The Kenosha Area Business Alliance and the Kenosha Area Chamber of Commerce has announced the winners of the 2014 Kenosha County Business Excellence Awards.
Kenosha-based Bradshaw Medical Inc. has been named the 2014 Business of the Year. Bradshaw manufactures handheld surgical instruments and devices for the spinal and orthopedic markets. The company has grown from a few employees in a 2,500-square-foot facility when it was founded in 2006 to 130 employees in a 30,000-square-foot manufacturing and research headquarters it built in 2010. The company has invested $3.5 million in new equipment since moving into the new building, and has enough room to double the size of its facility as it grows. Since 2010, Bradshaw’s revenue has increased 45 percent. The company consistently develops new products, and holds more than 30 patents. The Business of the Year awards is bestowed on a company that is at least five years old, and has more than 30 employees. Bradshaw was chosen for its history of growth, innovation, community engagement and overall economic impact on the community.
Kenosha-based OFFSITE LLC has been named the 2014 Small Business of the Year. The company, an IT operations solution provider and data center operation, has increased its revenue by 150 percent over the past three years. OFFSITE, which has 15 employees, built a $2.5 million data center next to its existing facility in 2012, bringing its footprint from 25,000 to more than 50,000 square feet. It is nearing capacity at its current campus, and is evaluating a second Kenosha campus. In 2013, OFFSITE launched Infrastructure as a Service, or cloud hosting and storage, which is a fast-growing revenue stream for the company.
Edward Polen, founder and president of Pleasant Prairie-based EMCO Chemical Distributors Inc., has been named the 2014 Entrepreneur of the Year. The award is given to an entrepreneur with an ownership stake in the business, who was integrally involved in the company’s founding. Polen started EMCO in 1971 out of his Illinois garage and has grown it to become one of the largest chemical distributors in the U.S., with more than 400 employees, six locations and sales of more than $300 million. The company relocated its headquarters, manufacturing and distribution to a 260,000-square-foot Pleasant Prairie facility on a 30-plus acre site in the LakeView Corporate Park in 2013. It also opened a Waste Services facility in Kenosha.
And the recipients of the Fast Five recognition, which highlights up-and-coming companies that have made a significant, recent economic impact in Kenosha County, are: The Blast Shop Inc. in Kenosha; LaMacchia Travel in Kenosha; Mike’s Restaurant Group, which has several Kenosha County restaurants; Platinum Systems Inc. in Kenosha; and Yutka Fence in Sturtevant. Fast Five winners are evaluated on: significant revenue or employment growth; introduction of a new product, service or innovation; or growth in regional, national or international exports.
The winners will be recognized at a ceremony on Thursday, Nov. 6, at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Somers. BizTimes Media is a media sponsor of the Kenosha County Business Excellence Awards.
