When one talks about the history of Associated Asphalt, Roanoke will certainly never be left out. As our headquarters and home, our Roanoke office and the Roanoke Terminal have a rich history with Associated Asphalt, dating back to 1948 when the company started and operated under the Fuel Oil & Equipment Company name.

In the beginning, the entire company operated out of what is now the Training Center on Roanoke Avenue. At this time, the company delivered heating fuel residentially. If you catch Bill Kirk in a good mood, you may convince him to sing the jingle: “Call today and live the sure-temp way!” The company grew exponentially and required an expansion of the office at least five different times. These intermittent expansions paved the way for more administrative and accounting staff, as the corporate office continued to grow.

Pivoting to Liquid Asphalt

In the early 1950s, the company expanded to liquid asphalt in Roanoke to support our longest customer, Adams Construction’s growing need for asphalt. It became a seasonal complement to the fuel oil business. Our first contract to supply approximately 1,000,000 gallons of liquid asphalt started in May of 1953, with 1,700,000 ultimately delivered.

During this time, old rail cars were repurposed as our first asphalt tanks on Roanoke Avenue. We removed the wheels and chassis and were able to leverage the storage space and coils that were already built into the cars. When it was time for more space, we upgraded a 25,000-gallon heating oil tank to hold asphalt. It’s still in use today! This was a key time of ingenuity in our history. We saw an opportunity in a new market and embraced it, paving the way forward for the company.

“All of us know about the very busy days that we have in the summer paving season, but I have many memories of busy days during the winter at the Roanoke Terminal,” recalls Bill Kirk. “On very cold days, we would be dispatching 6 fuel oil trucks, making deliveries throughout the Valley. We would also have 5 service vans working. Our phone lines would be ringing from morning into night. All of this was done without computers or cellphones. They were very different times indeed!”

“Through all those times and today, it continues to be our employees who make a difference. They’re great people to work with who take pride in what they do,” he adds.

Evolution of Headquarters

The Roanoke Avenue Terminal was the home of corporate headquarters from 1948 to 2014. While staying put was partially a financial decision, there were plenty of reasons to stay despite the rapid growth. The location allowed corporate employees to directly interact with Terminal Operators, Drivers, and other field employees. The camaraderie between employees was unmatched, and while we now operate out of the Norfolk-Southern Building downtown, we’ve made a point to keep the road between corporate and the terminal a short one.

When corporate relocated, the space left behind was repurposed into the Training Center that we use to educate and upskill our employees. We dedicated this space as part of our commitment to continued learning and personal advancement for every employee. This space serves as the perfect location for employee training at every level.

The Terminal Today

Fast forward to 2021, the Roanoke Terminal has fifteen drivers, eight lot operators, three dispatchers, one administrator, and six managers. In 2002, our 11 rail spots increased to 23 – more than doubling our transport capacity. In 2005, our Emulsions Lab was added to the property.

Mike Tyree Jr. has been with the company full-time since 2011 and was recently promoted to the Technical Services Group. He remembers when he was working as an operator at the terminal with Terminal Manager, Daniel Palmer, pumping over 75 rail cars in a week. While our modern systems are in place to reduce those kinds of operating bursts, they carry that same sense of urgency in their work today.

“It still feels like home, even with the growth we’ve had over the past 3-5 years,” he says.

Jonathan Wolcott, Asphalt Manager, has been part of that growth over the past five years: “Daniel and I started pretty much from scratch developing a new lot crew. Along with our safety administrators, we have spent countless hours on safety training, Job Safety Analysis’s, and everything pertaining to overall terminal employees.”

Since joining the company, Jonathan has ushered in the installation of two new loading racks and the installation of a new tank.

None of this could have been possible without the hard work of Terminal Manager, Daniel Palmer. He’s gone from part-time groundskeeper, joining us in 1999, through Operator and AC Manager, to becoming Terminal Manager in 2008. He’s the epitome of a servant leader who isn’t afraid to jump into action alongside his employees. His proudest moments are when he sees his team go from being strangers to acting like family at and outside of work.

“Coming to work is just another day working alongside my family,” he says. “The mindset of “Get it Done” is what we strived for and what we accomplished together as a team. There are times when it can be extremely stressful, but working together, in the end, is always rewarding.”

These are just a few of the many faces at the Roanoke Terminal who keep things running smoothly and will help our Southwest Virginia customers thrive for years to come.

Founded on a handshake and built on the ingenuity of our team, our Greensboro Terminal remains one of our busiest locations and a reminder of the massive strides our team can accomplish.

Our Greensboro terminal has been a growing staple of the Associated Asphalt since our chairman, Bill Kirk, closed the deal on it with a handshake (so the legend goes around the site) in 2004. The terminal’s twenty-one-man crew currently supplies our customers with concentrate, base products, and specialty products when the need arises; it’s a versatility grounded in a history of innovation.

A Foundation of Problem-Solving

In 2005, the site originally was manned by a seven-member crew who oversaw the production of three base products and one additive. The complex possessed only sixteen rail spurs, eleven storage tanks, and a single tank of avgas to fuel operations. It continued in a light support role until 2011, when the Greensboro Polymer Modified Asphalt (PMA) Plant, as the site’s known today, was born.

Located about 2 hours from our Roanoke headquarters, updating and building out the infrastructure for the PMA process was a technical and operations puzzle in a region that couldn’t afford a full shut-down of the plant. But our team rose to the challenge of making necessary modifications and additions to produce the new product while still continuing to be one of the busiest throughput terminals in Associated Asphalt family. There was never any task too large for the Greensboro team.

When the expansion was complete, the Greensboro plant now possessed the ability to spot eighteen railcars on two spurs and two additional large storage tanks, not to mention additional PMA storage tanks.

A Future of Versatility

With its twenty-one teammates and fully capable facility, the Greensboro site is well-positioned to continue growing alongside the company as it services more and more customers. And with the achievement of overcoming all the site’s technical challenges under their belt, this location and its crew remain ready to solve “brain busters” that arise day and night for our customers in the years to come.

“My experience and the growth that I have witnessed at the Greensboro terminal is how supportive and considerate Colleen, Bruce, and Mark have been in their role at Associated Asphalt. They go beyond to put situations in the correct perspective, which is significant growth of a team,” Anthony Benton.

We look forward to being a longstanding solution to the region’s transportation needs for years to come.

Associated Asphalt Partners, LLC (“Associated Asphalt”) is announcing the appointment of J.W. (“Bill”) Kirk as Chairman and the promotion of John Janes to President and Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1.

Associated Asphalt is a leader in the asphalt industry with the largest independent asphalt terminalling, storage and distribution network in the United States.  The Company’s terminal platform serves end users throughout the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Northeast U.S. with asphalt storage capacity and related logistics infrastructure assets, including access to an expansive rail network and multiple ports capable of receiving asphalt from U.S. and international refineries.

The success of the business cannot be separated from the leadership and influence of Bill Kirk.  Bill joined Associated Asphalt in 1976 and was named President in 1988 and CEO in 1999. Over this period, Bill led the diversification and expansion of Associated Asphalt from a single terminal in Roanoke to 35 terminals across 10 states.  Bill has commensurately garnered the respect of industry participants, having served as Chairman of the Asphalt Institute twice, in 2004 and 2011. 

Bill’s leadership extends beyond business results, as he is known for instilling sound operating principles and integrity in the company.  Bill nurtured the importance of environmental stewardship and social responsibility into the fabric of the business, while maintaining a tight knit, family-oriented culture for employees and partners.  Bill has worked closely with John Janes and the senior management team to translate his vision, principles and passion for the business into results and strategic growth plans.

John Janes, the company’s new President and Chief Executive Officer, has more than 25 years of experience across energy markets.  He has a demonstrated track record of leading supply purchasing, developing customer-oriented solutions, managing storage and logistics infrastructure and directing teams.  John has worked as the company President, teaming with Bill and the senior management team since 2007, and he was appointed Chairman of the Asphalt Institute in 2016. Prior to joining Associated Asphalt, John held senior management positions with Koch Materials / SemMaterials for 17 years.

“I’m incredibly grateful for having had the opportunity to lead Associated Asphalt over the past forty years and look forward to continuing to contribute to its future successes in my new role,” said Bill Kirk.  “I have the utmost confidence that John is ready to steer the company through the next decade given his unparalleled relationships and industry knowledge.”  

“Bill is a true legend in the asphalt industry, and I am honored to have worked by his side for the past 12 years,” said John Janes.  “Bill’s proven track record, decades of experience and industry connections will be invaluable to me and the rest of the senior management team as we execute our strategy to serve as the industry leader in each of the markets we serve.”  

Under the new organizational structure, John will provide day-to-day oversight for the business and Bill will move into the role of Chairman.   John and the Associated Asphalt team will continue to look for opportunities to formulate innovative products, provide important linkages from suppliers to end markets, and partner with other industry players and the community.

About Associated Asphalt

Associated Asphalt is a world-class, midstream and logistics platform linking refineries with end markets across the Mid-Atlantic, Southeastern and Northeastern U.S. The company stores, blends, transports and sells a diverse mix of asphalt products through 35 terminals consisting of approximately 6 million barrels of shell capacity.  

The company’s terminals are directly accessible via rail and/or water, with logistics further supported by rail cars, trucks and trailers.  Associated Asphalt’s storage capacity and connectivity allows the company to offer year-round, ratable offtake to refiners. Associated Asphalt has developed strong relationships with a broad group of refineries and global trading firms. Associated Asphalt is owned by management and an affiliate of ArcLight Capital Partners. 

More information about Associated Asphalt may be found at www.associatedasphalt.com.