Midwest Energy Cooperative has received a facelift.

The business has changed locations to a new, more modern building at 60590 Decatur Road in Cassopolis. In addition to moving to a new building, the company has also changed its name to Midwest Energy and Communications.

“We had to make some changes to move forward,” said Patty Nowlin, vice president of corporate communications at Midwest Energy and Communications.

The move and re-branding was necessary to the growth Midwest has experienced in recent years, as the former facilities were insufficient to house all of the company’s employees and equipment, according to officials.

“We had to turn our basement into office space. We had to turn a small workout room into office space. We were just cramming people in everywhere,” Nowlin said. “There were no real options to expand outwards or upwards.”

The space was already cramped with Midwest’s existing employees, but a five-year fibre internet and smart home grid plan implemented in 2015 promises to bring in more than 30 new employees, growth the old building could not accommodate, Nowlin said.

The new building on Decatur Road, which opened its doors Monday, has room for a 30 percent growth in employees, with more space able to be available with simple renovations, according to Roger Bowser, who led the building project for Midwest.

In addition to providing more space and growth for Midwest, the building offers a sense of modernity to the company, with interactive screen panels as customers walk into the building to provide information about the company and a model “smart home” in the lobby to illustrate to visitors what the future of energy and homeownership can look like.

“It’s interesting to show people what the future can look like,” Bowser said. “A lot of people may not think that they need these things, but 10 years ago, no one thought that their cellphones would be able to do everything they do now either.”

The project leaders also took steps to make the building as energy efficient as possible, in order to save money and preserve energy.

The building came together quickly, as construction only began in 2016. Though both Nowlin and Bowser said things have been hectic since then, they are excited to see what the new facilities can do for them.

“It’s been a labor of love,” Bowser said. “It’s had its trying times, but it’s mostly been a great experience.”

Perhaps even more so the building, the new name of Midwest Energy and Communications is a big change for the company.

Officials hope that the new name will better reflect the company’s full range of services, including energy, propane and communications.

“Some of [Midwest’s board members] wanted a completely different name,” Nowlin said. “But the Midwest name has become very well known and respected among our communities. We really wanted to build on the trust equity and reputation we had with the Midwest name, but tacking on the communications aspect to show who we are.”

This is not the first time that Midwest is creating a new name for itself. The company was known previously as Fruit Belt Electric and Southeastern Energy before merging in 1998, resulting in Midwest Energy Cooperative.

“We feel the need to grow and evolve,” Nowlin said. “The name is part of that, because communications is a big part of what we do.”

The new building and name signals a future and jumping off point for the company, as Midwest has many progressive projects in works that its leaders are excited about, Nowlin said.

The biggest of these are the fibre internet and smart home grid plan, which will bring increased access high-speed internet to the rural communities that Midwest serves.

“We expect our internet side to eventually become bigger than our energy side,” Nowlin said. “At least, in terms of customers.”

These big projects mean growth for both the company and the community, which is why it was important that the new building remained in Cassopolis, so that they can better serve their customers, Nowlin said.

“We want to create vibrant, sustainable rural communities,” Nowlin said. “We want to make sure that geography does not define someone’s scope of opportunity.”

For now, Midwest feels that the new building and name change will suit their needs and help them achieve their goals, though the company wants to be open to anything the future may hold.

“I feel like we are good for 15 or 20 years, but I think if you had asked us 10 years ago if we would be considering a new building, I don’t think anyone would have projected that,” Nowlin said.