While Link-Belt Cranes has had its headquarters in Lexington since the 1980s, the company has a much longer history. Link-Belt recently celebrated the 150th anniversary of the patent that eventually led to the founding of the Link-Belt Company. On September 1, 1874, William Dana Ewart received U.S. patent no. 154,594 for a square detachable “link” for a chain belt that allowed machinery users to repair broken chains in the field. His invention would later lead the farm implement dealer from Belle Plaine, Iowa, to establish Link-Belt the following year.
Since then, the company has evolved into one of the nation’s foremost crane manufacturers. Ewart’s company, the Link-Belt Engineering Company, developed the first wide-gauge, steam-powered, coal-handling clamshell crane using the patented link-belt at the core of its design. The company went on to drive innovations in excavators, material handling equipment, and forestry machines.
In the 1980s, during the economic challenges of President Jimmy Carter’s administration, Link-Belt consolidated its facilities and opened its world headquarters at a new location in Lexington.
The Central Kentucky location proved mutually beneficial for the growing company and the local economy, including local farmers.
Bill Stramer
“When we first moved our business here, we hired farmers with good mechanical knowledge from working on farms,” said Bill Stramer, Link-Belt’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, Sales, and Customer Support. “A lot of them took jobs here for the insurance benefits. We’ve certainly helped many people pay for college educations, homes, and raise families.”
The company has since been acquired by Sumitomo Heavy Equipment, a Japanese company with a long-standing relationship with Link-Belt. Stramer said Sumitomo’s long-term focus has allowed Link-Belt to flourish through continued support and investment.
This year, the company kicked off its anniversary celebration with CraneFest 2024 — a week of on-site festivities highlighting the company’s products for distributors, customers, and employees. More than 1,000 people visited the facility to view Link-Belt’s range of products, including its new 65-ton rough terrain crane, the 65|RT, and its 225-ton all-terrain crane, the 225|AT. The event raised over $61,000 for various nonprofits and allowed attendees to tour the plant and see live product demonstrations.
“CraneFest is an opportunity for everyone in the company to celebrate what we do. It’s for our worldwide customers, but it’s also important for our employees,” said Mike Clevenger, Director of Production. “The live demo really stands out to me, and everyone I talk to. Seeing so many completed products on display instills a lot of pride in everyone at Link-Belt.”
Stramer said the company has between 650 and 700 employees. Like many companies these days, finding new employees is an ongoing challenge.
“The workforce has shrunk dramatically since COVID,” Clevenger said. “One of the issues in our industry is the education system. Schools have stopped offering shop classes where students could learn mechanical skills.”
“Another issue is the availability of workers,” he added. “With all the college employment here and Toyota just up the road, unemployment is always low, and it’s a challenge to find people.”
Link-Belt Cranes held CraneFest 2024 at its world headquarters in Lexington in September.
To help address this, the company partners with local school districts and trade schools, providing equipment for students to train on. While automation has helped streamline heavy equipment manufacturing, skilled employees are still essential, he said.
Regarding automation, “we’re a long way from where we were 15 years ago… The benefit is that it allows our welders to focus on more intricate work,” Clevenger said. Lasers and robots are efficient and consistent, “but we still need all of our welders for the creative and delicate tasks.”
The company also prioritizes being a lean organization, which has resulted in both environmental and efficiency improvements. “We’ve had programs focused on waste elimination for a long time. And I don’t just mean waste like garbage, but also being more efficient with water usage and electricity consumption,” Stramer said.
The Link-Belt 300 AT is an all-terrain crane with a telescoping main boom that extends more than 238 feet and a maximum lifting capacity of about 300 tons.
Looking ahead, Stramer said the company will continue focusing on the North American, Central American, and Caribbean markets. With the recent passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides federal funding for numerous infrastructure projects across the country, Link-Belt expects to play a significant role in these developments.
“Infrastructure funding will have a big impact going forward,” Stramer said. “It’s been positive for us over the past five years with state highway programs, but the federal funding gives equipment buyers confidence that they’ll have projects next year, the year after, and beyond.”