Clark

Clark Equipment Co., formed in 1916 and named after Eugene Clark, a mechanical engineer with the Illinois Steel Co, was not a big player in the equipment industry. However what makes Clark Equipment Co. important was its development of the lift truck and their domination in the wheel loader market in the early 1950's. Clark's wheel loaders, we're marketed under the Michigan brand name, that left an undeniable mark on the industry.

Company History - In 1903 The Clark Equipment Co. existed as George R. Rich Manufacturing Co., as a side business that was owned by executives of Illinois Steel Co. The company was named after a mechanic who has designed the Celfor Drill, used for drilling holes in steel railroad rails. The company had to expand to a larger facility to increase its client base, and in 1904 relocated to Benchanan, Michigan. Troubled financial times resulted in the company hiring Eugene Clark, a 33 year old Illinois Steel employee and mechanical engineer, as a product consultant. Rich Manufacturing was eventually to be renamed to Celfor Tool Co. Under Clark’s management, sales were steadily inclined with the company manufacturing new drills of tungsten steel. In 1909 Clark has travelled to Europe and has learned that using electric furnaces was producing steel casting of a higher quality. Convinced that such a process would take off in the U.S., Clark and his executives at Celfor Tools constructed a new second plant, Buchanan Electric Steel Co. The plant would produce high quality, high grade steel castings and new technologies. Eventually, Buchanan Electric Steel Co., was one of the two companies in the U.S. producing steel disc wheels for the automotive industry. As president, Clark has decided to focus on production efforts that turn durable steel trucks wheels replacing the wooden spoke trucks wheels and a truck axle that replaces chain drives.

Formation of Clark Equipment Co. - In 1916, Clark decided to merge two companies Buchanan and Celfor Tools together to form the Clark Equipment Co. The merger provided an opportunity to develop a range of new products, such as gas powered shop buggy with a box fixed to three wheels. At first, the truck tractor had a box that could be dumped first by gravity then by doing it mechanically. This Led to a later development allowing the platform truck to lift until all these features were incorporated together to lead to the creation of the lift truck that picked up materials, moved them and then lifted them to be stored.

Early Growth and Diversification - by the mid 1920's, Clark owned four plants and was manufacturing drills, electric steel castings, reamers, axles, transmissions, wheels and the truck tractor. Solid profits over time enabled the company to come out of the 1930s from the Depression relatively unscathed. The company has continued to diversify into other product areas such as prototype of a fast, aluminum railcar for the 1934 World Fair called the Auto tram. The prototype scored Clark a contract to produce undercarriage for trolley streetcars and subway systems for the next twenty years. The company’s Truck tractor was also a high seller. By the 1943 sales were $77 million up from $11.5 four years prior, associating the Clark name with lift trucks.

A Multinational Company - Clark's current production facilities were not enough to keep the demand. In 1975, Clark built a new facility in Asheville, North Carolina, becoming the first company to head to the south with obvious benefit of using cheaper labor. By 1973, Clark has broken its $1 billion mark in sales and established plants in the U.K., West Germany, Brazil, France, Argentina and Australia.

The Demise of Clark - By the 1980's sales have been greatly impacted by the recession. Lower priced Japanese imports on equipment also dealt a huge blow to the market of lift trucks. The company was faced with the indisputable fact that it has failed by not diversifying its construction equipment line enough to stay competitive. In 1981 Clark has announced a full withdrawal from scraper and motor grader business. Clark credited for having invented the lift truck in 1928 decided to divest the portion of its business in 1992 to Terex Corp. as it was no longer proving to be viable. Clark was not pleased about its lack of control in the joint venture and threated to take public its share of the venture. In response, Volvo has bought back Clarks existing shares for $573 million and gave an official end to Clark's forty year involvement in the wheel loader business. Shortly after that, Clark was approached with another offer from Ingersoll Rand. The company bought of all Clarks existing shares for $1.4 billion Dollars.

The Company Today - Clark Equipment Co. is no longer in existence as a result of its buyout by Volvo and Ingersoll Rand. Clark Material Handling Co., which exists today, was previously the Industrial Truck Division of Clark Equipment Co.