Fonds - Clark Equipment of Canada Limited fonds

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Clark Equipment of Canada Limited fonds

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    • 1953-1985 (Creation)

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    6 cm of textual records 106 photographs : b&w and col. 182 photographs : b&w and col. negatives 83 slides

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    Clark Equipment of Canada Limited was incorporated February 27, 1953 under the name Clark Canada, Ltd. as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Buchanan, Michigan-based Clark Equipment Company. The company's St. Thomas plant began operating in July 1956 in an industrial park at the intersection of Talbot Street and Yarmouth Road. Under the direction of Manager Ronald J. Smith, the company's 36 employees assembled tractor shovels and fork lifts and maintained a production capacity of about 5 units per month. The plant was expanded in 1963-1964 and new product lines were launched in 1966 and 1970. Ca. 1967 the company was renamed Clark Equipment of Canada Limited. In 1972 the plant was again expanded, with 395 employees producing 200-220 units per month. Another expansion was completed in 1974 and by 1977 the company employed about 700 workers with a production capacity of approximately 260 units per month. In January 1985 Clark Equipment Company merged with AB Volvo of Sweden to form the VME Construction Group N.V. and Clark Equipment of Canada Limited became VME of Canada Limited, under the direction of President and General Manager Ronald L. Gilbert. VME of Canada Limited ceased operations in 1993. The Clark Equipment Company was founded in 1903 under the name George R. Rich Manufacturing Co. as a manufacturer of drills and reamers and evolved into a major international producer of construction machinery, material handling equipment, power trains, transmissions and axles. In 1904 the company relocated to Buchanan, Michigan and recruited a young mechanical engineer, Eugene B. Clark, as its managing partner. In 1907 Clark became president of the renamed Celfor Tool Company. In 1910, Clark formed a second company, the Buchanan Electric Steel Company, which in December 1916 was merged with the Celfor Tool Company to form the Clark Equipment Company. Clark Equipment became a publicly-traded company in 1928, survived the great depression of the 1930s, and flourished as demand for heavy machinery accelerated during World War II. Eugene Clark died in July 1942 and was succeeded as president by Albert S. Bonner. Bonner died in February 1945 and George Spatta was appointed president. Between 1950 and 1960, Clark's annual sales more than tripled from $100MM to $350MM, and the company expanded its operations to include production facilities throughout the United States and in several other countries. By 1975, the company operated 19 production plants in the United States and Canada and maintained 10 manufacturing subsidiaries in Belguim, Brazil, Argentina, France, Germany and Australia. In addition, 20 licensee companies produced Clark products worldwide. Walter E. Schirmer became company president in 1963 and Chief Executive Officer in 1968. Schirmer was succeeded by Bert E. Phillips, who became president in 1970 and CEO in 1973. In January 1985 Clark Equipment Company merged with AB Volvo of Sweden to form the VME Construction Group N.V. with Eric Johansen as president and CEO.

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    The fonds consists of records created, collected and maintained by Clark Equipment of Canada Limited, its predecessor Clark Canada, Ltd. and its parent entity, Clark Equipment Company. The fonds is arranged in six series: 1. Public Presentations 2. Staff Newsletter 3. Company Histories 4. Catalogues and Promotional Publications 5. Miscellaneous Records 6. Photographs and Slides

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