Throwback Thursday: Our Plant in Cynthiana
The mid-1960s was a period of civil unrest for most of the country…but Ladish persevered.
(Top: New Plant in KY, Bottom: Tri-Clover Plant in WI)
During the era of the Cuban missle crisis, forging companies suffered many losses and Ladish was no exception. However, in true Ladish form, expansion continued when the brand new Kentucky division began operation. In hopes of breaking into the corrosion-resistant valve market, Ladish had purchased Hasco Valve of Milwaukee in the mid-1950s. This drove the move to a the newly rented factory in Cynthiana, KY. The community of Cynthiana quickly became the manufacturing center for Ladish’s line of corrosion resistant and cryogenic valves, saw blades and stainless steel pipe fittings. With the help of the city, Ladish built a state-of-the-art machining and assembly facility that eventually grew to almost 400,000 square feet. From saw blades to stainless fittings to truck axles and aircraft parts, this plant pushed Cynthiana’s employment upwards of 500 as they entered the 1970s.
Meanwhile, the Tri-Clover subsidiary in Wisconsin moved to a new facility just west of town in the 1970s. Payroll jumped higher than Ladish’s entire workforce before WWII!
Resources: Forging Ahead: A Centennial History of Ladish Co., 80 Years of Progress at Ladish Co.
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