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ABOUT US
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Alamo/SMC roots date back to 1941 when Elmer and Norman Schwartz founded
Schwartz Manufacturing Company as a two-man manufacturing business in the
old Sunnyside Creamery in Lester Prairie, Minnesota. Some of the first
products Schwartz Manufacturing built were silage carts and homemade
front end loaders that were custom built for each individual tractor
farmers brought into the Schwartz shop. In 1945, Elmer Schwartz purchased
his brother's interest and began the mass production of farm equipment
products. The first mass-produced units were the front end mounted farm
loaders. In a few short years, the Schwartz farm line expanded to include
the wide front axle conversion for a tricycle-front farm tractor. The
introduction of this product firmly established Schwartz Manufacturing
as a leader in the farm equipment market place.
In 1953, Schwartz Manufacturing introduced the Uni-thrust Hoist with the
lifting cradle as a unique feature. The cradle had rollers in the upper
end which rolled toward the rear of the body longbeams as the hoist lifted
the load. This first model offered by Schwartz was equipped with cast steel
piston rings, which were very similar to those used in car engines. This
type of piston ring offers the ultimate in cylinder wear lift. There were
four types of truck hoists marketed throughout the United States with sizes
and models to fit almost any truck from one half-ton pickup to large tandem
models with telescopic hoists.
In 1954 Schwartz introduced a product line of ramp hoists for truck bodies.
The five models of ramp hoists, plus the Lo-Boy Semi-trailers which they
began producing in 1969, enable Schwartz Manufacturing to provide a complete
line of machinery transport equipment.
Major expansions in Lester Prairie began in 1959 with the purchase of additional
buildings which were converted into a facility for mounting ramp hoists onto
customer trucks. Further expansion came in 1963 with the construction of
additional factory and office space at the main Lester Prairie facility.
A major reorganization of the company took place in 1965 when A. A. Kole joined
the firm as a partner and was named Chief Operations Officer. Growth continued
through the acquisition of manufacturing facilities in Nebraska (1966) for building
of truck bodies (closed and moved to Sioux Falls in 1972), South Dakota (1967),
and Minnesota (1973), Cokato Plant for loader production and engineering (closed
and moved to Lester Prairie in 1983.
In 1970, Schwartz Manufacturing Company became a wholly owned subsidiary of
Chromalloy American Corporation. In December of 1983, the name was changed to
Amerequip Corporation. The company remained in the AmerEquip Company until it
was purchased by a private entity in 1989 and became known as SMC Corporation.
The manufacturing processes were moved to Sioux Falls, SD plant and the Engineering
and Marketing departments remained at Lester Prairie. The business remained at
Sioux Falls and was purchased by the Alamo Group in August 2001.
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