In 1938, Earl Dudley and E. Phil Harris started a company focused on repairing surveying instruments with a precision and attention to detail that would restore a customer's instrument to exact tolerances and standards required by the manufacturer. As a Master Craftsman, Earl worked with the manufacturers and was meticulous and attentive to the smallest details when repairing a customer's instrument. He wanted to ensure that the instrument was repaired correctly the first time so the customer would have no worries or concerns. Earl equipped the repair shop with the latest equipment on the market so that the majority of repair work could be done on-site and the company could provide customers with a complete line of repair services. When he couldn't find the equipment he needed, he had it built! What Earl learned about instrumentation he shared with customers and the services offered by the company expanded into equipment and application consulting, providing instruments and consulting for precision optical alignment solutions, and selling only the best quality surveying and building instruments needed by surveyors, engineers and construction companies.

Equipment, to Earl, didn't just mean instruments. He recognized that each piece of surveying equipment, whether it was an instrument, a level rod, a tripod, a prism, or a tape, was important. He understood the subtle but distinct differences between level rods and how those differences could impact specific surveying applications. He understood how using the correctly weighted tripod with a specific type of instrument could benefit a surveying crew. He understood how the properties of a steel chain versus a heavy plastic tape could impact surveying on a hot day or a cold day. He listened to his customers, and using his knowledge, helped them purchase the right equipment for their needs.

The company helped introduce optical tooling instruments into the pulp and paper, steel and aluminum manufacturing industries throughout the Southeast. In the 1960's, we supplied optical tooling instruments, distance meters, and highly accurate theodolites, as well as technical expertise, to many subcontractors of the Apollo Space Program. Our proven record as a leader in the surveying and optical tooling instrument industry provided us the opportunity to work the Corp of Engineers, TVA, Alabama Power, and Georgia Power in the use of Wild T3 Theodolites for the accurate surveying in their locks and dams project, as required by the federal government. When it was determined that a second monitoring system was needed as part of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Relocation Project, the knowledge and experience of surveying instrumentation of Earl Dudley, Inc. was called upon.

As new technology continues to be introduced to the optical tooling and surveying industries, we continue to update our service department to repair, adjust and calibrate optical tooling instruments, surveying instruments (from levels to total stations and GPS systems) and construction instruments and lasers. Our sales staff learns the instrumentation and the application solutions on the new technology and new instruments, software and accessories in order to provide each customer with the knowledge and expertise they have come to rely on when dealing with Earl Dudley, Inc.

Earl Dudley, Inc. was born from Earl's commitment to the knowledge and total understanding of how the use of equipment applied to the science of surveying. He kept abreast of the technology of the industry, learned how to apply that technology to evaluate the quality and application opportunities of instruments. He shared that knowledge with his children, his grandchildren, his nephews and his staff. After 70 years, there are still three generations of Earl's family actively involved in the company, and the legacy of Earl's commitment to servicing customers to help them meet their needs remains the foundation of the company that bears his name.

Whether it is purchasing new or used equipment, accessories or field supplies, repairing optical, digital or electronic instruments, renting a piece of equipment, or providing technical expertise, the goal of each person at Earl Dudley, Inc. is the same - to uphold the legacy Earl Dudley believed was the only way to do business - to provide customer service that exceeds the customer's expectations.