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Waukesha company builds RNC platforms
All eyes will be on next week's Republican National Convention thanks in part to a Waukesha company.
WAUKESHA, Wis. - All eyes will be on next week's Republican National Convention thanks in part to a Waukesha company.
Wildeck Inc. manufactures custom-made industrial platforms. The company’s American steel structures now surround the convention's main stage.
"It’s a great opportunity," said Dan Lorenz, the company's president. "We were on a very short timeframe. It takes us about six to eight weeks to design, detail and manufacture and get a project like this ready for shipment."
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Lorenz said the finished product will give hundreds of print, television and streaming media outlets a birds-eye view of the convention.
Wildeck platform constructed at the 2024 RNC
"These camera platforms – they can’t move around or, obviously, the footage won’t be of the highest quality," Lorenz said.
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As a man on the front lines of a business, Jim Kanter has helped plan a party or two, but nothing like the party that’s scheduled next week.
It all comes as Wildeck expands its 40-year-old footprint in Waukesha. New corporate offices open next month right next to its new 22-acre manufacturing facility near Moreland and North.
"Waukesha in general has just been a great city to do business in," said Patrick Stapf, the company's senior marketing manager.
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Wildeck platform constructed at the 2024 RNC
For employees, the exposure of the RNC makes them feel stronger than steel.
"This is going to go out to millions of people, they will be watching the RNC. They’ll be able to say, ‘Hey, our platforms are supporting those cameras,'" Lorenz said.
Wildeck also provided platforms for the 2016 RNC in Cleveland and had a contract in place for Milwaukee's 2020 DNC before it was ultimately scaled back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.