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Factory Fills Sinkhole Need

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By RONNIE BLAIR, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 7, 2008

Updated: 01/06/2008 09:22 pm

SHADY HILLS - When a shortage of cement and other materials started to hamper Earth Tech's work, company Pesident Ron Broadrick decided it was time the company became its own supplier.

About six months ago, Earth Tech opened a plant on Hudson Avenue, where the company manufactures the grout it uses to stabilize sinkholes.

"This is our final step in being self-sufficient, from a materials standpoint," Broadrick said.

The grout is a mixture of water, sand, cement and fly ash. Company literature describes it as similar to the mortar used to hold bricks together.
Earth Tech employees inject the grout into the ground near sinkholes, where it fills voids in the limestone and sandy soil.

Some of the company's sinkhole work is preventive, but most is remedial, meaning clients already have spotted problems, such as cracked walls or doors that don't close properly.

Those signs don't necessarily mean there is a sinkhole, so the first step home or business owners take is to have an engineering firm conduct tests to determine whether a sinkhole is the culprit.

If so, companies such as Earth Tech can attempt to stabilize the soil.
Broadrick said part of what his company does is educate consumers about sinkholes.

For many people, the prevailing sinkhole images are of the large ones that open suddenly and swallow a house or a portion of a road.

Most sinkholes, though, develop more gradually, Broadrick said. Earth Tech lets worried homeowners know that, although the situation is serious and shouldn't be ignored, "it's manageable," he said.
Broadrick founded the company 17 years ago. Initially, it was a tiny operation and he worked out of a spare apartment bedroom off Himes Avenue in Tampa.

The company has grown to employ about 70 people and is headquartered in Land O' Lakes.

The company performs most of its work in Pasco and Hernando counties, though it also takes on jobs in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.

When it came time to build a plant to manufacture the grout mixture, Broadrick said he was happy to be able to find a spot on Hudson Avenue in the Shady Hills area and keep the operation in Pasco County, where most company employees live.

The plant also is in a good location for quick access to Spring Hill in Hernando County, where a number of jobs for the company arise.

Three people work at the plant. A dozen truck drivers come and go during the course of a day, transporting the grout to about six to eight projects Earth Tech might be working on at any one time.
Earth Tech doesn't advertise. Instead, the company relies on referrals from engineering firms, insurance companies and previous customers, Broadrick said.

He said the need for Earth Tech's services has grown along with Pasco County.

"We're obviously in a good area for what we do," Broad- rick said.

More information about the company is available at www.floridasinkhole.com.

Reporter Ronnie Blair can be reached at (813) 948-4218 or rblair@tampatrib.com.

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