Choices: Yours and Your Wastewater Pump Manufacturer’s

How Your Pump Manufacturers' Long Term Decisions Shape Your Options for Success

When you’re evaluating pumps for a system, it’s tempting to look at horsepower, impeller style, or price and go in that direction.  And that may not end up wrong.  But anyone who has lived through a failed installation or a maintenance nightmare knows the bigger truth: the real test isn’t what a pump does the day it’s installed, but how well it solves problems year after year.

In pumps, success isn’t just about specs. Because success is measured over the long haul.  The choices a manufacturer makes over decades in business will show you what to expect, not only from your pump selection, but from your manufacturer.

Think longevity.  That’s the only way to see a true track record.  A company that’s lasted 50 years, for instance,  has had to design products that actually work in the field, not just on paper. They’ve had to keep adapting.  Because if they didn’t, they’d be gone.

That kind of longevity doesn’t happen by chance. It comes from making the right choices over and over again. What kinds of decisions?

Some companies choose to move operations overseas to save money, though customers eventually feel the impact in lead times and quality. Others choose to stick with a single product design, comfortable without adapting, until the market passes them by. Some manufacturers even choose to make their products exclusive.  This may increase efficiency for them, but it also forces customers to fit into their system instead of designing solutions that fit the customer.

The companies that survive over fifty years are the ones that do the opposite.  They choose to solve problems, innovate around constraints and adapt to meet the consumer need instead of their own.

Here’s what that looks like in practice, from a company that has made customer focused decisions since 1973:

• System compatibility. Some manufacturers force customers into proprietary systems. Keen Pump chose a different path: retrofit options that drop into and plug into existing wastewater system infrastructure. That means less downtime, less cost, and fewer headaches.  That’s a smart choice!
• Maintenance and safety. Instead of ignoring the risks of confined space entry, Keen Pump is choosing to invest in designing and manufacturing above-ground valve stations. For operators, that means safer, quicker maintenance and lower long-term costs.  That’s a safe choice!
• Clogging and downtime. Where others are still stuck with traditional chopper pumps, Keen Pump is on the cutting edge of higher capacity pumps, with chopper impeller technology that slices and passes debris in a mascerated, slurry form. The result: fewer callouts, less clogging, and systems that keep running.  That’s a proactive choice.

These aren’t just products. They’re the results of choices.  Smart, safe, and proactive choices that reflect decades of watching what happens once a pump leaves the factory, and improving with each lesson learned.

For distributors, that kind of history means you’re offering products you can stand behind. For engineers, it means specifying equipment that solves problems instead of creating new ones. And for communities, it means fewer emergencies, safer crews, and budgets that stretch further.

When you’re deciding which pumps to specify or stock, you’re not just choosing a product. You’re choosing the results of every decision the manufacturer has made along the way. Some choices add cost and risk. Others make your work easier, safer, and more reliable. That’s why looking at a company’s history of decisions, and the products and systems those decisions create, is one of the smartest choices you can make.

Every choice matters.  That starts with the next one.  Choose to learn more about Keen Pump and how we do business.  Call us today at (419) 207-9400.