For the past four decades, steel has been a business in the Koppelaar family. In fact, they would say it is pretty much a part of their DNA.
For Greg Koppelaar, president of Bay Lynx Manufacturing, continuing his family’s legacy was obvious as “steel is in our blood and roots.”

Greg’s family has a long history in the steel industry, specifically in Southern Ontario. His grandfather, Walter Koppelaar, moved to Canada from the Netherlands to escape the Second World War. In 1956, Walter opened his ornamental iron business in Hamilton, Ont., calling it ‘Walter’s Welding and Iron Works.’ The business steadily grew over two decades and by 1980, it rebranded to Walters Inc.

After graduating from high school in 1989, Greg joined the Walter Group as a quality assurance manager. In 1992, he left the company to start his own with his brother Kevin, production engineering manager at Bay Lynx. The brothers manufactured soft-side curtains for the transport trailer industry under CurtainSider Inc.
In 1994, they were approached by a client to build a stone spreader for the aggregate industry.

“We built ten trucks and called the product Agri-Lynx,” recalls Greg.

The project was successful, and the brothers considered taking on a new business venture, specifically focusing on concrete material spreaders and equipment. In 1996, Bay Lynx was officially founded.
“We had a product name before a company name,” he jokes. “Bay comes from Hamilton Bay, where the steel mines are, and our family roots are in Hamilton. Lynx comes from the cat, as it portrays an image of strength.”

At first, Bay Lynx started with about 16 employees in a facility in Hamilton. As the company established itself in the aggregate manufacturing industry, more products were developed.
“We created more spreaders, different attachments, set up distribution and salespeople.”
Most importantly, Bay Lynx started manufacturing concrete mixers, their most popular product today. In 2014, Greg and Kevin sold the CurtainSider business and moved Bay Lynx to a 41-square-foot plant with an additional back lot in Ancaster, Ont.
“All of our products are made here from start to finish,” says Greg.
There are 70 employees in Ontario, and two more locations in England and the United States.
The Ancaster plant is equipped with a large manufacturing floor, where all the products are designed, crafted, welded and shipped out. Bay Lynx manufactures stone spreaders, mobile batch plants, cambering machines and volumetric concrete mixers.
“Mixers are what we are known for,” says Matthew Wolfe, aftersale care and parts associate at Bay Lynx.
“We spray paint all of the trucks in-house,” he says. “We also add company logos as well. I get to design a lot of them.”

According to Greg, the company has a large customer base in the U.K. and overseas. He attributes the company’s success and wide customer base to its willingness to work hands-on with businesses of any size. Additionally, the on-site design and engineering team can create custom items for clients.
“We always try our best to meet our customers’ needs no matter what, even the little guys.”