When the jobs are piling up, pressure is high, and talent only gets you so far: it's time to get Tuff.
Efficiency is the name of the game, and the bottom line is more important than ever. To get the job done right — and get it done fast — you need more than equipment. You need problems solved, and you need them solved yesterday.
From two cousins discovering their passion, to a team thirty strong and growing, the vision's been the same: truck solutions specifically engineered to solve the problems you face, every day. You dream it — we build it. It's a vision that fuels our desire to innovate, burning brighter every time our product empowers you to save time, save money, and simplify your workday. At the heart of Tuff Truck Bodies is a commitment to industry-leading craftsmanship, precision engineering, and lasting relationships built on trust and mutual benefit. Solving the problems you face, every day. It's what gets us out of bed in the morning.
Midwest values and a common-sense way of doing business isn't by design — it's who we are. Fostering a keen sense of independence and ingenuity through a hands-off approach, grandad led the way early on for owners Brett Wilson and his cousin, Jesse Newman. With roots deep in the farming community, their grandfather served as lead designer and engineer as they worked together to build agricultural trailers and bodies for local friends and neighbors.
Sketching out design changes and detailed instructions on napkins during daily lunch breaks at the Shellsburg café, he gained a reputation for flexibility and a willingness to accommodate unique requests. While his talent and impeccable skill laid the foundation for everything we've built, it was also his greatest downfall. Confident and ambitious, grandpa rarely turned down a challenge. Heck, he'd tell you himself—the work was always completed, but the time and resources required were often underestimated, resulting in losses. Fortunately, Brett and Jesse took good notes.
Inspired by the resilience and superior corrosion resistance of aluminum, Brett and Jesse set out to carve their own path in the truck body industry. Partnering with their grandfather's client, Cedar River Garden Center in Palo, Iowa, they rolled out our first manufactured product in 1995. But the boys bit off more than they could chew, and with little capital, they were financially unprepared. Recognizing the situation, Cedar River graciously offered a small shed in the back of their property to operate from. As a trade-off, Brett and Jesse agreed to handle their fleet maintenance needs. Electricity, a wood stove, bathroom, and enough space for a medium-sized truck. Momentum was building.
The obstacles kept coming, but faith in the vision propelled us to adapt. Recognizing a broader market need, we transitioned to distribution of various products including snowplows, spreaders, and service bodies. By 2000, we had built relationships with local and state municipalities on our way to becoming Iowa's largest snow and ice equipment distributor. Faced with a market disruption in 2008 that put immense pressure on our earnings, we seized the opportunity to reinvest in manufacturing aluminum truck bodies — transforming a setback into a catalyst for growth.
Nearly 30 years and a nationwide network of sixty dealers later, Tuff Truck Bodies has grown from humble beginnings into an industry-leading innovator. Today, we solve your truck body challenges at the engineering and manufacturing stage — not during installation — eliminating the need for time-consuming and costly modifications.
One of the biggest reasons? We staff a dedicated in-house engineer. That means your body is designed with real-world use in mind from day one — weight, strength, workflow, and upfit requirements considered up front, not patched in later. The result is fewer surprises, fewer delays, and fewer costly adjustments, because the problem gets solved on paper before it ever hits the shop floor.
With that engineer working alongside an experienced in-house design team, every body we build is thoughtfully designed, structurally sound, and optimized for real-world use before it ever hits the shop floor.
Leveraging advanced design software, CNC machining, and skilled welders, we create tailored solutions from the start—ensuring precision, consistency, and efficiency in every project. And taking lessons from ol' grandad, we review our estimates carefully, stick to our quotes, and stay on schedule. The result? Higher-quality builds, fewer surprises, and equipment delivered faster and more affordably.
Constantly evolving to meet the needs of our customers, our commitment is simple: complete customization, a straightforward buying process, and fast turnaround times. Whether you're a local business, a municipality, or part of a national fleet, optimize your operations and get ahead of the competition with versatile equipment that's built lighter, built stronger, and engineered to your needs. Tuff Truck Bodies: BUILT TO CONQUER.
