The concept of Interstates was born on the front porch of John A. Franken’s home in the early 1950s. To supplement his income as an operator at the City of Sioux Center’s power plant, John began selling television sets to a community hungry for this newest technology craze.

Our Commitment Interstates' commitment to understanding the client’s needs and delivering exceptional results has stayed constant and will continue to be the driving force behind our culture.

Along with TV sales, “Johnny’s Electric” started to install antennas and power receptacles. Eventually, the electrical business occupied more of John’s time, and he decided to move out of television sales and concentrate on installations.

Throughout the early 1960s, most of the company’s business was in commercial and institutional projects including schools, churches, and hospitals located primarily in northwest Iowa.

During this decade, the company also began to do some work with grain elevator and feed mill construction companies. With this expansion into the industrial world, Johnny’s Electric began to complete projects throughout the United States.

In 1967, Johnny’s Electric was renamed Interstates Electric and Engineering to reflect its expanding service offerings. The company moved out of John’s basement to its current office location in Sioux Center.

Darrel Ramhorst, a veteran of the Air Force and NASA space program, joined the Interstates staff and spearheaded the engineering portion of the business. Under Darrel’s supervision, Interstates was able to offer total “design-build” electrical packages, which still account for a majority of its business today.

The 1970s was a decade of exceptional growth for Interstates Electric and Engineering. The industrial sector continued to expand and a large percentage of the company’s work took place throughout the United States. Although business was successful, the company’s leadership also recognized the need to branch into other industrial fields to continue its growth.

In the 1980s, several events took place that helped fuel the company’s development. Interstates recognized many of their customers wanted turnkey electrical systems (one point of contact for engineering, automation, and electrical construction). The need for control system design was also growing, so Interstates’ control systems division was started. In the early 1980s, Interstates performed its first international work with projects in Egypt and China.

Interstates continued to lean on their past experience in the feed and grain industries in the ‘90s, but diversified in other sectors as well. The chemical, food processing, oilseed, ethanol, and biodiesel industries are some areas in which Interstates has worked and built its reputation.

In 1995, Jim Franken became chairman and CEO of Interstates Electric and Engineering, maintaining Interstates’ standing as the premier provider of quality services. As the control systems division continued to grow and expand its services, Interstates Control Systems, Inc. launched as a separate company under the Interstates flag in 1996. Then, in 1999, Interstates Engineering became a separate business unit as well.

Following Jim Franken’s passing in 2001, Larry Den Herder became chairman and CEO of Interstates, continuing the tradition of client-focused project delivery that Jim had established.

Also in the 21st century, several other changes took place within the company. The Harbor Group was formed as a holding company for the Interstates Companies, with the addition of the Harbor Consulting Group in 2002. In order to comply with state regulations, in 2004 Interstates Electric and Engineering changed its name to Interstates Construction Services, Inc.

In response to the increasing sophistication of instrumentation technology, Interstates Instrumentation, Inc. also became its own business unit in 2006. Over the last ten years, Interstates added four regional offices to better support and service their growing client base.

The changes that took place during this period reflect a desire to provide the public and our clients a clearer idea of what specific services our operating units perform. The holding group and business unit leaders work together to build companies of enduring significance.

With the separate business units, Interstates is able to focus our resources, provide new opportunities for people within our organization, reach out to new and diverse clients—and most importantly, give an added depth to our customer service.

Over the last fifty years, Interstates has seen significant growth within its companies and the industries in which we work. The company has grown from its startup as a television sales business in the basement of John Franken’s home to a company with over 500 people working throughout the country on numerous commercial and industrial projects.

The commitment to understanding the client’s needs and delivering exceptional results has stayed constant and will continue to be the driving force behind our culture.