MORE THAN A NAME ON A SHELF
At Cohorst Enterprises, family values and trusted relationships keep the work and the people moving forward.
A small moment, a big reminder
Jeremy Cohorst doesn’t often go to the dealership to pick up parts anymore. But on a recent visit to Foley Equipment’s Olathe branch store, he stopped by the parts counter and saw a shelf labeled “Cohorst Enterprises.”
“I remember when I was just starting out in the mid-90s, walking in and being impressed that certain companies had their own dedicated parts shelves,” he says. “I hadn’t thought about that in a long time. It really hit me.”
It was a small moment that reminded Jeremy just how far he’s come since those early days with a skid loader, a couple of trucks and a dream.
Three decades of growth
Nearly 30 years later, things at Cohorst Enterprises look a lot different. The Wellsville, Kansas, company now employs about 50 people and runs a fleet of 85 pieces of yellow iron — most of it Cat® equipment. From small commercial projects to major municipal infrastructure jobs, Cohorst handles everything from clearing and grading to installing underground utilities and paving roads.
Ask Jeremy how he got from there to here, and he’ll tell you it comes down to three things: a family-first culture, a willingness to embrace new ideas and a commitment to building relationships that last.
A culture built on family
At Cohorst Enterprises, family isn’t just a name on the org chart. It’s how the company operates.
“We work hard to make everyone, no matter their job, feel valued,” says Tricia Gorden, who oversees operations and administration. “We do a lot of promoting from within. We want to train people up and keep lifers.”
That approach has paid off. Cohorst doesn’t face the same hiring and retention challenges many contractors do.
“Our employees promote the culture via word of mouth,” says Josh Gorden, Cohorst’s equipment manager. “They recommend their friends come work here, too.”
The company puts its money where its values are, paying 100% of insurance: health, dental and vision for employees and families. Small things like an annual Christmas party, time off for personal needs and celebrating milestones also keep the team close. “We’ve had guys donate days off for someone else to take,” Jeremy says. “We’re here to support our employees, and they take that a step further by supporting one another.”
Technology that strengthens people
For a company so focused on people, Cohorst Enterprises is surprisingly tech-forward. GPS, drones and digital tools are part of nearly every job, from the dirt side to the pipeline side.
“The people we’re hiring today are very tech-savvy,” Tricia says. “They really enjoy learning and using technology.”
Cohorst uses both Cat Grade and Payload to cut down on rework and improve accuracy on site.
“Efficiency is the number-one benefit,” Jeremy says. “When you have that setup on the machine, you don’t have someone out there checking grade. You don’t have someone in the cab guessing how many yards they’ve moved.”
It also makes the work safer — something that matters deeply in a company built around people. With grade control, fewer crew members need to be on the ground, reducing risk. Operators can set geofences to limit boom height near overhead power lines or mark underground utilities, preventing costly or dangerous mistakes.
Managing smarter, working faster
Technology isn’t limited to the jobsite, either. Cohorst relies on VisionLink® fleet management software to track and manage its growing fleet.
“We use it a lot for simple things like utilization,” Josh says. “Once every two weeks we update hour meters for service readings. I used to spend a day calling and texting people for that info. Now it takes me half an hour.”
Real-time diagnostics provide even more value.
“If there’s a fault code on a machine, within five minutes I’ve got an email,” Josh says. “Instead of sending out a mechanic to diagnose the problem, now I can research the issue myself. It makes us so much more efficient.”
VisionLink also helps reduce idle time - saving the company as much as 20% on fuel at one point - and spot opportunities for operator training. Those savings go right back into people, enabling Cohorst to invest in better benefits and ongoing skill development.
A relationship that runs deep
Behind every piece of technology and equipment, there’s a partnership keeping it all running. For Cohorst Enterprises, that partner has long been Foley Equipment. The relationship dates back to Jeremy’s first machine: a 1984 Cat 215B excavator.
“I had really good luck with it, really good service from the dealership, so I stayed going that direction,” he says. “For the most part, Cat offers the product with the best reliability and parts availability.”
Today, Cohorst relies on Foley for major service work, rebuilds and maintenance scheduling.
“We have a power-by-the-hour agreement where we prepay for our scheduled maintenance and Foley does the work on our off time,” Jeremy says. “They come in after 5 p.m. and we can get back on the job the next day without any downtime.” That kind of responsiveness makes a big difference.
“Foley’s support is 150% better across the board than other suppliers,” Josh says. “They understand our goals, and they’re committed to our uptime.”
Working with Foley to keep equipment well-maintained also helps Cohorst get the most value out of every Cat machine when it’s time to sell, a fact that hit home with Jeremy when he tried to repurchase his 215B excavator.
“I traded it in 15 years ago and then saw it come up for auction a few years ago,” he says. “I thought it would be fun to buy it back, but it ended up selling for more than I sold it for back then.”
Celebrating a century… and a partnership
Foley leaders invited Jeremy and his team to Peoria, Illinois, to celebrate Caterpillar’s 100th anniversary - a moment that felt, in many ways, like coming full circle.
“I toured Cat early on in my career, but to see the differences all these years later was pretty neat,” Jeremy says. “The technology that goes into everything, the investment they’ve made in their parts warehouse to give customers like us uptime, that says a lot about Caterpillar.”
For Jeremy, the trip - like that parts shelf moment at the Olathe branch store - was a reminder of how much has changed since the early days, and how much hasn’t: hard work, family values and relationships built on trust.
Those values are what he hopes will carry Cohorst Enterprises into the future. The next generation is already lined up, with Jeremy’s son working as a foreman and his nephew joining the company as an estimator.
“It’s taken a lot of good people and partners to get where we are today,” Jeremy says. “I’m proud of what we’ve built and even prouder knowing it’ll keep going.”