Supplying award-winning metal façades that enhance some of the country’s most prestigious structures—think Spaceship Earth, familiarly known as the Epcot Ball, at Disney World in Florida—John W. McDougall Co., Inc., established in 1938, brings nearly 80 years of experience to the North American custom metal architectural façade and metal processing industry.
John W. McDougall Co., Inc. (JWM) of Nashville, Tennessee is recognized for its outstanding architectural work and state-of-the-art processing facility. JWM is built to handle large fabrication and installation projects. Currently, the company is busy contributing to both the appearance and function of the burgeoning data centers that spread from Georgia to Virginia to Utah to Texas, and beyond.
As a company providing premium architecture and engineering products and service with outstanding customer care, reduced lead times and lean operations are standard practice. As a result, JWM is proud to have some of the country’s most respected OEMs, architects, and construction leaders among its clientele. “We’re a proudly American company that’s investing in its production facilities to be able to offer products throughout the country,” says Chris Ball, COO.
Growing to meet needs
In addition to JWM’s field operations and wholesale parts supply, longstanding vendor partnerships, including those involving custom resale lines, have positioned the company to make substantial internal investments. Just over two years ago, the company invested $10 million in a 20,000-square-foot powder coating facility offering eco-friendly, AAMA 2605-certified finishes. These powder coated finishes provide superior durability and a cleaner, safer alternative to traditional solvent-based liquid coatings. This environmental awareness extends to the company’s preference for doing business with LEED-certified vendors and stocking recycled metal whenever possible.
In Dickson, Tennessee, JWM’s 20,000-square-foot facility is within easy reach of the company’s fabrication facilities, and this recently added power coating ability provides the team full control over the cost and quality of every aspect of the fabrication process. With the ability to operate three shifts on a seven-day work week, the company has the ability to scale and meet all customer needs.
Employing cutting-edge technology that affords impressive custom fabrication, the company’s line of equipment includes a Trumpf 7000, sophisticated Trumpf punches, robotic welding capabilities, seven Trumpf press brakes, CNC routing tables, Trumpf flat and tube lasers, and much more.
In 2019, JWM’s processing division achieved ISO 9001:2015 certification, and this division is especially well-known for manufacturing custom architectural parking garage screens, with a large portfolio of other capabilities such as precision plate rolling and levelling live alongside other high-volume, low-lead time services. “What I really love about this team is that it’s driven by problem solvers,” says Ball.
A leader in quality, the company is proud to put these problem-solving capabilities to the test in private laboratories and in challenging applications. The team has extensive experience, for instance, in complying with the building codes of Florida and other hurricane-prone areas. And, in addition to fabrication, JWM offers design assist and installation, including modular assembly, as well as glazing, sunshades, and louvers, and is one of three approved American installers of advanced German Metawell® panel systems. The company can also provide contract manufacturing of metal components to customers who may have pre-designed requirements.
80 years of resilience, innovation, and family
Founded by John W. McDougall in 1938, JWM has a proud history of being adaptable and resilient—and of working on some considerable projects. It was first established as a manufacturers’ representative agency before evolving into precision metal fabrication work. In the 1940s, during World War II, the firm pivoted toward heavy production and sheet metal work, notably providing 1,000 tons of ductwork for the Manhattan Project, the most stringently secret program of WWII and source of the first atomic bomb.
In a rather different vein, 1982 saw the company’s completion of Spaceship Earth, Disney World’s Epcot Park’s marquee attraction. JWM also worked on Disney’s Monorail and Contemporary Hotel, employing aluminum composite.
In 2001, Alec McDougall, the third generation, took over day-to-day operations of the company, navigating challenges and supporting its further growth and success. And today, the company has welcomed the fourth generation to its ranks in Junior Project Manager Wylie McDougall, great-grandson of the founder, who will soon be joined by his brother, Roger, in learning the family business.
Employees—the best recruiters
To be sure, the family atmosphere extends beyond the McDougalls themselves; JWM works hard to create a culture in which all its people come to work with a sense of belonging. Building an enduring company means genuinely looking after its people, holding them accountable, and empowering them in the process, Ball explains. “When you don’t have a clear standard, and you don’t have transparency, holding people accountable becomes difficult,” he says. Setting the standard, together with ensuring that people have the opportunity to advance in their positions, fosters a hardworking, dedicated team of can-do people.
Indeed, management’s commitment to building a healthy work environment is paying off in the best way possible. By training staff in the finer details of recruitment, they are now taking up the task of finding the best cultural fits for the growing company. To achieve this, thought-leading training is provided by WELL BUILT Consulting of Baltimore, and is proving to be just the staffing solution the company had been hoping for. “They offer training on how happy employees can recruit just from being open in the marketplace. We’re always looking for good people,” Ball says.
Finding these good people means looking beyond stereotypes and collaborating with organizations like Men of Valor and others who equip formerly incarcerated individuals or those who have fallen on hard times to rejoin their communities through gainful employment and making a positive difference in the world.
“I’m proud of the growth and grit our team shows every day. I see team members pushing themselves and growing in every corner of the company,” Ball says. “The talent we have within this team is real, and as we stay focused on our goals and executing our vision, there really is no limit to what we can achieve.”
Prestige projects
This is evident in the range of prestigious projects and ongoing work seen in the company’s portfolio: the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Hub for Collaborative Medicine, completed in 2018, was a partnership with Flad Architects which saw the JWM team complete an eight-story, 310,000-square-foot building that accommodates more than 1,400 physicians, nurse practitioners, researchers, and healthcare staff in a dedicated, central workplace. For this project, JWM provided 75,000 square feet of anodic clear 4mm, coil coated Larson ACM panels.
The company has also been contributing to the ongoing modernization and expansion of Nashville International Airport (BNA), a landmark in the city’s southeastern corridor. JWM’s work here has comprised fabrication and installation across approximately 608,000 square feet, incorporating a variety of systems, including ACM 600 Series panels, perforated metal panels, Genesis, insulated metal panels, ACM and stainless-steel column covers, limestone panels, and terracotta. This work has been in support of BNA Vision, the airport’s initial $1.4 billion renovation phase, which added a new international arrivals facility, a satellite concourse, and enhanced parking structures. With the airport moving into another billion-dollar initiative, the New Horizon phase, JWM’s focus “remains on quality and precision as we assist in transforming Concourse A, expanding gates in Concourse D, and advancing infrastructure upgrades,” says the firm.
And for the Google New Albany Data Center in New Albany, Ohio, completed in 2023, JWM provided both fabrication and installation services, utilizing its 600 Series Dry (Reveal) system. The company’s aluminum and phenolic panel installation delivered durability and precision, enhancing the center’s functionality and robust design, with work that included approximately 1,089 aluminum plate and phenolic panels, covering a total of 30,433 net square feet. With certifications including FedRAMP, HIPAA, and ISO 27001, this data center meets stringent industry standards.
In fact, data centers remain a large source of work, with JWM fabricating and assembling fan bases as large as 30’ x 10’. To support data-center cooling systems, the company fabricates 24 massive floor and ceiling base units each week, each measuring 14’ x 13’, in addition to six 37’ x 11’ floor and ceiling bases and eight 10’ industrial radiator fan bases. Due to noise and aesthetic concerns for neighbors, JWM is also developing comprehensive acoustic solutions for these data centers in the form of visually appealing, noise-reducing louvers.
Eyes on the future
Certainly, the company’s breadth of expertise has led to its success in a wide range of fields. This is a company unafraid to take on the big projects, the showpieces that stand out from the pack. But while JWM has seen continued record growth over the past few years, as a longstanding family firm, balancing technical skill with family values remains of primary importance. At the end of the day, it is the continued evolution of the company’s culture that truly drives its performance and growth.
As John W. McDougall Co., Inc. looks ahead, its sights are firmly set on expansion, innovation, and leadership within the architectural metals and advanced fabrication space. The company’s continued investments in technology, vertically integrated capabilities, and scalable production position it to meet the varied demands of complex architectural projects nationwide. Underpinned by a strong foundation of nearly eight decades of experience—yet never afraid to evolve with the times—JWM is not simply responding to market growth; it is helping shape how America’s most visible and mission-critical structures are built, how they perform, and how they endure.
We look forward to seeing where the next 80 years take this dynamic and enduring company.
