JLG Industries celebrates 50 years of innovation
JLG Industries is turning 50 and is commemorating the anniversary with year-long celebrations to mark a half-century since its founder introduced the world’s first boom lift, the JLG 1.
It was January 1969 when John L Grove rallied a small group of people around the idea of creating a safer way to work at height and introduced the first aerial work platform.
“For more than 2,000 years, people used inefficient and dangerous methods to access work areas,” Guru Bandekar, JLG Vice President of Global Product Management and Development said.
“So, when you think a mere half-century ago no one had invented a way to safely elevate people on job sites, one realises how remarkable John L Grove’s advancement was. His accomplishment gives all JLG employees a tremendous sense of pride.”
JLG claims many access industry firsts including oscillating axles for boom and scissor lifts in 1981; the only fuel-cell powered boom lift in 1999; the first environmentally-friendly 60foot electric boom lift in 2000; and the first straight boom lift to reach 150 feet in 2011. The company surpassed its own record in 2014 with the introduction of a 185-foot model 1850SJ, the world’s tallest self-propelled boom lift. In the same year, JLG introduced the first true hybrid diesel/electric boom lift, the H340AJ.
“50 years is a remarkable milestone for both JLG and the access industry,” Frank Nerenhausen, JLG President said.
“Our founder not only started a company, but an entire industry. This is a key point of differentiation for the JLG brand. We continue to build on this legacy through continuous development of products, services and technology that advance safety for work at height.
John L Grove formed JLG Industries with an inner circle of only three investing partners, and within a few short years, developed a unique product that filled a huge void in the construction industry. He quickly won customer confidence and brand preference, a preference that saw the company quickly expand domestically and later internationally. Today, JLG is represented across five continents, with manufacturing facilities in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Romania, Australia and China and employs more than 6,000 around the world.
John L Grove was a skilled inventor, a savvy businessman and an extremely hard-working individual, who was driven by the pursuit of perfection in the products that bear his initials. A former employee once said: “You could show John L Grove anything, even a fountain pen, and he could immediately tell you how to improve it,” according to an excerpt from the book “The Life and Legacy of John L Grove.”
While the boom lift marked the start of JLG, the company’s product portfolio has expanded over the years to include a variety of award-winning hydraulic and electric drive scissor lifts, telescopic handlers, vertical lifts and a wide-range of low-level access solutions. JLG also offers after-sale parts, service and training offerings to ensure productivity, profitability and continued safety improvements on the job site.
Visit: www.jlg.com
