Link-Belt delivers first new
HTC-8640 to local customer

Lexington, Ky. — Lexington-based crane manufacturer, Link-Belt Construction Equipment Co., recently delivered the very first production unit of a brand new hydraulic crane to a local company, Wilhite Limited, Inc. The HTC-8640, a 40-ton capacity hydraulic truck crane, is the newest addition to Link-Belt’s tremendously successful hydraulic truck crane line.

This is Wilhite’s second Link-Belt crane. The thirteen-year-old company purchased the first Link-Belt crane last year. In fact, it was the last production of a discontinued model, which is the predecessor to the model they recently purchased. Wilhite’s business mainly involves crane service, steel erection, machinery moving, rigging and long hauling. A powerful, mobile crane is essential to their business. “I’m very satisfied with our first Link-Belt crane, so when the Link-Belt distributor introduced me to the HTC-8640, I knew it would be a good fit with my business,” says Jim Wilhite, president of Wilhite.

The delivery to Wilhite has a sentimental value for Link-Belt, including Link-Belt President, Chuck Martz, who is a 1973 graduate of the University of Kentucky. “It will mean a lot to our employees to see the culmination of many hours of hard work and dedication working right here in our own back yard. We ship our products to virtually every corner of the world, so we usually don’t get to see our cranes at work. I will feel a tremendous amount of pride when I see our brand new, first-run product working in and around Lexington,” said Martz.

The HTC-8640 is newest addition to Link-Belt’s tremendously successful hydraulic truck crane line. Two of its predecessors, the HTC-8670 and HTC-8650, dominated their respective markets in 1998 with 60 and 75-percent share, respectively. “We expect this crane to rise to the level of sales and performance as the HTC-8670 and HTC-8650. Our product development focuses on the needs of the customer. Many features of the HTC-8640, such as the longest boom in its class, the standard air-ride suspension and the engine’s horsepower, are a result of listening to the customer,” says Martz. Older model Link-Belt cranes have been working at many high profile jobs in Lexington, such as the recent expansion of Commonwealth Stadium.