled attention to detail and professionalism to every job. 

And Rob only trusts one equipment brand to help bring his customers’ visions to life.

A foundation built on prioritizing people over projects 

Rob’s booming business, which covers a 150-mile service territory spanning Kern, San Luis and Santa Barbara counties in California, can’t afford downtime. So he depends on his fleet of Bobcat S570 skid-steer loaders, T595 compact track loaders and T740 compact track loaders to handle every job. “The machines work great, and their engineering is top quality,” says Rob. 

Rosedale specializes in concrete, foundation and stamp work. The company also offers masonry for block, track and commercial walls. Between both sides of the business, Rob’s crews average six jobs a day. Over the course of a year, that adds up to more than 1,000 opportunities to satisfy a customer. And it’s that emphasis on people, not just projects, that helps Rosedale stand out. 

“I like the challenge every day of going out to different job sites and meeting different people,” says Rob. “It might look like a pile of dirt in their backyard, but to me, I help them create a vision.” 

Rosedale serves a variety of residential and commercial customers, but there are always a few projects in particular that stand out. “There was a grandma who had a little four-by-four stoop out her back door,” recalls Rob. “She had been looking at it for 20 years thinking about building a bigger patio. It took me all of five minutes to know how important that poured patio was to her.” Rob adds, “To me, that’s the perfect job – seeing the smile on her face when it’s done.” 

Bobcat skid-steer and track loaders take care of his team 

Rob’s spirit of caring for others carries over to his employees, too. Over the course of his construction career, he’s seen his fair share of good, hard-working people experience turmoil in their lives. “I’ve found that if you make the job enjoyable, you spread that joy to others. It makes life a lot easier and it makes the job fun,” says Rob. “If you’re not angry all day long, you go home happy. That is most important to me.” 

One way he takes care of his team is by giving them top-of-the-line Bobcat machines. But back when he was first starting out, Rob learned a hard (and costly) lesson when he chose equipment from a Bobcat competitor. “I thought I would try the other company because I got a good deal on them,” Rob remembers. “And I know why I got a good deal on them … because they were in the shop daily.” 

Rob said he’s thankful the team turned to the leading-edge design of Bobcat compact loaders. Now his crews enjoy a more comfortable ride on powerful machines that are easier to operate. “Bobcat is the best. No doubt. I have never had problems with my Bobcat loaders.” 

When your business model is based on happy employees going to great lengths to make satisfied customers, finding trustworthy business partners is a must-have. And that’s exactly what Rob found in his local Bobcat dealer, Daniel Posadas at Berchtold Equipment. “Daniel is by far one of the best salesmen I have ever had in any capacity or any line of business that I have worked,” says Rob, who’s seen his fair share of salespeople over his 27-year career at Rosedale. 

“You just can’t find a better guy, and he always has a smile on his face. He cares about the company he works for. I wish I could hire that guy for myself honestly. Bar none, he is the best guy.” 

As for that no-cussing policy – it’s easy to enforce (and adhere to) when family is involved. Rob’s wife, Michelle, is co-owner. His daughter, Kellie, works as the office manager and his son, Kyle, serves as foreman. 

It’s that close-knit, family-first approach that’s helped Rosedale succeed. Because as Rob likes to say, “We’re in the people business, not just the money business.”