Originally formed in 1956 as a machine shop, Geotech Environmental Equipment has found continued success through a unique combination of flexibility and commitment. It was flexibility that propelled them to take advantage of an opportunity that emerged in 1978, which resulted in their evolution into a premiere environmental equipment manufacturer. Following the introduction of the Clean Water Act, Geotech founder Jerry Popiel recognized a critical gap in proper water-testing equipment and decided to retool his organization in order to meet those emerging needs. That flexibility has since led Geotech to acquire several other sub-brands, including Leptron unmanned aerial systems that brilliantly allows them to pair environmental monitoring equipment with drone technology. During the Recession, Geotech further expanded their offerings in order to replace the dip in sales and is now firmly committed to making anything that falls within their skill set. As a result, they now offer the largest line of equipment in the environmental field.

Throughout their evolution, Geotech’s commitment to family and to the environment has always informed their decision making. Current president, Jeff Popiel – Jerry’s son – frequently describes Geotech as a “steward of the environment”. As such, they closely monitor their own footprint in their 125,000 square foot Denver facility while providing much-needed supplies for environmental monitoring and cleanup around the world with as little waste and energy consumption as possible.

In addition to the corporate headquarters facility in Denver, Geotech also has service centers in six other states, as well as a European sales office in Barcelona, Spain, and a representative office in Beijing, China. While it is clearly important to them to be well-positioned to meet environmental needs around the globe, it would be virtually impossible for Geotech to sell directly to the consumer. The workload and linguistic demands alone would completely overwhelm their capacity. Instead, Geotech seeks out strategically placed distributers who can represent the organization internationally.

Thanks to a longstanding subrecipient agreement with the World Trade Center of Denver (WTC), Manufacturer’s Edge is able to facilitate and provide a number of services related to international trade. In this case, the WTC conducted a massive market research and gap analysis that identified key locations and opportunities for international expansion. The partnership between Manufacturers’ Edge and WTC is not only extremely beneficial to clients like Geotech who want to expand their international presence, it is also serves as an excellent model for collaboration and allows our small organization to stretch beyond our own capabilities in order to meet the various needs of manufacturers throughout Colorado.

As the Product Manager who is responsible for contract manufacturing, I have customers who come to me to manufacture their specific product. When I walk them through our facility I mention that Manufacturer’s Edge is a tenant here and they can support all of your manufacturing needs. They are here to help manufacturers be successful in the state of Colorado. And they request an introduction. If they’re selling more products, then I’m making more products for them. So, the relationship is symbiotic.

– Mickele Bragg, Product Manager, Geotech