Custom Filtration finds oil-cleaning niche

So, Strenfel discovered Hy-Pro Filtration in Fishers, Ind., a company that made the kind of filters his friend needed. Strenfel, operating from home, resold a filter to his friend, and a new business was born – Custom Filtration Equipment Inc.

Five years later, Strenfel and business partner Greg Elsey, an engineer with 27 years of experience in the oil filtration business, have just manufactured a $250,000 portable filter system for Shell Global Solutions at their eight-employee, 10,000-square-foot facility at 1540 N. Barnes Ave. They also expect to generate at least $1 million in revenues for the first time this year, six times the company’s 2005 sales.

And to think, “I got into the business by accident, really,” Strenfel said.

See SBJ’s May 1 issue for more on Custom Filtration’s growth and future plans.