Our History
"If we have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants."
-Sir Isaac Newton
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The Original
After World War II, Ben Duke, Hugh Lawson and Walter Weight perceived the need for a local waterworks distributor in Southern California. These three gentlemen, who each had extensive backgrounds in the water industry, formed the first waterworks distributor in Southern California located in Los Angeles, CA.
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Ben Duke
After buying out his partners, Ben Duke becomes the sole owner of Western Water Works. The Company moves to a larger location in South El Monte, CA.
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Ethel Duke
In 1970 Ben Duke passes away and his wife Ethel Duke, who had been active in the company from its inception, became the majority owner. As a woman business owner, she was a role model and pioneer in an industry that was dominated by men.
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A New Era
In 1995, Ethel Duke retires at the age of 89. Control of the Company is then passed to her nephew and grand nephew.
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Chino Branch
In 2000 the Company opens their new flagship location in Chino, CA. By this time, the focus of the Company has shifted to premier pipeline contractor sales in addition to the utility sales of the past.
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Support Center
To support the unprecedented growth, the Company opens the centralized sales support center in Chino Hills, CA.
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San Diego Branch
In the midst of the Great Recession, rather than downsize and perform lay offs, the Company commits its excess capacity to geographical expansion. As a first step, the Company opens El Cajon, CA branch to supply contractors in the San Diego market.
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Salt Lake City Utah Branch
In a bold move, the Company opens their doors in another state, in an effort to support the infrastructure growth in the Salt Lake City and surrounding areas.
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100% Employee Owned
The Company goes all in and becomes a 100% Employee Owned Company (ESOP). The stage is set for continued growth as the people of Western Water Works now have a vested interest in success.
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Coachella Valley Branch
To support the continued development and growth in the Low Desert region, the Company opens their doors in Coachella, CA.
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Provo Utah Branch
As a show of our committment to the Utah market, the Company opens a new location in Provo, UT. From this location we can quickly service the needs of any contractor in Utah County.
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Santa Fe Springs Branch
After outgrowing our South El Monte and Norwalk locations, we combined them into a new flagship location in Santa Fe Springs. The Santa Fe Springs branch is our largest facility that will allow us to service the continued growth in the Los Angeles County region for many years to come.
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Tualatin, Oregon Branch
2020 saw the opening of our flagship location in the Pacific Northwest. With over 130 pipe bays and state-of-the-art racking and Integrated Warehouse Management system this facility is the start of our expansion into the growing PNW market.