When Jim Falin decided to open his own business as a young man in 1987, he did so in part to fulfill his boyhood dream of working with tractors.

After buying his first piece of equipment, the Virginia-born Falin literally hit the ground running and the contracting company got off to a strong start.

Today, Sevierville, Tenn-based Falin Enterprises is recognized as one of the best firms of its kind in the eastern part of the state. Over its 38 years, the company has established itself as an expert in providing a range of services, including professional site preparation, precise earthmoving and comprehensive utility work for residential, commercial and government projects.

"When I was growing up, I always loved garden tractors and although my mom wanted me to go to college, I said I wanted to start running machines instead," Falin said. "I first ran big equipment on surface mining jobs in Southwest Virginia. I later moved back to East Tennessee in 1985, went into business in 1987, and bought my first Bobcat skid steer. It took me about two weeks to get things rolling, but we've not run out of work since then."

In the late '80s, before concrete pumps became popular, Falin would transport concrete onto job sites where sidewalks were being formed.

"One of my first projects was carrying concrete over to Dolly Parton Parkway in Sevierville," he said. "I did that for what seemed like a week and a half to two weeks along with some general cleanup work."

From there, his business continued on an upward path to success and with that growth came the need for more equipment.

When Falin was contracted to work on helping to build ski chalets and rental homes in nearby Gatlinburg, Tenn., he decided to purchase a dozer and a compact rubber-tire backhoe.

"We stayed on Ski Gatlinburg the first couple years that I was in business because nobody else wanted to go up there and work on those steep slopes. During that time, we never came off the mountain with our equipment because there was so much work to do in preparing the residential sites, such as putting in footings and septic systems."

Working at the high elevations just outside Great Smoky Mountains National Park proved to be very challenging, Falin said, adding "Early on, there were some places where we probably should not have worked."

But being a young company owner just starting out, he was understandably anxious for Falin Enterprises to make its name stand out in the local construction industry.

"I was just too determined and never turned down work," Falin said. "I guess the word got out because we had many people call us and say, ‘So and so said you're the guy that needs to do my job,' and we would typically do them if we could."

He added, "I love taking raw land and turning it into something people can use. I enjoy putting in a road or building a subdivision, and when I go back afterwards it is rewarding to see them full of nice houses."

Beyond its residential projects, Falin Enterprises often is called upon to engineer a variety of other jobs, including the installation of Redi-Rock retaining walls, which he noted can be a little challenging.

"That was especially so at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville where we put up a wall right behind Neyland Stadium," Falin said. "Some of UT's engineers said it couldn't be done, but we developed and engineered it, and it is holding up very well. We had a lot of utility conflicts there that we had to work around, but in the end it worked."

Currently, he and his team are building a new Weigel's convenience store and truck stop off Interstate 75 in North Knoxville.

Weigel's has become one of Falin Enterprises' largest clients, he said, as the chain of stores can be found across East Tennessee from Crossville east to Chattanooga, and north to the Tri Cities of Johnson City, Kingsport and Bristol. Most of its more than 80 locations, though, are concentrated in the greater Knoxville area.

"They're really expanding and growing, which has certainly helped our company as well," Falin said. "Now, we're in an e-mail chain with Weigel's and part of their team — something that I find to be very rewarding."

Another company that has turned out to be a valued partner for Falin Enterprises is Power Equipment, the southeastern construction equipment dealer headquartered in Knoxville. The company maintains branch locations across the whole of Tennessee, in addition to parts of Arkansas and Mississippi.

At the construction site for the Weigel's store in Knoxville, Falin called upon Power Equipment when his crew was faced with excavating solid rock, a seemingly difficult proposition that could slow down the project.

"Well, it was not a problem after we rented an Antraquip AQ-4XL rock cutter with grinding heads on it from Power Equipment," Falin said. "We equipped a Komatsu 360 excavator with that cutter, and it just ripped right through that rock. The material was aggravating because we had used hydraulic hammers, but they didn't bust the rock too well. That cutter, though, had no problems with it and made the rock into reusable material."

As a result of the expert care and attention it has extended to Falin since 2022, Power Equipment has a rock-solid relationship with his construction business.

"We lean on them a little bit and each time they treat us right," he said. "We've also been really excited about some of the machines that we have purchased from Power. So far this year we have bought two small Komatsu dozers — its D39 and D51 models — and we've placed an order to buy a PC238 excavator. Over the previous two or three years, we purchased a large Komatsu PC360 excavator and a midsize D71 dozer and have been very happy with how they have worked."

Falin credits Joey Baker, his Power Equipment territory manager in the Knoxville store, for possessing expert knowledge of the dealership's machines and their capabilities.

"Joey's not your typical sales rep, I would say, but more of a field guy in that he tells us what other contractors have seen in this or that piece of equipment. Plus, he is always there for us when we need him. Power has been very good to us, as has Komatsu. We always buy Komatsu's extended warranties, but there have really not been many issues with either company."

Falin Enterprises has four Komatsu machines in its fleet at the moment; prior to three years ago, however, the construction firm did not have a single Komatsu among its rolling stock.

So, what made Falin turn to Power Equipment and Komatsu after using other dealers and equipment brands for so long?

He prefaced his answer by explaining that although the upfront purchase price is always a key element of the process, the value you get from trading in a machine after putting as much as 6,000-7,000 hours on it is equally important.

"That's because when it's time to have those older machines worked on more, we prefer just to move them instead. That's something we've learned over the years. So, when we decide to return that machine, we give the dealer the opportunity to trade it for a comparable machine.

"But what we found is that some dealers would offer me bottom dollar for a machine that they had earlier said was going to bring me more at the end," he added. "Power, though, typically offers me 10 to 15 percent more for that same machine at trade-in time. That's a big thing and is the biggest reason I now go with Power Equipment."

He added that other dealers, too, "would wear us out with road mileage and service truck charges. We don't get that charge from Power Equipment at all, and the Komatsu warranty covers travel time and mileage."

Buying equipment and trucks is often much easier to do these days, Falin said, than finding good people to operate them.

"It can be a tough challenge. We've been trying to bring in some younger people and train them along with the senior people that we already have. The company bought three new trucks this year from our local Mack dealer, and when he told me he had 10 more for sale just like them, I said, ‘I'll buy all of them if you'll put drivers in them for me.'"

The people that are employed by Falin, he said, are a hard-working bunch and their skill sets are another key to the contracting company's success.

Among them is Eric Chambers, a man for whom the term "hard worker" fits like a glove — a fact that Falin recognized quickly upon his arrival.

"Eric has been with me almost 13 years and when he first joined us became one of our lowest paid guys," said Falin. "But he didn't care how hard the work was, he just kept growing and stepping up to the point that he's now my highest paid employee. Eric is more of an operational guy that keeps these jobs moving along. Although I'm not into big job titles, I call him my general superintendent."

With Falin now spending much of his time concentrating on his company's development business, much of the day-to-day running of the construction side of the firm has been left in the capable hands of Chambers.

"The company's continued growth has enabled me to go out and invest in land and property development," said Falin. "We'll go out and buy a 30- to 70-acre tract of land and put a subdivision in or figure out the best use for it. For instance, we just sold a 38.5-acre piece of property in the middle of Sevierville where a campground is to be built.

"The best part about right now is that our business is really doing well and we're able to make these investments," he added. "Then, I can bring Falin Enterprises in to develop these properties and do all the needed infrastructure work before turning around and selling it or whatever else we plan to do." CEG