The Crane Company is an Americanindustrialproductscompany based in Stamford, Connecticut. Founded by Richard Teller Crane in 1855, it became one of the leading manufacturers of bathroom fixtures in the United States, until 1990, when that division was sold off. In 1960 it began the process of becoming a holding company with a diverse portfolio. Its business segments are Aerospace & Electronics, Engineered Materials, Payment and Merchandising Technology, Fluid Handling, and Controls. Industries served by these segments include chemical industries, commercial construction, food and beverage, general and commercial aviation, and power generation. The company is best known to the consumer public as a large manufacturer of vending machines. Crane Co. has expanded their lineup of snack machines via their acquisitions of Glasco Polyvend Lektrovend and Automatic Products, which continue to be marketed as separate brands from Crane Co.'s National line. Crane Co. has also acquired Dixie-Narco from Maytag, adding a full lineup of soda machines to Crane Co.'s portfolio.
History
In 1855, brothers Richard and Charles Crane formed R. T. Crane & Bro., which manufactured and sold brass goods and plumbing supplies. The new company soon won contracts to supply pipe and steam-heating equipment in large public buildings such as the Cook County courthouse and the state prison at Joliet. In 1865, R. T. Crane and Brother was incorporated and the name of the company was changed to the Northwestern Manufacturing Company. It began to manufacture a full line of industrial valves and fittings in cast iron, malleable iron and brass. By 1870, when it employed about 160 people, it was making elevators as well. After the Chicago Fire of 1871, the company decided to expand its operations. Just after the firm became Crane Bros. Manufacturing Co. in 1872, it employed as many as 700 men and boys and manufactured over $1 million worth of products per year. In 1890, when it had sales branches in Omaha, Kansas City, Los Angeles and Philadelphia, the company changed its name to Crane Co. By this time, Crane was supplying much of the pipe used for the large central heating systems in Chicago's new skyscrapers, and it was also selling the enameled cast-iron products that were soon found in bathrooms in residences across the country. In 1910, when Crane had begun to manufacture in a plant at Bridgeport, Connecticut, its Chicago plants employed more than 5,000 people. A large new Chicago plant on South Kedzie Avenue was built in the 1910s. During the 1920s, when Crane expanded overseas, the company was the world's leading manufacturer of valves and fittings. During the next few decades, Crane continued to employ thousands of Chicago-area residents at its Kedzie Avenue plant, and the company's annual sales rose to over US$300 million by the mid-1950s. In 1959, however, the Crane family sold their control of the company. The new owners then began to turn Crane into a global conglomerate that made aerospace equipment as well as plumbing supplies. The headquarters eventually moved from Chicago to Bridgeport. The Crane Plumbing unit was sold off in 1990. Crane Plumbing is now a unit of American Standard Brands.
In a 1917 U.S. Supreme Court case Looney v. Crane Co., the company was involved against the state of Texas.
The Court held "that the franchise and permit taxes both violated the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and directly burdened interstate commerce. A suit to enjoin state officials from enforcing an unconstitutional tax is not a suit against the state." The meaning of this ruling is that States are not allowed to add burdens to corporations if it impacts interstate commerce. This case has been cited in over 20 further Supreme Court rulings.
Asbestos Liabilities
As of December 31, 2007, Crane Company faced 80,999 asbestos liability claims. In 2007, the company set aside $390 million for predicted asbestos liability costs through 2017.
