LBX, maker of Link-Belt excavators, began construction of its new training and demontration facility in June. The company plans to complete the $10 million-plus facility, its second in Lexington, by March 2019. / Photo courtesy LBX Co.
LBX Co., the maker of Link-Belt excavators, material handlers and forestry equipment, has started construction on a $10 million-plus customer experience and training center in Lexington.
The new facility, located on 25 acres on Remington Way in the Citation Business Park, will be used as a training and demonstration area for the company's excavators, as well as for customer events. It will also house the company’s engineering staff and training operations for current and new employees.
Plans also include testing space for new machine designs and features. The facility will be the company’s second in Lexington, along with LBX's current headquarters and distribution center on Buck Lane, which will remain in operation. The target date to complete construction on the new facility is March 2019.
LBX president and CEO Eric Sauvage spoke during the groundbreaking of the company's new training and demonstration center. / Photo courtesy LBX Co.
“The LBX Customer Experience Center is the next logical step to serving our dealers and customers better,” said Eric Sauvage, LBX president and CEO. “We look forward to welcoming guests to the facility. It’s an exciting and important next step to prepare LBX for future growth.”
Link-Belt began manufacturing excavators in Lexington in 1975, at that time in tandem with the company’s crane manufacturing operations. Link-Belt spun off LBX in 1998 as an independent company. Since then, LBX has grown from 15 employees to nearly 100. Both LBX and Link-Belt are subsidiaries of Sumitomo Construction Machinery, based in Chiba, Japan. LBX distributes its products through a network of 59 independent dealers across 137 locations.
To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority in March approved the company for up to $70,000 in performance-based tax incentives through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act. KEIA allows approved companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development and electronic processing. In addition, LBX can receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network, through which companies can receive no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job training incentives
“LBX Company’s strong presence in Lexington over the last 20 years shows that Lexington is a great place to start and grow a business.” said Lexington mayor Jim Gray. “Now, with this new multi-million dollar investment in its Customer Experience Center, we feel confident that LBX Company will be around for a long, long time and will be an even stronger partner for our citizens and our city.”