About Launch Partners
Real-World Experience for Food Manufacturers
Launch Partners is a twelve-person engineering firm with a working shop in Arvada, Colorado, in the Denver metro — engineers, project managers, field technicians, and the back-of-house that keeps it all moving. We plan, design, build, and commission production systems for food & beverage manufacturers — and we've shipped everything from first-of-kind R&D machines to a 52-machine production program across four runs.
The Firm
- Founded by
- Taylor Keaten, Principal
- Team
- 12 — engineers, PMs, field techs, office
- Facility
- Shop + offices, Arvada, CO (Denver metro)
- Industries
- Food & beverage; industrial; government
- Reach
- Design and build nationwide
- Shop
- Fabrication, panel build, assembly, FAT
- Pillars
- Innovate · Scale · Build · Maintain
Our story
1. Built From the Production Floor Up
Every engineer on this team came from inside manufacturing operations. We've run the lines, taken the 2 AM downtime calls, and lived with equipment that looked great on paper and failed on the floor.
That's why we build differently. Mechanical, electrical, controls, and automation under one roof — one team, one point of accountability. We prototype in our own shop, source used equipment when it makes sense, and design every system for the growth phase after this one.
We also learned some things the hard way. Fixed-price work with fuzzy acceptance criteria hurts everyone, so we now write the test before we write the design. Scope drifts silently unless someone says so out loud, so we say so — in writing, early. Those rules came from real projects, and they're why the last several have gone the way they were supposed to.
Our goal isn't a dependency — it's your self-sufficiency. We stick around until it runs, train your team, and hand over something you own.
The team
2. Who You'll Work With
15+ years on the production floor. Leads client relationships and steps in as principal engineer on the hard ones.
Runs the engineering group — design standards, review gates, and the call on the hard technical decisions.
Field execution and on-site commissioning. The one on your floor when the line starts up.
PLC, HMI, and panel work. Turns mechanical designs into machines that run themselves.
Design and fabrication support from concept through install.
First call on most new projects. Scopes the problem with you before anyone quotes anything.
Owns delivery on active projects — scope, schedule, and budget — and tells you early when something moves.
Runs projects day to day and keeps the weekly conversation honest about where things actually stand.
On-site install, startup support, and the service call when a line needs someone that day.
Installation and commissioning on site. Stays until the line runs at rate.
Installs, commissioning, and service calls. One of the people who gets your line running and keeps it that way.
Keeps the business running behind the projects — scheduling, purchasing, and the paperwork nobody else wants to chase.
The shop
3. A Real Shop, Not Just an Office
Prototyping, fabrication, panel building, and machine assembly happen in our own facility — which means faster iterations, fewer surprises at your site, and a factory acceptance test before anything ships.
Capability
4. What We Do In-House
Engineering
- Mechanical design — SolidWorks, Onshape
- Electrical and controls design — AutoCAD Electrical
- PLC, HMI, and VFD programming and integration
- Process engineering, capacity modeling, and throughput analysis (Theory of Constraints)
- Refrigeration, utilities, and facility integration for production systems
In-House Build
- Fabrication and machine assembly in our own shop
- Control panel design and build — enclosure sizing, thermal analysis, wiring
- Prototype and pilot rigs for process development
- Factory acceptance testing before anything ships
- On-site installation, commissioning, and operator training
Planning & Advisory
- Capital planning — what to buy, what to defer, and what it costs to run
- Capacity planning and production modeling before you commit capital
- Cost-per-unit analysis — labor, yield, scrap, and utilities per case
- Equipment selection and OEM specification, including used and refurbished
- Phased roadmaps that sequence spend against the growth you actually expect
Documentation & Delivery
- Certificate of Compliance issued with every machine we ship
- Complete drawing package — mechanical, electrical, P&ID as applicable
- Written acceptance criteria agreed before design begins
- Daily client reporting on active installations
- Delivery experience under U.S. federal contract
Talk to an Engineer
Send us a message. We'll get back to you within one business day to understand your manufacturing roadblock.
Schedule a Discovery Call