Underground Construction - October 2019 - 29

REHABTECHNOLOGY

Jerry Botts
a focus on expansion, my brother-in-law
and I opened the Florida division of Metro
Sewer Cleaners. The company is still in
business today in Michigan. The full-service
company provided CCTV and grouting
services, eventually expanding to the lining
business. In fact, our company was one of
the first to do cured-in-place point repairs.
Once we had a handle on those technologies, we expanded our service offerings to
include manhole to manhole lining.

Success and hurricanes

Growing up in Livonia, Mich. - a suburb of
the Motor City - I was part of the culture
that understood first-hand how hard work
can really pay off. After high school I attended Schoolcraft Community College, but
really wanted to roll up my sleeves and get at
it, so in 1980 I partnered with my brotherin-law to start Metro Sewer Cleaners Inc.
Located in close proximity to Jack
Doheny Supplies in Northville, Mich., we
got our start through my business partner's
father, who was employed by the city of
Northville Public Works and, as part of his
job, purchased equipment from Doheny.
Jack Doheny offered to sell a 300-gallon
capacity O'Brien jet cleaner on consignment to us, and that's how Metro Sewer
Cleaners got its start. I have been hooked
on underground infrastructure assessment
and rehabilitation ever since.
I continued attending classes while running the operations side of the company
until 1984 when I was offered an opportunity to work for Orange Environmental
in Florida. Jack Doheny, Marty Coe and
another partner owned the company. It
was my first introduction to Florida and
- at the time, even though I now consider
Florida home - it wasn't for me.
After a few months I trekked back to
Michigan and Metro Sewer Cleaners. With

The Florida division of Metro Sewer
Cleaners did very well. We had major
municipal contracts with Seminole County,
Orange County, the city of Orlando and
others. Then, in 2004, four hurricanes hit
the state of Florida, and as a result, our
company also took a major hit. We found it
very difficult to recover.
I got a fresh start as an independent
consultant, starting my own business,
collaborating with representatives from
around the country and importing technology from Canada. Sekisui, the manufacturer of spiral wound pipe lining, was also one
of my first clients. Initially I helped with
sales and overall management, but then I
was faced with a personal tragedy when my
infant daughter needed significant medical
care. I took a salaried position with Sekisui
which provided the health insurance we
desperately needed. Sadly, in 2009 we lost
sweet Brianna at just 28 months old.
Ten years have passed, and while it
doesn't get any easier, life does go on.
I moved up in Sekisui, first as national
sales manager, then VP of national sales,
and finally, in 2010, I accepted the role of
president.
In 2012 I took a break and embarked on
mission work for six months, after which
I returned to the United States refreshed
and ready for my next adventure. I teamed
up with Clint Llewellyn to start Michiganbased Echo Liner, which was eventually
sold to Corby Energy Services.

EDITOR'S NOTE:
NASSCO, now in its 45th year, continues
to set standards for the assessment and
rehabilitation of underground infrastructure.
A vast array of individuals has contributed to
the success of the association, both in the
past and present, that has driven NASSCO's
industry mission. This series of articles
recognizes those who have not only been
critical to the success of NASSCO, but the
industry as well.
This month, industry rehabilitation veteran
Jerry Botts is proﬁled. A well-known and
successful contractor and businessman, as
NASSCO president, Botts was instrumental
in guiding the association through a critical
stage in its evolution. Through Botts'
leadership, the association was reinvented
into the industry leader that it remains
today. Botts continues to be instrumental
in promoting new technologies for the
rehabilitation market.

Next, my career path led me to accept an
offer to run a start-up called Polston Applied
Technologies in Winter Park, Florida, which
later became U.S. Submergent Technologies.
After two years as Polston's COO, I ran into
Christian Noll from Reline Europe at the
2017 WWETT Conference. I had seen Reline
Europe's spiral wound technology back in
2001 and was very impressed, but didn't
explore it further because at that time it
wasn't available in the diameter ranges we
were using in Florida.
That chance meeting lead to my running
Reline Europe for North America, and
in January of this year, Reline Europe
purchased a portion of Reline America,
making Reline America part of the Reline
UV Group. Today I serve as the organization's Vice President in charge of sales and
marketing, working to advance UV cured
glass fiber reinforced pipe lining systems
(GRP), UV light curing equipment and reUConOnline.com | OCTOBER 2019

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Underground Construction - October 2019

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