Michels Corporation: Making History For 50 Years

The Michels Corporation is celebrating its 50th year in business in 2009, marking its evolution from a small contractor specializing in gas pipeline construction to one of North America's largest, multi-division utility contractors.

Michels' employees, customers, suppliers and friends will meet at the company's headquarters in Brownsville, WI in late June to share many stories about the company's rich history and steady growth, the wide range of projects completed and memories of the late Dale Michels, its founder and driving force until his death in 1998.

Dale Michels was working as a pipeline welder when he conceived the idea to start his own pipeline company to serve growing demand for gas distribution infrastructure. He approached his brother-in-law, Ted Koenigs, and Ted's business partner, Jim Michel, to join in the new venture, and soon thereafter Michels Pipeline Construction was in business.

Michels' original plan was to take advantage of the need to build new gas distribution infrastructure, and when that was complete, to look for a new challenge.

"In the beginning, Ted and Jim thought they were just making a silent investment in the new business," said Brian Johnson, Michels Corp. executive vice president. "But they were wrong."

The young company quickly developed a reputation for doing every job right, on time and within budget, and customers came to Dale with projects, often difficult ones that others were reluctant to attempt.

Acceptable Risks

"My father was a risk taker, always looking for opportunities, and he was never afraid to take on challenging jobs," said Michels President Pat Michels. "He would ask himself and others in the company, ‘How is the best way to do this? Is there a way to do it that no one else has tried before?' He took jobs no one else wanted because he had confidence in himself and his people."

An often-told story by Mary Ausloos, Dale's only secretary and present corporate office manager, illustrates the point: "One time Dale was talking to a customer on the telephone and I heard him say, ‘Sure, we can do that, we can do that.' I bet he said it a dozen times. Then he hung up the phone, and said, "Now, we have to figure out a way to do this.' And, of course, he did."

Longtime employees of Michels say Dale had an intense interest in every element of a job from planning, through construction, and to completion. As the company grew, Dale developed and maintained relationships with employees and customers that resulted in strong, long-lasting loyalties.

"One thing that stood out was Dale's can-do, no-fear attitude and never-ending drive to complete every job," said Johnson, who joined Michels in 1981. "Dale became my mentor when I transferred to the home office in Brownsville in 1987, and every day I witnessed his can-do attitude. I saw it every day. It's the dedication and commitment to service that Michels’ customers continue to receive today."

As the Michels organization has grown, it has continued to serve the pipeline industry. Its expertise has expanded the company's capabilities to include a much broader market than most utility contractors as it is active in telecommunications, tunneling, electrical power systems, wind energy, aggregate materials, paving, stone mining, and environmental services. Michels has adapted to the changing needs of its clients and taken advantage of new technologies such as pipeline rehabilitation and horizontal directional drilling.

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