Bobcat Co. marked a milestone with the production of 1 million Bobcat loaders. A formal ceremony was held on July 12, sharing the occasion with its employees and the community of Gwinner, N.D., home to Bobcat’s primary production facility.
The company celebrated the production of 500,000 loaders in 2001 and 750,000 units in conjunction with its 50th anniversary in 2008. Bobcat says the 1 million loaders milestone represents the largest production of this equipment type by any manufacturer globally.
“This entire celebration is about much more than a single loader, the actual millionth machine,” said Rich Goldsbury, president of Bobcat and its parent company Doosan for North America. “It represents everything Bobcat has accomplished as an organization over six decades and it signifies our vision for the future. We embrace and honor our history, so it was particularly special to have some of the company’s pioneers and early leaders here. But we wanted to bring them together with those who are moving us forward into the new era.”
Sylvan Melroe, one of the organization’s first marketing managers, talked about the Melroe family, who owned Melroe Manufacturing, which built the first Bobcat loaders. He reflected upon the early days of the loader—as it transitioned from the original three-wheeled version to today’s skid-steer loader. Cyril Keller, one of the brothers who invented the original three-wheeled loader and soon after partnered with Melroe Manufacturing, attended the event, as well.
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) also made the Gwinner event a stop on its “I Make America” nationwide tour, which advocates for pro-manufacturing policies to create more jobs in the U.S. and keep the economy competitive with other countries.
“It was particularly special to host the ‘I Make America’ tour,” Goldsbury said. “Bobcat is a great manufacturing success story for so many reasons, from the generations that have been employed to the products they’ve produced. Thousands of Bobcat employees have given many global customers the tools they use to make a living.”
