TRP Truck Parts opens in Moses Lake

MOSES LAKE — The trucking industry is how things get from point A to point B in this country. To do that, the trucks have to be kept rolling, and to keep rolling, sometimes the trucks need parts. 

“It's really the lifeblood of the economy,” said TRP District manager Eric Scott. “Everything we buy every single day, at some point in its life, is on a truck, from the fuel to the food to the clothing and everything else we need.” 

TRP is a Kenworth franchise, but supplies parts for trucks of all makes, said Leah Meulman, the parts manager at the Moses Lake TRP store, which opened its doors in November and held a grand opening earlier in March.  

“We do parts sales to fleets, to owner-operators, to farmers, to anybody in the trucking and transportation industry,” Scott said. 

The Moses Lake store opened in response to increased demand in the area, Scott said. In the past, the area was serviced remotely from a facility in Wenatchee by outside sales reps, he said. 

TRP stands for Trusted, Reliable and Proven, according to the company’s website. The company was formed in Europe in 1994 and opened its first U.S. store in Kansas City, Mo., in 2015. Today, there are more than 300 TRP stores in 45 countries, according to the website. 

Besides the parts store, TRP has a service facility nearby, Scott said. That facility also services all brands of trucks. 

“That’s the advantage of having a TRP location in Moses Lake, is being able to take care of those customers who have Peterbilts or Internationals,” Scott said. “We sell everything from maintenance items to overhaul kits.” 

“Anything from fancy chrome down to filters for regular maintenance,” Meulnman added. “We’ve sold a couple of complete engines here already.” 

Scott is based in Lewiston, Idaho and covers stores there and in Pendleton, Ore., Pasco and Wenatchee as well as the Moses Lake store. Unlike in some industries, he’s had his share of grease under his fingernails before moving into store management. 

“I was always mechanically-minded,” he said. “One day I was doing a job and saw an ad for a technician role. I applied for it, and 21 years later, here I am.” 

Meulman, who’s based at the Moses Lake store, was born and raised in Ephrata, she said. She comes from a family that’s heavily in trucking and farming. Nick Anderson and Kevin Arntson, who work the parts counter, have about 20 years of experience between them, she said. 

“We’ve all been in this industry for quite a while now,” she said. 

The trucking industry may not be as romanticized as it was 50 years ago, when movies like “Smokey and the Bandit” turned truckers into folk heroes. But the folks who herd those big rigs down the highway still take their work very seriously, Meulman said. 

“There's still quite a few tried-and-true guys out there who have shown trucks and stuff like that,” she said. “It is, for sure, a lifestyle. They eat, sleep and breathe their trucks.” 

The Moses Lake TRP store should make it easier for drivers to keep goods flowing, Scott said. 

“Our core goal is connecting customers and connecting with businesses and suppliers and providing superior service,” he said. “That's really what sets us apart, is service (and) reliability for the customer.” 

TRP 

101 S. Wiser Lane 

Moses Lake 

509-512-2112 

7 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday 

www.trpparts.com

    The TRP store in Moses Lake has parts for a wide variety of truck makes and models.
  

    The Moses Lake TRP truck parts store is located at 101 Wiser Lane, off Wheeler Road, across from Grant County District Court.