Luse

What Luse does

Luse Contracting Group is a fifth-generation, family-owned specialty contractor headquartered in Aurora, Illinois, founded in 1923 by D. Claude Luse as a corkboard insulation importer and roofing contractor in Chicago. The company operates through two core divisions: Luse Thermal Technologies, which delivers mechanical insulation design, engineering, and installation for hot and cold commercial and industrial piping, ductwork, and equipment; and Luse Environmental Services, founded in 1985, which provides asbestos, lead, mold, and mercury abatement, encapsulation, and interior demolition. Complementary offerings include custom-fabricated removable insulation blankets, NIA-certified energy appraisals using infrared thermography, and specialty contracting such as expansion joint repair and industrial fire stopping.

The company generates revenue primarily through project-based competitive bidding and direct contracting with general contractors and facility owners, with disclosed contract values ranging from approximately $226,000 to $6,000,000. It serves a diversified customer base across heavy industrial (petrochemical, power generation, steel, food processing), commercial real estate, education, hospitality, pharmaceutical, and municipal/government end-markets. Luse holds Department of Health certifications in Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin, and is a union signatory with Local 17 (Chicago) and Local 19 (Milwaukee) Heat & Frost Insulators. Distribution is regional, concentrated in the Midwest, with offices in Aurora (HQ), Lombard, and Milwaukee. The firm transitioned to 100% woman-owned status on January 1, 2025 under fifth-generation owner Ashley Luse DeBoer, and received WBENC certification in May 2025. Luse is a private company with no external funding rounds disclosed.

Name

Luse

Legal name

Luse

Website

https://luse.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1923

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Luse Contracting Group is a fifth-generation, woman-owned specialty contractor providing mechanical insulation, environmental remediation (asbestos/lead/mold abatement), and energy appraisal services to industrial, commercial, institutional, and government clients across the Midwest.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Aurora

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Mechanical Insulation Contracting: Project-based contracting services for mechanical insulation installation on commercial and industrial piping, ductwork, and equipment. Revenue generated through competitive bidding on construction projects and direct contracts with general contractors and facility owners.
2. Environmental Remediation Services: Environmental services including asbestos removal, lead abatement, and mold remediation. Contract-based services typically quoted per project with regulatory compliance requirements.
3. Removable Insulation Blankets: Custom fabrication and installation of removable insulation blankets for equipment requiring regular maintenance access. Value-added service often bundled with larger insulation scopes.
4. Energy Appraisals: Value-added consulting service offering professional energy appraisals to identify thermal inefficiencies. Optional service available to existing and prospective clients to justify capital upgrades.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Luse is a fifth-generation family-owned industrial specialty contractor providing mechanical insulation design, engineering, and installation for hot and cold piping, ductwork, and equipment at industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities. The company also delivers environmental remediation services including asbestos, lead, mold, and mercury abatement, alongside complementary offerings such as custom removable insulation blankets, infrared-thermography energy appraisals, and expansion joint repair. Customers include petrochemical plants, power plants, steel mills, food and beverage manufacturers, pharmaceutical facilities, commercial buildings, schools, hospitals, and government entities across the Midwest.

Product overview

Luse is a multifaceted construction and environmental services provider offering a portfolio of related service lines that work together to deliver mechanical insulation and environmental remediation solutions. The core offerings include Luse Thermal Technologies (Mechanical Insulation Contracting with services such as design, installation, heat tracing, and sheet metal lagging) and Luse Environmental Services (Environmental Remediation including asbestos, lead, and mold abatement since 1985). These are complemented by Removable Insulation Blankets (custom-fit solutions for equipment requiring access), Energy Appraisals (a value-added service for identifying thermal inefficiencies), and Expansion Joint Repair (specialty contracting). The company operates primarily in the commercial and industrial sectors including power plants, food processing, pharmaceuticals, and petrochemical facilities throughout Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Luse Thermal Technologies: Mechanical insulation contractor servicing hot and cold systems, including commercial and industrial piping, ductwork, and mechanical equipment.
• Luse Environmental Services

Products and services

• Mechanical Insulation Contracting (Luse Thermal Technologies) Mechanical insulation design, engineering, and professional installation for hot and cold systems across commercial and industrial piping, ductwork, and mechanical equipment. Includes design and engineering, professional installation, heat loss analysis, electric heat tracing, sheet metal lagging, cost tracking, specification writing, and specialty services. Serves petrochemical plants, power plants, steel mills, food and beverage plants, high-rises, office complexes, shopping malls, and public works projects. Delivered by Local 17 and Local 19 union craft workers.
• Removable Insulation Blankets Custom-designed, custom-fit removable insulation blankets engineered for hot equipment requiring regular inspection, maintenance, or cleaning. Provides tool-free maintenance access without removing permanent insulation while maintaining energy savings and surface temperature control. Typical applications include valves and flanges, steam traps, expansion joints, pumps, turbines, and irregular geometry equipment.
• Energy Appraisals Professional energy appraisal service using on-site inspection and infrared thermography to detect heat loss and thermal inefficiencies in mechanical insulation systems. Includes detailed reporting with prioritized recommendations and ROI calculations with payback timelines based on real-world energy data. Delivered by Certified Insulation Energy Appraisers through the National Insulation Association (NIA).
• Environmental Services / Remediation (Luse Environmental Services) Environmental remediation services including asbestos abatement, lead abatement, mold abatement, mercury contamination clean-up, encapsulation and encasement, and interior demolition. Certified for environmental remediation in Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Serves commercial buildings, hospitals, schools, power plants, refineries, petrochemical plants, and industrial facilities.
• Expansion Joint Repair (Specialty Contracting) Specialty contracting services addressing plant efficiency needs, including expansion joint repair, nonmetallic pipe repair, and industrial fire stopping. Solutions target NOX TOX issues, repair expansion joint and duct work failure, and reduce air in-leakage. Applications include power generating stations, industrial boiler rooms, and manufacturing facilities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 30% reduction in heating and cooling costs through proper mechanical insulation
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• L&S Insulation (Milwaukee, WI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2021Acquired L&S Insulation in Milwaukee, WI in July 2021, expanding Luse's presence into the Wisconsin mechanical insulation market with a strong field crew and loyal customer base.
• Hill MechanicalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner contractor on the Fresenius-Kabi pharmaceutical facility project in Melrose Park, IL. Luse provided insulation services as subcontractor to Hill Mechanical on this $3.5M project.
• Great Lakes Heating & PlumbingminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner contractor on Northwestern University Mudd Hall project. Luse provided pipe insulation while Great Lakes Heating & Plumbing served as the primary mechanical contractor.
• Any Temp Inc.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner contractor on Northwestern University Mudd Hall project. Luse provided duct insulation services while Any Temp Inc. served as the primary ductwork contractor.
• Premier Mechanical, Inc.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner contractor on NLX Beverage Solutions project in Batavia, IL. Luse provided mechanical insulation services as subcontractor to Premier Mechanical on this $860,000 project.
• Independent Mechanical Ind. Inc.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner contractor on City of Chicago Springfield Avenue Pumping Station project. Luse provided mechanical insulation as part of collaborative project team for the five-year, three-phase municipal project.
• Kiewit CorporationmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary contractor on Three Rivers Energy Center project ($6M contract). Luse served as secondary insulator providing mechanical insulation on ACC Piping System, Water Treatment System, Auxiliary Boiler, and other systems, filling scope gaps as they appeared.
• Berglund ConstructionminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGeneral contractor on Chase Tower Fountain environmental remediation project in Chicago. Luse provided asbestos abatement services on the waterproofing membrane removal project ($289,700).
• Tyler Lane ConstructionminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGeneral contractor on Chicago Public Schools Joseph E. Gary Elementary project. Luse executed environmental remediation work for this $425,000 contract as part of major capital renovation project.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• API Group: Publicly traded specialty contracting and distribution platform encompassing safety services, insulation and specialty mechanical services. Comparable business model of bundling safety/insulation services for industrial customers, with substantially larger scale.
• BrandSafway: Major North American specialty services platform providing scaffolding, insulation, coatings, and environmental services to industrial, commercial and infrastructure customers. Overlapping mechanical insulation and abatement service lines make it a direct comparable on large industrial scopes like the Three Rivers Energy Center type work.
• EMCOR Group: Large publicly traded provider of mechanical and electrical construction, energy services, and building services for commercial, industrial and utility customers. Comparable industrial service offering and project-bid business model, much larger scale.
• Comfort Systems USA: Public mechanical contractor focused on HVAC, plumbing, and building automation services for industrial and commercial customers across the U.S. Comparable project-based mechanical specialty contracting business model at national scale.
• Limbach Holdings: Specialty mechanical contractor focused on HVAC, plumbing, and building services for institutional, healthcare and commercial clients. Comparable project-based specialty contractor model serving healthcare and higher-ed customers (e.g., Northwestern, hospital systems).

Direct peers

• Performance Contracting Group: Larger specialty contractor offering mechanical insulation, firestopping, and asbestos/lead abatement to industrial and commercial clients. Highly comparable dual service line (insulation + remediation) and bidding model, with significantly broader geographic reach.

Emerging players

• IES Holdings: National electrical and mechanical services provider serving industrial and commercial customers with project-based and services offerings. Comparable in combining mechanical/electrical work on industrial and institutional projects.

Regional players

• FCI Constructors: Midwest-based mechanical/industrial specialty contractor with overlapping mechanical insulation exposure on industrial, food/beverage, pharma and institutional customers in the Midwest region.
• Sproule & Sons / Sproule Inc. Regional mechanical insulation contractor serving Midwest industrial customers. Highly overlapping service line of mechanical insulation on piping, ductwork and equipment in power, food and process plants.
• MMI Engineered Solutions / Midwest Mechanical Insulation: Specialty mechanical insulation and abatement contractor operating in the Midwest. Closely comparable service model for piping and duct insulation on commercial and industrial projects.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/luse-contracting-group

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries3 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 Luse