Ohio CAT is headquartered in Broadview Heights, Ohio, and the company is the exclusive, authorized dealer for Caterpillar equipment and engines throughout Ohio, Northern Kentucky, and Southeastern Indiana.   Ohio CAT conducts its operations through three divisions:  the Equipment Division, the Power Systems Division, and the Growth Opportunities Division.  In addition, the company operates CAT Rental Stores at 9 of its locations, remanufactures and repairs all makes of hydraulic components at its Hydraulics Division in Bolivar, Ohio (Complete Hydraulic Service), and provides leasing solutions through its wholly owned subsidiary, OMCO Leasing Corp.

The company’s origin dates back to 1945, when the company was first formed as a partnership.  The business was initially headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, and it distributed Caterpillar products throughout 66 of Ohio’s 88 counties.  In 1946, the company was incorporated, and management moved the headquarters to Cleveland.  In concert with post-war growth and infrastructure development, the business grew rapidly and added numerous employees and locations throughout Ohio.  In 1961, the founding principals elected to retire, and Caterpillar reorganized the company’s territory by reducing the number of counties from 66 to 25 in Eastern Ohio.  At that same time, Thomas H. Taylor, Sr. and his son, Thomas H. Taylor, Jr., purchased Ohio Machinery Co. (now Ohio CAT), and for the next 42 years the company operated only in Eastern Ohio.

In 1988, Ken Taylor joined Ohio Machinery Co., the third generation of Taylor’s to own and run the business.  Ken learned the business while working in a number of capacities, including roles in parts and service, sales finance, machine sales, and product support management.  In 1994, Tom Taylor, Jr. suffered an untimely death from Hepatitis, and at that point Ken became President.

On April 25, 2003, Ohio Machinery Co. purchased the assets of Holt Company of Ohio in Western Ohio, and Ohio CAT was born.  Today, Ohio CAT is a top ten Caterpillar Dealer in terms of industry opportunity, the company employs approximately 1,000 people in 17 locations, and annual sales consistently exceed $500 million.

The Equipment Division operates out of 14 locations throughout Ohio and Northern Kentucky, serving a diversity of markets that include coal mining, quarry and aggregates, waste, heavy/highway construction, building/general construction, manufacturing/industrial, scrap, and forestry.  The Equipment Division sells a broad array of Caterpillar products to customers in these markets—everything from 216 Skid Steer Loaders and 420 Backhoe Loaders used in general construction, to 330 Hydraulic Excavators and 140 Motor Graders used on highway projects, to D11 Track Type Tractors and 994 Wheel Loaders used in coal mining.  The Equipment Division provides its customers the highest overall parts availability in the industry, and the division’s service personnel and capabilities are second to none.

Ohio CAT’s Power Systems Division (PSD) ranks highly among PSD’s nation-wide, in terms of sales, rentals, and profitability.  In recent years, PSD total sales have exceeded $100 million, and the division has its sites set on annual sales of $150 million.  The Power Systems Division focuses on Truck Engine Sales and Product Support as well as Commercial Engine Sales, Rentals, and Product Support.  The division operates truck service bays in 8 of the company’s 17 locations, it handles commercial engine sales and product support throughout the territory, and it provides commercial engine and related product rentals primarily in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Toledo.  In the area of Temperature Control Sales and Rentals, Ohio CAT is designated by Caterpillar as a “Rental Resource Dealer,” which assigns Ohio CAT the role of supporting other Cat Dealers who are growing the Temperature Control segments of their businesses.  New within Ohio CAT’s Power Systems Division, as of January 1, 2008, is the International Fuel Systems (IFS) business segment which is conducted out of two dedicated locations, one in Findlay and the other in Toledo.  Ohio CAT acquired IFS from Caterpillar at the beginning of 2008, and IFS focuses its sales and operations on the repair and remanufacturing of all makes of diesel fuel systems, diesel injectors, and related components.

Ohio CAT’s Growth Opportunities Division is comprised of the Agri Business Division and the Con/Agg Division—two business segments that are complementary to both the Equipment Division and the Power Systems Division.  The Agri Business Division sells and supports Cat powered, high production Ag equipment including Challenger agricultural tractors, Lexion combines, and Ag-Chem Sprayers (beginning in 2008).  This division’s operations are conducted mainly out of the Troy, Toledo, Columbus, and Cincinnati locations, and divisional sales are expected to exceed $25 million.  The Con/Agg Division sells, rents, and supports high quality aggregate processing equipment which is used in crushing, screening, and conveying aggregate materials.  Product lines represented include products from Screen Machine Industries, Inc., IROCK Crushers LLC, and Terex/Finlay, and total Con/Agg sales and rentals are expected to exceed $10 million.

Finally, Ohio CAT’s operating divisions are supported by a dedicated team of staff personnel in the areas of accounting, corporate administration, credit, human resources, information systems, and six sigma.  Focused on their internal customers, staff personnel support and assist operating personnel in providing customers the absolute best in customer service.

During the years since becoming Ohio CAT, with the acquisition of Western Ohio, the company has positioned itself financially and organizationally to become the leader and preferred supplier in all of the markets it serves.  It is Ken Taylor’s firm expectation to see this occur through exceptional sales and product support efforts, together with ongoing teamwork and interdepartmental cooperation, and Ken Taylor is committed to recognizing and rewarding Ohio CAT’s employees for their service, commitment, performance and results.