Cart inventor says competition ‘pails' in comparison

Rick Thibault was washing his motor home with a 5-gallon bucket, feeling sluggish as he crouched to scrub and hose the wheels and lower panels.

As he moved to the next section of the 42-foot recreation vehicle, he got to thinking about that lowly bucket.

"I was being lazy and pushing it with the long-handled brush that I was using," Thibault recalled. "I thought, this is silly. Five-gallon pails don't slide on concrete."

Or, do they?

Thibault looked online and in stores, and while he did find some 5-gallon bucket dollies, he wasn't moved to buy anything.

"Nothing captured my interest," Thibault said. "I thought it would be nice if you could sit down while washing your chrome rims and grilles. Then, I came up with the design of a side seat with a 5-gallon bucket with wheels on it."

Eureka, the PailPal Tradesman Cart was taking shape. After more thought, Thibault left a gap between the bucket and seat for tool aprons often used in the construction trades. He also put a handle on it to pull. He felt like he was on to something.

When Thibault ran it all by a patent attorney, he said the legal counselor rolled his eyes.

"The attorney thought there'd be a million patents like this," Thibault said. "But after he did the search, he told me, 'Rick, I can't believe this. I saw many buckets, but you're in the free and clear. There's nothing like it.'"

That was 10 years ago. Now there are similar bucket carts on the market that Thibault designed for his business, Workshop Solutions LLC. He reconfigured the tradesman cart, swapping out wheels for skis for ice fishing uses for one new product and he replaced the seat with a paint tray for another.

The tray on the PailPal Painters Cart can accommodate a 12-inch roller compared with other 5-gallon buckets that only fit up to 9-inch paint rollers.

"You can turn an eight-hour day into six-hour day because the roller is 3 inches wider," Thibault said, pointing out how his bucket carts can save employers man hours and money.

He will be able to make that pitch soon to a big-box retailer. He has a meeting on his calendar, and he's talking to a large paint producer and a fishing bait manufacturer.

Thibault is also set for a big production run of his workshop solutions at Butler, Ind.-based DeKalb Molded Plastics Co., which is ramping to produce what has become a line of 10 products.

"We've aligned our capacity with the expectations in the marketplace and we're ready to go," DeKalb Sales Director Kevin Bajus said.

With $16 million in annual sales, DeKalb ranks 287th among North American injection molders, according to Plastics News' latest ranking.

It's been a long road for Thibault since that day inspiration struck while washing his motor home in 2008.

The invention process went smoothly at first. Thibault had a machine repair and prototype shop at the time in Macomb County, Mich., where he served mostly the auto industry. The facility was equipped with a stereo lithography machine and he made his own prototype.

An acquaintance who owned a shop that built structural foam molds told him about DeKalb. The structural foam molder specializes in large products and offers post-mold painting, decorating, kitting, assembly and warehousing.

Thibault took his prototype to DeKalb. He even made his own mold at his machine shop. Production then began for the PailPal trade cart, which is made of recycled HDPE structural foam and has 5-inch heavy-duty wheel casters.

Thibault looked for sales outlets and did his best to spread the word about his new product, like arranging market tests with employees of an electrical company. He said he heard back two weeks later that it made their jobs easier and faster.

"From the standpoint of ergonomics and efficiencies, there's nothing better that pertains to 5-gallon buckets," Thibault said. "My challenges were on the marketing side and not realizing what it would take to get it in a box store."

Thibault recalled showing his PailPal to the first purchasing agent for a big-box retailer about a decade ago. He said the company representative liked the product but was discouraging.

"They weren't really excited about dealing with a single sku vendor," Thibault said. "He suggested I sell my unit off to somebody very large or create a product line."

Thibault chose the latter. Inspiration struck again when he was driving to go snowmobiling in northern Michigan. He saw ice fisherman carrying rods, augers and supplies to shanties on the frozen waters of the Great Lakes state. He figured they could use a PailPal that moves on skis and has room for a small grill and propane tank.

Thibault said he had some extra room in the bucket mold at DeKalb and he was able to put skis onto a PailPal for uses in icy conditions. Other design ideas using the same product frame followed.

In all, Thibault sold about 2,500 PailPals before the U.S. economy crashed. His machine shop business struggled, and he said he lost work from Tier 1 and 2 automotive customers.

The economy slowed and so did Thibault's PailPal plans.

"Sometimes people put things on hold for a while to reanalyze the marketplace," Bajus said. "Now he's really got his focus on this, and this is an official kickoff."

The PailPal Tradesman Cart ($109.95) recently relaunched on Amazon with the line of other mobile buckets and accessories.

"Everyone who has them loves them as far as the utilitarian purpose — from auto detailing to mechanics to locksmiths, electricians. You name it, there are so many applications for it," Thibault said.

In addition to the original PailPal cart and the ones with skis and paint trays, Workshop Solutions offers a 5-gallon bucket dolly with 3-inch wheels ($44.95), a two-shelf service cart ($129), two kinds of auto-detailing carts (starting at $144.95), a washboardlike bucket insert called the Dirt Dropper ($19.95) that removes dirt particles from brushes used to wash cars and accessories like tool aprons.

Bajus said DeKalb's 40 years in business enable it to process the mix of products.

"Workshop Solutions has a wide array of product weights and sizes. It could be anywhere from a couple ounces to 8-plus pounds and that's in the same tool or mold," Bajus said. "Manufacturing disproportionate sizes in a single tool can be tricky, but it's something we really excel at with our experience."

DeKalb specializes in a process that mixes a foaming agent with the base resin in the polymer melt ahead of injection molding. The resulting products have a high strength-to-weight ratio and are more rigid than solid parts of the same weight, according to the company.

Bajus said DeKalb has brought many new products to the marketplace.

"Much of that has to do with maximizing the supply chain," he said. "It's not only the molding aspect, but its packaging, ensuring inventory and ensuring product availability. All that goes hand in hand with some of the targets Rick has, which are very large big-box retailers."

Thibault is also targeting more trade organizations, and he has meetings set to show how Workshop Solutions carts can improve the ergonomics of utility and construction workers and more.

"Our products can save knee, back and hip fatigue. That's a huge possible market," Thibault said, noting the average knee replacement cost is $49,500.

Workshop Solutions products can improve a workday or someone's overall quality of life, he added. Thibault has high hopes for a good outcome with retailers, the trade industries and the general public shopping online on Amazon or bucketaccessories.com.

"It's about making life easier, and I absolutely enjoy doing this," Thibault said.