Roger Casper, President of Casper Company shown here
with his Cessna 206 airplane that is setup for Baja Mexico
where Roger visits regularly on fishing expeditions.

Roger Casper, owner and President of Casper Company, relates a few of the simple sensible principles that have helped guide his company to the success that it enjoys today.

Casper Company is a construction company that specializes in hard and soft demolition. In this particular case, it means that the mainstay of their business is demolition for the purposes of remodeling. One example of their work is the remodeling they did on the former San Diego Trust and Savings building in old downtown on Broadway to make way for a new Host Marriott Hotel. They also perform concrete cutting, hazardous materials abatement, and core drilling. Established in 1984 by Roger Casper, the company has grown to more than 200 employees, 40 trucks, and annual gross sales in excess of $15 million. The path tread to this goal by founder Roger Casper is simple, yet profound.

Fresh out of high school, young Roger joined the Army, and was stationed in Okinawa. The Army experience was to teach him two vital lessons key to business successÑdiscipline and organization. His Army days ended at age 21, where he decided that his discharge point, southern California, was preferable to his hometown of Detroit Michigan. So he attended business school for two years, funding his education with his day job as a laborer. Then for the next two years he worked for Douglas Aircraft in Long Beach. It was this experience of indoor work that made him realize how much he loved working outdoors. His next move turned out to be in the ideal direction.

He landed a job working for the Penhall Company where he was a concrete cutter for eight years, and an estimator for three. As an estimator he traveled about quite a bit, deciding at last to settle in San Diego. Two years before he left to go on his own he had an urge to read up on success and failure stories. Interestingly, he was more concerned with the stories of failures. When asked what wisdom he took away from Penhall, Roger replied that from the late Leroy Penhall, the company founder, he learned this: "DonÕt be fooled by thinking the money is yours. You need to constantly invest in equipment and people. IÕve seen too many people spend their quick success, and pay for it when they need the cash shortly down the road."

So in 1984 he took the plunge. He remembers well the exhilarating highs, and the heaviness of doubt. And there were hard lessons to learn if one were to survive. One of these lessons in particular, Roger tried to ignore, which nearly threatened the life of his fledgling business. "Get big slow, and get small fast" was the wisdom Roger contemplated as he tried to hang on to excessive overhead far too long. In an effort to "keep it all together", to not disband the crew, or shed equipment, he saw his company slowly begin to crumble during an economic downturn. Finally, some tough decisions had to be made. For another life-lesson understood by Roger is the necessity of dealing with problems when they arise; the death of many a business arose from the mistake of procrastination. And yet at the same time, he sees the value of failure. Indeed, he says, "you have to have failures." Seemingly, quite a strange thing for a successful man to say.

Casper Company was involved in the remodel of the San Diego Convention Center where they added a new pavilion in the summer of 2000.
	Casper Company demo's existing concrete floor to make room for decorative concrete floor at the Grossmont Shopping Center in La Mesa, California.

Roger understands the importance of employee satisfaction and input to the success of the company. "We wouldnÕt be here without our employees" is RogerÕs practical understanding of this relationship. Employee loyalty is vital for Roger. Not only through monetary rewards is this engendered; but, in RogerÕs words, "the lowest man on the totem pole has good ideas. ItÕs our job to find a way to bring it out in them. One of the best ways is to listen to what they are saying."

What does this man of practical wisdom do during his off-time? As you might imagine, a man of diverse talents has diverse entertainments. Depending upon his mood, Roger loves to engage in fly-fishing, piloting his plane, golfing with his sons, or target-shooting. He, Alice, his wife of thirteen years, his two natural sons Steve (32), and Greg (30), are always doing things together. His stepson from Alice has made a career of the Army. A typical family excursion might involve fly-fishing in Montana.

Other talented individuals occupy the ranks of Casper Company as well. One of these is Vice President Bill Haithcock. His contribution is fortified by over 20 years of experience in the concrete-cutting/demolition field. He has managed construction projects for Casper for over 14 years. As an integral part of the team, he is there from first bidding, to last clean-up. Customer satisfaction is his top priority. Ken Ringer is another talented Vice President for Casper Company. Ken grew up in his family demolition business in Washington state, and his career has spanned over 20 years. He has been with Casper Company since 1986 and is perhaps best known for his remarkable delivery on project schedules.

RogerÕs son, Greg Casper, heads up the Hazardous Abatement Division. He has over ten years of experience in the concrete-cutting/demolition field. Since this is most emphatically a family business, Greg sort of grew up in the business, learning all aspects of operationsÑdispatching, estimating, and field supervision. As a certified asbestos building inspector, Greg is able to perform hazardous-material surveys, and collection of bulk sample analysis. Utilizing his knowledge of demolition and renovation, Greg has been instrumental in building Casper CompanyÕs Hazardous Materials Division.

Casper Company remodeling former San Diego Trust and Savings
building in old downtown on Broadway to make way for a new Host Marriot Hotel.

What is in store for Casper Company in the future? Well, for a company whose typical motto is, "quality, even if you lose money on a job"; plus the powerful practical wisdom of their President, expect to see Casper Company forge ahead the same as alwaysÑsteady on.