Allied Body Works, Inc. Est. 1947
In 1947, Charles Walter Bull and two close friends left Heiser Body to start a new business. With a devotion to honest work, a commitment to treat employees and customers fairly, and a hard-earned investment of $200 by each man, the three founded Allied Body Works, Inc. and set up shop in a small garage on 4th Ave. in Seattle
During its formative years, Allied Body was involved in repair work. Some of our first truck body work was done building armored cars for Loomis. As Seattle grew, so too did the specialized needs of local companies, particularly those involved in shipping and distribution. Allied Body grew to meet those needs and fill a niche in the marketplace. Over the years, the list of services continued to expand with the times and changes.
The company was passed on through the family line of Charles Walter Bull to Owen Bull (son) and Dick Minice (son-in-law). Dick eventually took sole ownership several years later. Dick’s son Richard Minice took over the reins in 1996. As Executive Vice President, Adam Keane (Charles Walter Bull’s great-grandson) continues the legacy as the fourth generation to join the Allied Body team. Allied Body Works now handles everything from light duty truck accessories and cargo van interiors, to medium/heavy duty flatbeds, dump bodies, contractor bodies, service bodies, van bodies, cranes, electrical and lighting accessories, liftgates and more.
Walker Blocker Est. 2017
Allied Body has many capabilities and after completing a project for the University of Washington, Executive Vice President Adam Keane had the foresight to see the need for this safety device in the trucking industry, submit a patent and bring Walker Blocker Side Guards to market. Therefore in 2017 Walker Blocker brought on Doug Strauss to establish the Side Guard product division of Allied Body Works. Walker Blocker has quickly become the nation’s leader in Side Guards. As the only US company to manufacture Side Guards we have become the “Go To” for many companies and cities looking to make their fleets safer as we see Side Guards as a “Call to Action”.
We consider ourselves “The Truck Side Guard Specialist” and we look forward to helping you navigate the new world of Side Guards!
Testimonials
Once the City of Portland secured funding to retrofit its entire fleet with side guards, the Vision Zero team selected Walker Blocker side guards as the right product for the retrofit. The decision was based on feedback we received from a pilot project conducted by our Bureau of Planning & Sustainability.
Throughout the retrofit process, Doug from Walker Blocker is helpful when determining the proper side guard fit for each vehicle to meet the Volpe standard and he is also extremely adept at navigating each bureau’s varying operational needs. I have largely been able to supervise from afar while Walker Blocker coordinated the installation schedules and product deliveries, making it easier for me to tackle other Vision Zero initiatives. Doug has paid a lot of close personal attention to this project, making trips to Portland to inspect vehicles when needed and building relationships with the staff members who work with the vehicles daily.
The City of Portland has been working to make the streets of our city safer through a plan called Vision Zero, a plan to reduce traffic deaths. An element of this plan is to install side guards to close the side openings on large trucks. This reduces the risk to wheel chair users, cyclists, walking pedestrians that inherently occur when truck drivers face the challenges of navigating blind spots while making turns in busy, dense city.
Walker Blocker has been an excellent partner in developing a product and installation service that meets the recommended safety specifications of the USDOT and is flexible enough to cater to the complex nature of garbage and recycling trucks.
Doug Strauss has been particularly instrumental in working as a diplomatic and knowledgeable voice when working with garbage and recycling collection companies and the City of Portland, balancing safety of the community, while having minimum impact on driver operations and truck performance.
Doug Strauss was instrumental in helping our fleet comply to the City of Portland’s side guard installation for our fleet. He worked with our purchasing manager getting us the best price, worked with the City to make sure our fleet would comply with all City requirements and worked with our local installers to be sure the installation would be done by the deadline we set.
With his help, our entire fleet of 129 trucks had their side guard installation completed within 3 months. We were able to have our invoices to the City processed to get our reimbursement before the City had to put the entire program on hold for a year.
He was a pleasure to work with and made the paperwork end of this process seamless.
CHECK OUT SOME OF OUR CUSTOM WORK
Below is just a few of the type of work we can help you with. We now handle everything from light duty truck accessories and cargo van interiors, to medium/heavy duty flatbeds, dump bodies, contractor boodies, service bodies, van bodies, cranes, liftgates and more.
Call or Email Us Today and we will walk you through the process!
(800) 733-7450