Link-Belt – also known as Link-Belt Cranes – is a heavy machinery manufacturer based out of Lexington, Kentucky. They specialize in construction equipment, more specifically telescopic and lattice boom cranes. Currently, Link-Belt is a sub company of Sumitomo Heavy Industries, a Japanese conglomerate. The history of Link-Belt goes all the way back to 1880, when William Ewart founded the company in Belle Plaine, Iowa. He originally had the idea for his first product – a square detachable chain belt system – before the company was launched. Ewart secured a patent for his design  in 1874, and then made plans for the launch of Link-Belt Co. The ownership of Link-Belt has changed hands several times over the course of the last century, with Speedy Machinery Corporation acquiring the company in 1939. The technology that Link-Belt had pioneered was a valuable asset for companies that manufactured cranes, which is what led to the primary focus of the company today. In 1967, FMC merged with Link-Belt and eventually expanded it’s product line into parts for fire trucks, in particular the ladders attached to fire trucks, which can utilize the same technology that Link-Belt was known for in it’s production of high quality, groundbreaking cranes.