J.H. Fletcher & Co., recently celebrated 85 years of service to the coal mining industry. The company was founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1937, by James Herbert Fletcher, with the idea that rubber-tired technology, already being used underground in industrial minerals, could be applied to the coal mining industry.
After moving to Huntington, West Virginia in the 1940s, Fletcher became a pioneer in the production of roof bolters. Advancements in safety and productivity of roof bolting in the USA have always been associated with Fletcher, who invented and patented aspects of the automated temporary roof support system (ATRS).
In 2000, the production line was expanded to include the industrial mineral and rock division. Today, Fletcher is the world’s leading manufacturer of custom-built roof bolting machines, designed to meet a variety of specific mining needs. Fletcher roof bolters are accompanied with an entire line of machinery, including coal, industrial mineral, metal and construction equipment. Fletcher continues to focus its line of technological machinery on worker safety and productivity in underground mines.
In 2022, Fletcher acquired Cannon Mining to provide over 30 years of experience building underground equipment for industrial mineral and metal mines. The acquisition of Cannon Equipment will provide over 30 years of experience building underground mining equipment for industrial mineral and metal mines. The Cannon portfolio that includes drill jumbos, scalers, and roof bolters broadens J.H. Fletcher & Co’s existing product lines. Additionally, the articulated frame utility vehicle product line became a new introduction to the J.H. Fletcher & Co.’s line of equipment, including scissor trucks, crane trucks, man baskets, fuel/lube packages and more.
Fletcher currently supports over 290 employees, including: welders, mechanics, draftsmen, engineers, and accountants, alongside many more skilled and educated workers. Fletcher prides itself in continuing to be a local, family-owned business, that has continued to grow and develop. Presently, Fletcher is represented world-wide, and prides itself in being renowned within the industry as a leader in roof bolting technologies.