TerraWise Solutions supplies superior products that hold up against the very toughest job site conditions. With over 20 years’ experience under its belt, the McDonough, Georgia-based business has emerged as a leader in premier positioning technology, known for providing the latest, most leading-edge equipment from Leica Geosystems, one of the world’s largest positioning technology manufacturers.
Founder John Rosier launched the operation as a humble start-up in 2002. He grew it into a leading force in the industry by providing the highest quality Leica products in tandem with steadfast customer care. “John was in this industry for years, working for another company, and that’s really where it all started,” explains Business Development Manager Matthew Biles.
While on the job, Rosier observed that some of the customers weren’t getting the care and attention that they deserved. “They weren’t being taken care of,” Biles says. Rosier saw not only a need, but an opportunity. “He started his own business out of his basement. He had already formed some of those relationships, being in the industry for years. But he really just took it to the next level of taking care of those customers.”
Taking it to the next level often meant long days on the job, personally going out to customers’ locations to ensure satisfaction. “He would drive out to all the job sites for the customers to pick up their equipment,” says Biles. “If he sold equipment, he would deliver it to them out on the job site, and he really went above and beyond taking care of his customers and building those relationships.”
Today, TerraWise Solutions is the number one machine control authorized dealer of Leica Geosystems for all of North America. “We sell, we rent, and we train on all of our equipment, and we also repair equipment,” Biles says. “What sets us apart is we are mobile still to this day. So anywhere in the southeast, we come to you; we come to the job site. If you have equipment at your office that needs to get picked up, [we come to your office]. We go above and beyond to take care of our customers.”
Indeed, customers can rely on TerraWise Solutions for all their service needs. “We also have a full-service center here in McDonough where we work on all equipment,” says Biles. “We are a Leica Geosystems reseller—we don’t resell any other equipment besides Leica—but all of our customers tend to have different [kinds of] equipment, and we work on it all. They’re able to bring all their equipment to us as a one-stop shop.”
TerraWise Solutions carved out its leading position as a Leica Geosystems reseller by helping customers take full advantage of the technology. During the early years of the company, the team realized that customers were missing out on key product capabilities due to a lack of knowledge. Biles likens it to when people buy a newly released smart device and are unable to figure out how to use all of the new features. “It can do so much for you, but we realized our customers were only using ten percent of that equipment, of what it was really capable of doing,” he says.
The team went to work learning everything there was to know about the product in order to fully support the customer. “We ended up being knowledge experts on all the equipment, where we knew the equipment inside and out. So we were able to go out and train our customers to fully utilize that equipment and it created a greater ROI for them, being able to use more features on that equipment. It really built a relationship of trust between us and our customers, just knowing that we were the experts and we were going to lead them down the right path. So what really has kept us successful is being experts on the equipment and then continuing to hire and train people to be the best in our industry. And we pass that on to the customers.”
TerraWise Solutions recently rebranded from its original name, Construction Laser, in response to changing technologies within the sector. “Positioning technology, just like any other technology, is constantly evolving,” Biles points out. “As such, the name Construction Laser once told who we are, but as time went on, became a little outdated. We feel like TerraWise Solutions not only tells who we’ve become and who we’ve evolved into, but it also allows us to keep evolving with technology moving forward.”
TerraWise Solutions’ new tagline, “building superior solutions together,” captures the company’s commitment to partner with its customers. “This is all about who we are,” Biles says. “We sell, train, and repair—but at the end of the day, we’re looking to build that trust. It’s not just about selling the equipment and then walking away from a customer. We’re constantly there, training them on how to use the equipment. If the equipment breaks or fails, we are there to repair or give them a loaner. We create that partnership. We really do become an extension of our customers, and that’s where they rely on us. Together, we’re building superior solutions.”
Although the company has enjoyed steady success, the journey has not been without its challenges, particularly when working to actively expand while carving out a unique identity in the marketplace. “When you’re doing a rebranding, when you’re having the kind of growth that we are, you’re always going to come across little growing pains.” Biles shares. “But we’re working to adapt. Internal processes are changing, all kinds of things like that [are changing] with the growth that we’re experiencing.” Ultimately, he summarizes, the goal is “making sure we’re getting our processes correct and making sure we’re able to handle the kind of growth that we’re seeing.”
After years of focused growth, the team is eager to keep pushing forward to stay at the leading edge of an ever-evolving industry. “It kind of goes together; right now, the industry is growing—the construction industry as a whole—and we’re seeing the same thing within our company. We’re growing rapidly. Our plans are to continue to adapt and continue to grow with the market and within the technology sector. And this means adopting the newest and greatest technology, and making sure we’re experts with that technology.”
The team is also looking to expand geographically in order to reach more customers. “We plan to grow into some more states,” Biles says. “Currently, we’re in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina, but we have plans to grow throughout the southeast.”
After transforming from a one-man show in a basement to the number one machine control authorized dealer of Leica Geosystems for all of North America, TerraWise Solutions already has a solid track record of successful expansion. Armed with the industry knowledge and customer-first approach that have brought the company so far, it should only be a matter of time before the team’s future plans come to fruition.
