Atlas-Imperial
Encyclopedia
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
.
The company was created in 1916 when two early gasoline engine
Petrol engine
A petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels....
companies combined to manufacture diesel engines, following the expiration of Rudolph Diesel's patents.
Atlas-Imperial engines were considered one of the most serviceable diesels ever built in the United States. The company made diesels for tugboat
Tugboat
A tugboat is a boat that maneuvers vessels by pushing or towing them. Tugs move vessels that either should not move themselves, such as ships in a crowded harbor or a narrow canal,or those that cannot move by themselves, such as barges, disabled ships, or oil platforms. Tugboats are powerful for...
s, fishboats, coasters, yachts, lightvessels, and other ships. The company produced engines in a variety of sizes and ratings, from a 2-cylinder model that generated 30 hp to an 8-cylinder model that generated 600 hp. Known for their reliability and serviceability, Atlas diesels were installed in workboats around the world. While the Atlas-Imperial factory closed in the 1950s, its engines continued to power vessels well into the era of high-speed, small-cylinder diesel technology. Today, a few hundred Atlas Imperial engines remain, with a few dozen still in operational condition.
The Canadian engines were assembled by Heaps Machine Shop in New Westminster, BC.