22.12.2011

New head of manufacturing for Link Belt

Russ Hopper has been promoted to the post of vice president, manufacturing for Kentucky, USA based crane manufacturer Link-Belt.

Hopper, who takes on the new job from January 1st, began working at Link-Belt 36 years ago as a welder. He moved quickly into the supervisory ranks within welding production and continued to take on more management responsibilities, moving through a number of manufacturing areas, including assembly and paint operations. He eventually rose to production manager for all processes.
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Russ Hopper

In that position, he is said to have played a vital role in the conversion of the company’s production organisation into the Link-Belt Production System using lean Kaizen tools and philosophies.

Chief executive Chuck Martz said: “No one knows the Link-Belt Production System better than Russ and no one is better suited to lead our manufacturing organisation. Russ’s shop floor experience will give him boardroom insights into taking care of our people, meeting our sky-high production standards, and producing an even better product for our customers.”