Morkin and Sowards

What Morkin and Sowards does

Morkin and Sowards is a structural steel fabrication company headquartered in Wayne, Michigan, founded in 1968 and operating for over 50 years in the Midwest market. The firm fabricates and erects structural steel, executes custom fabrication, supplies contract welding services, and produces ornamental and miscellaneous metalwork. Its customer base spans religious, industrial, athletic, education, healthcare, and community/government construction end-markets, with named project references including churches (Bridgewood Church), veterinary hospitals, and other institutional/community facilities. Revenue is generated on a project-based, bid-and-build model selling fabricated steel packages and labor (welding, erection) primarily to general contractors and developers in Michigan and northern Ohio.

Since 2021, the company has operated as a subsidiary of The McFate Group, Inc., a holding company that also owns Engineered Buildings (acquired 2017), giving Morkin and Sowards access to cross-sell into pre-engineered metal building packages and shared corporate resources. The technology stack is conventional for the trade: certified in-house welders, CNC/press-brake metalworking, and standard CAD detailing rather than any proprietary automation or software platform. Between 2022 and 2023, the firm added four management personnel, including a General Manager scoped to travel across Southeast/Central Michigan and northern Ohio, signaling an intent to widen geographic coverage beyond the original Wayne footprint. The disclosed headcount of 5 employees indicates a small, owner-supervised shop where growth is execution- and relationship-led rather than capital- or platform-led.

Name

Morkin and Sowards

Legal name

Morkin and Sowards

Website

https://morkinsowards.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Morkin and Sowards is a Wayne, Michigan-based structural steel fabricator (founded 1968, ~5 employees) serving Midwest general contractors across religious, industrial, healthcare, education, and community construction markets via project-based structural steel, custom fabrication, contract welding, and ornamental metalwork; subsidiary of The McFate Group since 2021.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Wayne

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Structural Steel Fabrication: Project-based fabrication services for structural steel used in construction projects including warehouses, bridges, and industrial facilities.
2. Custom Fabrication: Bespoke fabrication services for unique or specialized project requirements.
3. Contract Welding Services: Independent contractor welding services provided on-time and within budget for external clients.
4. Ornamental and Miscellaneous Metalwork: Metalwork services including ornamental pieces and miscellaneous metal fabrication.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Morkin and Sowards is a Michigan-based structural steel fabrication company providing structural steel fabrication, custom fabrication, contract welding, and ornamental and miscellaneous metalwork for construction projects. Founded in 1968 and now operating as a subsidiary of The McFate Group, the company serves industrial, commercial, religious, educational, healthcare, athletic, and government construction customers across Michigan and the broader Midwest.

Product overview

Morkin and Sowards is a structural steel fabrication company offering a single, unified service portfolio. The company provides four interconnected core offerings: Structural Steel Fabrication (the primary specialty covering industrial and commercial construction), Custom Fabrication (tailored fabrication services for unique project requirements), Contract Welding (certified independent contractor welding services), and Ornamental and Miscellaneous Metalwork (decorative and custom metal elements). These services are designed to serve the construction industry across multiple sectors including industrial facilities, educational buildings, healthcare, religious structures, athletic facilities, and community/government buildings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Structural Steel Fabrication Structural steel fabrication services for construction projects including warehouses, bridges, industrial facilities, religious buildings, educational buildings, healthcare facilities, athletic structures, and community/government buildings. Serves general contractors, building owners, and developers in Michigan and the Midwest.
• Custom Fabrication Custom fabrication services using high-quality raw materials to bring specific customer project visions to life. Targeted at construction clients with unique or specialized project requirements that require tailored metal components.
• Contract Welding Independent contract welding services delivered by certified in-house welders on-time and within budget. Serves external independent contractors and construction clients needing welding capacity with a focus on safety, efficiency, and craftsmanship.
• Ornamental and Miscellaneous Metalwork Specialized ornamental and miscellaneous metalwork services including iron gates, fences, and decorative metal elements for various construction and architectural applications.

Named customers14 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The McFate Group, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Parent company of Morkin and Sowards since 2021 acquisition. The McFate Group is a design-build and construction management contractor servicing the Midwest and Texas with over 25 years of experience. Provides turnkey construction solutions and single source responsibility. Morkin and Sowards customer base now includes relationships built over 50 years combined with McFate Group clientele.
• Engineered Buildings, Inc.minorOthersMetal building contractor and another subsidiary of The McFate Group. Sister company to Morkin and Sowards under the McFate Group of companies.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Commercial Metals Company (CMC): Diversified steel manufacturer, recycler, and fabricated product supplier with structural steel and rebar products. Adjacent competitor as a structural steel producer; competes on raw material supply and certain fabricated product lines.
• Nucor Corporation: Largest US steel producer with broad portfolio including structural steel joists, beams, decking, and fabricated concrete reinforcing steel. Competes with Morkin as a structural steel supplier but operates at vastly greater scale and across multiple downstream products.
• Steel Dynamics: Major US steel producer with structural steel and joist/girder products serving construction markets. Adjacent structural steel competitor with far broader product portfolio and national footprint than Morkin.

Others

• The McFate Group, Inc. Parent company of Morkin and Sowards since 2021; a design-build and construction management contractor serving the Midwest and Texas. Related ecosystem player rather than direct competitor, providing turnkey project channel into which Morkin's fabrication feeds.
• Engineered Buildings, Inc. Sister company to Morkin and Sowards under The McFate Group; metal building contractor. Operates in an adjacent metal building niche but is a sibling rather than a direct structural steel fabrication competitor.

Direct peers

• Owen Steel Company: Structural steel fabricator serving commercial, industrial, and institutional construction projects across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. Comparable product mix (structural steel fabrication, miscellaneous metals) and project-based business model.
• Benada Steel Products: National structural steel fabricator serving commercial, industrial, and institutional construction markets. Directly comparable service offering to Morkin and Sowards across structural steel, miscellaneous metals, and project-based delivery.
• Zalk Josephs Fabricators: Wisconsin-based structural steel fabricator serving industrial, commercial, and institutional construction in the Upper Midwest. Closely comparable regional Midwest positioning and project-based structural steel fabrication scope to Morkin and Sowards.
• TrueNorth Steel: Midwest-based structural steel fabricator serving commercial, industrial, and institutional construction projects. Highly comparable to Morkin and Sowards in scope (project-based structural steel fabrication) and regional Midwest operating model.
• Cives Steel Company: Mid-to-large structural steel fabricator with operations across the US and Canada serving commercial, industrial, and heavy construction. Comparable core offering (structural steel, miscellaneous metals) but at materially larger scale than Morkin.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/morkinsowards
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/morkin-sowards

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 Morkin and Sowards