COMPANY HISTORY

Door Engineering has been a leader in the construction and shipbuilding industries in the Tidewater are of southeast Virginia for generations. The company has an established reputation for undertaking difficult projects and exceeding their customer's expectations. The ability to give our customers a "leave the worry to us" feeling has been essential to the growth and success of the company over the years. Our willingness and preference to assume the responsibility of a specialty contractor rather than act solely as a material supplier is the foundation of our success.

• 1930's & 1940's - The company founder, Mr. N.G. Wilson, Jr., established N.G. Wilson, Jr., Industrial Doors (later Door Engineering) in 1937 while he maintained his relationship as a sales representative with J. G. Wilson Corp of South Norfolk; as a result of his growing relationship with Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock. The company was relocated to 2710 Colley Avenue, Norfolk, Virginia. Mr. Wilson hired modest staff installation crews initially providing J. G. Wilson rolling doors which were specially designed for the hangar decks of aircraft carriers being built at Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock. Door Engineering began to support the war effort of WWII by focusing on specialty products for military installations and ammunition depots in the area. Mr. Wilson was able to take advantage of the services of Whaley Engineering, a local engineering firm, to implement his ideas and develop specifications for these specialty products. Mr. Wilson bought an interest in an office building at 700 Front Street, built a shop and warehouse, and purchased two small adjacent buildings for storage. The Company was incorporated and was thereafter known as Door Engineering Corporation. After the end of the war, the company began to grow into related product lines being used in commercial and institutional buildings such as hospitals and schools.
• 1950's - Mr. Wilson's son, N.G. Wilson III, joined the company following service in the Navy. The staff continued to grow to 32 employees, the present site on Ballentine Boulevard was acquired and the Company continued to expand by adding a warehouse, shop building, and offices at new location.
• 1960's - Door Engineering was at the forefront of the building boom in the Tidewater area! New product lines were added to include most Division 8 and Division 10 products, as well as some Division 11 and 14 products. The Company continued to design and contract one of a kind projects capitalizing on its growing experience. Projects included four sites for underground nuclear bomb proof communication facilities for AT&T;, the large triangular blackout curtains that ring the Hampton Coliseum, and the vertically operating concrete shield in the Cyclotron at what is now the Jefferson Labs.
• 1970's - Some of the Door Engineering Projects included large motorized roof hatches for Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock and various military facilities in the mid Atlantic states. The expansion on the 1970's created the need to acquire the Bayne Avenue property, which currently houses our Industrial Products Department.
• 1980's - Door Engineering continued to thrive during the economically troubled 1980's by helping add to the Norfolk skyline, expanding Old Dominion University and the Greenbrier area.
• 1990's - In 1999 the Wilson family sold the company to the employees which were organized as an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) and since that time Door Engineering Corporation has been a 100% employee owned company. Door Engineering carried on its tradition of serving the businesses and construction industry, as well as the cultural arts community of Tidewater by assisting with Nautilus; Virginia Marine Science; and remodeling of the Harrison Opera House.
• 2000's & Beyond - The early 2000's offered a period of unprecedented prosperity followed by an economic downturn reminiscent of "The Great Depression". Through it all, Door Engineering held its own and in November of 2010 the company purchased the property from Nicksons Properties (owned by Nick III & sons) and is now fully owned and operated by its employees. Nick Wilson III continues to serve as a member of the Board of Directors maintaining his continuing love and concern for the business and construction industry. We are grateful to the Wilson Family for the dedication, not only to Door Engineering and its employees, but to their contribution to the city of Norfolk and the greater Hampton Roads region.