Inspiring the next generation of female construction workers
Walkable communities on the rise
March 23, 2026
OSMAN/NEWTON – Reaching a half-century in business is a major milestone, and President/CEO Adam J. Schneider said no one understands that better than the employees at MEKCO, Inc.
Whether longtime team members or recent hires, Schneider said everyone at MEKCO takes pride in the work they do.
As a manufacturer of high-quality fiberglass products for industrial applications, Schneider said MEKCO’s products – due to the very nature of fiberglass – have proven durable, withstanding Category 5 hurricane-force winds, extreme temperatures and caustic chemicals.
Much like a fishing rod, he said fiberglass-reinforced plastic, or FRP, will bend before it breaks.
“That makes it an ideal material for high wind-load environments, high snow-load environments, or even environments where there are ocean salt spray or caustic chemicals,” he said. “It’s more robust and able to take a beating from the environment or the materials that are being used.”
Humble beginnings
Schneider said MEKCO, Inc. has a unique history, rooted in Wisconsin’s cheese factory industry.
Founded in Cleveland in 1976, he said MEKCO – named after its three founders, Millie, Ernie and Ken – got its start making caps for silos.
“The centralized cap at the top of a silo cap was a unique shape that lent itself to be made from fiberglass,” he said. “That’s the very first item they made. Today, we really don’t see those silos anymore.”
From there, Schneider said MEKCO expanded into making calf hutches, designed to protect young calves from the harsh elements.
This, he said, eventually led the company into producing generator enclosures.
Over time, Schneider said MEKCO branched out into a variety of offshoot products, including salad bar sinks, other types of enclosures and even fiberglass canoes.
One of the company’s canoes, Schneider said, was even featured in “Popular Mechanics” in the late 1970s or early 1980s.
In the early 1980s, he said MEKCO was purchased by a new group of owners and became MEKCO Manufacturing, Inc.
Following that, Schneider said the company shifted its focus to buildings and enclosures, a theme that continues today, with its introductory product under the new ownership being self-contained large generators requiring fiberglass housings.
“That pivoted to become the buildings that we make today, day in and day out,” he said. “In 1989, the company purchased a former dairy facility…. We operate out of that same facility today. So, what was once used for cheesemaking is now used for making fiberglass parts, components, buildings, structures, enclosures and other unique products.”
In 2014, Schneider said ConceptWorks, Inc. – where he had worked since 2004 – purchased the operating assets of MEKCO Manufacturing.
Retaining the MEKCO name, he said, the company continued to grow the brand.
As ConceptWorks expanded its products and brand, Schneider said MEKCO, Inc. spun off in January 2025 to become a stand-alone company, mirroring ConceptWorks’ own independent status.
“The two companies had complemented each other in their product lines and expertise,” he said. “But both brands eventually grew to the point where they needed to be stand-alone companies. And both have been doing great on their own.”
Consistent growth
Over the years, Schneider said the company has experienced consistent growth in all categories, eventually resulting in the addition of a 12,000-square-foot warehouse in October 2024.
“We have our 22,000-square-foot manufacturing plant – the former cheese factory in Osman – and then we added that additional 12,000-square-foot warehouse in Newton, which is where we fabricate and assemble our buildings,” he said. “Many of the buildings can be tall, very long and very awkward in size and shape. We’re usually assembling anywhere from eight to 12 buildings at one time. So, the additional space has been a blessing.”
Besides component fabrication, Schneider said MEKCO also does estimating, design and engineering at its Osman location.
Final assembly, he said, is done at the warehouse in Newton, which is where the company eventually ships the finished products from.
Schneider said the two locations are 12 minutes apart.
Sales have also seen consistent growth, he said, with a record sales year in 2024.
“That was our best year yet,” he said. “But this year is postured to perhaps eclipse that. It’s a little early in the year, but there’s potential that 2026 could be a record sales year as well.”
A key factor in reaching record sales in 2024, Schneider said, was a “highly unique” project the company completed for a client.
“We produced two large buildings that were 24-foot-by-24-foot-by-29-foot tall,” he said. “They went to Texas and had a very unique application in that they had a retractable roof. They are used in the process of producing plastics.”
Schneider said the project had a tight deadline and a highly engineered scope that few companies in the country could have tackled.
“I would say fewer than three companies in the country could have tackled it,” he said. “That was actually one of our largest projects to date.”
People are MEKCO’s secret sauce
Schneider said he credits the company’s growth to three factors, with having great employees at the top of the list.
“We have a great team that works hard, has a great attitude and we have a great culture,” he said. “We are very blessed with the people we have. It’s the people that make a business tick.”
Schneider said the company’s fun, team-oriented culture creates an environment that moves quickly.
That energy and collaborative spirit, he said – from design to shipment – give MEKCO a competitive advantage.
“So much so that our lead time – when compared to some of our competitors – is less than half of their lead time,” he said. “That speed to market will win.”
Schneider said another factor in MEKCO’s success is its willingness to handle projects that may be too complex or unprecedented for others.
“We welcome [that kind of] riddle and celebrate that [kind of] riddle,” he said. “We love thinking at the edge of the box – not outside of the box because outside of the box is unattainable. But the edge of the box is where you push the limits, and you can still attain what was designed, dreamt or intended. We take great pride in doing what others [won’t or can’t figure out how to].”
The third factor in MEKCO’s success, Schneider said, is the company’s strong expertise in LEAN manufacturing.
“We’re always seeking continuous improvement and always chasing 1% growth in processes, in people, in anything we tackle,” he said. “We tackle things with efficiency and common sense. That brings a different lens to business.”
Schneider said MEKCO currently has 17 employees but is looking to hire more.
“It would not surprise me if we had north of 20 employees by the end of 2026,” he said. “We’re in hiring mode right now with some very large projects and contracts for large entities and businesses, as well as large governmental entities.”
Global reach
Though MEKCO has just two locations, Schneider said its customer base is all over the world, covering most of the Northern Hemisphere.
“We have products north of the Arctic Circle and in the middle of the Pacific Ocean,” he said. “Many of our projects actually ship to places that don’t really have a street address. Instead, it’s a pinpoint on a map.”
Sometimes, Schneider said, it’s an uninhabited island, other times a location that requires a helicopter to access or even a shipping container where assembly must be completed on site.
“I’m always amazed at where people are coming from or calling from,” he said. “Humanity has needs, no matter what corner of the world you might reside in.”
Schneider said one of MEKCO’s strengths is its ability to produce large buildings that can be shipped in parts or knock-down form and assembled in challenging environments.
The company, he said, can pre-fabricate a structure at its plant, then disassemble it for transport in shipping containers or crates to locations as varied as deserts, mountain sides or islands accessible only by barge.
“Those have been fun, not to mention unique,” he said. “There is no hardware store down the road, there’s no Amazon delivery coming the next day and you have to think through everything in advance to the nth degree and make sure this is flawless. Because once it’s there, it might be six weeks before there’s another human in that neck of the woods.”
Schneider said MEKCO has developed a reputation for successfully handling remote locations through pre-engineered, prefabricated solutions.
“When installed, someone’s going to drive by that or fly by that and wonder ‘How did they get that there?’” he said. “[That] is one type of success that seems to be fairly prevalent in the last several years, where we’re being asked to quote very large, very unique, very niche applications that take a very creative engineered approach to do so.”
50 years and counting
Schneider said the company will celebrate its 50th anniversary by having micro-celebrations throughout the year, with a larger one later this year for employees and their families.
As for MEKCO’s future, Schneider said he sees solid, consistent and controlled growth.
“Those are important adjectives in that every business needs to grow, but you have to do so with logic, intention and a strategy that says ‘let’s chase growth for the right reasons, not growth just for the sake of growth,’” he said. “We’re learning where our niche in the market is and leaning into that niche more and more.”
Schneider said MEKCO’s specialized projects are also helping the company draw talented professionals eager to join the team.
“I have no doubt that in the years to come, we’ll set new records, we’ll have new employee highs and we’ll also likely need to grow our stational footprint, for sure,” he said.
For more, head to mekco.com.
