Launched in 1947 as a modest residential painting company, Martin Specialty Coatings has evolved into a diversified firm that provides complex coating solutions and construction services to commercial, healthcare and government clients. Innovation is a core value for Martin, one that has enabled the Shreveport, Louisiana-based company to triple its size in the past few years, exceeding $20 million in annual revenue and 100 full-time employees.
This impressive expansion began in 2020 when Martin’s leadership team spent an entire year developing a growth plan focused on two areas: talent and technology. “Getting the right people came first,” says CEO Tim Keeley. The company conducted a national search for skilled journeymen and recruited engineering graduates from Louisiana Tech.
By June 2023 the new systems were ready to be deployed. “We flipped the switch and changed over to our new systems all on the same day with zero downtime,” Keeley says. “Our field folks are no longer frustrated, and our productivity has gone sky high.” Indeed, with the new technology in place, Martin’s productivity soared 60% — an increase that it’s been able to maintain.
Next, Martin began to invest in a completely new enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. At the time, its ERP system was primarily focused on the construction side and didn’t address manufacturing operations, Keeley explains. To fill in gaps, Martin spent several months researching comprehensive platforms that could handle all aspects of its business, from the field to the shop floor.
Under Martin’s old systems, weekly production meetings would stretch for two to three hours. Today those sessions are wrapped up within 30 minutes. “What’s more, because our information is more accurate, there are less problems to deal with,” Keeley adds. “We can drill into the information incredibly fast because the systems are all integrated.”
In addition, Martin has been able to take on more high-profile projects, such as painting a new logo on the roof of Daikin Park, home of the Houston Astros. Among challenges, Martin’s engineers had to design a custom pump system to supply water to the stadium’s 242-foot-high retractable roof. Despite such complications, Martin completed the project two weeks ahead of schedule. “We couldn’t have done that five years ago because we didn’t have the depth of talent we do today,” Keeley says.
Beyond boosting Martin’s revenue and bottom line, the investment in talent and technology has helped Keeley find time to give back to other business leaders.
Case in point, for the past several years Keeley has been participating in CEO roundtables co-hosted by the Edward Lowe Foundation and Louisiana Economic Development. This spring he began participating in another joint program, the Innovation Cohort, which accelerates growth for entrepreneurs who are working on their next big venture.
“I want to help people deploy technology to achieve great results so they can reinvest back into their communities and our state,” says Keeley, noting that technology has been a competitive advantage for Martin. “Just like we forecast sales and revenues, we forecast technology — what we’re going to need, when and why and how we’re going to pay for it. If you get behind the tech curve, it’s hard to catch up.”
In addition to sharing his experience and domain expertise with other second-stage leaders, Keeley has derived unexpected inspiration from these programs. “Leaders of mature companies can sometimes become complacent,” he says. “Every time I go to one of the LED-Edward Lowe programs, I find another layer of messaging and opportunity. It reinforces the vision we have, the plan we have — and challenges us to push just a little harder.”