Wittke Iron Works could trace its history to 1936, when the company began light manufacturing of farm implements. By the the 1970s, the company was successful building refuse containers, and ultimately entered the refuse body business in the early 1980s with an unusual side loader called the Burro. This was essentially a revival of the old MB Pack-King, with a hinged-hopper, side-loading packer. The Burro came with either a tilt-to-dump body, or a detachable 6-yard container body which could be exchanged when full and emptied by a conventional front loader. These bodies had the advantage of good compaction and positive load retention, features lacking in many of the full-height packer blade side loaders with which they competed. A larger version called Clydesdale used the same packer with bodies in the 20-yard range.
Side view of the Super Burro, showing packer mechanism, similar to the MB Pack-King
1982 Burro with detachable 6-yard container body
Burro can exchange full container for empty one, then continue on the route
This early Burro is a tilt-to-dump model
The Clydesdale featured a full-sized body of about 20-cubic yards
Clydesdales featured a power-locking tailgate
Later model Burro, with a detachable 6-yard container body which could be exchanged when full
(Video courtesy of Thrash 'N' Trash Productions)
WITTKE STARLIGHT
The Wittke Starlight front loader
Wittke might be remembered only as a small regional builder if not for the success of their breakout front loader, the Starlight. These were ultra-light curved-shell models with a fast packer, which earned a reputation for quality with west coast operators. Waste Management Inc. was a large fleet purchaser, and by the late 1990s a host of modern refuse packers were offered. An experimental ASL arrived by 2000, which was produced in limited numbers. A conventional push-blade commercial side loader called Sprinter and the pendulum-type packer Crocodile joined the lineup. Road sweepers were added to the Wittke family in 2001, but the following year, the company was purchased by Federal Signal.
Concurrent with the purchase of Wittke, Federal Signal had also purchased Leach Company of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and began to consolidate the two companies. Eventually, Leach production was shifted entirely to Medicine Hat, and the Oshkosh facility became a service depot for the new Environmental Products Group. Wittke front loaders continued production, but curiously the name was dropped and replaced with the Leach name, which was applied to all products. This may have contributed to the undoing of the new conglomerate. Wittke had a loyal base of front load customers, whereas Leach was primarily known for its famous 2-R Packmaster rear loader. In hindsight it would seem the Wittke name should have been retained, at least for that half of the product line.
In 2006, Federal Signal sold most of Environmental Products Group to Labrie Equipment Limited of Quebec. The purchase excluded the Alberta factory founded by Wittke. Labrie wisely resurrected the Wittke brand, and adopted the product as its own front loader division. The same was done for Leach rear loaders, capitalizing on the respective strengths of each brand name. Impac/Penppac joined Labrie in 2011, through a cooperative agreement. Burro detachable-body side loaders have been made independently in Manitoba.
Wittke Sprinter commercial side loader
2000 Wittke ASL with experimental lift arm
This 2002 Express MSL was probably one of the last units built before the Federal Signal buyout
Express unitized body/hopper detail
Wittke Barracuda compact rear loader, probably a re-badged New-Way
Witkke ASL with pendulum-packer being tested in Phoenix in 2001
(Video courtesy of lifeaftergeorge)
