For almost 100 years, WINCO has been inventing resources for emergency backup power. Company President Shane Williams says the Le Center, Minn., company’s goal is to be a dynamic, nimble player in the custom generator arena.
“Our manufacturing capabilities in-house are beyond anybody I know in the USA,” says Williams, who’s been leading the family-owned company since 2020. “We take pride in manufacturing our components that we are assembling — as many as we can.” He calls his competitors “assembly operations.”
At WINCO, some 90 employees, most of whom live within 20 miles, engineer, design, machine, fabricate, and assemble its units under one roof on a 17.5-acre campus. Company leaders say their sheet metal manufacturing, power painting, welding, and machining capabilities give them an edge and an ability to react quickly to customer concerns, industry changes, and product innovations.
For much of its history, WINCO has supplied backup and portable standby generators for agricultural markets, equipment manufacturing markets, and mobile external machines used in residential, commercial, and industrial applications. But three years ago, Williams says the company shifted to include the oil and gas industry, data center industries, rental companies, and component equipment manufacturers.
“We’ve really expanded and explored markets to determine what customers need versus what WINCO can do,” he says.
The future is green
This fall Williams says the company will roll out a large-scale green product that will reduce emissions. He calls it a once-in-a-career type project. “We’re developing a first-in-industry mobile prime power generator set,” he says. “This could make or break us.”
The generator set combines multiple units in one package supplying prime power that runs off methane gas, a natural byproduct generated through oil exploration. “Instead of wasting those gases and those gases going into the atmosphere,” he says, “we’re developing units that are going to take those gases and convert them into energy.”
To manufacture the new natural gas system, WINCO has dedicated 100,000 square feet to two full production lines with testing capabilities.
Williams calls the generator set a convenient, flexible system (you can add or subtract with multiple units in one package) that adds and shuts off power according to demand. The system also has the ability to run up to 1500 kVA (kilovolt-ampere), a unit of apparent power in an alternating current electrical circuit, compared to other systems that go up to 900 kVA.
To address the push by some states toward zero-emission diesel generators in the near future, WINCO says it is one of the first in the country to supply aftertreatment systems to reduce harmful emissions on 1 to 3 megawatt units. For example, carbon monoxide emissions can be cut by 40 to 95% and a system paired with a catalytic diesel particulate filter can reduce them by up to 98%. “These generators are incredibly expensive, depending on what priorities are in a particular region,” Williams says, “but we want to have that ability.”
Drive for innovation
“We made other advancements in machine capabilities by purchasing CNC machines versus manual machines,” Williams says. CNC machines use pre-programmed instructions to precisely cut, shape, or mold materials. The company has also improved battery storage and invented a digital interface meter called “YourGen” to make their generators more user friendly. The meter alerts the user to load imbalances that might harm their equipment.
“They’ve looked into truly innovative products that most people wouldn’t even consider,” says James Thomas, an Enterprise Minnesota ISO consultant. “These are things that will truly change the world, and they’ve hired the team to research them.” Thomas is helping WINCO become certified in what he calls the “trifecta” of ISO — the internationally recognized standards for health and safety, environmental, and quality management. “For most of our clients, it’s unheard of,” he says.
Local and proud of it
“Our strengths really come from staying local — local people, local pride, local quality,” Williams says. Employees wearing WINCO’s blue shirts can be found accompanying pickups pulling large generators and the company’s inflatable bulldog mascot in local parades. “[Our community involvement] helps overcome logistical challenges — global, economic, transportation, and tariffs, which have been a big thing as of late.” The company partners with many Minnesota companies, striving to produce generators that are “made in America.”
Another strength, Williams says, is the company’s long-standing customer relationships. “We support our products for a minimum of 20 years to some level,” he says. “We even get calls into our service department on 50-, 60-, 70-year-old products, and we will support them.”
A third linchpin at WINCO is the leadership’s emphasis on employee development. “The retention starts with our culture,” Williams says. “People want to work where they feel valued, heard, and safe. It’s not just about the money anymore, and I believe that’s the kind of workplace we’re building at WINCO.”
Thomas says he saw it in action. “They’re a formal, larger company, but they have that informal small company mentality. You can still walk in and talk to the CEO.”
As WINCO heads toward the next 100 years, Williams says his top priority is to lead the next generation of growth. “Being in Minnesota manufacturing, I think we have a lot of grit, we’ve got a lot of pride, and we’ve got a lot of staying power,” he says. “At WINCO, we’re pretty proud to be part of that tradition.”
Return to the Winter 2025 issue of Enterprise Minnesota® magazine.
