Link-Belt Cranes

Link-Belt Cranes
Company typeWholly-owned subsidiary
IndustryHeavy equipment
Predecessors
  • Link-Belt Machinery Company (1986–1998)
  • Link-Belt Company (1906–1986)
  • Link-Belt Construction Equipment Company (1880–1906)
Founded1880 (1880) in Belle Plaine, Iowa, US
FounderWilliam Dana Ewart
HeadquartersLexington, Kentucky, US
Key people
Melvin Porter (President & CEO)
Products
ParentSumitomo Heavy Industries
Websitelinkbelt.com

Link-Belt Cranes is an American manufacturer of heavy construction equipment, best known for its telescopic and lattice boom cranes. Founded in 1880, the company traces its origins to the invention of the detachable “link-belt” chain drive by Iowa inventor William Dana Ewart. Over time, Link-Belt expanded from agricultural machinery into cranes, excavators, and material-handling equipment.

Today, Link-Belt Cranes is headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky, and operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of Sumitomo Heavy Industries. The company designs and manufactures a range of mobile and crawler cranes for construction, infrastructure, and industrial applications.