1929, First Pickup on Combine
Edward Gideon (E.G.) Melroe invents the windrow pickup on his Gwinner, North Dakota, farm.
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Edward Gideon (E.G.) Melroe invents the windrow pickup on his Gwinner, North Dakota, farm.
E.G. and sons — back home after WWII service — open Gwinner factory to manufacture new design windrow pickup. When service station and schoolhouse sites proved too small, they build factory building in 1948.
Next generation M200 Melroe self-propelled loader introduced.
Melroe contracts with Farmhand to reach broader agricultural market.
Melroe Manufacturing Company sales hit $1 million, 100 employees on payroll.
After nearly exiting the loader business, Melroe redesigns and rebrands its skid-steer loader, introduced as model M440 “Melroe Bobcat” skid-steer loader with familiar white and red color scheme.
Melroe brothers expand their agricultural product line and purchase Reiten Manufacturing of Cooperstown, North Dakota, a maker of moldboard plows. Melroe product family now includes windrow pickup, harroweeder, chisel plow and Bobcat loader. By this time, Bobcat sales account for 65% of the company’s business.
Gwinner manufacturing complex expands to eight buildings.
The M-600 is released and remains in production until 1981.
Sales top $25 million. Growing any larger requires Melroe brothers to either take their company public or find a buyer. In the end, they agree to sell to Clark Equipment Company of Buchanan, Michigan, a manufacturer of Clark forklifts, Michigan wheel loaders, road graders, axles and transmissions. Clark had tried and failed to build its own skid-steer loader, so buying Melroe is a logical alternate choice.
With new money from Clark, the Melroe Division of Clark buys Kirschmann Manufacturing Company of Bismarck, North Dakota, and its Spra-Coupe self-propelled crop sprayer business.
Clark Equipment Company is acquired by Ingersoll-Rand. Renames to “Bobcat” division in 2000
Bobcat acquires Palm Attachment Sales of Grove City, Minnesota, which had been making skid-steer loader attachments since the mid-1980s. Bobcat later moves that manufacturing operation to nearby Litchfield, in west central Minnesota.
“Melroe Company” name changes to “Bobcat Company,” reflecting its primary brand identity. Product focus widens to meet more of customers’ product needs. In 2001, the lineup is still just loaders, excavators and attachments, but two years later the line includes Bobcat telehandlers, loader backhoes, mini-track loaders, utility vehicles and even light construction products.
Bobcat acquires hydrostatic telehandler pioneer Sambron, whose factory was in Pont Château, France.
Doosan Infracore acquired Bobcat, etc., in November 2007. Bobcat has the world’s highest level of competitiveness in the area of small construction equipment.
Bobcat celebrates 50 years since the production of its first loader. Bobcat builds its 750,000th loader.
Doosan Infracore established Doosan Infracore Bobcat Holdings Co., Ltd. (DIBH), an intermediate holding company, to pursue more efficient business operations in North America and Europe.
Doosan Bobcat completed the construction of the Acceleration Center, an integrated two-storey research facility with a total floor area of 18,000㎡, at its Bismarck Plant, North Dakota, USA. The center is designed to accelerate the company’s technological breakthroughs and innovations in the area of compact construction equipment.
Doosan Bobcat completed the construction of the Innovation Center, which is dedicated to technological development and support for testing carried out throughout Europe, in Dobris, Czech Republic.
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