Corporate History

A fluid power industry leader for over 25 years

Helac Corporation was founded in 1968 as a custom fabrication and machine shop. In 1974, the company manufactured its first production rotary actuators and, by the late-70's, had developed and manufactured its first sliding spline helical rotary actuators. In 1982, Helac was restructured to manufacture strictly hydraulic rotary actuators.

The company introduced the innovative, highly successful HP Series Pivot Rotary Actuator (today known as the L30 Series) in 1984, and, four years later, the PH Series Planetary Design (today known as the L10 Series) was introduced. Today, Helac rotary actuators are in service in a wide variety of applications around the world including vehicle wheel steering, mining machinery, material handling vehicles, aerial work platforms, assorted construction equipment, refuse and recycling cart dumpers, as well as countless other rotation, indexing and positioning applications.

Helac entered the construction equipment attachment industry in 1990, with the introduction of Helac PowerTilt®, a bucket swing attachment. Helac PowerGrip®, a multi-purpose bucket for backhoes and excavators used for trenching, grading and grappling, was added to the attachments line in 2001.

Today Helac employs over 160 people in a world class, 118,000 square foot facility in the greater Seattle metropolitan area. Helac has invested heavily in the latest management, manufacturing, engineering, and computer technology and looks forward to maintaining its position of leadership in the fluid power industry.