National architecture-engineering firm opens third Florida office

NOTE: Mead & Hunt’s headquarters are in Middleton, Wisconsin. The firm is the 4th largest in Wisconsin according to ENR magazine. Balchon, Knuckey and Schmidgall are all new hires.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 31, 2018

National architecture-engineering firm opens third Florida office

Mead & Hunt, a national architecture-engineering consulting firm, is opening its third Florida office in Tampa.

The new Tampa office will be the home office for Ed Balchon, who brings more than 25 years of Florida water-wastewater engineering experience to Mead & Hunt. He is joined in Tampa by Todd Knuckey and Dave Schmidgall who will lead the Florida aviation team.

“There are significant and challenging projects in the Tampa Bay and west-central Florida region that are well-aligned with the capabilities of the firm. Opening a Tampa office is another step toward expanding service to Florida clients and offers rewarding consulting opportunities for our employees,” said Balchon, Market Leader for Mead & Hunt’s water practice.

Balchon joined with the purpose of expanding Mead & Hunt’s presence in the region. He will be active in adding staff to address client needs. Further growth is anticipated in the Tampa, Tallahassee and Daytona Beach area offices soon. Pulling from both local and national resources, the Florida team will provide the full range of Mead & Hunt services.

Mead & Hunt established a water-wastewater office in Port Orange in August 2017. In April 2018, the firm established a highway and bridge office in Tallahassee. The Tampa office will initially focus on water-wastewater, infrastructure and aviation services. All three offices are anticipated to add more service lines soon. Mead & Hunt provides clients with expert planning, architecture, engineering, environmental and construction administration services throughout the nation.

“We’ve been looking for the right opportunity to establish another Florida office, and Tampa was my first choice,” said Ron Engel, Vice President and Group Leader of Mead & Hunt Aviation Services. “With a skilled and available workforce and great business community – Tampa was where we needed to be.”

Balchon added to this sentiment, sharing that Mead & Hunt was pursuing opportunities to showcase the firm’s long history of creating innovative engineering solutions with landmark projects.

“We have the depth of senior, skilled personnel with local, Florida experience to address this environmentally-sensitive region,” said Balchon. “The infrastructure needs in Florida are growing rapidly and so is Mead & Hunt, especially in the water-wastewater market.”

The employee-owned consulting firm remains strong on ENR‘s Top 500 design firm list with a national ranking of 139th in 2018. Mead & Hunt was named by CE News as one of the top 10 engineering companies to work for in the nation. The firm employs about 700 employees from 30+ offices located across the nation.

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Contacts:

Ron Engel, Vice President and Aviation Services Group Leader ron.engel@meadhunt.com 517-908-3107
Ed Balchon, Florida Water Market Leader ed.balchon@meadhunt.com 813-390-8446
Kary Beck, Corporate Communications kary.beck@meadhunt.com 608-443-0370

Central Storage & Warehouse Announces Latest Expansion of CSW Warehouse Network in Wisconsin

June 21, 2018 – Madison, WI. Central Storage & Warehouse Co. (CSW), a Madison-based provider of temperature-controlled warehousing, is pleased to announce the construction of a new frozen storage facility in Caledonia, WI. To complement CSW’s Pleasant Prairie location in serving southeast Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, CSW is investing $15 million in a new 115,000 sq. ft. freezer facility south of Milwaukee and just off of Interstate 94. Site work began in early June, and the company hopes to be up and operational in the new space by the end of this year.

CSW Caledonia Construction Announcement

RMR Financial Advisors, LLC re-brands as RMR Wealth Advisors, LLC

RMR Financial Advisors, LLC has modified their company name to RMR Wealth Advisors, LLC.

RMR Press Release

Ideas That Evoke® Announces Office Expansion to Los Angeles

MADISON, WI (APRIL 2018) – Ideas That Evoke® – a digital, social and public relations agency serving clients in the beauty, salon professional, lifestyle and luxury industries – recently announced the expansion of its business to the West Coast. Founded in 2009 by Kelly Ehlers, the agency works with industry-leading brands to pioneer marketing, influencer and digital strategies in today’s hyper-connected media landscape. The second location, based in Los Angeles, will be opened by Jeffrey C. Lunnen, Managing Director for Ideas That Evoke.

PressRelease_LAOffice_IdeasThatEvoke_OFFICIAL

BDO USA, LLP Announces Wisconsin Expansion Through Addition of Smith & Gesteland, LLP

Contact: Jerry Walsh, WalshPR, 631-419-9008, jerry@prwalsh.com

BDO USA, LLP ANNOUNCES WISCONSIN EXPANSION THROUGH ADDITION OF SMITH & GESTELAND, LLP

Madison Firm Brings 85 Staff to BDO

Chicago, IL – BDO USA, LLP, one of the nation’s leading accounting and advisory firms, today announced an expansion of its Wisconsin practice through the addition of 85 staff, including 15 partners, from Smith & Gesteland, LLP. Founded in 1948, Smith & Gesteland (S&G) provides a full range of accounting, tax, human resource management and information technology services to a client base of middle market businesses. The firm, based in Madison, also has a unique “80/20” consulting practice that helps clients focus on critical success factors to enhance profitability. S&G has significant strength in the construction, technology, manufacturing, nonprofit and real estate industries. Combined with BDO’s existing offices in Madison and Milwaukee, BDO will have 185 professionals serving Wisconsin clients. The combination of BDO and Smith & Gesteland is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed on July 1, 2018.

“I look forward to welcoming all of the partners and professionals of Smith & Gesteland to BDO USA. Our firm has demonstrated steady growth in the Madison market and this combination will greatly enhance our presence in both Madison and the greater Wisconsin market,” said Wayne Berson, CEO of BDO USA. “S&G’s entrepreneurial culture is a natural fit with BDO. They bring significant resources to our existing industry strengths in real estate, nonprofit, manufacturing, construction and especially technology, where we will be the dominant firm in the market.”

“In combining with BDO, we will form the leading firm serving middle market businesses in the Madison market, while providing both our clients and our people with additional opportunities for growth,” said Bill Pellino, Managing Partner of S&G. “Our clients will still receive the same close personal attention they have come to expect from our team, but now they will have access to a wider array of services, broader industry experience, and the full coverage of BDO’s extensive global network. BDO has a team-oriented, collaborative culture, similar to our own. The firm’s reputation as a favorable workplace also fits well with our focus on our people, who will now have access to more training and many more opportunities to pursue career growth.”

Upon completion of the transaction, Bill Pellino will serve as the Tax Managing Partner for BDO’s Wisconsin Practice and Dan Kramer will continue in his existing role as BDO’s Assurance Managing Partner for Wisconsin. BDO will maintain its Milwaukee office and its current Madison location along with the new Madison (Middleton) practice. The two Madison offices, which are only blocks apart, will eventually be combined into one location. See current contact information below:

BDO USA, LLP BDO USA, LLP

One Erdman Place 330 East Kilbourn Avenue

Suite 404 Suite 750 Two Plaza East

Madison, WI 53717 Milwaukee, WI 53202-3143

Phone: 608-831-8500 Phone: 414-272-5900

S&G (BDO USA, LLP upon completion of transaction)

8383 Greenway Boulevard

Suite 500

Middleton, WI 53562

Phone: 608-836-7500

“In all my years of consulting in the Wisconsin market, I cannot recall a firm more sought after by both national and regional suitors than S&G,” said Allan D. Koltin, CEO of Koltin Consulting Group, who advised both firms on the transaction. “In the end, S&G felt BDO’s culture – very similar to their own – was the right fit. They also valued the depth of resources BDO can provide their clients and the growth opportunities it provides their associates. BDO really valued S&G’s strong leadership and depth of talent.”

Smith & Gesteland has been voted the top CPA firm in Madison by In Business Magazine for 13 consecutive years. Like BDO USA, S&G has been recognized by numerous business and industry publications for its workplace accomplishments. The firm was recently named as one of Madison Magazine’s Best Places to Work and recognized by Accounting Today as one of the nation’s Best Accounting Firms to Work for.

BDO Facts:

BDO USA has 185 staff serving Wisconsin businesses from offices in Madison, Middleton and Milwaukee.
Over the past five years, BDO USA’s cumulative growth rate has far outpaced all other major U.S. accounting firms, with revenues more than doubling from $618 million in 2012 to $1.41 billion in 2017. During that time, BDO entered 24 new U.S. cities and expanded its critical mass in 13 existing markets.
BDO represents companies ranging from closely-held private businesses to leading nonprofits to Fortune 500 multinationals.
BDO USA has industry practices specialized in serving businesses in the construction, energy, financial institutions, asset management, government contracting, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, nonprofit, private equity, real estate, restaurant, retail and technology sectors.
BDO has been named a Best Company by Working Mother Magazine for seven consecutive years and been recognized with the When Work Works Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility for eight consecutive years.
BDO has more than 60 offices and more than 550 independent alliance firm locations around the country.
BDO USA has been serving clients for more than 100 years since its founding in 1910 (as Seidman & Seidman).
As an independent member of BDO International Limited, the firm can leverage the resources of more than more than 73,000 people working out of 1,500 offices across 162 countries.
About BDO USA

BDO is the brand name for BDO USA, LLP, a U.S. professional services firm providing assurance, tax, and advisory services to a wide range of publicly traded and privately held companies. For more than 100 years, BDO has provided quality service through the active involvement of experienced and committed professionals. The firm serves clients through more than 60 offices and over 550 independent alliance firm locations nationwide. As an independent Member Firm of BDO International Limited, BDO serves multi-national clients through a global network of more than 73,000 people working out of 1,500 offices across 162 countries.

BDO USA, LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership, is the U.S. member of BDO International Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, and forms part of the international BDO network of independent member firms. BDO is the brand name for the BDO network and for each of the BDO Member Firms. For more information please visit: www.bdo.com.

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