River Veteran Terry Moore Buys Crane Company
As director of business operations for AEP River Operations from 2008 to 2013, Terry Moore was a highly visible presence in the inland waterways industry at conferences and events.
He left AEP when an opportunity to return to a previous employer, Boeing, offered itself. “I had moved out to Colorado to help a commercial marine division of Boeing grow its market and increase sales,” he said. “It was a terrific few years; so good that the decision was made to sell the division to a Norwegian investment firm.”
Moore had always wanted to run his own business. He and his wife, Carol, researched various opportunities and kept coming back to a 28-year-old company located in Bon Aqua, Tenn., outside of Nashville and about 35 miles from the Tennessee River. The former owners, a married couple in their 70s, were set to retire and didn’t have immediate successors.
An agreement was worked out and concluded by January 5. Today Moore is the president of Overhead Crane & Conveyor Service Corporation.
The transition depended on the close and active support of Carol Moore—so much so that Overhead Crane is certified as a woman-owned business. On his LinkedIn site, Moore posted, “Carol is doing a terrific job running the office and incorporating a multitude of changes needed to improve efficiencies.”
Overhead Crane manufacturers a variety of cranes including overhead single- and double-girder cranes as well as gantry, jib and box girder crane systems. The cranes feature variable-frequency drives and soft-start technologies. The company custom-designs both wire rope and chain hoists.
“Most of the time you see our cranes, you’ll see them in warehouses,” said Moore. “We also represent the Columbus McKinnon line of quality, American-made crane products,” said Moore.
The company’s products are also used in machine shops as well as in water treatment plants, injection molding facilities, second- and third- tier automotive facilities, steel warehouses, and general manufacturing plants. Overhead Crane has extensive experience with military customers.
Besides manufacturing, Overhead Crane also offers inspection and maintenance services for all types of cranes. Some are used in marine terminals—a market Moore says he is looking forward to expanding.
