Meet Andy Crowl, the down-to-earth owner of CompressAir who really cares about serving the people in his community. You might not see Crowl in the office much because he likes to be right in the middle of projects, working alongside his employees and talking to customers.
Along with being the owner of CompressAir, Crowl is also passionate about his family, helping his community, and his hobbies of camping and hunting.
Born and raised in Northwest Indiana, Crowl knows this area well and is invested in the community.
“I was born in LaPorte County, raised in LaPorte County, and I live in LaPorte County. All my friends and family are mainly from LaPorte County. LaPorte County is just home,” Crowl said.
Crowl enjoys hunting and likes to shoot trap. He’s part of the Stillwell Rod and Gun Club. He also enjoys going camping with his wife Kelly and traveling to different parts of the country together.
They have been to many places in the western part of the country and like to be able to spend time together while driving and camping.
“It’s kind of like turning work off and just spending time together. Most of our camping trips now, we don’t do a lot of flying – we drive. So it’s just about enjoying the conversation that we have,” Crowl said.
Their goal is to visit all 50 states. So far they have gone camping in many states in the Midwest and West, including New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Michigan, Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, and Oklahoma. One of their favorite places to camp is in the national forest in New Mexico.
Crowl’s passion for his family extends into his business, and his sons, Tyler and Maverick, who also work for CompressAir.
Crowl said that working with family can be challenging but also very rewarding.
“It has its good days and its bad days. There are always differences in opinions in the way things should be done. There’s different management styles and the way we do things. It’s a joy and a struggle.”
His goals in his position with CompressAir are to help get his business to the next generation and to serve the community that he knows and loves.
“My goal in this business is that the business always has to make money, because we want to grow the business, but at the end of the day it’s not how much we actually make – it’s supporting the 32 families that are a part of this company in some way, shape, or form.”
Crowl is truly passionate about his work and said that it’s one of the biggest parts of his life.
“My life has always been centered around work and helping other people,” Crowl said.
He enjoys working in the air compression industry because it’s hands-on, involves helping those around him, and gives him certain freedoms.
“I knew I did not want to be tied into a factory from 7 to 3:30 every day. I wanted some freedom, and getting into the industrial air compressor business gave me that freedom,” said Crowl.
Crowl has been in the air compression industry for 29 years, and he started as a technician at New York Blower. He worked for a privately-owned business from 1990 to 1999 before they were bought out by a corporation. He left the company he used to work for in order to buy CompressAir in 2005.
“As a service tech, my job was to take care of the customer and as a business owner, my job is to take care of the customer in the most efficient way, the most cost-effective way.”
Crowl said that he decided to stay in the industrial air compression field for three main reasons:
“First, I liked what I did and second, it was a means of supporting my family. Third, I enjoyed the challenges every day,” Crowl said.
He also helps his employees with different projects. He helps come up with and draw out plans, manage the different jobs, and make sure everything runs smoothly.
“I’m more hands-on. I don’t enjoy being in an office,” said Crowl.
Crowl truly defines what it means to love what you do, and he enjoys talking about CompressAir and his experience in the field.
“It was once said to me, ‘Plan your work and work your plan.’ So plan what you’re going to do and work your plan,” Crowl said.
Community-oriented and eager to help others through his business, Crowl’s unique passion plays a large role in the Northwest Indiana community.
To learn more about CompressAir, check out https://compressair.net.
