History

Peter Hoefler founded HAF in 1994 in Stillwater, MN.

The company was originally run out of a 1 man office located on the upper story of a retail center in Stillwater, MN. As the company grew, we moved to larger offices within this building. We knew it was time to move when we started to take delivery of valves and other parts by rushing out to a truck double parked on mainstreet, pulling the delivery off the back of the truck and carrying them "upstairs".

In 1995, while representing Savel Corp. the then owners approached us to purchase the company-and it was done. This meant rotary airlocks and divert valves would be assembled in Peter's garage at home. Casting and finished parts where picked up at a local distribution center and brought to my home on the back of a utility trailer. Valves where then assembled and finished and reloaded back onto this trailer. The whole family was involved when loading the trailer-all five of us would lift pallets manually.

By the late 90's we had secured an industrial building complete with loading dock-all in Stillwater. Our first purchase for the new building was a pallet jack for unloading trucks. We had a small office in front and a large shop-warehouse in back.

While we built high quality equipment, we soon found our products where just like every other companies in this business. By the end of the 90's, it seemed there where more companies offering the same products we had-it became a race to the cheapest. Our experience and skills where not a match for the products we built. It was time to develop products that where uniquely our own and ones the reflected our capability.

In 1999 we introduced our Moovinator line of equipment. This represented a departure from typical full size equipment-it was a product range that developed the new intermediate size process equipment. This was the start of the perfecting of our product line.

By 2003 we began looking for our own building. In 2004 we found a new never used industrial "shell" building. While in our leased space, we had been simply extending the lease year by year. In order to purchase and move into our new building, the timing needed to be near perfect. The build out in our new place had to be done nearly over night. The plan was for something simple that could provide us with an occupancy permit.

We added a basic test area that allows us the perfecting our our equipment and also the development of new products and processes. This proved a valuable asset.

In 2005 we made the jump to Solid Works software. This was a major leap for us, but it proved to be a good decision. Solid Works played a major role in the standardizing of our product line which lead to more efficient design, operation and manufacturing of our product line.

In 2007 we added to our production, engineering and installation capability by making an investment in a company located in the western part of Minnesota. This has allowed us to keep HAF as it always has been-a thinking and perfecting company. We are able to give our complete focus on our customers and are not encumbered by production issues.

In 2009 we achieved our first patent. A whole new way to unload bulk bags will soon be the norm.