Havre business closes; employees start over

A long-term Havre business has closed its doors.

David Rhines, a former employee of Syndicated Technologies Ltd. in Havre, known as Syntech, said Thursday he has opened Schine Electric in Havre after Syntech closed its Havre office this month. Syntech, formerly Tempo electric, provided services including electrical contracting and maintenance, computer systems and networking, and phone systems.

Schend said Schine Electric will continue to offer the electrical services Syntech offered.

John McLain, formerly of Syntech, said he is managing Bear Paw Technologies at Schine Electric. Bear Paw will continue to offer services in computer and computer networking systems and possibly phone systems that Spectrum Sound and Computers offered at Syntech, he said.

Enerflex Systems Ltd., a Calgary, Alberta-based company, owns EnSource Energy Services Inc. and its subsidiary, Syntech.

Enerflex describes itself on its company Web site as a global supplier of products and services to the oil and gas production. It provides services in natural gas compression and power generation equipment for either sale or lease, hydrocarbon production and processing facilities, electrical, instrumentation and controls services and a comprehensive package of field maintenance and contracting capabilities, the site says.

Representatives of Enerflex did not return calls Thursday and this morning.

Rhines said Syntech has turned some of the accounts its Havre office used to handle over to Schine Electric. He has hired nine of the former employees of Syntech, including electricians, computer technicians and office workers, he said.

"It's pretty much just the same," Rhines said. "Just the name has changed."

In July of 2001, EnSource purchased Tempo Electric, founded by Terry Schend and two partners in Havre in 1976. Enerflex purchased EnSource in 2002.

Schend bought his partners shares of Tempo, and with Debi Rhines, his daughter, later bought End of Trails Computers and reopened it as Spectrum Sound and Computers in the Tempo office.

Schend and Rhines, wife of David Rhines, declined to comment. They are still working for Syntech as it finishes closing the Havre office, David Rhines said.

In 2001, Schend and Debi Rhines had said that the merger with Syntech would provide more opportunity for the employees of the company and provide more equipment and capability to serve the business's customers.

The company moved its office from the 500 block of Second Street to the 600 block of First Street West after the merger. Rhines said the move was made because more space was needed.

Rhines said he has opened his new business in the old Tempo Electric location.