Sam Thomas, president of De Pere-based Robinson, Inc., joins Insight’s Kate Bruns and NEWMA’s Ann Franz on this week’s episode of the NEW Manufacturing Insights podcast, sponsored by Stoke RGA, to talk more about his company’s history and future, including its recent recognition as Wisconsin Manufacturer of the Year in the “large” manufacturer category.
Thomas, who is also featured in this month’s issue of Insight on Business with fellow Northeast Wisconsin MOTY award recipient Spark Ops Metalworks, says 2026 is likely the last year Robinson will be in the “large” manufacturer category as it quickly approaches 1,000 employees and prepares to open its fifth manufacturing facility — that will be in Altoona, Iowa, marking Robinson’s first presence outside the state of Wisconsin.
Thomas says Robinson will begin construction on the 640,000-square-foot facility in January 2027. He tells the co-hosts more about what led Robinson to its decision to expand into Iowa, including its growth journey that started with restructuring and continued with specializing in the power market.
“Part of it’s luck,” Thomas tells the co-hosts. “Also, but the harder you work the luckier you get. We fell into and aligned ourselves appropriately into this power surge and then along came data centers and a lot of other things that required power and Robinson had already branded itself a leader in that. I mean, we’ve been doing that for 25 years.”
Hear more from Thomas, including what he considers his best leadership insight, by listening to this week’s full episode via Spreaker or by downloading it anywhere you get audio podcasts. Just search “NEW Manufacturing Insights” on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. New episodes are released every Thursday.
