YANMAR’S LONGEST SERVING US DISTRIBUTOR, MACK BORING, CELEBRATES A CENTURY IN BUSINESS
Japan-headquartered marine diesel engine manufacturer, YANMAR, just 10 years after celebrating its own centenary, is joining with the wider US marine leisure industry to wish Mack Boring & Parts Company (Mack Boring) ‘fair winds’ for its next hundred years in business.
It was the early 1920s when founder Edward McGovern Sr., a WWI Navy veteran, known as ‘Mack’ started servicing, reboring and repairing engines in the basement of his Newark, New Jersey home. In 1922, Mack opened a 500sq.ft. machine shop in Newark, New Jersey and so began Mack Boring & Parts Co. Its quality work and reliability led to rapid growth and the move to an even larger facility.
The 1930s saw Mack and his company continue to prosper in a 10,000sq.ft. facility. At the rapidly growing automotive machine shop, superior workmanship and reliable service kept the business going, even through the tough depression years. During WWII Mack Boring ran three shifts a day, doing mainly War Department remanufacture work. Following the end of World War II, Ed McGovern Jr., a Navy war veteran and airplane pilot, joined the company and became his father’s partner.
In 1968, Edward “Ned” McGovern III, joined the company after serving with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam. In 1974 the McGoverns came across an unknown Japanese diesel: just eight horsepower and single cylinder, a raw water-cooled horizontal piston engine with an innovative design. This was the now legendary YANMAR YSE8, which Ed Jr., found to be of higher quality than anything on the domestic market and virtually unstoppable. But in post-war America, a Japanese engine would need to be appreciably better than its competitor products to achieve success, so there was a risk. As an experienced engineer, Ed was convinced by the superior technology and build quality on offer from YANMAR. Ed took that initial risk, purchased 100 units and so introduced the first YANMAR engines into the U.S. marketplace.
After three years at sea, Steve McGovern joined the company in 1975, bringing with him a 100-ton CG license and a vast knowledge of sailing ships, tugboats and yachts. His marine experience and passion for building an impressive dealer network helped popularize YANMAR in the sail market and in five brief years YANMAR became the top selling sailboat diesel engine in the U.S., a coveted title it still holds today.
Today, Mack Boring manages approximately 300 Authorized YANMAR Dealers across 26 states. Its team of dedicated staff and highly skilled technicians pledge to continue the tradition of excellence as the company, through YANMAR and its other carefully chosen partnerships, continues to provide sailboat owners with ‘The Power To Go There’.
YANMAR celebrated its own centenary in 2012 by commencing the building of a 3000m2 museum in Nagahama, Japan, the birthplace of Magokichi Yamaoka, who founded the company in 1912. The museum opened in 2013 and provides first-hand experience of YANMAR ‘s history, principles and values.
Kevin Carlan, President, YANMAR Americas division said on the occasion of Mack Boring’s centenary: “Established in the 1920s, Mack Boring & Parts Co. is one of America’s leading distributors of marine diesel engines, including YANMAR’s pleasure marine product lines. North America remains the largest market in the world for leisure marine equipment and YANMAR has held the top spot for diesel engine supply within that fiercely competitive market for over 40 years. This is thanks in no small part to Mack Boring, who have been our partners since 1974. Over the last four decades, these two household names in marine propulsion- YANMAR and Mack Boring- have worked closely to grow this mighty pleasure marine business.”
Current Mack Boring President, Patrick McGovern adds that the partnership between Yanmar and Mack Boring is a special one; “Our ability to grow with Yanmar has been a pillar of strength for Mack Boring for essentially half our 100-year history. We are grateful for the trust Yanmar has placed in our team to help grow their brand in North America, and for the exceptional products we have had the honour of representing.”