What’s Going On At Crane Cams?

cranecams2It’s getting very confusing. Official statements and releases by the company and published during these last 2 weeks are contradicted, corrected or amended in the following days. So, we know that Crane Cams founded in 1953 was acquired at the end of 2006 by Mikronite Technologies Group in New Jersey. That Crane Cams of Daytona closed abruptly on February 24, laying off 280 employees. That Vice President Steve Leva stated last week that the famous Camshafts/Valve Train/Electric Ignition Components company will reopen soon after restructuration. Now, I learn that this week, as Crane Cams officials conducted a tour of their plant for prospective buyers today, a Wisconsin company advertised on the Internet that it plans to auction Crane’s assets during the coming month.

Bob Gaudiosi, vice president of LiquiTec Industries Inc. of Mequon, Wis., stated that Crane Cams CEO Jeffery Coats retained his firm to sell the equipment, inventory, machinery and intellectual property, such as patents and trademarks. Equipment, I understand if we talk about raising money for a leaner operation. But trade marks?

 

Liquitec would be selling 16 trademarks, including Crane Cams, Powermax, Compucom, Cam Dynamics, Blue Racer Performance Cams & Components, Fireball, Kool Nuts, Posi-stop, Import Power, Energizer, Hi Intensity and others. Gaudiosi said  that LiquiTec is preparing for an April 22 auction but is already accepting bids now on inventory and intellectual property. To make things more confusing, a company called Scorpion which manufactures auto parts at plants in Fort Lauderdale and Ocala announced Tuesday that a deal to buy Crane was pending. And Scorpion accepted applications today from former Crane employees hoping to get their jobs back. To follow…(with the help of Jim Witters, Daytona News Journal Online)

5 Responses to “What’s Going On At Crane Cams?”


  1. 1 Dave Blevins Mar 28th, 2009 at 7:57 am

    I hoped Crane would survive, but it appears that is unlikely… damn shame too.

  2. 2 J Mar 28th, 2009 at 9:45 pm

    Not seeing a lot of value in those trademarks, really- only as a future nostalgia patch, I suppose- where’s my Howard’s Cams jacket?

    Sounds like Mikronite has run out of debt financing avenues……. We’ll see more of this as the credit crunch continues to unwind…..

  3. 3 Kenny Price Mar 30th, 2009 at 12:08 pm

    i dont know if many people knew that black and decker had this old trademark. they shelved it in the 40’s. black and decker hired a new ceo who found out about the trademark. up until this time black and decker were considered kitchen appliances and anyone showing up on the construction job site who had a black and decker tool was laughed off the job. so as the truth comes out this new ceo who is as cleaver as can be revised a died out trademark, made the product line tougher than other products and the product now is the most widely used power tool used on job sites. that brand name is dewalt. i met the guy who turned black and decker around and brought that name from obscurity to a front runner. crane trademarks can be what an individual can do with them. i think its just a matter of reviving a name and rebranding it as a popular product. if i were in the cam business i think someone could buy the trademarks either to allow them to die or to bring them back to life with attitude.

  4. 4 Curt! Apr 1st, 2009 at 8:54 am

    It sounds like a prime candidate for the Tedd Cycle/ V-Twin Manufacturing stable. Tedd buys up respected names, like Sifton, then has the parts manufactured in Taiwan. The less informed consumer thinks he’s getting the same quality part he purchased years ago, instead he gets a Taiwan sub-standard part.

  5. 5 Brian Apr 3rd, 2009 at 11:58 am

    J, You do know Howards Cams is very much alive. Not only are they a premier cam company, but also manufacture cranks, rods and pistons. Some rather small companies carry them, such a Competition Products, BCI, Lane Automotive and Summit.

Comments are currently closed.
Cyril Huze