What W.D.S. Construction does

W.D.S. Construction, Inc. is a privately held national general contractor and construction management firm headquartered in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, founded in 2005 by fourth-generation contractor Ben Westra. The firm is licensed to operate across 48 contiguous U.S. states and has cumulatively delivered more than 55 million square feet of building space across eight market sectors: Cold Storage & Food Processing (its flagship specialization), Retail & Hospitality, Medical & Biosciences, Industrial, Education, Corporate & Office, Multi-Family, and Special Services. The company delivers projects through six core service lines — Preconstruction, Design-Build, Construction Management, Development (via affiliate JCW Development), Special Services, and Any Scale — using an open-book contract model and a heavily subcontracted delivery approach anchored by a small in-house team of project managers and directors.

WDS earns revenue on a project-by-project basis through competitive bidding and direct negotiation with enterprise clients across food processing, cold-chain logistics, retail, hospitality, medical/biopharma, and education. Notable enterprise engagements include a $40M, 60,000 sq ft bioscience manufacturing facility for Nu-Tek BioScience, a 173,400 sq ft convertible cold storage facility for Vortex Cold Storage (financed in part via the first-ever PACE funding for cold storage in the U.S.), experiential retail builds for Dick's Sporting Goods and LIDL, and multi-site plasma donation center rollouts. The firm differentiates on cold storage domain expertise (refrigeration systems, SQF certification, CO2 refrigeration), open-book transparency, integrated design-build delivery, and a relationship-driven, referral-heavy sales model.

The business is family-controlled (founder Ben Westra serves as President) with no external investors, no funding rounds, and a leadership bench that includes executives drawn in part from the predecessor Westra Construction. Strategic growth has been executed through internal division launches (Cold Storage 2021, Special Services 2021, Medical 2022) and the formation of affiliate JCW Development (2013) for real estate development, rather than through M&A. The firm's first dedicated VP of Sales & Marketing hire in December 2025 signals a transition toward more proactive enterprise sales.

Name

W.D.S. Construction

Legal name

WDS Construction, Inc.

Website

https://wdsconstruction.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

W.D.S. Construction is a privately held, Wisconsin-based national general contractor licensed in 48 U.S. states, specializing in cold storage and food processing facility construction alongside retail, medical, and industrial projects for enterprise clients across multiple sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

General Contracting and Construction Management

NAICS

Nonresidential Building Construction (2362), Industrial Building Construction (23621), Commercial and Institutional Building Construction (23622)

SIC

General Bldg Contractors - Nonresidential Bldgs (1540), Operative Builders (1531), Construction - Special Trade Contractors (1700)

akta.pro primary industry

Food & Beverage Processing Plant Construction (IMAFADAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Healthcare Facility Construction (Hospitals, Clinics, Labs) (IMAFACAD), Pharmaceutical & Biotech Manufacturing Facility Construction (IMAFADAI), HVAC & Refrigeration Contracting (IMAFALAB)

Keywords

• General contracting services
• Construction management
• Design-build construction
• Cold storage construction
• Commercial construction services

Headquarters

HQ city

Beaver Dam

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. General Contracting Services: WDS generates revenue through general contracting and construction management services for commercial, industrial, and institutional projects. Revenue is project-based, earned through competitive bidding and direct negotiation with clients across various market sectors including cold storage, retail, education, medical, and industrial construction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

W.D.S. Construction is a national general contractor delivering preconstruction planning, design-build delivery, construction management, and full-service real estate development for commercial, industrial, and institutional clients. The firm specializes in cold storage and food processing facility construction while also serving retail/hospitality, medical/biosciences, education, industrial, corporate/office, and multi-family sectors across the continental United States.

Product overview

W.D.S. Construction is a national general contractor offering a comprehensive suite of construction and development services through multiple market sectors. The company operates six core service offerings: Preconstruction, Design-Build, Construction Management, Development, Special Services Division, and Any Scale services. These services are delivered across eight market sectors including Cold Storage & Food Processing, Medical & Biosciences, Retail & Hospitality, Industrial, Education, Corporate & Office, Multi-Family, and Special Services. The company also partners with affiliate company JCW Development for real estate development services. W.D.S. Construction is not a software/technology product company but rather a physical construction firm serving clients throughout the continental United States.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Preconstruction Services Comprehensive preconstruction planning including scope evaluation, land assessment, building materials analysis, budget determination, and functionality/feasibility assessment before construction begins for commercial, industrial, and institutional clients.
• Design-Build Services Integrated design-build project delivery with a single-contract approach, working alongside architects and engineers from concept through completion to meet project goals and budgets.
• Construction Management General contractor and construction management services with open-book project delivery, managing subcontractors, equipment, job sites, and skilled tradespeople to translate building plans into reality.
• Development Services
• Special Services Division
• Any Scale Construction Project delivery capability for projects of any size from smaller renovations to large expansions and new buildings, leveraging internal team, subcontractor relationships, and bonding capacity.
• Cold Storage & Food Processing Construction
• Medical & Biosciences Construction Construction services for medical facilities, bioscience manufacturing plants, plasma donation centers, and dental/medical clinics including specialized cleanroom and FDA-compliant facilities.
• Retail & Hospitality Construction Retail and hospitality construction including experiential retail concepts, hotels, entertainment venues, and restaurants with unique customer experience design elements.
• Industrial Construction Industrial facility construction for manufacturing, warehouse, and processing operations including specialized equipment foundations and industrial process-driven buildings.
• Education Construction Educational facility construction and renovation including K-12 schools, universities, private/Christian schools, and educational institution expansions.
• Multi-Family Construction Multi-family residential development including condominiums, villas, and residential community construction.

Quantifiable outcome

• 55+ million square feet of building space constructed across diverse industries
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• JCW DevelopmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Affiliate company founded by WDS Construction leadership in 2013 to provide full-service real estate and property development nationwide. JCW handles site identification, acquisition, project planning, zoning, permitting, budgeting, scheduling, and turnkey construction delivery. JCW Development collaborated with WDS on projects including Vortex Cold Storage, Holiday Inn Express, and Monarch Lakeview Condos.
• City of Albert LeacoreOthersCity of Albert Lea provided development incentives for Vortex Cold Storage including Tax Incrementing Funding over nine years and tax abatement for six years, along with tax incremental funding support.
• Nexus SolutionsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnered with Nexus Solutions on the Oakfield Elementary School renovation project where WDS handled general trades excluding mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work.
• ISG Inc.coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture and engineering firm providing design services for the Dordt University Rozenboom Family Athletic Center project under design-build delivery approach.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Tippmann Group: Specialty cold storage and temperature-controlled warehouse builder. Most directly comparable peer to WDS in cold-chain construction, competing for the same refrigerated/frozen food processing projects nationwide.

Regional players

• Boldt Company: Wisconsin-headquartered general contractor and construction manager serving commercial, industrial, and institutional clients across the Midwest. Comparable operating geography, multi-sector delivery model, and Wisconsin roots.
• Miron + Co. Wisconsin-based general contractor with broad commercial, industrial, and institutional capabilities across the Upper Midwest. Comparable regional presence and multi-market sector focus.
• Kraus-Anderson: Midwest-headquartered general contractor and construction manager with diversified commercial, healthcare, and industrial work. Comparable in scale, multi-sector service, and regional operating model.

Broad incumbents

• Gilbane Building Company: Large national private general contractor serving commercial, healthcare, industrial, and institutional markets. Competes with WDS for larger enterprise projects and integrated design-build work.
• McCarthy Building Companies: National general contractor with deep food processing, cold storage, healthcare, and laboratory expertise. A more capable incumbent competing for the same specialty industrial and food/bioscience work WDS targets.
• Mortenson Construction: Major national general contractor with broad commercial, healthcare, and industrial capabilities. Competes with WDS on integrated design-build and large enterprise programs nationwide.
• Walsh Group / Walsh Construction: Large national general contracting and construction management firm serving commercial, healthcare, and institutional markets. Comparable full-service delivery model with broader geographic reach.
• Clark Construction Group: Large national general contractor with deep commercial, healthcare, and institutional expertise. Competes with WDS for enterprise-scale integrated project delivery opportunities.
• Hensel Phelps: National employee-owned general contractor serving aviation, healthcare, commercial, and public markets. Comparable integrated project delivery capability and enterprise client focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/wdsconstruction
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wdsconstruction
• Instagraminstagram.com/WDS_Construction

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries2 records

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 W.D.S. Construction