Network Reviews: Supportworks, Ram Jack, & Olshan
Quick Answer
Evaluating the massive proprietary dealer networks controlling the foundation repair industry.
The Franchise Model Reality
When you call "Bob's Local Basement Repair," they are almost always a franchisee or an exclusive dealer for one of the three massive national engineering networks. They do not manufacture the steel piers or design the sump pumps themselves; they buy the patented hardware from their parent network and deploy trained sales teams to sell it. The quality of the repair depends on the engineering of the network *and* the integrity of the local crew.
The Big Three Networks
Foundation Supportworks (FSI)
The Engineering Goliath
Based in Omaha, Nebraska, Supportworks is widely considered the technical gold standard of the industry. They employ an army of in-house geotechnical and structural engineers who design intensely tested, patented hardware. If your local contractor is an FSI dealer, they are generally using the best physical components available.
- Flagship Products: The GeoLock Wall Anchor system (the best winching anchor on the market) and the PowerBrace system (dynamically adjustable steel I-beams).
- The Downside: FSI dealerships are famously expensive. You are paying a premium for that massive corporate engineering overhead and their glossy, high-pressure sales presentations.
Ram Jack
The Deep Pier Pioneers
Ram Jack fundamentally modernized the steel piering industry. Before them, contractors often poured concrete "bell piers", which easily failed when the soil shifted. Ram Jack engineered interlocking, heavy-gauge steel pipe sections that are hydraulically driven down to true bedrock.
- Flagship Products: Their patented guide sleeve system for driven push-piers. This sleeve prevents the long steel pipe from physically buckling or bending in the soil while millions of pounds of hydraulic pressure are applied during installation.
- Verdict: If your house is actively sinking and requires deep piering, Ram Jack dealers are an exceptional choice. Their hardware warranty (typically a transferrable lifetime warranty on the pier itself) is usually ironclad.
Basement Systems (Waterproofing)
The Water Management Experts
While Supportworks focuses on structural steel (sinking/bowing houses), Basement Systems focuses purely on keeping water out. (The two companies are actually deeply intertwined). They revolutionized interior drain tile systems.
- Flagship Products: The WaterGuard system. Instead of the old method of burying a round PVC pipe in mud next to the footing (where it inevitably clogged with silt over 10 years), WaterGuard is a patented, non-clogging plastic channel that sits *on top* of the footing.
- Verdict: It is the most effective interior drain system on the market for wet basements. They also manufacture the highly regarded TripleSafe Sump Pump (which features three distinct pumps in one giant pit, including a battery backup, for ultimate redundancy).