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WesTex Document, Inc.

When Army Lt. Col. John E. Miller opened the doors of WesTex Document, Inc. in 1997, he set a goal for his small operation to be the most trusted service for records management in the industry. Well, how’s this for meeting a goal? Eleven years later, WesTex Document is the only company in the country trusted enough to store sensitive documents for the U.S. nuclear energy industry.

WesTex announced in 2008 that its Nuclear Quality Assurance (NQA) Management Plan cleared an exacting screening process, landing the company on a very short list of vendors approved to work with the nation’s 140-plus nuclear power facilities.

That means that very soon, Lubbock’s Reese Technology Center will warehouse thousands of nuclear records from across the country. Work is already underway constructing the fortified fireproof vaults needed to safeguard the materials for the 80 years recently mandated by federal law.

“John saw a huge potential in this area and made the investment necessary to get us in this position,” said quality assurance manager Jody Perez.

Rapid Expansion

Originally established in Midland as a mobile document shredding service with just three employees on the payroll, WesTex now offers records management services throughout West Texas and eastern New Mexico. Miller, president and CEO, oversees more than 30 employees from a 50,000-square-foot facility at Reese – thanks in part to a jobs incentive package from Market Lubbock and Miller’s own keen business savvy. WesTex hired six new employees from January 2008 to June 2008.

“We have been steadily adding personnel – hiring drivers, records managers, etc. – as we expand to meet the needs of our customers,” Perez said.

While shredding still accounts for a large portion of the work, services now include secure electronic imaging and document storage. WesTex offers free secure collection containers for clients to store materials in their own facilities prior to destruction.

Employees are subjected to both a comprehensive criminal and credit history check and sign a confidentiality agreement as a condition of employment, and WesTex is insured by a CNA insurance companies professional liability policy.

Quality Assured

In order to receive NQA-1 status, giving the company approval to store sensitive information without restriction, WesTex had to meet more than 20 requirements and undergo a series of on-site audits.

The diligence should pay off, however. Perez estimates the $300,000 spent building the first vault will be paid back within six months. WesTex already has accepted shipments from Eunice, New Mexico-based Louisiana Energy Services, and, even as it celebrated an open house for its first vault in August 2008, was expanding into new parts of Reese to create more vault space.

“We’ve made substantial investments in this nuclear energy industry project and the results will further assist us in positioning our company, the Reese Technology Center, and the City of Lubbock on the forefront nationally for the nuclear industry,” Miller said.

Ashmore & Associates LLC

Do the right thing or die trying. That’s not a credo people typically associate with insurance agencies, but for the 18-member Ashmore & Associates LLC team, it represents an unspoken requirement for conducting business in West Texas – a friendly region where handshakes still seal many a business deal.

“If you work hard enough to make a name for yourself and do what’s right, things will eventually fall into place and take care of themselves,” said Elizabeth (Beth) Ashmore, who co-founded Ashmore & Associates with her husband Wilburn (Will) Jr. in 1983.

And so they have. Thanks at least in part to this do-good attitude, Ashmore & Associates earned a duo of honors in Forbes Magazine in 2008. The company was selected by Goldline Research first as one of the Most DependableTM Insurance Brokers of Texas, and then among the Most Dependable Insurance Professionals of the Central U.S.

Part of the Plan

To earn a place on the Most Dependable list, companies must have no consumer complaints, lawsuits or disciplinary actions, boast high client retention rates, and provide client references that are checked and scored based on a proprietary scoring system.

And those are just a few of the criteria used by Goldline, a market research and publishing company specializing in investigating the credibility and performance of service-industry companies. An exacting standard, sure, but one that Beth says Ashmore & Associates were able to meet because of that emphasis on customer service – a subject the employees discuss and try to improve on a daily basis.

“Practice makes perfect – both literally and figuratively,” she said. “The more you practice something, and the more you expect it, the more the results show.”

Just One of the Neighbors

Will, Ashmore & Associates’ president and co-owner, began his insurance career in 1982 serving businesses in the Southwest. Beth started her career in employee benefits in 1979.

Today, their Ashmore & Associates is a multi-line, full-service Trusted Choice agency, meaning that it’s a Zywave Partners as well as a member of the Texas Agency Alliance and the Strategic Independent Agents Alliance – coalitions intended to expand agency services, markets, and customer options. Products and services include commercial casualty, commercial property, bonds, personal lines, employee benefits, individual life, health, disability, long-term care, and consulting services. The company is licensed in many states and has been a member of the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce since 2000.

But despite their success, Will and Beth still try to live by their advertising motto – doing business with people you know and trust – because, after all, they are still a part of the Lubbock community.

“It’s a matter of knowing and keeping in mind that the person who had a problem with your service might just run into you at the grocery store,” Beth said. “Being part of the community is vastly important.”