Cologne / Minnesota / United States
Storms Welding & Mfg, a leading manufacturer of dairy equipment, traces its roots back to the well established Louis Blacksmith Shop in Cologne, MN. In November of 1982, Charlie Storms purchased the company from his Uncle, Henry Louis. Initially Charlie, the only employee, ran the business in a 500 square foot building. The main business was welding repair for farm equipment and building Bobcat attachments as well as truck beds. Russ Storms, Charlies nephew, began with Storms Welding in 1986 taking care of the clean-up in the shop. Russ continued with Storms Welding & Manufacturing working as a full time employee in 1988 and becoming a partner in 1991. The first items manufactured by Storms Welding were hog movers and bail throw racks. Charlie expanded the companys product line in 1993 to include dairy barn equipment such as crowd gates, free stalls, gates and parlors. Their manufacturing capabilities continued to grow, bringing on board trailers, truck beds, truck hoists, box liners, and skid steer attachments ; all the while continuing to manufacture Bobcat attachments. From these modest beginnings Storms Welding & Mfg. has grown to 12 employees and expanded into a 9000 square foot facility. Their two shop managers combine to offer 26 years of experience in the areas of manufacturing and repair. Russ contributes 21 years of experience himself.
