Flagstaff Featured Business: MANTL
(as published in the May 1 edition of The Community Press)
The Flagstaff Region Featured Business is a monthly newspaper and web feature presented in partnership by Flagstaff County and The Community Press.
MANTL
Bay 2 #6 Spruce Dr., Box 809, Sedgewick
780-851-7315
“People,” he says.
Indeed, MANTL is an employee-owned global company that owes much of its meteoric rise within the past five years to its grassroots philosophy.
“We started in October of 2014. It wasn’t the best time to be getting started in the oil industry, as things had ramped down,” Kenna explains. “But our focus – being community-based and being located where the work is actually done – has allowed us to deliver services.”
A manufacturer and service provider of progressing cavity pump (PCP) systems for oil and gas wells, MANTL was founded by a group of 10 industry-savvy people who have helped launch artificial lift markets in Canada, the United States, Kuwait, Australia, Colombia, and Romania.
“Now we’re at a crew of about 78 people,” Kenna adds.
Headquartered in Calgary, the privately held company currently operates six field locations in Alberta and Saskatchewan – including one in Sedgewick. Field stores are also located in Peace River, Taber, Lloydminster, Macklin, and Moosomin.
MANTL’s mantra is “solutions and service from the wellhead back,” which includes investing resources back into the communities they service.
“We recognize it (Sedgewick and the Flagstaff Region) is a PCP part of the Canadian oil patch. There’s a requirement for PCPs here,” Kenna says.
“We put people first. So, we found a store manager, service centre manager, that knew what he was doing and brought that person onboard. The idea being that we’re a field-based company, so we want to have people in the field running the company.
“There’s really only two of us in Calgary. The rest are based in the field, so we can get ideas from the field and support the field, including supply chains here.”
For instance, workers at the Sedgewick field location have parlayed their technical know-how into producing driveheads that are shipped all over the world.
Along with delivering driveheads, PCP pumps and “all the tools you need to be associated with the PCP industry,” MANTL recently added rig services to the company portfolio, Kenna notes.
The company’s rapid expansion is not going unnoticed. Last year, MANTL received an EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2018 Prairies award in the “Emerging” category.
“Recognition by the industry, recognition by the peer group, was pretty cool. It was fun,” Kenna says. “Hopefully, maybe in the future, we’ll win some more awards.”
With plans for MANTL’s continued expansion, Kenna would like to build a manufacturing facility in the Flagstaff Region.
“A facility that we can use more and more product being built out of this region to be distributed amongst the rest of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and the rest of the world,” Kenna explains.
“I’m a firm believer in small cell-like management. So, not building a main manufacturing facility in Calgary or Edmonton. Build it where the stuff is being used, or where the ideas come from, and ultimately support the local communities.
“I think it’s very, very important to support local communities. That’s where our bread and butter comes from. That’s where all the work comes from. This is where the stuff gets installed. So, why not put that stuff back in the community?”
Kenna advises any would-be entrepreneurs that success in business starts and ends with people.
“People. Get the best people. Get the people involved in the industry in your industry. Create a positive culture. Live it, breathe it, survive it, and yeah, once again, it’s always about the people,” he explains.
“The processes and the tools, they all come with the people, but it’s all about getting the right people in your staff.”
For more information on MANTL, visit mantl.ca and find MANTL Canada Inc. on LinkedIn.
As published in the May 1 edition of The Community Press – on newsstands today. Never miss an issue, become a SUBSCRIBER today!
The Flagstaff Region Featured Business is a monthly newspaper and web feature presented in partnership by Flagstaff County and The Community Press. For more information, contact Jenalee Blackhurst, Economic Development Coordinator, at 780-384-4152.
