“The quality of the building is assured because it is built by the same manufacturer each time,” said john Shepanek, president of OCH international. It takes six to eight weeks to build, and because the basement and foundation are constructed while the building is being put together it saves 30 to 60 days during construction time.”

Ideally, the company expects to place one-bay units in towns with approximately 5,000 registered vehicles, located in trade areas with a total of 6,000-8,000 registered vehicles. The company also plans to offer the one-bay franchise only in states where it currently has other facilities.

“The owner has to be an owner/operator – someone who lives in a small community,” said Shepanek, adding that the company wants a potential owner to be a resident of the community as well.

“We don’t want a group of investors to build six of them.”

The company has been so impressed with the modular buildings thus far, that it is now offering two- and three-bay modular units, as well.

The full basement was designed to give the facility all the storage space it needs, and because the building is moveable, there are tax advantages as well.

“You can depreciate the building in seven to 10 years,” said Shepanek. It could be 30 years for a traditional building.”

The idea for a modular one-bay facility came from a current Oil Can Henry’s franchisee, a man who was also a former Burger King franchisee. When the idea was first presented, Shepanek liked it.

Although one-bay Oil Can Henry’s facilities will not be able to service 75-90 cars per day like some of the company’s larger facilities, Shepanek said the facilities do have the potential to service up to 50 cars per day.

“A mature modular one-bay will exceed 40 cars per day,” he said. “And break-even is 16 to 17 cars per day.”

In fact, a couple of one-bays that have already opened are already exceeding expectations. Business, according to Shepanek, is wonderful.

“From opening week they exceeded their break-even car count. Generally, it takes six to 10 weeks,” he said.

Another plus for small-town operation is that one-bay lubes will not require many employees. According to Shepanek, three to flour employees are all that a one-bay facility will require for successful operation. That just means fewer good employees to recruit and train.

Oil Can Henry’s one-bay centers will offer the same services as their larger facilities, but some time-consuming services like transmission and radiator flushes might require an appointment in order to keep lines short.

If anything, the Oil Can Henry’s one-bay centers are affordable. According to the company, the one bay is half the cost of a traditional three-bay and 40 percent less than a typical two-bay lube center. With the assistance of Castrol – the oil company which OCH International has an alliance – called Castrol Select Service, individuals may need to come up with as little as $60,000 in start-up capital to enter the business.

Old-fashioned service is one of Oil Can Henry’s basic company tenets. Because old-fashioned service is so often resulted from relationships cultivated in small towns, it is indeed ironic that in moving to the future, the company has returned to the past.

People in the Pacific Northwest and in parts of Florida recognize Oil Can Henry’s facilities as old-fashioned stores where the employees wear old-fashioned uniforms. The idea is that customers can expect old-fashioned customer service, as well.

Currently, OCH International, Inc. has franchised approximately 40 stores spread throughout Oregon, Washington, northern California, Arizona and Florida’s west coast. Most Oil Can Henry’s facilities are two- or three-bay fast lube centers, but recently the company embarked on an ambitious plan to enter smaller untapped markets. The result of that plan? A one-bay modular fast lube that can be built and installed in small-town markets in a matter of weeks.

The first Oil Can Henry’s one-bay facility was built the company’s Portland, Oregon training center – Oil Can Henry University – in May 1999. Since that time, the company decided to allow prospective franchisees located in small-town markets to jump into the fast lube business with a one-bay center. The modular buildings maintain the distinctive look and feel of existing Oil Can Henry’s centers, as an added bonus for the company.

For starters, once a good building site is selected – preferably near a fast food operation or shopping center – the full basement is built and concrete is poured. While this goes on, Frey-Moss, a modular building company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, begins construction of the modular lube building. Constructed entirely of metal, the building is then shipped to the site in pieces and assembled in place. In one day, the building can be put together and, in less than a week be up and running. In all, from the time building permits are in hand, a one bay Oil Can Henry’s facility can be operational in less than 60 days.