Paget Equipment Puts Marshfield on Map

Since 1972, Paget Equipment Company has been putting Marshfield on the map."We service the world," said Alan Shepard, Sales Manager. "The products we make go to many countries and virtually every state of the United States."

As specialists in stainless steel and other high-nickel alloys and titanium, Paget is responsible for creating customized equipment for a wide variety of industries including big names in oil refineries, biodiesel, energy, and many more.

"Almost everything we do is one-of-a-kind," said Shepard. "We build things commonly used for Fortune 500 companies."

Products built at Paget can be found in many chemical and ethanol plants operated by well known companies, and in various cities and municipalities for water cleaning and treatment, and serving other purposes throughout the globe.

Countries Paget has shipped equipment to in recent years include Chile, Peru, China, Malaysia, Canada and Mexico.

"One would never guess that of a company this size," said Shepard. "It speaks of our visibility and our good reputation that we have in the marketplace. We’re good at what we do." He sees the fact that Paget enjoys a lot of repeat business as a testament to the value that customers see in terms of quality, on-time delivery and price.

Following the rules of the ASME Pressure Vessel Code, Paget implements checks, double checks, and triple checks to make sure that all welds are properly performed, as many of their creations must withstand a significant amount of pressure.

"There is a lot of engineering and science done in the main building. We produce the engineering drawings, and then we procure the stainless steel or other materials. Then, the highly skilled and talented guys in the shop build it," explained Shepard. Much of the material used is sourced within a 50-mile radius.

Through multiple expansions and ongoing growth, the family-owned business of 60 people is now seeking to expand its workforce. In an industry that normally experiences seasonal hiring and layoffs, Paget is proud to offer steady, continuous employment for its workforce while offering a full range of benefits that encourage longstanding careers, which many workers at Paget have already done.

"When we hire somebody on, we expect to never have to lay them off," said Shepard. "Right now we have an abundance of work and see a strong demand for our services beyond 2018."

Contrary to the typical welding industry assembly line setup, on-site welder fabricators at Paget use a project-oriented model.

"It's a challenging work environment from the standpoint that there's not an assembly-line-type mentality here," said Shepard. "Much of what we are doing is unique and first-time. The pride of ownership is fostered through challenging project-oriented work vs. mindless assembly line work."

Though it's expanding, the company doesn't behave like a big corporation.

"Jim Reigel, the owner, treats us as extended family," said Shepard. "We’re large enough to have significant abilities, but small enough to be nimble. Our culture here is a very good culture."

Many of the welders are trained through local technical college programs, but instruction is also offered on-site to those without formal training.

"Bottom line, we’re looking for reliable, hard working people with a strong technical aptitude that want to fabricate and assemble metal products," said Shepard. "There is an art to it. Anybody that wants to do that is probably going to have that spatial understanding."

Those interested in a career at Paget can apply at pagetequipment.com/employment/