COMPANY·HISTORIES
SIC 3812

Navigation, Guidance, Search & Detection Systems & Instruments

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

28companies1850–1990founding years28still active0no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedScovill Fasteners Inc.
1850
FoundedWestinghouse Electric Corporation
1886
FoundedTRW Inc.
1901
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedEagle-Picher Industries, Inc.
1916
FoundedAlliedSignal Inc.
1920
FoundedBall Corporation
1922
FoundedHarris CorporationFoundedSundstrand Corporation
1926
FoundedRockwell International Corporation
1928
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
FoundedKaman Corp.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedBBN Corp.
1953
FoundedTracor Inc.
1955
FoundedLowrance Electronics, Inc.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedLockheed Martin Corporation
1961
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedE-Systems, Inc.
1964
FoundedMcDonnell Douglas Corporation
1967
FoundedInternational Telephone and Telegraph Corporation
1968
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedSBS Technologies, Inc.
1986
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Scovill Fasteners Inc. →
Active · founded 1850
One of the oldest manufacturing concerns in the United States, Scovill Fasteners Inc.
Westinghouse Electric Corporation →
Active · founded 1886
Westinghouse Electric Corporation is among the country's largest electronics companies, with units committed to serving…
Simplex Technologies Inc. →
Active · founded 1895
Simplex Technologies Inc.
TRW Inc. →
Active · founded 1901
Long a conglomerate, TRW Inc.
Eagle-Picher Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1916
With over 150 years of manufacturing experience, Eagle-Picher Industries, Inc., dominates numerous niche markets with…
Sparton Corporation →
Active · founded 1916
Sparton Corporation has a century long history of manufacturing technologically advanced equipment for the…
AlliedSignal Inc. →
Active · founded 1920
AlliedSignal Inc., formed from the acquisition of Signal Companies, Inc.
Ball Corporation →
Active · founded 1922
Although the Ball Corporation is best known for its distinctive home canning jars, that business was just one segment…
General Dynamics Corporation →
Active · founded 1925
General Dynamics' contribution to the defense industry, through the production of nuclear submarines and armored…
Harris Corporation →
Active · founded 1926
The origin of the Harris Corporation, a leading American electronics company, is actually to be found in the printing…
Sundstrand Corporation →
Active · founded 1926
Known as a premier supplier of parts for the aircraft industry since the 1940s, Sundstrand Corporation is also a…
FMC Corporation →
Active · founded 1928
FMC Corporation is a leading producer of industrial and specialty chemicals and maintains interests in defense systems,…
Rockwell International Corporation →
Active · founded 1928
One of five companies in the United States supplying the federal government with military aircraft fighters and bombers…
Grumman Corporation →
Active · founded 1929
The manufacturer of the U.S.
Kaman Corp. →
Active · founded 1945
Kaman Corp.
BBN Corp. →
Active · founded 1953
BBN Corp.
Litton Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1953
The U.S.
Tracor Inc. →
Active · founded 1955
Tracor Inc.
Lowrance Electronics, Inc. →
Active · founded 1958
Since the late 1950s Lowrance Electronics, Inc.
Talley Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1960
Talley Industries Inc.
Lockheed Martin Corporation →
Active · founded 1961
Formed in 1995 via the union of the nation's second- and third-ranking defense contractors, Lockheed Corporation and…
E-Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1964
E-Systems, Inc.
Aydin Corp. →
Active · founded 1967
A world class provider of products and systems for the acquisition and distribution of information over electronic…
McDonnell Douglas Corporation →
Active · founded 1967
The largest defense contractor in the United States, McDonnell Douglas Corporation is also the world's largest builder…
International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation →
Active · founded 1968
Once known primarily as a telecommunications company, the International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation (ITT) has…
Sensormatic Electronics Corp. →
Active · founded 1968
Sensormatic Electronics Corp.
SBS Technologies, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
SBS Technologies, Inc.
Orbital Sciences Corporation →
Active · founded 1990
Orbital Sciences Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, is an unrivaled, leading-edge space technology company…
Build It Today

Starting a navigation, guidance, search & detection systems & instruments company now

Each week we rebuild one of these stories for today's tools and capital.