I learned an awful lot from my old boss. He kept his nose to the grindstone. That’s what I’ve done, too,” says Eric Mueller, owner of Southeast Septic Services Inc., Carver, Mass.

In addition to modeling hard work and teaching the ins and outs of septic system installation, Mueller’s former boss, John Divine, insisted that everyone in his company provide a high level of customer service. All of that rubbed off on Mueller, who routinely puts in 14-hour days to build a growing septic pumping and inspection business that serves a base of 6,500 primarily residential customers in southeastern Massachusetts.

But, Mueller also has applied some practices from a stint with a corporate-owned septic service company to his own small business. The result is a five-employee, three-service truck business that resembles a much larger organization. Consider:

• As much as 50,000 gallons of waste is collected daily and transported via tanker truck for disposal.

• Global Positioning System devices installed in each truck help drivers efficiently navigate their daily routes.

• All service calls are assigned to two-hour windows so customers can plan for a driver’s arrival.

• Continuing education is mandatory for the entire Southeast Septic team.

• Employees receive a competitive compensation package that includes paid health insurance, vacations, holidays and profit sharing.

WATCHING & LEARNING

Mueller, now 37, was just 19 years old when he landed a part-time job with Divine, the father of a high school friend. He soon worked up to full-time status and became a licensed septic inspector and liquid waste hauler.

“Until I went to work for him, I really didn’t know John because he was always out working. That’s just the kind of guy he was,” Mueller says.

He credits Divine with teaching him how septic systems are designed and installed. To this day, that first-hand knowledge comes in handy whenever someone on the Southeast Septic team runs across a possible failure or other service issue.

Nearly seven years later Divine retired and sold the family business to a corporation. Mueller stayed on with the new owner to run a regional division, but soon missed the service orientation of a family-run business.

“After eight months, I decided to leave and start my own business so I could run it the way I wanted to,” Mueller recalls.

In 2000, Mueller bought a used vacuum service rig with a 3,500-gallon tank. As a one-person operation, 70- to 80-hour workweeks became the norm and what had been his home’s basement recreation room turned into the company’s headquarters.

“I had my picture printed on all the advertising so my old customers and friends would know where to find me. I took calls and made calls 24/7. It was crazy, but that’s what you have to do to build a business,” he said.

To Mueller’s pleasant surprise, the upstart business “absolutely snowballed” and he hauled 300,000 gallons of waste the first year.

By the second year, Mueller added a truck with a 5,000-gallon tank and hired a driver. Southeast Septic has grown steadily ever since.

LOYALTY & SERVICE

Mueller proudly points out that his first hire is still with Southeast Septic. In fact, the company has had no employee turnover in its nine-year history. In addition to Mueller, the company has two full-time drivers, a part-time driver and an administrative assistant who handles scheduling and billing. That assistant is Jill Lawn, Mueller’s sister-in-law.

“We tossed Jill into this business but she settled in right away,” he says with a chuckle. “The customers just love her.”

Fostering employee loyalty takes work, creativity and a boss who won’t ask anyone to do something he wouldn’t do himself. That’s another lesson Mueller learned from his association with a family-run business.

“We’re on the upper end of the pay scale and we try to stay ahead of the curve in terms of benefits,” he said. Southeast Septic pays full employee health insurance premiums (estimated by Mueller at $4 to $6 per hour) plus paid vacations and holidays. A profit-sharing plan was added this year.

“I try very hard to keep them happy and it’s very well worth it,” he says. “It’s better for our customers and better for our business to have consistency with our staff.”

A customer service orientation seems to be part of Southeast Septic’s DNA.

From the beginning, Mueller has insisted on running all administrative aspects of the business — appointments, billing, payroll, etc. — from his home-based office so nothing falls through the cracks. When a current or potential customer calls after hours, they’ll talk directly to Mueller instead of an answering service.

Mueller explains his insistence on personal customer service this way: “Everybody’s costs are pretty much the same. It’s the service level you provide and the referrals you get that make the difference in getting — and keeping business.”

SPECIALIZATION & EFFICIENCIES

In addition to emphasizing customer service, Mueller has stayed competitive by specializing in a handful of services and adopting efficiencies used by large corporate-owned septic service businesses.

Mueller has deliberately stuck with septic tank pumping, system inspections and small component repairs, such as installing risers, replacing distribution boxes and repairing sewer lines. He doesn’t compete for onsite system installation or excavation work. Rather, 22 installers in the area hire him to pump existing tanks prior to replacement. He also refers new tank installation and major repair work to his installer network.

System inspections are a rapidly growing business segment for Mueller. State law now requires time-of-sale real estate inspections. The inspections also are mandatory prior to many building expansion projects and changing a property’s use. Both have been a boon to Southeast Septic.

While Mueller didn’t particularly enjoy the corporate environment, he admired its operating efficiencies. A few years ago, he purchased an 8,500-gallon Fruehauf aluminum tanker trailer, retrofitted from a gasoline transport by Bay State Trucks, to consolidate septage for hauling to a municipal treatment facility. The tanker, pulled by a 1979 Peterbilt 379 tractor, hauls an average of 30,000 gallons daily (50,000 gallons during peak periods) and reduces the disposal trips Southeast’s service trucks would have to make.

Global Positioning System units are a recent innovation for Mueller’s drivers. Earlier this year, he added a StreetEagle GPS system that works in tandem with Garmin GPS devices in each service truck.

“I made the guys put away the maps and try the GPS. They were amazed at how much time they saved in getting to appointments,” he recalls. “They found they were shaving off one to two hours a day.” Mueller notes that the extra time is devoted to additional appointments — and revenue — for each truck.

Appointments are typically scheduled about a week or a little more in advance. To control fuel consumption, appointments are clustered within specific areas. With the exception of emergency calls, all customers are guaranteed a specific two-hour service window.

“Time is money. That applies to our customers as much as it does for us. They shouldn’t have to wait around all day for someone to show up,” he says.

PROPERLY EQUIPPED

Southeast Septic runs a 1997 Freightliner FLD 120, a 2005 Peterbilt 357 and a 2006 Peterbilt 357. All three units were built out by Transport Truck Sales Inc. with 5,000-gallon steel tanks and equipped with Masport 430 cfm pumps.

Other equipment includes a 2009 ACRO vacuum trailer, a 2004 Kubota KX71 excavator, a 2007 Dodge Ram pickup, a 2008 Dodge Ram Model 2500 pickup, a RIDGID push cam, a RIDGID 3/4-inch push cam, a 3,800-psi O’Brien Manufacturing, a divison of Hi-Vac Corporation, jetter and a pair of Prototek locators.

PROGRESS REPORT

“Sometimes I scratch my head and say ‘Oh my God, how did we grow like this?’” Mueller says. But, he’s very satisfied with what’s been accomplished so far.

“Our sales are up slightly this year, so we must be doing something right,” he says,

Although the sluggish economy has prompted more price shopping by customers, home sales are gradually heating up in Massachusetts, thanks to lower housing prices. And, that has translated into more inspections for Mueller who is now averaging two to three a day.

“It’s not profitable for me to not be out there working,” he says. “I’m either in the (service) truck or I’m doing inspections. Besides, I’d rather be out than sitting in the office.”

Pulling him out of his service rig, Mueller has kept busy as president of the Massachusetts Association of Pumpers and Contractors for 2009-10. And, 2009 is somewhat of a landmark year because Southeast Septic Services has moved from Mueller’s basement to a leased 6,000-square-foot office and garage located just a few blocks from his home. He jokes that he’ll finally regain his basement rec room.

“When you own your own business, the good outweighs the bad,” he says. “There’s a huge sense of satisfaction.”