For the past four years, Elgin Industries has been recognized as a John Deere "Partner-Level Supplier."
Elgin Industries supplies a broad portfolio of internal engine parts to John Deere operations in Waterloo, Iowa, as well as in Mexico, France and Argentina.
"Our success as a partner to Deere & Company is a source of great pride for our entire team," said Bill Skok, Elgin Industries president. "For nearly a century, Elgin Industries has been a trusted source of top quality components used in the world's hardest working vehicles and equipment. Every member of our team, from our design engineers to our manufacturing staff and customer service representatives, is dedicated to helping each of our customers meet their business needs through exceptional product performance and reliability."
Elgin Industries also serves leading engine and vehicle manufacturers such as Fiat Chrysler, Ford Motor Company, Harley-Davidson, Mack Trucks, Navistar and Polaris.
Originally known as Elgin Machine Works, the company began in 1919 when Martin Skok Sr. started manufacturing piston pins.
According to Bill Skok, Skok Sr.'s grandson, "the piston pins available back then didn't have sufficient hardness to deliver more than a few thousand miles of service. The engine manufacturers didn't have the capacity or interest to service the replacement market, so vehicle owners sometimes had to wait for up to six months to get replacement pins for their vehicles."
In addition to piston pins, the company expanded into a variety of other products such as water pumps, oil pumps, push rods, king pin sets and steering gear sets.
Skok Sr. was the owner and developer of the Elgin Piston Pin Special, a race car that ran at the Indianapolis 500 in 1926-28, 1936-41, 1946, and 1953.
In 1933, AAA Indy race teams arrived to participate in the Elgin National Road Race, which was part of the Chicago World Fair. It was scheduled as the only road race in the United States. After the funds for the cash prize disappeared, Skok Sr. financed the event.
During a reenactment of the Elgin National Road Race, Elgin resident Steve Thoren said: "The Elgin National Road Race ran every August from 1910 to 1915, stopped because of World War I, and came back in 1919, 1920, and again in 1933. The route was 8.5 miles long. The first road race took place one year before the first Indianapolis 500 race."
After Skok Sr. died in 1964, his son, Martin Skok Jr., assumed control of the company and guided the organization to international markets.
Martin Skok Jr. died last year at the age of 87.
The company continues to bear the name of the city that it has always called home.
"My dad never lost his love for the Elgin community," Bill Skok said. "While many other manufacturers have moved their operations to low-cost countries, he believed in the quality and value of products designed and built in the United States. We, and all of our employees, share his passion for quality and customer satisfaction, which is perhaps his greatest legacy."
When Elgin Industries celebrated its 95th anniversary in 2014, the Skok family and more than 100 employees marked the milestone with a picnic at the company headquarters and manufacturing complex.
The company will be celebrating its centennial anniversary in 2019.
