Since the late 70's Gorbel has been dedicated to providing high-quality overhead materials handling solutions. Here is just a brief review of some of our highlights.

1977 Jib Cranes Were Our Foundation

• The company was founded as a manufacturer of manually rotated jib cranes. These jib cranes are made from structural steel and are used to lift and move products within manufacturing environments. As Gorbel grew, motorized jibs were added to complete the line.

1986 Expansion into Work Station Bridge Cranes

• To answer the need for ergonomic material handling products, Gorbel launched a new product line of enclosed track Work Station Bridge Cranes, including free standing work station bridge cranes, ceiling mounted bridge cranes, monorails and work station jib cranes.

1993 Proven Productivity

• In a study conducted by the Human Factors Laboratory at Rochester Institute of Technology for Gorbel, it was proven that Work Station Cranes result in productivity increases of up to 28% compared with traditional I-beam cranes. The Work Station Bridge Cranes move so easily that they deliver a 100:1 productivity ratio. Thus an operator can move a 500 lb. load with only 5 lbs. of force. Because of the ease of movement and positioning, the Work Station Cranes contribute to worker safety. View the ergonomic study results...

1994 Built On a Belief in Total Quality

Gorbel began training, developing and empowering their employees in the principles of Total Quality Management. We are committed to moving closer to the customer through developing new marketing programs, new product development, and making products available faster. The following improvements were made to Gorbel's product offering:

• Developed 4000 lb. enclosed track cranes.
• Increased the runway and bridge spans to 30'.
• Introduced new patented aluminum track.
• Developed new improved trussed steel track.
• Quick deliveries - first it was a 10-day quick ship, then a 5-day quick ship and now a 3-day quick ship.
• Guaranteed delivery - "If it's late we'll pay the freight" means if Gorbel® does not have your order ready to ship on or before the scheduled ship date, Gorbel® will pay the going freight rate.
• The industry's best warranty up to 2 years or 4000 hours of use has now been expanded to 5 years or 10,000 hours of use.
• New products have been introduced to meet custom crane requirements such as telescoping bridges, interlock/transfer cranes, Offset load platforms, AL100, articulating jibs, tractor drives, and Seismic Zone IV Cranes.

1996 Second Facility Opens, Gorbel® Expands to World Wide Web

• To accommodate the increase in sales from the growth of work station cranes, Gorbel opened a second manufacturing plant in Pell City, Alabama.
• The Gorbel® web site was introduced. Gorbel supports their dealer/distributor network through various applications on the dealers only section of the Internet.

1998 New Technology Center Opens

• Gorbel opened its newest facility in Fishers, NY next to its headquarters. The 32,000 square foot Technology Center is the home of research and development, sales, marketing and information technology departments.

2000 Gorbel Enters Ergonomic Lifting Arena

• The latest challenge was manufacturing and marketing the G-Force® Intelligent Lifting Device which is assembled in the new Tech Center facility. This new product increases a worker's physical power by adding mechanical power to the lifting task. With the assistance of this intelligent lifting device, a worker can lift an object up to 150 lbs. with very little effort. The computer senses load and adjusts the device so the worker always lifts about 5% of the load while the device lifts the other 95%. This product is especially suitable for high-speed maneuvers.

2001 G-Force® Finds Early Success

• The G-Force® was chosen as Product Engineering Magazines Product of the Year for 2000.

2002 Product Line Further Expands with Acquisition of Cleveland Tramrail®

• Gorbel aquired the Cleveland Tramrail® Patented Track line. A new building was completed in August in the same Fishers facility as Gorbel headquarters and the Technology Center. The Cleveland Tramrail offerings are an ideal complement to Gorbel's existing product lines. Cleveland Tramrail® by Gorbel® products will continue to reflect the quality that made Cleveland Tramrail® the patented track leader, with the value added customer service and support that have made Gorbel® A Class Above.

2003 Easy Arm™ Exceeds Expectations

• This year brought about another new Gorbel® product, the Easy Arm™ Intellligent Lifting Arm which was released for production in early July. We took our patented G-Force® technology and an industrial processor controlled drive system and integrated them into an ergonomic articulating jib design. This product has already been named as a Plant Engineering Product of the Year Finalist.

2004 Our Product Offerings Continue to Grow

• Our Easy Arm™ Intelligent Lifting Arm, released last year, will soon be available in a Platform Mounted Design.
• Our Cleveland Tramrail® Patented Track line has released Patented Track Crane Systems and our newly designed C-Series End Trucks.

2005 We Expand Our Reach

• We started construction on a new plant in the Tianjin economic development region of China, outside Bejing. This will allow Gorbel to establish distribution channels necessary to better serve the Chinese Market.
• We also opened a new sales office and service center in Troy, MI to better serve the Detroit automotive market.
• Something new this year is our Soft Touch Handle line. This line includes a pneumatic handle control which can be used to control any pneumatic device and our G-Force® pendant handle used in conjunction with our G-Force® BX and Easy Arm™ units.
• We also have a new line of Tarca® Pre-Engineered Crane Systems which are available in capacities up to 5 tons.

2006 A Rewarding Year

• Grand Opening celebration for China plant on May 25, 2006
• Added optional accessories for Work Station Crane line that include maintenance gates and tool trolleys
• Gorbel Named 2006 International Business of the Year (Small Business Category) by the Rochester Business Alliance

2007

• Expanded the G-Force line to include 600 lb. (300kg) Q/iQ units
• 660# G-Force® chosen as Plant Engineering Magazine's Gold Medal Winner for Product of the Year.