COMPANYHISTORIES
NAIC 334290

Communications Equipment, Not Elsewhere Classified

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

45companies1865–2000founding years44still active1no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedNokia Corporation
1865
1876
TechnologyAlexander Graham Bell patents the telephone.
FoundedJohnson Controls, Inc.
1885
FoundedFederal Signal Corp.
1901
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedNortel Networks Corporation
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedTrans-Lux Corporation
1920
FoundedHarris Corporation
1926
FoundedBogen Communications International, Inc.
1932
FoundedMatsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
1935
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
FoundedKoor Industries Ltd.
1944
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
1956
TechnologyThe first transatlantic telephone cable opens.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedRadioShack Corporation
1960
FoundedTyco International Ltd.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedFirst Alert, Inc.
1967
1969
TechnologyARPANET, the internet's precursor, goes live.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
FoundedItron, Inc.
1977
FoundedWestell Technologies, Inc.
1980
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedPictureTel Corp.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedNovar plc
1985
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.
FoundedBroadwing Corporation
1997
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
FoundedEquant N.V.
1998
2000
TechnologyGPS opens to civilian use, turning location into a utility.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
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

Nokia Corporation →
Active · founded 1865 · Finland
Nokia Corporation is the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phones, with a worldwide market share of about 27…
Diebold, Incorporated →
Active · founded 1876
In the wake of the 1871 Great Chicago Fire, natural disaster proved a boon for Diebold Bahmann & Co.
Johnson Controls, Inc. →
Active · founded 1885
Johnson Controls, Inc.
Antofagasta plc →
Active · founded 1888 · United Kingdom
Antofagasta plc is one of the world's leading producers of copper, with total production levels nearing 472,000 tons in…
NEC Corporation →
Active · founded 1899 · Japan
Early 1920s:NEC, IWE, and a division of the Sumitomo group form a joint venture to produce electrical cables, marking…
Federal Signal Corp. →
Active · founded 1901
Federal Signal Corp., the nation's leading manufacturer of emergency vehicles and street sweepers, also produces…
Groupe Dassault Aviation SA →
Active · founded 1911 · France
One of France's most important developers and producers of military aircraft, including the famed Mirage series and…
Nortel Networks Corporation →
Active · founded 1914 · Canada
Nortel Networks Corporation is one of the world's leading providers of networking products and services, with a…
Thomas & Betts Corporation →
Active · founded 1917
Thomas & Betts Corporation (T&B) is a leading global manufacturer of electrical connectors and components.
Pitney Bowes Inc. →
Active · founded 1920
Pitney Bowes Inc.
Trans-Lux Corporation →
Active · founded 1920
Trans-Lux Corporation manufactures, distributes, and markets large-scale, real-time electronic information displays for…
Raytheon Company →
Active · founded 1922
Raytheon Company is the third largest defense contractor in the United States, trailing only the Boeing Company and…
Harris Corporation →
Active · founded 1926
The origin of the Harris Corporation, a leading American electronics company, is actually to be found in the printing…
Honeywell Inc. →
Active · founded 1927
Honeywell Inc.
Motorola, Inc. →
Active · founded 1928
Electronic communications pioneer Motorola, Inc.
Bogen Communications International, Inc. →
Active · founded 1932
With headquarters in New Jersey, Bogen Communications International, Inc., develops, manufactures, and markets…
The Boeing Company →
Active · founded 1934
The Boeing Company is the largest aerospace company in the world, thanks to its 1997 merger with McDonnell Douglas…
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. →
Active · founded 1935 · Japan
The Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
Northrop Grumman Corporation →
Active · founded 1939
Northrop Grumman Corporation is the number three defense firm in the United States, behind The Boeing Company and…
Ampex Corporation →
Active · founded 1944
Ampex Corporation is among the world leaders in the fields of magnetic recording, digital image processing, and…
Koor Industries Ltd. →
Active · founded 1944 · Israel
Koor Industries Ltd.
Winegard Company →
Active · founded 1954
Based in Burlington, Iowa, Winegard Company manufactures a wide variety of reception equipment for home, commercial,…
RadioShack Corporation →
Active · founded 1960
RadioShack Corporation--known as Tandy Corporation from its founding in 1960 until mid-2000--is one of the largest…
Harmon Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1961
Harmon Industries, Inc.
The Allied Defense Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1961
The Allied Defense Group, Inc.
Tyco International Ltd. →
Active · founded 1962 · Bermuda
Tyco International Ltd.
Schneider S.A. →
Active · founded 1966 · France
After a dizzying series of complicated restructurings, acquisitions, and divestments that began in 1980 when the…
First Alert, Inc. →
Active · founded 1967
For more than 25 years, First Alert, Inc., along with its subsidiaries, has been a leading worldwide manufacturer and…
Checkpoint Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1969
Checkpoint Systems, Inc.
Lifeline Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1974
Lifeline Systems, Inc.
Itron, Inc. →
Active · founded 1977
Itron, Inc., provides products and services to utility companies, helping its customers to collect, manage, and analyze…
Ultrak Inc. →
Active · founded 1980
Ultrak Inc.
Westell Technologies, Inc. →
Active · founded 1980
Westell Technologies, Inc.
Logitech International S.A. →
Active · founded 1981 · Switzerland
Logitech International S.A.
Comverse Technology, Inc. →
Active · founded 1984
Comverse Technology, Inc.
PictureTel Corp. →
Defunct · founded 1984
PictureTel Corp.
Hughes Electronics Corporation →
Active · founded 1985
Hughes Electronics Corporation is one of the world's leading satellite and wireless communications companies.
Novar plc →
Active · founded 1985 · United Kingdom
Novar plc is a U.K.-based corporation consisting of three primary business segments: security systems, aluminum product…
Ascend Communications, Inc. →
Active · founded 1989
Ascend Communications, Inc.
Daimler-Benz Aerospace AG →
Active · founded 1989 · Germany
With less than a decade under its belt, Daimler-Benz Aerospace AG has transformed the German aircraft industry from a…
Broadwing Corporation →
Active · founded 1997
Broadwing Corporation operates two divisions that serve different segments of the telecommunications industry.
L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1997
L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc., through its L-3 Communications Corp.
Equant N.V. →
Active · founded 1998 · The Netherlands
Equant N.V.
Agilent Technologies Inc. →
Active · founded 1999
Agilent Technologies Inc.
Nexans SA →
Active · founded 2000 · France
France's Nexans SA is one of the world's largest manufacturers, installers, and integrators of cables and systems,…
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