Ohio Machinery Co., the Caterpillar equipment and power systems dealership in eastern Ohio, has purchased the neighboring Cat dealership in western Ohio and has renamed the company Ohio CAT. The new company employs more than 800 people at 16 locations throughout the state.

Company President Kenneth E. (Ken) Taylor, following his father and grandfather in the business as a third-generation Cat dealer principal, now presides over a distribution organization with significant capabilities and staying power in an industry that has seen substantial change and consolidation in recent years. Ohio CAT serves essentially all of the state of Ohio and portions of northern Kentucky and southeastern Indiana that surround metropolitan Cincinnati. The western Ohio dealership was formerly a division of San Antonio, TX-based Holt CAT.

The company sells, leases and rents equipment, engine systems and related products and offers product support services to customers in the heavy construction, highway construction, aggregate mining, coal mining, general construction, trucking, electric power generation, governmental and industrial markets. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Speaking about the transaction, Taylor said, "We are extremely pleased to bring together the experience and knowledge of all Ohio CAT employees from across the state, and we look forward to continuing to support those who choose to own and operate the best equipment and engines available."

The acquisition represents a return to the origins of Ohio Machinery Co., which served the entire state when it was originally formed in 1945. Before the acquisition, Ohio Machinery Co. served 25 counties in eastern Ohio, and Holt CAT served 64 counties in western Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Combined, the new dealership serves an 89-county area that contains approximately 12 million people.

Taylor said the newly expanded and renamed company is making three commitments to its customers. "First, as a locally-owned and operated company, Ohio CAT will work hard to earn our customers’ trust everyday," he said. "We share a commitment to the same local communities, and we employ people who are passionate about our business.

"Second, we promise to be a stable and reliable business partner. We understand our customers’ needs for productivity and efficiency, and we will listen to their goals and will always try to find ways to help them achieve those goals.

"And third, we will serve our customers as a seamless organization whose unified operations are driven by a culture of teamwork and personal performance."

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