If there is one thing that we consistently hear from customers it is that they appreciate our excellent support through our staff. With that in mind, we wanted to introduce you to the people who help New Standard maintain that excellence.

Over the next few weeks and months we will be featuring the faces of New Standard in several question and answer posts. If you're a current customer, most of these staff faces won't be strangers, but we think some of their answers might surprise you!

Q&A with Kevin Kurbis

What is your background and education? 

I grew up on a small mixed farm in Canada. My high school education included introductory level electrical and PLC (programmable logic controller) programming. The idea of working with electricity and electronics really intrigued me. I don't have any post-secondary education, but I've been educated on the job. I began working in this industry as a service technician in 1997 (two years after graduating from high school) and have never looked back!

What led you to become an Owner/Partner at New Standard?

Before I came to New Standard I was running my own company providing service and installation since 2003. After my brother and his partners formed New Standard I found that I was quickly contracting all my time to New Standard. So we joined forces officially and I bought out part of the company.

What is your role at New Standard? 

I manage the Manitoba branch. I am still active in all the roles (service, delivery, warehouse, accounting, etc.) but most of my time is spent on sales and customer relations.

What is your specific area of expertise?

I used to focus more on the technical aspect (electrical, control programming, etc.) but I now have other people that take care of that for me. That has allowed me to focus more on barn design and implementation of the technology, which I really enjoy doing.

What is your favorite part of the job?

Meeting with customers and coming up with creative solutions for each individual barn. I get great enjoyment from seeing a project come together and function well based on my ideas.

What is your least favorite part of the job?

Accounting and HR.

How many ribs can you eat in one sitting?

Sadly, I don’t really eat ribs. I can make short work of a half-pound of bacon (even more if my wife is not watching)!

Favorite cut of pork? Way to eat turkey?

I love pork tenderloin, grilled to medium rare. My favorite way to eat turkey is when Concord Colony makes turkey cutlets. Unfortunately, I usually only get those once a year at their Christmas concert.

When you aren't working, what do you enjoy doing?

I enjoy what I do for work, so I am usually doing that. On the occasions I take some time for myself I enjoy landscaping in my yard or camping with my family.

What did you think you would be when you grew up?

I really had no idea. For a while I thought I would be a farmer but that idea left at a young age when I realized that being the youngest of four boys the odds of me taking over the farm were pretty slim. Once I took electrical in high school and realized that I enjoyed it (and was pretty good at it) I was hopeful that I could find a career that was based in agriculture and also made use of my electrical knowledge. At that point I still had no idea what that might be, but once I entered into this industry it turned out to be a perfect fit. So I guess in the end I am one of the lucky people who got to be what they wanted!