Wauconda manufacturing company wins office makeover contest
Tamarack Products Inc. of Wauconda has been announced the winner of the Daily Herald Media Group's Office Makeover contest.
Tamarack, one of 100 entries in the contest, will receive a conference room makeover, valued at more than $11,000. The prize will be provided by Rieke Office Interiors of Elgin, VidTech Audio Visual of Lombard and LED Rite of Hampshire.
The makeover will include design consultation, cutting edge presentation technology, a conference table, ten conference room chairs, up to eight installed LED ceiling fixtures and up to 500 square feet of carpeting.
"Your office and workplace is the first place your customers and clients see and you need to make a good first impression. In addition, you can really reinforce your brand by the kind of environment you create - both internally and externally," said Eileen Brown, Director of Strategic Marketing and Innovation at the Daily Herald, when discussing the first Office Makeover contest. "We've had a lot of success with home makeovers, so remaking an office seemed like the perfect next step," she added.
The Lake County winner is enthusiastic about the announcement. "We are truly excited to be selected as the Workplace Makeover contest grand prize winner," said David Steidinger, president of Tamarack Products. "Tamarack is a small manufacturing company with 22 employees. My father started Tamarack Products in 1969 and my brother, Mark, and I run the business now."
"We've always tried to reward our wonderfully loyal employees over the years - some have been here up to 40 years - and so our facility is not fancy. Our conference room is behind the times and people too frequently bump their knees on the legs of our conference table," he said.
"We look forward to the updates. They will help us make a better impression on our visitors from around the world," Steidinger added.
Tamarack manufactures specialty equipment used by printers of business forms and packaging. Their machines perform functions like putting clear windows into packaging, applying labels to cartons and even applying labels featuring RFID devices which allow packages to be tracked electronically. Tamarack equipment is shipped to customers all over the world.
In her Office Makeover application letter, Diane McNulty, sales/service coordinator for Tamarack said, "Our small office is made up of 22 amazing people, but the impression that the physical office makes on our customers does not project this. It is made up of old, tired chairs, sticky-backed square carpet tiles, industrial lighting and plain white walls. Help!"
Later this spring, the Daily Herald will publish photos of Tamarack's upgraded conference room.
In addition, the other finalists will receive an office chair valued at $400. These winners include:
• Ecker Center for Mental Health of Elgin
• Escorted Transportation Services Northwest of Arlington Heights, located inside the Arlington Heights Senior Center.
• Saint Raymond School of Mount Prospect
• Triseal Corp. of Hebron