Through The Years

early pumpFounded in Port Orange, FL in 1970 by George A. Thompson and his sons, Bill and George Jr., Thompson Pump presently serves the pumping and dewatering needs of more than 3,000 national and international clients. The company’s clients represent such industries as underground utility, road building, heavy construction and remediation, as well as mining, industrial, and agricultural operations; municipalities, the military and other government agencies. Thompson serves these clients with a fully developed distribution network for sales, rental, service and parts, including 20 company-owned support centers.

Thompson Pump has many diverse lines of high quality pumps, available in sizes from 2 to 18 inches. They include wet prime trash pumps, dry prime trash pumps with compressor-assisted or vacuum-assisted priming systems, Silent Knight® trash pumps, hydraulic power units with submersible pump ends, diaphragm pumps, rotary wellpoint pumps and high pressure jet pumps. With these different types of pumps, as well as a full complement of accessory hoses and piping, Thompson can offer the proper pump and system for any application. In addition, Thompson provides engineering support and special applications consulting and contracting services for complicated wellpoint, bypass or multiple pump systems; and offers thorough pump and dewatering education and training through its Pumpology® courses.

It has become common to see Thompson’s pumps on some of the largest and most challenging projects in the world. Whether the job requires cleaning up an oil spill in Alaska, raising a submarine in the Atlantic, moving an east coast lighthouse, fighting western fires, controlling floods in the Midwest, handling an irrigation project in Africa, building a nuclear power plant in Georgia, or dealing with a tragic disaster in New York, Thompson Pump is there.

Back in 1970, the Thompsons had no idea how successful the company would become. At the time, George Sr. had extensive experience in the pump and dewatering industries, and had worked on numerous large projects before starting the company. George Sr. put his mechanical aptitude to work and was soon inventing and patenting pump products that earned the company a reputation for innovation. The Vacuum Underdrain Pipe was one such product — used to make shallow dewatering more efficient. With Bill handling administrative, accounting and management duties, and George, Jr. taking charge of operations, George, Sr. was off digging up new business and developing new products. Growth was fast and furious but they and the growing team were up to the challenge.

During that fast growth period, Thompson Pump manufactured and introduced lines of wet prime trash pumps, high pressure jet pumps and uniquely designed diaphragm pumps. In 1973, Thompson adapted the rotary pump to the dewatering industry for the first time. The rotary pump proved to be so efficient at wellpoint dewatering that Thompson quickly became the market leader. In 1977, Thompson introduced its own version of vacuum-assisted pumps, which allowed standard pumps to prime without filling the pump with water first, and to reach higher heads for demanding applications. Also, the company added in-house component and part manufacturing during this period.

After establishing its headquarters and factory in Port Orange on 2 acres of land, Thompson began purchasing property and opening branches in other strong pump markets. In 1975, the first branch operation outside Florida was opened in Goldsboro, NC on 12 acres of land. Florence, MS followed (1978) to take advantage of major projects with the city of Jackson, several central MS counties and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Unfortunately, the unprecedented success of the late 1970s was bittersweet when George Jr., then company vice president, died in 1979 at the age of 25.

With its resolve restored, the company maintained its commitment to growth in the 1980s. Additional branches opened in Chesapeake, VA (1982) to expand northward; Pensacola, FL (1983) to cover the FL panhandle and gulf areas; Ravenel, SC (1984) to provide a greater presence in the Carolinas; Sarasota, FL (1986) and West Palm Beach, FL (1989) to reach the coastal Florida areas. Several branch sites increased the size of their facilities to more than 5,000 square feet.

The Port Orange headquarters also was doubled in size during that time. New land was purchased and a building was constructed to house accounting and administrative offices.

Product innovation continued in the 1980’s with the introduction of Thompson’s hydraulic power units with submersible pump ends for high head applications, such as mine or quarry dewatering. Continuing expansion of the Thompson pump line also attracted the attention of equipment distributors across the country, and Thompson established a strong national network of dealers and rental centers. Many of those distributors are still active with Thompson today.