Evansville companies among 2024 ‘Best Places to Work in Indiana’ honorees
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Four Evansville-based companies are among nearly 200 businesses on the 2024 Best Places to Work in Indiana list. The Indiana Chamber of Commerce will announce the rankings across the state at an awards dinner on Wednesday at the Indiana Convention Center.
Brackett Heating, Air and Plumbing and ECS Solutions made the list for small companies with 15 to 74 U.S. employees. Lochmueller Group Inc. was named among large companies with 250 to 999 U.S. employees. Warehouse Services Inc. is listed under major companies with 1,000+ U.S. employees.
Brackett Heating, Air and Plumbing
Bryce Brackett’s great-grandfather started Brackett Heating, Air and Plumbing in Evansville in 1949. The family-owned and operated business is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.
This is the first year the company has been named one of the Best Places to Work in Indiana. Brackett, one of four owners, said it’s an honor because he often hears people outside the business complain about their workplaces.
“It’s something to be very proud of because that means your employees believe in what you’re doing and feel like they’re being treated fairly,” he said.
Some employees have been with Brackett Heating, Air and Plumbing for 25 to 35 years, which the owners believe reflects the company’s positive culture.
“People come here and stay, and that’s why we’re so good at what we do is because we have the good employees that are trained well and know what they’re doing in the home and treat the customer’s home like they want their home to be treated,” said Brackett.
Brackett said caring about their employees and the community contributes to a great working environment.
“So much of the world is getting bought out by these private equity companies that you just become a number and they take the money out of your community instead of investing it back in your kids’ sports teams and things like that,” he said.
Brackett Heating, Air and Plumbing plans to grow in 2024 by hiring more employees and expanding its space.
“We bought a lot next door to us and removed the house to build a new building. So hopefully we’re looking to do that in the near future, move our business over there,” said Brackett.
ECS Solutions
ECS Solutions has been on the Best Places to Work in Indiana list for five consecutive years. The company, which delivers batch and continuous process control solutions, was founded in 1977 in Evansville.
Kurt Daunhauer, chief operating officer, and Darlene Moog, director of human resources, credited the entire company for the chamber’s recognition year after year.
“It is because of the dedication of each staff member that we continue to achieve this award as we all own the culture, not just the executives or HR, but everyone,” Daunhauer and Moog said in a written statement.
At ECS Solutions, employees enjoy the diversity of work and industries, fun monthly events and each other’s company.
“Our leadership values the feedback, ideas and insights of our employees. Our leadership understands the importance of the culture and works at this every day to make it a great place to work,” Daunhauer and Moog said.
The company is committed to work-life balance, with a staff consisting of ⅓ remote, ⅓ hybrid and ⅓ daily on-site workers.
“Our employees like our benefits including flextime. We believe this differentiates us from many other organizations,” Daunhauer and Moog said.
ECS Solutions expects to continue growth in-house and in clientele in 2024. “Each year, we are adding new customers and new employees,” they said.
Lochmueller Group Inc.
Lochmueller Group Inc. has also appeared on the Best Places to Work in Indiana list for the past five years. The planning and engineering firm started offering its services in Evansville in 1980.
CEO Doug Shatto said the company converted from a typical partnership to a 100% employee-owned operation in 2019. The business places a lot of emphasis on culture.
“Our values are creativity, accountability, respect, dedication, integrity and achievement. We formed the acronym CARDIA and said that’s from the heart. And it’s not just lip service. Any major decisions we make as a company and as a board are driven by those values. It’s something that we preach to our employees because we want them to understand what we’re about and what our motivations are.”
An influx of federal and state spending has been keeping the Lochmueller Group busy. However, Shatto said the company is strategic when it comes to staffing to promote sustainability.
“A lot of big firms will hire knowing that they’ve got these major projects. When those major projects are completed, they move on. If they don’t have something there to backfill, then they oftentimes will lay off a good chunk of their staff,” he said. “We try to make sure that we’re being cautious about the way that we hire and how we use our people so that they have long-term stability and hopefully can spend their careers with us.”
With a full slate of major projects, the company strives to manage workloads and avoid burnout.
“We’re also really focused on making sure that we can maintain a work-life balance for our people because there is so much work available right now that we go through some pretty trying periods,” said Shatto.
The Lochmueller Group was selected to do the Tier 2 Environmental Impact Statement for the Mid-States Corridor project that runs through Jasper and Huntingburg. They’re also looking to expand the electrical engineering team added last year.
“We are in a growth mode. So we’re looking to expand into other states and perhaps into other services as well,” Shatto said.
Warehouse Services Inc.
Warehouse Services Inc. made the Best Places to Work in Indiana list for the first time in 2024. The Evansville company has been providing warehousing services for a variety of industries since 1986.
President Barry Cox said one of the keys to cultivating an optimal working atmosphere is keeping the lines of communication open.
“If anyone in the entire company wants to call and ask a question, they’re always welcome to call my home phone. And I do the same thing with my cell phone. It’s always available for anyone in the company to call up and ask questions. And they may not like the answers they get, but they’ll always get an answer,” he said.
After five years, Warehouse Services employees are vested in the company’s profit-sharing program.
“There’s close to $100 million in the profit-sharing program now for the benefit of our employees, and it makes a big impression,” he said. “Some of the young folks, they can borrow from it and go out and buy a home. It’s a down payment for their first home, so it makes a big difference in their lives.”
Cox said as new, younger employees join the team, Warehouse Services is experimenting with benefits, such as adding holidays and changing vacation policies.
“We take a lot of pride in trying to make it a wonderful place to work,” he said. “It changes. The ball and the target always change. That’s why you have to keep your ears open and keep listening.”
The company is looking forward to its new ventures in 2024.
“We are starting a new distribution center in Greenville, South Carolina, for a major apparel manufacturer, and we are continuing to bid for new projects in Canada.”