Mike Eakins discusses a changing industry and the evolution of KPS Global
October 2024 saw a significant development at KPS Global, when it was acquired by The Viessmann Generations Group (Viessmann). Manufacturing Today catches up with Mike Eakins, KPS Global’s CEO, to get behind the scenes of this leading provider of custom enclosures for controlled environments and find out what attracted its new owner.
“I’ve been in the industry for about 33 years, and I actually cut my teeth in the insulated panels industry straight out of grad school,” Mike begins. “I was even the plant manager for one of the plants that we own today in Arizona for about five years! But I did branch out into other areas of this industry and gained a lot of experience, which helped me prepare for coming back to KPS Global. Alongside an incredible team, it’s taken us to where we are today.”
Turning to KPS Global specifically, Mike notes that the roots of the company extend back decades; while KPS Global itself was formed around ten years ago when two leading manufacturers consolidated their operations into one. “The insulated panel industry could be described as ‘sleepy’ at that time. There wasn’t much technology or innovation, and that is what attracted me to join KPS Global in 2017. 
“It was an opportunity to take a commodity product with no innovation and bring it into the modern age and work with a great team of people at the same time. When you compare where we were seven years ago to today, we already have over 20 patents for new products that we’ve developed and numerous new products we’ve introduced to the industry. One of those new products, FUSIONFRAME®, now represents over 35 percent of our manufactured product and it’s much more sustainable than what we built before and better for our customers.
“Customers can’t get the type of highly customized product that we make from anyone else in the industry. Our approach has transformed the overall industry and positioned us for a very bright future.”
Given its disruptive nature, it’s clear why acquiring KPS Global was an attractive proposition to Viessmann, with its emphasis on expanding its Clean & Cold platform into the North American market. “KPS Global and Viessmann are a perfect match. The KPS Global business directly contributes to our vision to reduce CO2 emissions and improve the quality of life for the world’s growing population. Our strong European footprint in Clean & Cold offers opportunities to leverage each other’s knowledge and expertise,” Max Viessmann, CEO of Viessmann, commented at the time of the acquisition.
“For us this is a really exciting opportunity,” Mike adds. “Viessmann wants to improve people’s quality of life and that plays into what we do at KPS Global. Our insulated panel products help preserve the safety of the food chain. The amount of food waste generated as it travels from farm to market is huge and our products are being used to help reduce that.
“Our panels are used in distribution warehouses and micro fulfillment centers which is the process of taking fresh products from the market to the customer in that final last mile leg. This requires a controlled environment to preserve the quality of the food. Overall, our values with Viessmann align incredibly well and it’s going to a very exciting partnership as we focus on growth over the next few years.”
Mike’s description of the past few years paints a picture of transformation at KPS Global. Waking up a ‘sleepy’ industry requires bold investments and new strategies. “We are in the process of working on becoming smarter across the factories,” says Mike. “We have acquired machinery where we’re still learning all the functionality and working out how it can deliver more efficient, higher quality operations.
“There’s lots of opportunity for automation in our plants, but we need to be very careful and deliberate in how we define what can be automated. We want smart factories, and we will be investing in certain equipment, while being mindful that we’re creating very highly customized products. Every box we build is different from the one we built previously, even for the same customers, and so we must create a very specific and defined process.
“This is an area where we can benefit from Viessmann’s expertise and network, as they have much more experience in automation. They have introduced this to factories in Europe and we will be visiting some to see what they’ve done.
“We also all know that Europe is years ahead of North America when it comes to refrigeration technology and sustainability. So, this is a nice opportunity to partner closely with Viessmann and their European network. We see this as a very big opportunity for us to understand what they’re doing with automation, see if they have solutions that are applicable to North America, and if so, we will bring them here to introduce them.”
This measured approach also extends to the technology of the moment – artificial intelligence (AI). “We are beginning to use this, but it is new and again, with a highly custom product, we must be cautious. It’s under review, but we are going to vet any opportunities thoroughly and see what the impact will be. But we do believe there are opportunities, and we are looking at what those might be,” Mike confirms.
Another element of KPS Global’s strategy for change is sustainability. Previously not a focus for the industry, it is now a top priority. “It is one of the first questions we ask,” states Mike. “Is this a sustainable product? Does it improve our offering and our impact on the environment? The product referred to earlier, FUSIONFRAME®, is a perfect example. This eliminates virgin wood, a non-renewable resource, from the product but retains a comparable structural performance to wood in span tests and provides four times the R-value, or thermal performance from a sustainable resource.
“Our customers appreciate this kind of innovation. They have their own sustainability goals, and they want to reduce their carbon footprint. Through this sort of innovation, we are assisting them in doing that. Sustainability is an integral part of our product development process, and we have numerous new products in our pipeline today.”
As the product side of KPS Global continues to reach new heights of excellence, it must be supported by an equally impressive team and the right level of service. Mike’s steady hand has helped the staff transition to the new ownership under Viessmann, and he maintains a philosophy that a leader is only as good as their team. “Here at KPS Global we believe that our people will drive positive change. If you surround yourself with good staff, empowering them through training, incentives, and clear goals, then those people will bring great results to the customer and the company. I’m a fan of the inspirational speaker Simon Sinek, and I totally agree with the theory that if you take care of your people, your people will take care of your customers. That’s the culture we try and build at KPS Global.”
Considering the size and scale of the companies that make up KPS Global’s customer base, nothing less than exemplary service will do. “We have some long-lasting relationships with our customers, some over two or three decades. They see us as the expert, and they come to us with what they need. Historically we’ve created numerous new products that are the result of customers coming to us with a problem and asking us to help them with a solution, and we have products like that in the pipeline today.
“In addition, since the pandemic and the resulting massive expansion of online ordering and delivery to home, our customers are having to expand their businesses to support that demand. All those additional perishable products that their end customers are ordering online for delivery must be supported with temperature-controlled environments, and this plays directly into our wheelhouse. We see lots of opportunity for growth with our customers in both our current and emerging markets.”
Looking to the future, Mike is confident KPS Global will remain on a strong path of growth, while closely watching its supply chain and any changes introduced by the new administration. “In October 2024 I named Rob Sorba as our new president for KPS Global,” Mike announces. “I’ve tasked Rob with running the day-to-day organization to allow me to concentrate more on the merger and acquisition side of the equation, look at new product opportunities, and spend more time with customers. We are kind of dividing and conquering to deliver our very aggressive growth plans.
“Our growth will be driven organically with new product development, as well as inorganic growth as we look at opportunities to expand vertically as well as horizontally. We will continue our focus on innovation and sustainability, as well as support our existing customer base with remodels and new stores. People will always buy food, and we will always need improved ways to transport and store it safely. The Viessmann investment and partnership means we can really explore our opportunities, and I’m confident you’ll be seeing some fantastic things happening with KPS Global here over the next few years.”