What Custom Mechanical Solutions does

Custom Mechanical Solutions (CMS) is a commercial and industrial mechanical equipment sales representative serving the Pacific Northwest from offices in Bellevue, Spokane Valley, and Tualatin, with a Southern Idaho office planned. Founded in 2007 and acquired by Meriton in April 2024, CMS represents more than 50 HVAC equipment manufacturers across an extensive line card covering air handling units, water and heat recovery chillers, cooling towers, heat pumps, VRF systems, terminal devices, heat exchangers, dehumidification, thermal storage, and controls. Marquee represented brands include Multistack, York, Haakon, Innovent, Johnson Controls, Marley, Samsung, SEMCO, and AcoustiFLO. In 2024 CMS also acquired Hurley Engineering, a Tacoma-based firm founded in 1936, adding nearly 90 years of hydronics and mechanical-room expertise.

The company's core product is not a software platform but rather an engineered specification and distribution service: experienced sales engineers work with mechanical contractors, design engineers, and facility owners to design, specify, and supply integrated HVAC solutions for healthcare, education, data centers, biotech/laboratory, industrial, and specialty projects. Notable project references include the SeaTac Airport Pre-Conditioned Air project (ASHRAE Industrial Facilities Award), the University of Washington Central Plant, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Sabey Data Center, Allen Institute, and Stone34 (LEED Platinum BD+C and O+M). Beyond specification, CMS offers parts and OEM service, start-up and warranty support, and cooling tower repair through certified technicians.

CMS earns revenue primarily as a manufacturer's representative, collecting commissions on equipment sales routed through its regional relationships, supplemented by service revenue from start-up, warranty, and aftermarket parts work. Pricing is quote-based, tied to project specifications, with multi-year supply relationships rather than list-price transactions. Within Meriton's national network of 20 operating companies across 25 states, CMS retains local leadership under President Craig Center and is positioned as the platform's Pacific Northwest hub for commercial and industrial HVAC representation.

Name

Custom Mechanical Solutions

Legal name

Custom Mechanical Solutions Inc.

Website

https://cmswa.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Custom Mechanical Solutions is a Pacific Northwest commercial and industrial HVAC equipment sales representative representing 50-plus manufacturers for healthcare, education, data center, biotech, and specialty construction projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial HVAC Equipment Representation

NAICS

Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (33341)

SIC

Special Industry Machinery, Nec (3559)

akta.pro primary industry

Ventilation, Ducting & Air Distribution Equipment (IMAHAKAG)

Keywords

• HVAC equipment representation
• Commercial mechanical systems
• Hydronic heating solutions
• Air handling equipment
• Industrial cooling systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Manufacturer Representative Sales: CMS operates as a commercial and industrial mechanical equipment representative, earning commissions from HVAC equipment manufacturers for sales to contractors, engineers, and facility owners. The company connects clients to products and systems that meet complex engineering requirements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Custom Mechanical Solutions is a commercial and industrial mechanical equipment sales representative that connects building owners, contractors, and engineers in the Pacific Northwest to HVAC products from 50+ leading manufacturers. The company supplies air handling units, chillers, heat pumps, cooling towers, VRF systems, terminal devices, and related mechanical equipment, and provides engineering design support, start-up and testing services, OEM parts, and cooling tower service across the equipment lifecycle.

Product overview

Custom Mechanical Solutions (CMS) is a commercial and industrial mechanical equipment sales representative serving the Pacific Northwest. Rather than a single unified software product, CMS represents an extensive portfolio of HVAC equipment manufacturers and provides associated services. Their core offering consists of representing 50+ manufacturer brands including York, Multistack, Haakon Industries, Innovent, Marley, Johnson Controls, Samsung, and others across categories including air handling units, water chillers and heat recovery chillers, cooling towers, heat pumps, terminal devices, and building automation controls. CMS connects clients to integrated HVAC solutions that combine products from their manufacturer line card with engineering design support, startup services, and OEM parts supply. The company operates as part of Meriton, a national alliance of HVAC manufacturer representatives with 20 operating companies across 25 states.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Air Handling Units Custom and commercial air handling units from manufacturers including Haakon Industries, Innovent, Alliance Air Products, and York, sold to mechanical contractors, engineers, and facility owners for commercial and industrial HVAC applications.
• Air Purification Systems Air purification systems including Cosatron custom air purification, SecureAire systems for ultrafine particles and wildfire smoke abatement, and UltraViolet Devices (UVDI) air disinfection and coil cleaning systems for commercial facilities.
• Airside Heat Recovery Systems Heat recovery equipment including BKM ReverseFlow 90%-efficient plate heat recovery, Innovent aluminum fixed plate heat exchangers, SEMCO energy recovery wheels, and various energy recovery ventilators for commercial HVAC applications.
• Cooling Towers and Heat Rejection Systems Cooling towers and fluid coolers from Marley, hybrid adiabatic fluid coolers from Guntner, premium efficiency fluid coolers from Recold, and air cooled condensers from York for commercial and industrial heat rejection.
• Water Chillers and Heat Recovery Chillers Modular and packaged air-cooled and water-cooled chillers, magnetic bearing centrifugal chillers, and heat recovery chillers from Multistack, Airstack, Mag Lev, York, and Samsung for commercial cooling applications.
• Heat Pumps Air-to-water and water-to-water heat pumps including Multistack modular units, Airstack heat pumps, Samsung VRF heat pumps and split condensing units, and WaterFurnace systems for commercial heating and cooling.
• Packaged Equipment Packaged rooftop units, split systems, DOAS units, and custom DX and evaporative condensing air handlers from York, Lennox, Johnson Controls, Innovent, and others.
• VRF Systems Variable refrigerant flow systems including Samsung heat recovery VRF systems and mini-splits, and York heat recovery VRF systems for commercial buildings.
• Terminal Devices VAV boxes, fan coils, chilled beams, unit ventilators, radiant ceiling panels, and convectors from Johnson Controls, Krueger, SEMCO, Kampmann, and other manufacturers for air distribution in commercial buildings.
• Fans and Airflow Systems Premium efficiency, low noise fan arrays from AcoustiFLO, lab exhaust fans from Strobic Air and MK Plastics, and complete fan lines from York and SystemAir for commercial airflow applications.
• Heat Exchangers and Coils Commercial and industrial water and refrigerant coils from Aerofin, plate and frame heat exchangers from Polaris, and custom coils from Precision Coils and Direct Coil.
• Commercial Refrigeration and Process Equipment Specialized refrigeration equipment from Kooljet for cold storage, food processing, and medical applications, and CO2-based high efficiency cooling systems from M&M Carnot for data centers.
• Custom Pump Systems and Chiller Plants Custom designed pump skids and modular chiller plants with controls from Canariis, and condenser and chilled water treatment skids from General Water Systems.
• Dehumidification Equipment Swimming pool dehumidification and ventilation systems from Innovent, commercial and industrial dehumidification units from SEMCO, and packaged dehumidification units from ThermoPlus Air.
• Humidifiers Humidification, evaporative cooling, and water treatment systems from DriSteem, and energy-saving ultrasonic humidifiers from Humidifirst.
• Ductwork and Accessories Fabric ductwork from Q-Sox, acoustical panels and silencers from SEMCO, and outdoor and indoor high-efficiency pre-insulated ductwork from Thermaduct.
• Kitchen Exhaust Systems Kitchen ventilation and exhaust systems from CaptiveAire and Flo-Aire, and kitchen exhaust systems from Trion.
• Pressure Control and Airflow Measurement Systems Critical environment airflow monitoring and control systems from CRC (Critical Room Control), airflow measurement systems from Paragon Controls, and variable frequency drives from JCI and Yaskawa.
• Thermal Storage PhaseStor thermal storage systems using ice and phase-change materials for cooling and heating applications.
• Water Treatment Water softening and reverse osmosis water treatment skids from DriSteem, and non-chemical pulsed water treatment from General Water Systems.
• Parts and OEM Components OEM parts supply including motors, VFDs, compressors, coils, and fans for all represented equipment brands, plus Marley OEM parts support.
• Start-Up, Test, and Warranty Services Full start-up, test, and warranty services for all represented equipment, performed by certified technicians.
• Cooling Tower Service and Repair Comprehensive cooling tower repair including diagnostic, repair, and refurbishment services, cooling tower inspections, VFD and control upgrades, non-chemical water treatment, and fill replacements.

Quantifiable outcome

• SeaTac Airport Pre-Conditioned Air project reduced fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions significantly for airlines
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Hurley EngineeringcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMS acquired Hurley Engineering, a Tacoma-based firm founded in 1936 with nearly 90 years of hydronics and mechanical room expertise. The acquisition expands CMS's hydronics capabilities, adding system-level design knowledge and hands-on troubleshooting experience for complex, performance-driven HVAC applications. Hurley will operate under the CMS name under President Craig Center's leadership.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Carrier Global: Largest HVAC manufacturer and CMS-adjacent supplier. Although upstream, Carrier competes for owner/engineer mindshare and engages in direct-to-OEM and rep relationships that set the competitive structure of the rep industry.
• Watsco: Largest U.S. HVAC distribution platform (Carrier, Rheem, Lennox brands). Operates downstream of CMS at scale, supplying contractors in overlapping segments including commercial refrigeration and applied HVAC.
• Ferguson (Ferguson Enterprises): Largest U.S. distributor of plumbing, HVAC and mechanical supplies. Adjacent in the HVAC value chain (distribution), targeting many of the same contractors and engineers CMS specifies into at much broader national scale.
• Trane Technologies: Global HVAC manufacturer competing across commercial chillers, AHUs and applied systems. Like Carrier, sets the rep landscape CMS operates within through its dealer/rep network decisions.

Direct peers

• Texas AirSystems: Large exclusive HVAC manufacturer's rep in Texas with a similar relationship-driven, engineer-led sales motion, broad line card across chillers, AHUs and controls, and vertical specialization in healthcare, data centers and higher education.
• Meriton: CMS's parent and the leading U.S. network of exclusive commercial/industrial HVAC manufacturer's reps (20 operating companies, 25 states). Sister firms inside Meriton run the same rep model and compete in adjacent geographies, making them the closest structural peers.
• Walter E. Nelson Company: Independent commercial/industrial HVAC manufacturer's representative headquartered in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon/Washington). Operates the same rep model as CMS, with a comparable line card, vertically-organized sales team and similar regional footprint.
• ENCON Northwest: Pacific Northwest commercial HVAC manufacturer's representative focused on engineered HVAC equipment sales to engineers, contractors and owners. Directly overlaps CMS in territory, customer verticals (healthcare, education, data centers) and manufacturer line card.

Emerging players

• MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions: Pacific Northwest mechanical services and HVAC solutions provider of comparable size to CMS. Overlaps in territory, customer verticals (healthcare, biotech, data centers) and engineering-led approach, though it is more service/install vs. rep-driven.

Others

• Johnstone Supply: Cooperatives-based HVAC distribution network with deep contractor relationships. Adjacent channel partner rather than direct competitor—CMS's contractor customers often purchase through Johnstone after specification.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/custom-mechanical-solutions

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 Mechanical Solutions