In 2009, Loren and Jean Van Wyk and two of their sons, Luke and Chad, were operating two businesses: a family farm (LDJ Farms) and steel fabrication business (LDJ Manufacturing).

On the farm, they had been using a 1,000 gallon barrel mounted on running gear to transport fuel to the field. Their operation covered thousands of acres across several counties in south central Iowa. It was a constant challenge to get the field safely and fill quickly. As an ASME-certified tank manufacturer and an experience trailer manufacturer, they possessed the unique expertise to construct a better solution. And in the spring of 2009, the first square-by-design fuel trailer was designed and built.

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It was the first product to bear the Thunder Creek Equipment brand, named from the creek that runs on the back of the homestead farm, which is home to LDJ Manufacturing.

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The initial demand for fuel trailers grew in agricultural communities across the Midwest as farmers discovered the efficiencies they gained far exceeded their expectations. Demand has expanded into other markets that rely on off-highway machinery: construction, earthmoving, road and bridge, oil field, utility, and waste management to name a few.

As demand increased, so did the company's passion to serve those who feed and build our nation. Innovation - developing new solutions to improve the way you maintain machinery in the field - is the heart of this. The timeline below shares many of the milestones and new product developments in these first ten years of the Thunder Creek brand.