When Nathan Oakes launched his energy and mechanical services firm Range Gen two years ago, he looked at only one space to base it out of, the Macomb-OU INCubator.
The Sterling Heights-based incubator helps companies and organizations with large automotive fleets become more fuel efficient and operate in a more optimal manner. The Macomb-OU INCubator's deep contacts and resources in Metro Detroit's defense and homeland security sectors provided the prime platform for Range Gen's launch. The company is now preparing for a significant scale-up this year.
"It is really in a class of its own," says Oakes, president & CEO of
Range Gen. "There isn't one organization that is doing the type of work that is being done at the
Macomb-OU INCubator."
Range Gen now employs 14 people and is getting ready to welcome a handful of interns (its first batch) this spring from Oakland University. It has hired 10 people in the last year and expects that number to grow exponentially in 2013.
"We are turning the corner, so to speak," Oakes says. "With Diesel at $4.15 a gallon, our services are in high demand. ... We are growing pretty quickly. We believe in the next 100 days we will have 200 bodies (120 permanent jobs, 80 temporary positions). We are close to signing a couple of big clients."
Source: Nathan Oakes, president & CEO of Range Gen
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.