Company History
History
of The Commercial Group
In 1953, Garland Knight and a partner opened Himight Sling
Fabricators on Lafayette Street in Detroit, Michigan. The
company's first contract was with another local sling shop,
Industrial Cable & Sling, to help them service their
customers in the Bay City, Flint and Midland markets. Within
a few years, the company began growing on its own. Eventually,
Himight changed its name to Commercial Wire Rope & Sling
and moved to Chadwick Street and then to its current location
on Grand River Avenue in Detroit.
Over the next two decades, the company expanded its product
line and geographic reach. After surviving the Detroit riots,
the company opened branches in Flint in 1965 and Toledo
in 1974. During this period, a sister company, Detroit Chain
Products, was established to manufacture chain slings and
other related chain and web products.
In 1985, Garland Knight bought out his partner and continued
the growth strategy. A local competitor, Industrial Cable
& Sling, was purchased in 1988. The Ohio operations
were also expanded with the opening of a branch in Dayton
in 1999 and the purchase of Great Lakes Supply in Cleveland
in 2000.
All of the companies were rolled up
under a holding company, The Commercial Group, in 1998.
Today, the company is one of the largest distributors of
wire rope and chain slings in the country. Garland Knight
still serves as Chairman of the Board, and his son, Gar
Knight, is the President. Their goal is still the same—to
provide the highest quality service to their customers while
providing creative and innovative solutions to rigging and
hoisting problems.
Read more about The
Commercial Group from this article in Wire Rope News
& Sling Technology. (Note: You need Adobe Acrobat Reader
to view).
