With industries like US Steel, NIPSCO, and BP right in its backyard, Northwest Indiana has plenty of businesses that need a security company that can provide tried and trusted services with quality workmanship. Security Door, Inc. (SDi) offers everything a Region industry could need and more.
Founded in 2015 by Region natives Bryce Pickering and Mike Hill, SDi immediately began making an impact on Northwest Indiana by providing a needed service that the Region was sorely lacking: industrial fencing and overhead doors. Because SDi’s employees are all union workers, the door was opened to many big partners within the Region.
“We saw a need,” said Pickering, president of SDi. “We do the fence and overhead doors in this area. We were able to succeed because Northwest Indiana is an industrialized area.”
Aside from location, one of SDi’s leading selling points is the family-first approach the company takes with its employees. SDi acknowledges openly and often that the employees are the people who make the company, so leadership works hard to make sure that those working with them are happy and healthy.
“If things aren't right at home, you’ve got to make them right. If your kid’s sick, you’ve got to take care of your family. That is always first and foremost,” said Pickering. “I think the atmosphere of the company itself is a reason that we retain the employees that we have.”
The approach works. Employees come to SDi, and they stay. The fact that employees are willing to retire with SDi is a point of pride for Pickering, and the employee satisfaction translates directly into customer benefits.
“When people come to work here, they don't typically want to leave,” he said. “It's a feather in the hat when I hear guys say that they'd like to retire here. That tells me we're doing our job as employers to treat the employees the way they expect and need to be treated. That translates into the workmanship that they want to produce, and the customer gets to benefit.”
Employee trust and respect isn’t built by sitting in an office while the rest of the team is out in the field. Giving workers the flexibility they need to take care of themselves and their families can result in being a man short on a project. When this happens, Pickering and Hill are quick to fill the hole.
“Myself and Mike are very hands-on. The guys know that I'm not afraid to do whatever it is that I have them doing,” said Pickering. “If somebody's sick, I don't hesitate to jump in the truck and go out there to work. I won’t ask anybody else to do anything that I'm not willing to do myself.”
Between the atmosphere created by the family-first approach, the all-union employee base, and the respect instilled in employees by Pickering and Hill’s willingness to work alongside the team, everyone at SDi cares about the company. The quality of their work increases in response.
“The people that are working on these sites care about the company that they work for and in return care about the work that they do for the customer,” said Pickering. “We’ve found our niche.”
Recently, SDi has partnered with the Portage Economic Development Corporation (EDC), and Pickering has joined the board of directors. While Pickering doesn’t have much to say yet about the partnership, he’s excited for the future considering how the Portage EDC has positively impacted other businesses in the Region.
To learn more about Security Door, Inc., visit its website at securitydoorinc.com.
To learn more about the Portage Economic Development Corporation and the work it does for businesses in Northwest Indiana, visit its website at portagein.org.
