What Custom Fabricating & Repair does

Custom Fabricating & Repair (CFR) is a privately held, second-generation, family-owned system integrator headquartered in Marshfield, Wisconsin, that designs, fabricates, automates, installs, and commissions custom sanitary stainless steel process equipment for the dairy and food processing industries. The company operates five manufacturing facilities on its Marshfield campus, described as the largest stainless steel sanitary manufacturing campus of its type in North America, with a satellite office in Mora, Minnesota. CFR sells turn-key liquid and dry ingredient process systems — including the Cheddarmaster cheese belt system, high solids cheese vats with patent-pending Sure Cut knife technology, block forming towers, block crumblers, collating systems, curd distributors, fines savers, auto unloaders, horizontal ribbon blenders, evaporators (Mechanical Vapor Recompression and Thermal Vapor Recompression designs), spray dryers, HTST pasteurization systems, shell and tube heat exchangers, grinders, and skid-mounted process systems — with the CE Rogers brand of spray dryers and evaporators (acquired in 2011, over 150 years of heritage) underpinning its drying and evaporation offering.

CFR's core technology combines sanitary stainless steel fabrication (304/316L) with industrial automation using Allen Bradley ControlLogix and CompactLogix PLCs, Rockwell Software and Aveva Wonderware HMIs, and HTST and CIP process control, enabling fully automated, Clean-In-Place-capable systems manufactured to USDA guidelines for dairy processing equipment. Distinctive technical components include the patent-pending Sure Cut knife design (uniform curd cut), wedge-wire fines savers with no moving parts and up to 100,000 pounds per hour capacity, and a predictive cooking algorithm on the high solids cheese vat. The product portfolio is segmented across cheese processing equipment, evaporators and dryers, and additional processing equipment supporting dairy and adjacent food segments such as spray-dried whey, milk permeate, and infant formula ingredients.

The business model is project-based B2B enterprise sales of custom-engineered equipment and accompanying professional services (engineering, automation programming, field installation, commissioning, and project management) sold directly to dairy and food processing companies, with pricing quoted per project rather than on a public list. Revenue is generated through one-time capital equipment sales plus attached services, with go-to-market driven by direct enterprise field sales, technical and engineering relationships, and referral partnerships with Advanced Process Solutions and Complete Filtration. CFR serves a primary vertical (dairy processors, including cheese, milk, and whey protein producers) and a secondary vertical (broader food processors), operating entirely within the United States.

Name

Custom Fabricating & Repair

Legal name

Custom Fabricating & Repair Inc.

Website

https://gotocfr.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Custom Fabricating & Repair is a privately held, family-owned system integrator in Marshfield, Wisconsin that designs, fabricates, and installs custom stainless steel sanitary process equipment — including cheese processing systems, evaporators, and spray dryers — for US dairy and food processing companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Marshfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&amp, D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Custom Equipment Manufacturing: Design and build custom liquid and dry ingredient process systems including evaporators, dryers, cheese equipment (cheese belts, cheese vats, block formers, unloaders, collating systems, block crumblers, curd distributors, fines savers), blenders, tanks, processors, conveyors, heat exchangers, grinders, and skid systems. One-time equipment sales for food and dairy processing facilities.
2. Engineering & Project Management Services: Full-service engineering including process design, heat and material balances, PFDs and P&IDs, equipment sizing, fabrication drawings, and project management from order receipt through customer sign-off.
3. Automation & Control Systems: Design, programming, installation, and commissioning of automation systems including PLC programming (Allen Bradley ControlLogix and CompactLogix), HMI programming (Rockwell Software, Aveva Wonderware), HTST systems, CIP systems, and process automation.
4. Field Installation Services: On-site installation, commissioning, and startup services for equipment at customer facilities. Includes field installation crews for fabrication, movement, and installation of stainless-steel food and dairy equipment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Custom Fabricating & Repair (CFR) designs and builds custom-engineered stainless steel food and dairy processing equipment, including cheese processing systems, evaporators, spray dryers, blenders, tanks, and conveyors. The company acts as a turn-key system integrator, providing in-house engineering, fabrication, automation, field installation, and project management from its five-facility stainless steel manufacturing campus in Marshfield, Wisconsin.

Product overview

Custom Fabricating & Repair (CFR) is a privately held Wisconsin-based system integrator offering a comprehensive portfolio of industrial food processing equipment and services for the dairy and food industries. The company's product lineup centers on three main equipment categories: Cheese Processing Equipment (including Cheddarmaster Cheese Belt Systems, High Solids Cheese Vats, Block Forming Towers, Block Crumblers, Collating Systems, Curd Distributors, Fines Savers, and Auto Unloaders), Evaporators and Dryers (including Spray Dryers and Evaporators from the CE Rogers brand acquired in 2011), and Additional Processing Equipment (Horizontal Ribbon Blenders, LIW Feeders, Pump Feeders, Skid Systems, Tanks & Processors, Screw Conveyors, Process Cheese Equipment, HTST Systems, Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers, Grinders, and Twin Screw Grinders). CFR provides turn-key solutions combining engineering, fabrication, automation, installation, and project management services. The company operates five manufacturing facilities at its Marshfield, WI campus, the largest stainless steel manufacturing campus of its type in North America.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CE Rogers: Spray Dryers and Evaporators brand acquired in 2011 with over 150 years of experience in food product drying and evaporation.
• Cheddarmaster

Products and services

• Cheddarmaster Cheese Belt System A complete cheese belt system designed for proper whey drainage, matting, milling, uniform salting, and sufficient residence time to produce quality cheese, featuring 304 or 316L stainless steel construction with a fully automated and CIP-able sanitary design. Targeted at cheese manufacturers.
• High Solids Cheese Vat (HSCV) High Solids Cheese Vat designed for modern cheese making methods with increased throughput, addressing yield, cleanability, and maintenance concerns. Features a patent-pending Sure Cut knife design and a predictive cooking algorithm. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Block Forming Towers Block forming towers designed for American, Italian, or Hispanic cheese producers, producing 40lb or 60lb blocks with design capacities ranging from 1,500-3,500 lbs/hr. Features an automated guillotine and elevator cutting system. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Block Crumbler Equipment for crumbling 40lb or 60lb cheese blocks into homogeneous pieces to facilitate the reknit process, with sanitary interior trough design for efficient product movement and CIP cleanability. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Collating System System for bulk cheese makers to collect 16x40lb blocks or 12x55lb blocks from block forming towers and collate them into single 640lb blocks, built with automation technology and 304/316L stainless steel construction. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Curd Distributor Equipment providing even flow and consistent distribution of curd supply to each block former, custom built per process specifications with T304 or T316 SS construction, sanitary design, and CIP capability. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Fines Saver Equipment with no moving parts, customized wedge wire screen openings, variable whey removal percentage, fully CIP-able, with up to 100,000 Pounds per Hour capacity and adjustable flow angle. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Auto Unloader Automated system for transferring 640lb blocks off dollies from an automated track system to unload conveyor or staging area, with 304 stainless steel construction, wash down unit, and fully automated operation. Targeted at cheese processors.
• Spray Dryers Industrial spray dryers handling products including NFDM, WPI, SMP, cheese powder, whole milk, dairy blends, and infant formula, available in tall form, compact, horizontal, multi-stage, and various baghouse and fluid bed designs. Targeted at dairy and food powder producers.
• Evaporators Evaporators processing whole milk, skim milk, MPC, WPC, permeate, and other dairy products, featuring MVR and TVR designs to optimize initial capital cost, energy efficiency, and ROI. Targeted at dairy processors.
• Horizontal Ribbon Blenders Mixers and blenders for food products including process cheese blends and meat slurries, available in 5 to 300 cubic foot capacities with optional CIP seal design, 304/316L stainless steel construction, and optional pneumatic discharge doors. Targeted at food processors.
• LIW Feeders Liquid injection weight feeders for precise liquid dosing in food processing applications. Targeted at food and dairy processors.
• Pump Feeders Pump-based feeding systems for controlled ingredient addition in processing lines. Targeted at food and dairy processors.
• Skid Systems Pre-engineered skid-mounted process systems for modular installation in food and dairy facilities. Targeted at food and dairy processors.
• Tanks & Processors Stainless steel tanks and processors for storage, mixing, and processing applications in dairy and food production. Targeted at food and dairy processors.
• Screw Conveyors Material handling conveyors for moving bulk solids in processing environments. Targeted at food and dairy processors.
• Process Cheese Equipment Equipment for processing cheese products including melting, blending, and packaging systems. Targeted at cheese processors.
• HTST System High Temperature Short Time pasteurization systems for dairy and food processing applications. Targeted at dairy and food processors.
• Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers

Quantifiable outcome

• 19 evaporator projects sold since 2009
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Advanced Process Solutions (APS)minorOthersCorporate partner displayed on CFR website. APS provides processing solutions in the sanitary marketplace.
• Complete FiltrationminorOthersCorporate partner displayed on CFR website. Complete Filtration provides filtration solutions for food and dairy processing.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• SPX FLOW: Provides engineered process equipment, including Anhydro spray dryers and Gerstenberg Schroder systems for dairy and food processing, competing directly with CFR's CE Rogers evaporator and dryer portfolio.
• GEA Group: Global manufacturer of process equipment for dairy, food and beverage industries, offering separators, homogenizers, evaporators and turnkey processing lines directly overlapping CFR's dairy system-integration offering.
• Marel: Global provider of advanced food processing equipment, including cheese-making lines and dairy systems, competing with CFR's cheese equipment portfolio at larger scale and with broader geographic reach.
• Tetra Pak: World-leading supplier of processing and packaging solutions for the dairy and food industry, including evaporators and cheese equipment that compete with CFR's core product categories at global scale.
• JBT Corporation: Diversified food and beverage processing technology supplier offering separators, heat exchangers and protein processing systems that overlap with CFR's HTST, evaporators and processing equipment.

Emerging players

• Charles Ross & Son Company: US-based manufacturer of industrial mixers, blenders and sanitary processing equipment for food and dairy applications, with overlapping horizontal ribbon blender and processing equipment offerings to CFR.

Direct peers

• Walker Stainless Equipment: Fabricator of stainless steel vessels and processing equipment for dairy and food processors, providing overlapping custom manufacturing and sanitary process system services to CFR's target customers.
• Feldmeier Equipment: Specializes in stainless steel tanks, processors and custom sanitary equipment for the dairy and food industries, competing head-on with CFR's tanks, processors and skid systems product lines.
• Paul Mueller Company: US-based manufacturer of stainless steel processing equipment and tanks for dairy, food and beverage customers, with comparable custom fabrication, field installation and turnkey project capabilities to CFR.
• HRS Heat Exchangers: Designs and manufactures heat transfer solutions for hygienic food and dairy applications, directly comparable to CFR's shell and tube heat exchangers and HTST pasteurization systems.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

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Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Custom Fabricating & Repair