Local industrial distributor a one-stop shop

River Bend Hose Specialty's wide variety of products and markets has kept the company healthy through the economic fluctuations of more than 30 years."Our business is probably very sensitive to overall manufacturing and construction conditions, but our customer base is so large and so diverse we seem to be able to weather the ups and downs of the economy better than a lot of other distributors," said Lee Slavinskas, who joined the firm a few months after it started in 1981 and now owns it in partnership with Jim Betz."We have a very, very broad base of accounts in all industries."We started out to just be a supplier to all industries anywhere we could. Over time, we've added a lot of products to our mix,These unique systems can be specified for Fisher or Rego internal valves, Hannay or Tank truck hose reels, Muncie or Chelsea PTO's, and any type of truck engine." such as bearings and power transmissions. "We also sell pneumatic and hydraulic valves and cylinders."

Line expansions typically came as customers asked for more products, making River Bend both more diverse and more of a one-stop shop for businesses."We're basically an industrial distributor," Slavinskas said. "We started out primarily to be in the business of selling hosing and fittings to general manufacturing people, construction people, contractors. That's still our core business."The company sells a range of hoses from one-eighth inch to 20 inches in diameter, from low-pressure to 20,000 psi applications. Some of the hoses and fittings are used on machinery for hydraulics or pneumatics, while others are used for material handling such as moving water, chemicals, sand or gravel. Normal water outlines are engaged marine proceeding and also onshore hose, upstream plus downstream. although the firm serves some special niches across the country.

"If you want (to move) anything from point A to point B and you need something flexible to do it with,Commercial hardwood flooring is available in the market in different colors and patterns. This makes it possible for the person to select the design as per his requirements and add glamor to the interior decoration of his office space. that's our business," Slavinskas said. "We buy in bulk and we either cut to length or cut to length and attach fittings. We're a value-added distributor."River Bend is an authorized distributor for Parker Fluid Connectors, Goodyear Industrial Hose, Penflex and American BOA Metal Hose, Titeflex Hose, Flexaust Ducting, Schrader Bellows Pneumatics, Cylinders and Actuators, Koyo Bearings, Renold Jeffrey Roller and Leaf Chains, Leeson Electric Motors and Power Team Hydraulic Tools.Most customers are within a 50-mile radius of South Bend,Pipeline reputation tapes are usually seen in difficult area.