The first Superwinch began as a project of Ford Motor Company. Our founder, Frank Tolsdorf seized the idea and envisioned a company dedicated to providing the best winches and the best service. Superwinch was born. Frank, a marketer, and entrepreneur by trade jumped at the chance to take this project privately and built Superwinch’s first facility in the northeast corner of Connecticut in partnership with a wire cable supplier. Superwinch soon designed and manufactured a complete line of winches for the pleasure boating market. The line featured winches up to 8,000lbs in capacity and a powered capstan. Soon, it became obvious that a great many things could be improved by winches. Aerospace engineer Ian Dodds joined the company to help keep Superwinch on the forefront of innovation. Superwinch diversified into satellite positioning systems. Superwinch purchased New England based Mercury Electric Winch and UK based FW Winches Limited (formerly Fairey Winches, a division of the company that built Spitfire warplanes during World War II). These acquisitions added manufacturing capabilities and expertise to Superwinch’s arsenal. Superwinch became an instant player in the hydraulic and worm drive winch markets, expanded reach for electric winches and became an expert in overdrive gearboxes for Toyota and Land Rover. Superwinch pioneered the use of synthetic ropes on winches and was the first to offer a complete winch with the rope as standard. Citing lighter weight and increased safety, Superwinch became the first to build winches specifically made to resist the unique loading characteristics of synthetic rope. In 2015, Superwinch was purchased by Kinderhook Industries, a private equity firm and is currently led by CEO and President Pat Gerard. Together, the new management team opened a new design facility in Portland, Oregon and continues on a path of global expansion. With over 4 million Superwinches in the field and production facilities on four continents, Superwinch is the leader in quality winching products.