“Right now, in the big picture, one of the trends we see is people are still keeping their capital budgets pretty tight and not moving on the purchase of new equipment,” said Tim Clevenger, director of corporate development for Papé Group, the holding company for Papé Bros. and a host of hoisting and forestry equipment companies.

“People are renting more and putting more parts and service into existing equipment,” he said. Papé, operating from a position of relative strength, has used the current downturn to look for opportunities to bolster its business.

Recently, the firm bought Smith Tractor, a Tacoma-based John Deere dealer, adding to Papé Group’s presence in the Puget Sound region. The company also owns the Hyster dealership on Interstate 5 south of Seattle.

Clevenger said Papé is focusing on customer service during the slowdown, laying the groundwork for equipment sales when things improve.

“Our company is really founded on quality customer service,” Clevenger said. “We really want to focus on keeping our customers up and running.”

Not long ago, Clevenger said, a Papé Bros. team was sent out at 3 a.m. to work on a grader for a contractor who had a full team of workers scheduled to arrive at 6:30 a.m.

“When my car breaks down,” Clevenger said, “it’s a hassle. When these guys’ equipment breaks down, they lose money.”

Overall, he said, business has slowed, but “we’re chugging along.” Clevenger also thinks there could be more consolidation in the business.

“There does appear to be a reshuffling in the equipment industry,” he said.